BoxRec

What boxers do you think had the best defensive skills?.

The best i have seen would probably be

Pernell Whitaker
Herol Graham
Wilfred Benitez
Miguel Canto
Marlon starling
Michael Nunn
Ken Buchanan

I've not saw Pep or Loche yet.

Ali at his best (pre 70s) deserves a mention.... at his fastest he was almost impossible to hit cleanly.
Roberto Duran was a great defensive fighter.... hardly ever marked in his career he was very hard to hit cleanly even though he was always coming forward.
Floyd Mayweather is right up there with Whitiker..... beautiful defensive boxer..... Corey Spinks is not half bad either!....

The first name that came to mind was Wilfred Benitez at 140 or 147.
Others in no particular order:
Gene Tunney
Willie Pep
Charley Burley
Saoul Mamby
Pernell Whitaker

Whitaker is number 1 IMO.

Muhammadh Ali (vs. George Foreman). This wasn't self-defense, it was anti-suicide survival. And he made it.
Joey Maxim, another octopus fighter.

Willie Pep is #1 IMO.

Gotta add Hector Camacho and Howard Davis, Jr.

The best defensive fighter of all-time is Pernell Whitaker.
The most underrated defensive fighter ever was Archie Moore.

Miguel Canto was a great defensive fighter one of th best iv'e ever seen.

harold johnson also belongs here. turned defensive moves...i.e blocking a punch with his glove into a counter punch. very economical in his moves. good footwork, but also excellent at defending while virtually standing still.

ali is the best defensive heavyweight i've ever seen. hard to hit at all, and almost impossible to hit with combinations..so when he did get tagged with a really hard shot a follow up seldom got in.

willie pep is the greatest defensive fighter I have ever seen.

The best I saw was Nicolino Locche. The guy was called "El Intocable" (The Untouchable) and held the JWW (WBA) crown in the sixties.

Gustaw

That's an excellent choice, Gustaw. Since Locche fought for his entire career in Argentina (except for the fight when he won the j welter title against Fuji in Japan) he doesn't get the credit he deserves as the true defensive wizard that he was. Unfortunately, this is the very same reason that few films are available of him. I have seen some highlights and I also have his second fight with Cervantes in its entirety, but that's about it.

Agree with silkov. Mayweather and Duran.

Better than Whitaker?

Idiot.

Holman Williams was supposed to be really good as well.He was 3-3-1 with Burley.

DEFINATELY BETTER THAN WHITAKER.
I thought you were going by southpaw stylist AKA
Idiot.

U moron.

Southpaw without Style
that happens to be what I believe in regard to this topic. If you have a different opinion that's o.k. and I have no problem with that. That is what
these forums are all about. If someone does not agree with your views,
try not to take it personal. Resorting to name calling only reflects on yourself.

Haha.

Utter moron.

Thanks for proving my point.

Ok you moron.

I'M GLAD YOU FINALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU REALLY ARE
YOU MORONIC IDIOT. O.K. I'M DOWN TO YOUR LEVEL YOU MORON.

Ha! Suckered in.

Now who really is the moron?

Does anyone think a pre drink and drugs Jimmy Young deserve at least a repectfull mention?

Yes, I agree Jimmy Young was one of the most skillful heavyweights. He made Ali look bad, twice beat Ron Lyle over the distance and changed the course of boxing history when he sent George Foreman into retirement. Check out that seventh round of the Foreman fight. Young was hurt badly - out on his feet, he later said. But he moved, slipped, rolled and smothered Big George for the remainder of the round until he was safe. The crowd in San Juan appreciated what he had done and started cheering for him the rest of the way. Too bad the heavyweight division relies so much on the big hitters.