BoxRec

What are some examples of slick boxers who are unathletic? I use the word slick loosely because I didn't want brawlers like Jake Lamotta to be included.

James Toney above SM

I wouldn't class either of the Fury's as particularly athletic, especially compared to Joshua/Wilder etc, but they're both hard to hit.

Oscar de la Hoya wasn’t particularly athletic.

leejonesjnr wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 14:00 James Toney above SM

Looking at that fat man dodging punches from some muscular HWs is very entertaining

vidal wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 14:08 Oscar de la Hoya wasn’t particularly athletic.

He was a lot more athletic than he was slick.

Agree. Oscar was very athletic. Quick and mobile with speed and good power. I don’t recall him being slick at all. Bernard Hopkins comes to mind but more cagey than slick.

Ortiz and his compatriot Solis were both on the rotund side.

Stuarty wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 15:33 Ortiz and his compatriot Solis were both on the rotund side.

Yes.......
Fury, Povetkin,

I'm not in agreement with Fury as a pick- I think he's actually extremely athletic for his size. And I would say Hughie is a beautiful mover.

Counter-puncher wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 16:03 I'm not in agreement with Fury as a pick- I think he's actually extremely athletic for his size. And I would say Hughie is a beautiful mover.

"Shades of Ali"

Teddy's Toupee wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 16:37

Counter-puncher wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 16:03 I'm not in agreement with Fury as a pick- I think he's actually extremely athletic for his size. And I would say Hughie is a beautiful mover.

"Shades of Ali"

Counter-puncher wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 16:03 I'm not in agreement with Fury as a pick- I think he's actually extremely athletic for his size. And I would say Hughie is a beautiful mover.

I think some are confusing unathletic with looking unathletic.

Pro wrestler Somoa Joe looks unathletic but realy isn't. Ultimate Warriror looked athletic but wasn't at all.

Very hard question. You have to have some measure of athletic ability and fitness to perform in pro boxing. Of course you don’t have to be a Roy Jones jr specimen but if you’re not fit you’ll start dying after a couple rounds.

Even Toney may not fit the bill regardless of how he looked/weighed. He was a scholarship gridiron player before turning to boxing - Boxing commentators use to rave about his natural athleticism.

Hopkins comes to mind - he seemed smarter than he was athletic. Of course he kept his body in exceptional physical condition for decades.

ya oscar was plenty athletic

'athletic' is a bit of a racially biased term (not inherently, but in practice) that seems to underly get applied to non black boxers even when they fit the bill

i was interested in whether my observation was true and came across some studies that show how the term actually does trigger racial biases in ppls in athletic perception, at least in the us.hearing it used before a physical test even lowered white particpants performances and raised black participants performance

IKSRTFO wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 16:52

Counter-puncher wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 16:03 I'm not in agreement with Fury as a pick- I think he's actually extremely athletic for his size. And I would say Hughie is a beautiful mover.

I think some are confusing unathletic with looking unathletic.

Pro wrestler Somoa Joe looks unathletic but realy isn't. Ultimate Warriror looked athletic but wasn't at all.

Exactly this! Both Furys are extremely athletic.

BJS

fast hands and legs, good reflexes and timing and coordination, dont really see how bjs isnt athletic

Slick and Unathletic seem like an oxymoron... However... I've seen surprisingly fast handed and quick footed fat guys... Don Cockell, who fought Marciano was one... Willie Meehan, who made Dempsey look like a fool, was also a porker.

jamamb wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 18:58 ya oscar was plenty athletic

'athletic' is a bit of a racially biased term (not inherently, but in practice) that seems to underly get applied to non black boxers even when they fit the bill

i was interested in whether my observation was true and came across some studies that show how the term actually does trigger racial biases in ppls in athletic perception, at least in the us.hearing it used before a physical test even lowered white particpants performances and raised black participants performance

That is true but also as true as slick could also underly applied to non black boxers. Miguel Cotto and Pacquio were slicker than Adrien Broner and Andre Berto.

HomicideHenry wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 20:40 Slick and Unathletic seem like an oxymoron... However... I've seen surprisingly fast handed and quick footed fat guys... Don Cockell, who fought Marciano was one... Willie Meehan, who made Dempsey look like a fool, was also a porker.

Naw. Winky Wright was slick, but didn't seem to be athletic. Jermaine Taylor was hugely athletic but wasn't slick.

Young Griffo.

Cent0089 wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 14:24

leejonesjnr wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 14:00 James Toney above SM

Looking at that fat man dodging punches from some muscular HWs is very entertaining

That was the first name that popped into my head also.

Particularly as he got older (and wider) he relied heavily on natural boxing ability as his speed dimished greatly.

Boxing isn’t a bodybuilding contest.

A person can possess the perfect physical attributes required to execute the sweet science in a flawless manner without possessing a muscular well-defined body.

In fact, to be pedantic, all the dictionary definitions of the word “athletic” generally refer to physical capability rather than possessing an aesthetically pleasing physique.

Mexi-Box wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 19:11

IKSRTFO wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 16:52

Counter-puncher wrote: ↑09 Jul 2018, 16:03 I'm not in agreement with Fury as a pick- I think he's actually extremely athletic for his size. And I would say Hughie is a beautiful mover.

I think some are confusing unathletic with looking unathletic.

Pro wrestler Somoa Joe looks unathletic but realy isn't. Ultimate Warriror looked athletic but wasn't at all.

Exactly this! Both Furys are extremely athletic.

Compared to someone like Wilder or Joshua? If you were to get all 4 of them on a track or in a gym I'd say Wilder and AJ would dominate in terms of speed, strength in relation to body weight, explosiveness etc. Tyson and Hughie are clever boxers but I wouldn't describe them as athletic in comparison to Wilder in terms of out and out physical capabilities.