Most Technical Fighter?

[The President]

Originally Posted by KounterPunch

It's too much work to lay analysis posts on fighters , my friend.
It's as much work as putting in a term paper.

Let me put it his way , to those who think Hopkins isn't a technical , let alone probably most technical in the game right now , fighter ..just let him know that most everyone ( Ward , Roy Jones , James Toney etc ) think he's the man.

Think of it this way , the man , with no exceptional speed , power , reflexes , athleticism ,or chin won the world championship at 46 years of age , and not against no soft mark either.
You ever seen him get beat up ?
The last time he lost a clear decision was when Informer was at the top of the charts over 20 years ago and that's fighting every big name from his weight class up n beyond.
You think he did all that by just holding and head butting ?

He isn't a great technical fighter, he's good but not great, get over it. My definition of great in this context, is one of the best of all time. Hopkins simply isn't in the same league. Too much of his fighting game is based on dirty old school fighting.

[JayElectra]

Originally Posted by The President

I disagree, being smart and having good ring craft does not equate to a great technical fighter. There is nothing technically great about the way Hopkins lunges forward with his head and right hand. That's not technically great, it's smart and dirty, because his opponents are looking out for the head as well as the punch. Hopkins fighting game is full of old school tricks like that, to say that isn't part of his success would be wrong imo.

Like I said, he's a good technical fighter, but not great. He isn't in the same league as the likes of Arguello when it comes to technical proficiency.

Well, what Hopkins do we want to look at? If you want to look at the post De la Hoya Hopkins, yes he did start to become reliant on the lunging lead right hand, which isn't necessarily the kind of punch which is looked at as being fundamentally sound. I'd argue that he has found a way to use it in a way that is very, very effective but it is rather unorthodox and not very aesthetically pleasing. Now, if you go back and watch him in between Mercado (you can even go back futher if you want) and De la Hoya, he rarely ever threw that punch. His absolute destruction of Glen Johnson really showcases how complete a fighter he was. Perfect balance, great jab, great punch selection, great offensive and defensive footwork and very sound defense relying both on the shoulder roll and occasionally a high guard. Of course, as his reflexes and stamina have declined, he has had to augment his style to suit his physical abilities but even in his 40 + days, his performances have been extremely impressive and sound technically, especially when he schooled Pavlik (a fight where he rarely relied on that lunging right hand).

[zuffa zack**]

Hopkins today is not technical in the traditional way you would think (ie, Ricardo Lopez, SRR, etc) but in his own unique way I would say hes one of the better technicians

[zuffa zack**]

And of course it all depends on what Pres means by saying "Great"

Some people use the word lightly while some people use it in a way meaning of the absolute best of all time and that can create some confusion

[CEROVFC]

throw in buddy mcgirt

[KounterPunch]

Originally Posted by The President

He isn't a great technical fighter,

he's good but not great, get over it.

Too much of his fighting game is based on dirty old school fighting.

A jackass probably thinks his farmer is God.........but who cares what an ass thinks anyways.

[emcee]

KounterPunch, this one is for you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argument_from_authority

Just because boxing analysts say this, that and the other, doesn't mean that your argument is unassailable.

Same goes for anybody else who thinks an argument is settled by citing an Iole article or something.

I agree with Pres on Hopkins, for the record. They're more like tricks and not skills. Hopkins's skills are average.

[emcee]

Originally Posted by KounterPunch

A jackass probably thinks his farmer is God.........but who cares what an ass thinks anyways.

You keep doing this thing where you slyly imply that the person you're responding to is a particular thing and therefore their argument can't be a good one.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poisoning_the_well

Why don't you actually debate the points of boxing and not lazily say "Well, only so-and-sos believe that! I don't have to argue otherwise because normal people know I'm right! Teeheehee!"

[Sunfish]

How does the ring rate him?

[Seano]

Originally Posted by The President

He isn't a great technical fighter, he's good but not great, get over it. My definition of great in this context, is one of the best of all time. Hopkins simply isn't in the same league. Too much of his fighting game is based on dirty old school fighting.

I don't really care for the term "old school" in association with Hopkins.

Old school fighters didn't look for a cheap way out like Hopkins has many times.