Warts 'n all, describe U'r favorite fighter

Joe Frazier.

Perhaps the only fighter who would truly rather die than lose.He was a short fighter who had no business competing with let alone beating a ring God like Ali but he did.If you weren't called George Foreman,Smokin Joe was sheer torture in the ring.

His only punch of note was his left hook (although he could jab a bit with it as well) but his sustained attack,determination,ability to endure punishment and sheer bloody mindedness made him for a few short years one of the ATG Heavyweights.A living monument to spirit over skill.

 

Ike Williams, a lightweight phenomenom.

The right hand could and would devastate most men at that weight.

 

Ken Buchanan. He rose somewhat slowly to the top and eventually fell from the summit before his number should have been called, but I've seen precious few lightweights that surpass Kenny at his best. To sum him up shortly would be to say that he everything but a true knockout punch, because nearly everything else that matters was there in abundance: the movement; the footwork; the smooth, quirky style; the jab; the ring generalship; the stamina and durability; the fire in the trenches; the tough, uncompromising edge present in most greats. Indeed, the latter two traits often manifested themselves at times when the traits mentioned prior might have served him better.

 

bigger and bolder and rougher and tougher in other words sucker there is no other. Ali, the greatest.

 

Salvador Sanchez - A study in smooth, calm professionalism. Took his business seriously and always in great condition. Even in the late rounds of taxing efforts, you never saw him gulping air in the corner. His mouth was always closed, calmly listening to his cornermen. The same goes for video clips or photos of him in action. Try finding a picture of him in action with his mouth open. I haven't seen one yet.

Stylistically, he was a rare breed, an "aggressive counterpuncher." Even when he wasn't in the act of punching, he was always doing something, moving, feinting, positioning........his opponent had a lot of mental work to do just in that regard to keep up with the flow of the fight, and it seemed they spent a lot of time reacting to him, rather than imposing their own plan. Very good ring general.

If there is a knock on Sanchez, it was that he fought down to the level of his opponent to a degree, and that may or may not be fair. I look at it more as a matter of styles. His really big signature wins (Lopez, Gomez, and in hindsight Nelson) were against guys that came at him, enabling him to shine in his natural conterpunching role. His less impressive wins against the relatively unknown Cowdell and Ford were due as much to their unwillingness (read; savvy) to come forward, making things naturally a bit more difficult.

Still, it's fair to say he was less effective against durable, cautious types.

 

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: When Sal fought Little Red the expression on his face never changed. He did not look like a 22 year old kid fightiing a bad ass world champ who could take your head off with either hand. His expression looked more like that of a guy who was ordering a freaking pizza! Simply amazing.

 

Nice post man. Sal was one of the first fighters I really got into a few years back when I started trying to broaden my knowledge of fighters from the past. I recently went through a period of not watching him much, but he's back among my favourites these days.

Perhaps the finest cardiovascular capacity of any champion who ever participated in the pro game.

 

Sanchez is my favorite. Great Post. I can't add much. I'll just say that his great stamina was a combination of training/dedication, probably a freakish cardiovascular system, and being in a relaxed state due to the unshakeable belief that he was going to prevail. I never saw him rattled or visibly hurt.

 

I don't know if this is a bit off topic, but in my opinion the most impressive thing Arguello did was change from a skinny slugger who relied to much on his power into one of the finest examples of a stand up boxer we've ever seen.

 

I saw him a bit shaken once, in the 11th round of the Nelson fight. Nelson catches him with a hook, and Sal backs away and covers up. He was rocked.

 

Carlos Monzon..certainly not the most physically gifted or spectacular fighter...a bit stiff..a trifle awkward...but he made up for all of this with as cunning a boxing ming as I've ever seen...not flashy at all, but brutally and coldly efficient...he "fought tall" better than anyone else IMO, ...he was like one of those spaghetti western types he played in the movies he made...a controlled, smart, coldblooded, calm master of all middleweights with a powerful right hand throughout the first half of his reign. The second half, he had to modify his style somewhat due to arthritis and his wife's marksmanship..my favorite fighter I suppose, for the sake of naming one (though there are others, like the guy in my avatar)..the greatest middleweight champion of all time....and one of the greatest fighters of all time, period.

 

Big George Foreman - teh most powerful And strongest heavyweight of all times. George had super Iron-chin And Amazing toughness of mind And body to. Foreman is perfect to destroy swarmer-types like Dempsey or Tyson, he destroyed a Prime Frazier who beat Prime Ali 2 years ago in Only 2 TWO Rounds - knocking him down 6 times!!