Top 10 Latin Fighters

where do you rank ?
Humberto Gonzalez, Mexico
Pascual Perez, Argentina
Miguel Canto, Mexico
Carlos Zarate, Mexico
Panama Al Brown, Panama
Wilfredo Gomez, Puerto Rico
Erik Morales, Mexico
Marco Antonio Barrera, Mexico
Kid Chocolate, Cuba
Ismael Laguna, Panama
Nicolino Locche, Argentina
Emile Griffith, Virgin Islands
Wilfred Benitez, Puerto Rico
Mike McCallum, Jamaica
Julian Jackson, Virgin Islands

 

Aside from that his non-title record is Charles-esque in depth and quantity..It only takes a few click on boxrec to see..A little more research through other sources really opens your eyes..Id bet if one were to thoroughly analyze his record they would find his career was even more remarkable, but I cant say I have ever done that. A true great and easily one of the greatest Cubans to lace them up.

 

Does Virgin Islands count seeing as though they are an American territory without the commonwealth Status of PR? :think

 

Accomplishments aside, he was an excellent stylist and technician to boot. Awkward at first, but the more you see and analyze of him, the more you're able to pin down how calculating and skilled he really was, and how useful some of his maneuvers and stylistic differences were.

Here's a great article on his career and accounts of him by his contemporaries. Very telling that guys like Hank Kaplan, Angel Dundee, and Emile Griffith would favor him over someone like Napoles.

[url]http://cyberboxingzone.com/boxing/luisrod.htm[/url]

 

I'm pretty sure Jamaica and the Virgin Islands don't count.

From the rest of that list:

Humberto Gonzalez- Not especially highly. I feel he gets overrated because of his fights with Carbajal. From an ability standpoint he wasn't quite in league with the very best 108 pounders IMO.

Pascual Perez- Very high, but just outside of the top 10. Small even by Flyweight standards, yet an absolute bull by all accounts who fought with a brutal, two fisted attack and knew how to box. Able to rack up 57 wins by stoppage during a very consistent reign at the top of the Flyweight world at just 4'11, including what should've been a win against Pone Kingpetch in their first encounter.

Miguel Canto- Another I rate very highly (among the top 5 Mexican fighters of all time), in fact just above Perez. Another midget, even by Flyweight standards, this one who used his A+ pure boxing skills and technical craftsmanship to get the job done. One of the most skilled of the pure boxers to ever lace up the gloves, and the most consistently dominant Flyweight champion with the best resume despite his physical limitations and lack of power. Brilliant little fighter.

Carlos Zarate- Zarate at his apex was as dominant as any fighter on this list, racking up 56 straight wins with 55 coming by way of KO. That is impressive any way you slice it. A top 10 Mexican great in my book, but toward the bottom half because of his lack of quality opposition in comparison to the other top Bantams and Latino fighters.

Panama Al Brown- One of my favorite study points. As tall, long, and lanky as they got for a Bantamweight, but unlike most of the rest who fit that kind of criteria, he was also as durable as they came. Not that he needed to be with his boxing skills. He was so far above his peers from a physical standpoint (not just in terms of length, but agility, quickness, reflexes, etc.) that he'd often just toy with them. His resume contains a who's who of the top Bantamweights to Featherweight fighters of that era.

Wilfredo Gomez- In terms of overall skills, you'd be hard-pressed to find one on any of these lists who actually betters this guy right here at his peak. From a technical standpoint, the 122 pound version of Gomez was about as good as it gets, combined with excellent physical quality and grade A power and finishing ability, you'd really have a tough time favoring anyone in boxing history capable of making 122 pounds to beat this guy in his prime. Unfortunately that was really his only true home, even though he was able to be competitive with the elites and win post-Sanchez at higher weights.

Erik Morales- I'd probably actually rate Morales slightly higher than Barrera, though both would either be toward the bottom half of my top 10 or just missing out.

Marco Antonio Barrera- As said above, everyone knows enough about these two for me to go into detail.

Kid Chocolate- Another great studying point, one of the greatest Cuban fighters in the history of the sport and the first to truly burst into prominence in the 30's, facing the elite fighters of the weight class during one of it's best eras, against guys like Tony Canzoneri, Fidel LaBarba, Jack "Kid" Berg, Benny Bass, Battling Battalino, Lew Feldman, etc. A true stylist that paved the way for others to come like Kid Gavilan, Luis Manuel Rodriguez, Jose Napoles, etc.

Ismael Laguna- One of my favorite LW's. At his best he was an excellent stylist with a lot of substance, so good IMO that I'd favor him over someone like Mayweather without hesitating.

Nicolino Locche- The best defensive fighter I've ever seen, even with the limited footage available. This guy was a master of the Sweet Science. Another chain-smoker (the guy smoked in between rounds) and lackadaisical trainer in the same mold of his fellow Countryman Monzon, he also posessed that same comfort and ease in the ring that Monzon did. He never needed to over-exert himself because he knew exactly what was needed at every point of the fight, despite lacking any power or outstanding physical qualities. He observed and reacted better than just about anyone I've seen. And did it all as if it was just another part of his day.

Wilfred Benitez- Another one of the best defensive fighters of all time and one of my favorite technicians to watch. Some of the best head movement and reflexes in the sport's history along with being one of the best counter-punchers. Having heavy duty sparring sessions with the likes of Esteban Dejesus from the age of 13, being ranked in his weight class from the age of 15, beating ATG's from the age of 17, and marking out an ATG career by the age of 23. Truly a phenom, it's a shame he had to develop and fade out so early.

 

Not necesarily in this order

Wilfredo Gomez
Wilfredo Benitez
Roberto Duran
Alexis Arguello
Salvador Sanchez
Felix Trinidad
Julio Cesar Chavez
Hector Camacho
Edwin ''Chapo''Rosario
Ricardo Lopez

 

Julio Cesar Chavez
Roberto Duran
Sal Sanchez
Arguello
Carlos Zarate
Ricardo Lopez
Carlos Monzon
Wildred Benitez
Morales
Barrera

 

1. Roberto Duran
2. Carlos Monzon
3. Julio Cesar Chavez
5. Alexis Arguello
6. Eder Jofre
7. Salvador Sanchez
8. Kid Gavilan
9. Ruben Olivares
10. Jose Napoles
11. Wilfredo Gomez
12. Carlos Ortiz

 

When you say latino, does that include black people that speak spanish like a kid gavilan or benitez.

My List:
Duran
Monzon
Arguello
Sanchez
Ortiz
Gomez
Lopez
chavez
gavilan

 

Try a little bit less patriotism and more objectivity

 

Has TFFP been banned or something?

Why does his avatar look strange and he has 0 posts....:think

 

It will take a top 10 p4p ATG to beat Monzon on any list.

But ok.. Duran is tough to beat.

Monzon was perhaps the most dominant boxer ever - and what is very impressive is that he travelled all over the world defending his titles.

 

:good

 

Castilian is spoken in Argentina and they are damn proud of speaking castilian.

 

I will base my ratings by weight. So some fighters might upset some people. I base my ratings on style, skills, agressivesness, wins against quality opponents.

Straw
Ricardo Lopez

Bantam
Ruben Olivares and MA Barrera

Feather Weight
Salvador Sanchez Kid Chocalate

Light Weight
J C Chavez

Welter Weight
Jose Napoles and Roberto Duran

Middle Weight
Carlos Monzon

Heavyweight
Teofilio Stephenson and yes I know he was not a pro