Who are your top 5 pressure fighters?

No, I don't think he qualifies. Certainly never as much as Duran did if he does count.

 

Yes and no. Depends on how you define it. If you define "pressure fighter" as somone who is always moving forward ala Armstrong, Frazier and Marciano, then no. Harry had a more varied attack. In and out, side to side, leaping, ducking, windmilling, jabbing and retreating, charging and hooking.

He was completely unorthodox and impossible to pigeonhole.

 

Hm, when I envision Greb, I envision a bigger, faster, more mobile version of Armstrong.

 

Hey Bodhi. Armstrong's style was much more straightforward(no pun intended) and orthodox from a pressure fighter standpoint. Greb wasn't. Try and imagine Aaron Pryor's weird punching angles with Ray Leonard speed on Cassius Clay legs with the occasional Henry Armstrong charges.

In breaking down the avalanche of eyewitness accounts of Greb's style that I've read this seems to be the closest approximation of what he was like in the ring.

 

Well then you simply haven't read up enough on him.

 

Hard to imagine though.

That may very well be the case. It´s the case with many fighters of that era actually.

 

Indeed. Even for the people who were there and actually fought the guy (see the MGibbons-Chip convo I posted a few weeks back). You couldn't time, predict or envision what he would do in the ring. Whereas Ray Robinson was like classical music (textbook perfect and beautiful) Greb was like jazz (totally improvisational, taking unexpected twists and turns)

 

Add to that Tyson's power, Frazier's heart, Hearn's reach, Hopkins generalship, Hagler's chin, Iron Man's suit, Duran's excuses, no eyeballs, the mind of a scientist and a **** like a Burmese python. And no i didnt get this information from youtube or boxrec. I went to a library and read it in a newspaper.

 

:rofl

 

1) Joe Frazier

2) Roberto Duran

3) Aaron Pryor

4) Henry Armstrong

5) Joe Louis (puts subtle pressure without wasting energy)

 

I like that comparison. :good

 

good list:good

 

These aren't my top 5 but I'm tossing them in the mix just because they seem to get overlooked sometimes:

Terry McGovern (a tornado. Among the hardest whackers in history)

Battling Nelson (did any fighter in history have a stronger chin or better stamina?)

Ad Wolgast (relentless. If not for chronically bad hands he would have accomplished even more than he did)

George Kid Lavigne (John L. Sullivan once called him the greatest little fighter he'd ever seen)

Harlem Tommy Murphy (Abe Attell could have told you how tough this cat was)


Toss in the near-bulletproof Rocky Kansas, Lou Ambers and Baby Arizmendi

(I purposely left off Ace Hudkins and Ever Hammer as I have championed those two enough at this point:thumbsup ).

 

would like to suggest Ricky Hatton in his pomp, before the Tszyu fight and just beyond.
Classic pressure fighter, no reverse gear and always prepared to take a shot to give one.
Even when an opponent had success then Hatton would not go into his shell or take time out to recover, he would just keep coming forward winging away with hooks. Seen many an opponent completly demoralised by this.
Honorary mention to Nigel Benn aswell.

 

Good list, I'd swap Harada for Walker but I really don't know enough about Walker.