BoxRec

Bernard Hopkins.

Jaywheel wrote:How about Yvon Durelle?

Nah, that was purely about Moore's ability and NOT Durelles inability.

Never question this mythological Phoenix-like resurrection. Under any circumstances.

I serve you warning: Certain doctrines (this one included) have their fanatics....and as we all know, when followers of truth (such as this one) become irritated, or even taken just a wee bit out of their comfort zone, it has the potential to cause the world to shiver and tremble.

So watch what you place into print my friend.


....I'm just sayin'......

"Bert Cooper" comes to mind as a bad finisher.He Had the punch power to hurt big name guys but could'nt finish because of his overall limitations as a fighter.

"Tony Galento" could be mentioned as well. Big Puncher but just too slow to get the really good fighters out of there.

Other notable mentions...

-Tami Mueriello (Rocked Joe Louis)
-Frankie Depaula (Rocked Bob Foster)
-James "HardRock" Green (This guy seemed like the Joe Frazier of his division in certain ways and i remember one fight where he was pounding the Crap out of someone but then he basically gassed out like the older version of Shavers used to do). He lost that fight although it seemed like he definately would've won had he had more stamina and slightly better defensive skills. Thus the reason he comes to mind.

SaadOffTheDeck wrote:That's far from a fact, it's plain wrong.

And Holmes hadn't fought in almost three years prior to that fight, anyway.

DaveBoyMorrison wrote:Bernard Hopkins.

Against whom?
He was never one punch away from finishing Taylor; he didn't hit as hard as Pavlik. Also, that was a past-prime Hopkins. He finished Johnson, Tito, etc. He hasn't scored a KO at all since he moved up (even against RJJ and Ornelas), so that tells me that he didn't take his punch with him.

Rocky Lockridge.
Had Lopez badly hurt after that KD; couldn't finish him.
Against Gomez, beat Wilfredo to the point where he caused throat damage and then let up. Still think Rocky clearly won that fight, but he should've had Wilfredo out of there, especially since Wilfredo had been brutally KO'd by Nelson five months earlier.

yancey wrote:How would you guys rate Frazier and Duran as finishers?

Highly.
Duran couldn't finish Leonard, but no one did until Camacho. Look what he did to Moore, and that was well above his prime weight. He couldn't finish Barkley, but neither could Hearns. Even in the Toney fight, it was stopped in the corner.
Same for Frazier. He couldn't finish Ali, but nobody did that until Ali was shot--and that was a prime Holmes.

How about Roldan? He always seemed to be one punch away v. Hearns. Never finished it, though.

Rover wrote:How about Roldan? He always seemed to be one punch away v. Hearns. Never finished it, though.

Watch Roldan vs Frank "The Animal" Fletcher or James Kitchens. Roldan couldn't beat HOFmers like Hagler or Hearns, but he could finish. Roldan, IMO, would have held a middleweight title had he fought about a decade later, when there were four belts.

giacomino wrote:

Rover wrote:How about Roldan? He always seemed to be one punch away v. Hearns. Never finished it, though.

Watch Roldan vs Frank "The Animal" Fletcher or James Kitchens. Roldan couldn't beat HOFmers like Hagler or Hearns, but he could finish. Roldan, IMO, would have held a middleweight title had he fought about a decade later, when there were four belts.

I took this thread to be about finishing at the top level. Lots of guys can KO lower level opponents. Hagler's one thing; one of the greatest chins ever. But Hearns, great though he was, didn't have that. Roldan had him in trouble a few times, but he just couldn't cash in.
I have no doubt that with four belts Roldan would've been a beltholder in the late 90's, though he wouldn't have beaten Hopkins. It wasn't just belts; it was also the quality of the beltholders. Roldan also couldn't beat Nunn (IBF champ), and I doubt he'd have beaten Kalambay.

Speaking of guys who seemed to always be a punch away, and speaking of heavyweights, what about Bruno?

I may catch a little heat for this one, but I'd also include Chiquita here.
He had Carbajal badly hurt but couldn't put him away. Now, had that been the only example, I'd have accepted the counterargument that Carbajal was just one tough guy who just couldn't be taken out, even when well past his prime against the ferocious Arce.
But Chiquita also had Sorjaturong badly hurt and down twice and couldn't put him away. Finito showed how to finish off Sorjaturong, who was finito in short order.:)