Was Sugar Ray Robinson really the perfect fighter?

He was the closest thing to perfection...so yes.

 

SRR fighting as a welterweight in 1946...close to his WW prime:

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Did he have flaws? If he did, no-one managed to expose them in his prime.

He was one of the greatest punchers ever and could knock a fighter out with either hand. He was fast and had a fantastic job and excellent fundamentals. He had a great chin and tremendous heart. Defensively, he might not have been the slickest, but his aggression and versatile attack truly made offence the best form of defence.

He was the greatest there ever was.

 

Very good overview.

 

He got hit a bit too much but he's as good a standard bearer for the title as anyone imo.

 

Maybe defensively, but his great offense meant his defense never was tested much. Too bad no footage of his fights with Bell and Gavilan exists.

 

Mr Walker Smith was blessed with and developed as good a set of boxing attributes as you can get, and even after all this time he is rated top of the tree by a great many in our sport.

Oh and he was very reserved in his manner, travelling with his entourage of golf pro, nutritionist, manicurist, driver, his own personal hairstylist Roger the barber riding in his pink Cadillac and even on occasions having a dwarf as a mascot.

 

Perfection is a word which should not be used when describing human beings without any qualifications. That being said, Sugar Ray Robinson may have come closest to being perfect as a fighter.

- Chuck Johnston

 

LaMotta - those fights were tough by all accounts. He obviously lost the second, had a tough third fight and perhaps an even tougher fifth fight, but ultimately Robinson won 4-1 as a welterweight against a middleweight.

Cavalain? Do you mean Kid Gavilan? If so, the first was reported as a close one, yes, but the second, for the title, was a clear win for Robinson according to the reports.

I forgot to say that as well as being great in all the ways I mentioned, he was also great in rematches.

 

I actually google searched it and all I found was another one of his posts, this one from 2 year ago, calling him a top 10 all time Welterweight.

 

Me too! That's when I figured out that it was Gavilan.

 

Who, Robinson or Kid Cavalain?

 

BT, you've been hearing it forever because it's true.

 

Yes, let's not forget the 'aura' and 'charisma' he possessed. (worth mentioning again). John Garfield told us some time ago that his father took him to Skillman's one afternoon in the 40's to watch the greats work out. "Dad, why is the center ring vacant?" "That's for Sugar Ray whenever he arrives." Well he arrives shortly thereafter in his pink Cadillac, parking in a no parking zone. No white cop, or any cop, EVER gave him a ticket.
Macy's in NY, cleaning out their front window to allow 'The Greatest' to work out for all to see. Thousands showed up, blocking traffic to watch him. Walking the Paris streets with his pet leopard on leash...jeez to go on would be superfluous.