Printable View
Name your one favourite fighter ever. You can not cheat and state why they meant so much to you and made an impact.
Mine is Mike Tyson because I studied the history of boxing particularly the heavyweight division. To see a fighter in my life time who was a great heavyweight champion and set the record for the youngest heavyweight ever causing that much destruction was dream come true for me. I had scrap books, posters, VHS tapes and magazines dedicated to him.
Nigel Benn
Came on the scene at the right time for me . Had just got into boxing, was in my teens and I just loved watching him on Fight Night. Power, excitement he brought it all. Loved a tear up.
Was nervous as hell every time he fought and have never felt so deflated as I was at a fight result when Eubank beat him in first bout. Also felt like crying the night he quit against Collins , but as he said "it just ain't there no more" :eek:
Ducked no one. British legend
Good thread master
Not an obvious one but it has to be Jack johnson.
In a world where he didnt know whether he would be killed going to or from the ring just for the colour of his skin and achieve what he did in that era is unbelievable.
He was the first black heavyweight champion and he even took the piss and dated or married white women which would have got anyone else killed.
Skill wise and technique was obviously not on the scale of today but if you look at how "muted" a post JJ joe louis had to be to be accepted in that era it makes jack johnson even more of a badass because he just kept it real to himself.
They even "invented" laws to get to him one way or the other for tax reasons and he just stayed the same and walked the earth knowing he was a man.
Bad enough fighting with an injury for any fighter or with money issues but for any human from whatever race to come through what jack johnson did will never be replicated.
(Changed my mind..floyd mayweather)
Roberto Duran.
I saw the 'Hands of Stone' in the 'second phrase' of his pomp (post New Orleans) and he seemed a phenomenon to my young self. And then to be told he had peaked and that his work in the 70s was of an even higher quality, scrambled my boxing mind!
Bob Satterfield
Someone was leaving the Ring with a Headache !!!
He certainly put the B in Bomber and Banger, did Bob.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill Paxtom
Archie Moore, a class act in and out of the ring, watching him fight showed me what boxing should be.
Thomas Hearns , master boxer , KO puncher and vulnerable chin , all made him exciting to watch.
Marvin Hagler. He is the embodiment of what a fighter and champion should be. He was a complete fighter, able to fight inside and out, southpaw or orthodox, box or brawl, has a granite chin and could stop you with one shot. My favorite aspect, however, was his fighters mentality and mean streak. Marvin craved competition and he didn't want there to be any doubt, he wanted to crush the other guy for daring to step in the ring with him. I love that. He was all fighter. His quote said it all: "If they cut my bald head open they will find a boxing glove". I also love the fact that he wasn't the most naturally gifted fighter but he overcame a talent gap with toughness and work ethic.
No, I couldn't just drop other favourite fighters by singling out just one. They all do different things impeccably and I couldn't just pick. All could beat the other at their best. Calzaghe, Toney and Barrera are just that good. P4P I wouldn't like to make any bets on the outcome.
Why do not you write some article based on what you read and studied about why Mike is so great ?Quote:
Originally Posted by Master
OK? Can anyone else make sense of this post? I should just ignore it.Quote:
Originally Posted by NVSeminWhy do not you write some article based on what you read and studied about why Mike is so great ?Quote:
Originally Posted by Master
For me my favorite fighter in Pernell Whitaker. I witnessed his second fight with McGirt as barely more than a toddler. Then a few years later I fell in love with boxing after Barrera-Morales I. After that bout, I watched boxing when I could but I wasn't even 10 years old yet. When Roy and Bernard had the argument about 50-50 on live TV I decided boxing was the best sport in the world. Only professional wrestling had that type of drama attached. After becoming an ardent fan, I went back and watched Whitaker fights and realized what awesome taste a 4 year old me had. Then I chose Winky as my then current favorite after his win over Mosley and kept watching old Sweet Pea fights when I could on ESPN Classic. Then I just never stopped being a boxing nerd.
NigeL Benn v G Man was the only fight where I got off my seat and cheered when Benn turned around the fight from that awful first round.
Jack Johnson, Joe Louis and Ali all make an impact on boxing but name a fighter in your life time.
I like Buddy McGirt who was a class boxer but Pernell was on a different level and even to this day I can not figure out how he boxed, moved and used his reflexes.
BRUUUUNOOOOOOO
also happens to be the best lb4lb fighter of all time over 8 rounds
I forgot about Big Frank !!
He was more of a national institution really.
Doubt we'll ever see a fighter the whole nation gets behind like that again
Not without mainstream TV behind them (although Hatton did OK).Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark TKO
James "Cinderella Man" Braddock
Hatton. There have been better fighters before, (even in Britain) and after, but nobody pulled so many casual fans in alongside for the ride and made so much out of an under rated but still limited ability and maximized there potential so unconventionally.
It sounds plain wrong because the guy obviously threw the between fight conditioning rule book out of the window and gave himself a mountain to climb even before he stepped into the ring but strangely it seemed to add to his appeal. It was not just his everyman likability as someone you could see yourself sharing a pint with, but the ferocity with which he threw himself at life whilst at his peak. That same grit and bulldog determination helped him walk through walls in the ring, that would have been insurmountable mountains for other men.
He made you smile at press conferences and had you on the edge of your seat during fights. He knew he was no Duran but he loved the guy and Hearns the real Hitman,and you could see that love of boxing running right through him like the Blue Manchester City colouring in a stick of northern rock.
Cooper,Turpin,Benn,Bruno,Buchanan,Honeygan and Lewis made you proud to be British and Calzaghe painted with a different brush but Ricky represented the English spirit magnificently, warts, piss ups, bad singing, crap shirts and all. Legend.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BritkidHe certainly put the B in Bomber and Banger, did Bob.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill Paxtom
Mine as well. Hell, I didn't even think anyone knew about him.
:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:
Quote:
Originally Posted by BritkidHe certainly put the B in Bomber and Banger, did Bob.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill Paxtom
Believe it or not, I saw him fight while growing up in Chicago. He was Mr. Excitement" and was one cool cat.
Saad!...this day anyway ;D
Tszyu I liked him all along right from the world amatures when he gave Vernon a lesson,then when he turned pro he dropped a lot of what he could do and became a stalker and a head hunter, a good one.
As a Nationalist I suppose old school would be Dixon and Langford with modern day being
Chuvalo and Gatti. I leave out Lennox because I'm not sure he's Canadian;D
I'd love to give a shout out to the Hiltons but unfortunately they are a gaggle of scum bags.
@Master I cant do this question very well and have already failed it cause you asked for one
One of the downfalls of following the sport pretty close most of my life. Its almost like trying to pick a favourite taste. Immediately Roy came to mind. I mean we will most likely never see anything like him.
But is it fair to pick him is the question I asked myself. Almost as fast to mind was Greb and I have only seen the footage available which is not much and I formulate my opinion based on the consistent testimony of historians, other fighters and news accounts of the man along with a couple of books. So it does not really pass the litmus test.
I actually think its a sport where we are allowed to have more then one favourite so I'm going to throw a twist to the question and hope you do not mind.
Min/Jr Fly-Ricardo Lopez
Flyweight-Jimmy Wilde
Jr.Bantam-Christian Mijares
Bantam- Eder Jofre
Jr Feather-Erik Morales
Feather-Hank Armstrong/Sal Sanchez..........oops
Jr Light-Alexis Arguello
Lightweight-Benny Leonard
Jr Welter-Ricky Hatton
Welter- Tommy Hearns/Tito
Jr. Mid -Tommy Hearns
Middleweight-Harry Greb
Super Mid-Joe Calzaghe
Light hev-Roy Jones/Ezzard Charles
Hev-Louis/Lewis
So after this long winded diatribe and exercise I end up exactly where I started. Roy and Greb with Sammy Langford bringing up the rear.
Bold = borderline man crush
Name one @IamInuit