Why I'm a fan of..... (FILL IN THE BLANK)

[TitoFan]

Probably been done before.... but thought I'd revisit why some of us like certain particular fighters (or DISlike, for that matter). I'll start.

Why I'm a fan of... Manny Pacquiao:

1. He ended Oscar De La Hoya's "I-think-I'll-ride-off-into-the-sunset-with-a-safe, undersized, big-name scalp-under-my-belt" quest. He made Oscar quit on his stool. He also retired him.

2. He put an end to Hatton's "I'm-fighting-for-#1 p4p" nonsense..... EMPHATICALLY. Practically ended HIS career also. Exposed Hatton as a tad overrated.

3. He destroyed Margacheato's face, in a bit of a karma moment. What goes around comes around, like a fellow poster well put it in another thread. I wanted devastating KO... but maybe this was even better.

4. He's shown that you can be a world-class, exciting fighter without being an asshole. (Note: Any veiled references to a certain Pretty Boy are completely unintentional).

He also KO'ed Cotto... but I'll forgive him that.

[marbleheadmaui]

Nice thought! I'll do two.

I'm a fan of Ricardo Lopez because

1. He grew as a technician even after being champion until at around 28 he was the finest technical fighter since Eder Jofre;
2. He fought everyone there was to fight and often did so in the other guy's hometown;
3. He knocked men out with one punch straight right hands, one punch left hooks and one punch uppercuts with each hand;
4. When he was aged and his skills fading he struggled with a younger, stronger Bufalo Alvarez. In their second fight Alvarez blew weight by TWO divisions and Lopez agreed to fight anyway. Cut in four places and behind Lopez began coming to ring center with hands held high with ten seconds left in the rest period so he'd have every chance to get after Bufalo. As clear a display of boxing spirit as one will ever see.

I'm a fan of Roberto Duran because

1. He was simply the most ferocious man in the ring I've ever seen live;
2. He too was an extraordinary technician with exceptional feet, great balance, every punch in the book;
3. He succeeded using a number of different approaches in the ring. Stalking (Ken Buchanan, Ray Lampkin) Brawling (Leonard I, Hiroshi Kobayashi) and counterpunching (DeJesus III, The Blade);
4. He was as relaxed in the ring as anyone I've ever seen;
5. After No Mas he built an entire second career through sheer willpower.

[TitoFan]

Nice thought! I'll do two.

I'm a fan of Ricardo Lopez because

1. He grew as a technician even after being champion until at around 28 he was the finest technical fighter since Eder Jofre;
2. He fought everyone there was to fight and often did so in the other guy's hometown;
3. He knocked men out with one punch straight right hands, one punch left hooks and one punch uppercuts with each hand;
4. When he was aged and his skills fading he struggled with a younger, stronger Bufalo Alvarez. In their second fight Alvarez blew weight by TWO divisions and Lopez agreed to fight anyway. Cut in four places and behind Lopez began coming to ring center with hands held high with ten seconds left in the rest period so he'd have every chance to get after Bufalo. As clear a display of boxing spirit as one will ever see.

I'm a fan of Roberto Duran because

1. He was simply the most ferocious man in the ring I've ever seen live;
2. He too was an extraordinary technician with exceptional feet, great balance, every punch in the book;
3. He succeeded using a number of different approaches in the ring. Stalking (Ken Buchanan, Ray Lampkin) Brawling (Leonard I, Hiroshi Kobayashi) and counterpunching (DeJesus III, The Blade);
4. He was as relaxed in the ring as anyone I've ever seen;
5. After No Mas he built an entire second career through sheer willpower.

Excellent choices...... and excellent reasons.

[Dark Lord Al]

Im a fan of Thomas Hearns ,
because -
1. He fought some great fighters of his era, win or lose he brought thrills.
2. He was one of the finest pure boxers in history.
3. His power always brought drama to the table.
4. His sometimes fragile chin, kept his fans on the edge of their seats.
5. He was a good guy out of the ring, and a scowling Ko puncher in it.
6. I have never followed any other boxer as much , or been a bigger fan of any other.
7. His KO of Duran was fantastic , and his war with Hagler was unforgetable.
To sum up , Thomas Hearns , great man , great boxer, great puncher ,great fighter.

[marbleheadmaui]

Im a fan of Thomas Hearns ,
because -
1. He fought some great fighters of his era, win or lose he brought thrills.
2. He was one of the finest pure boxers in history.
3. His power always brought drama to the table.
4. His sometimes fragile chin, kept his fans on the edge of their seats.
5. He was a good guy out of the ring, and a scowling Ko puncher in it.
6. I have never followed any other boxer as much , or been a bigger fan of any other.
7. His KO of Duran was fantastic , and his war with Hagler was unforgetable.
To sum up , Thomas Hearns , great man , great boxer, great puncher ,great fighter.

Hear! Hear!

May I add one additional reason? After those heartbreaking losses to ATG fighters he never made an excuse, even when he broke his hand in three places after hitting Hagler the first time. He acted like a man, accepted what had happened and moved on.

[captainanddew]

I'm a fan of Miguel Cotto.
Is he a great fighter? No.
But in this day and age where alot of top guys face 1 or 2 ranked guys and then stick to facing easy mandatories, Cotto faces Torres, Malignaggi, Quintana, Judah, Clottey,Mosley, Margacheato, Pac, Foreman.

[marbleheadmaui]

I'm forever a fan of Richard Ihetu because

1. Dick Tiger is such a coool nom de guerre
2. He started only 14-7 and kept coming and was a two time undisputed 160 champ as well as the undisputed 175 king;
3. He was a "mirror" fighter. He often fought whatever style his foe chose and he outdid him at it;
4. He caused one of boxing's greatest quotes. Late in his rematch with HOFer Joey Giardello, Tiger was dominating and hurting the champ. Between rounds referee John Lobianco went to Giardello's corner and asked him where he was. Giardello replied "I'm in Madison Square Garden and Dick Tiger is beating the hell out of me!"
5. He took the entire purse from his last fight, leased a jet, loaded it with food and medical supplies and flew it to Biafra where his fellow Christian and Odinani Igbos were being massacred by Nigeria's Muslims in a civil war.

Ihetu was one of the sport's very finest men. Sadly he died at 42, only a year or so after his last fight of cancer.

[TitoFan]

Im a fan of Thomas Hearns ,
because -
1. He fought some great fighters of his era, win or lose he brought thrills.
2. He was one of the finest pure boxers in history.
3. His power always brought drama to the table.
4. His sometimes fragile chin, kept his fans on the edge of their seats.
5. He was a good guy out of the ring, and a scowling Ko puncher in it.
6. I have never followed any other boxer as much , or been a bigger fan of any other.
7. His KO of Duran was fantastic , and his war with Hagler was unforgetable.
To sum up , Thomas Hearns , great man , great boxer, great puncher ,great fighter.

ANOTHER excellent choice. I love Thomas "The Hit Man" Hearns. Never gave us a boring fight.

[TitoFan]

I'm a fan of Miguel Cotto.
Is he a great fighter? No.
But in this day and age where alot of top guys face 1 or 2 ranked guys and then stick to facing easy mandatories, Cotto faces Torres, Malignaggi, Quintana, Judah, Clottey,Mosley, Margacheato, Pac, Foreman.

Excellent point, and one that does not get mentioned enough or for which Cotto does not get enough credit. But I'll differ with you and say that IMO Cotto is a great fighter. And precisely for the reasons you so very well stated.

[marbleheadmaui]

I'm a fan of Miguel Cotto.
Is he a great fighter? No.
But in this day and age where alot of top guys face 1 or 2 ranked guys and then stick to facing easy mandatories, Cotto faces Torres, Malignaggi, Quintana, Judah, Clottey,Mosley, Margacheato, Pac, Foreman.

I agree. Not a great fighter. But surely an admirable one.

[CutMeMick]

Alexis Arguello...
I don't need to tell you, you already know.

[marbleheadmaui]

This is so much fun I'm going to do one more

I'm forever a fan of Jim Jeffries because

1. He was an absolutely freakish athlete. 6'2, 230, 10 second hundred yards, six foot high jumper and as strong as a circus strongman;
2. He got better and better as he went along. He worked at becoming technically proficient;
3. He might have had the greatest physical resilience of any heavyweight who ever fought. He'd take a remarkable amount of punishment and just keep coming;
4. When Bob Fitzsimmons hurt his hand before their second fight, he gave Fitz permission to wear plaster to protect it;
5. He was such a bad dude ATG Sam Langford ran newspaper adds challenging anyone in the world except Jim Jeffries;
6. When he came back after being retired for five years he made no excuses when Jack Johnson buried him.

[Mar]

I'm a fan of boxing in general. Too many different personalities, races, skill sets, styles, etc.....for me to only like any certain guy. We need more guys like darchiniyan in the game though (just the first guy that came to mind) he simply fights. He never fights at home, bitches about who he faces, the ref's, judges he just shows up and throws. Missed that type of guy this weekend. He even wants another piece of nonito which i think is crazy, but he fights anyone everytime.

[DaxxKahn]

Lennox lewis-
He is the first true Big Man to hold the HW title that had skill and just did not rely on size.
His Jab was one of the best ever in the HW division
He reinvented himself after being stopped by McCall
He avenged the only 2 losses of his career in impressive style
Was responsible for derailing some of the HW divisions most promising prospects
He had power in his right hand that equals any other fighter in history
Was ther last TRUE undisputed HW champion
knew how to finish opponents
Was an intelligent fighter with far better then average ring smarts
Knew when it was time to retire and did not need an embaressing loss to clue him in
Went out the way he spent the majority of his career "As Champion"!!