Who is the smartest fighter to every box?

[Barn]

In all due respect to the great Marvin Hagler, his odd strategy in the Leonard fight eliminates him from winning this category.

[#1Assassin]

in addition to those who have already been mentioned..

mike mccallum, james toney, lennox lewis, pernell whitaker, wilfred benitez, ray leonard, azumah nelson, ricardo lopez, bernard hopkins etc..

i could go on all day, its impossible to narrow it down to a single fighter.

[elfag]

Besides Gans, Tunney, Leonard, Ali, Mayweather Jr. which I think have all being mentioned,

I want to throw in the idea of the 2nd coming of Foreman being a very smart fighter.

Thats a pretty good mention. When youre in your 40s and you have traits (defense, timing, pacing/stamina) that are better now than they were in your 20s you are doing something right. He wouldnt have made it that far in his return on physical abilities alone without fighting smart.

Also that his KO win over Moorer was a lucky one punch KO is a myth. He landed that same left right combination a few rounds earlier and hurt moorer. Then in the final round he landed it again, stunned moorer and landed it a final time while moorer was still hurt to put him down. Moorer fought a stupid fight staying too close and taking risks and Foreman was patient and measured and fought a smart fight.

[New England]

best ring IQ?

i've got to figure that will be a fighter from the past, who has gone hundreds or thousands of rounds as a pro, with over a hundred fights.


the smartest?
book smart?
who cares, frankly.

nobody has come close to appearing as intelligent as wladimir klitschko, in my opinion.

[New England]

Besides Gans, Tunney, Leonard, Ali, Mayweather Jr. which I think have all being mentioned,

I want to throw in the idea of the 2nd coming of Foreman being a very smart fighter.

new england likes this shout out.

very unique fighter, foreman.

[raskat]

Gene Tunney,
both Klitschkos,
Sugar Ray Leonard,
Pernell Whitaker

[Cardinal Buck]

Old B-Hop is much smarter than Old Foreman.

How about Valuev? The guy had limited athleticism but still won most of his fights by keeping in strictly on the outside.

[Scott9945]

Old B-Hop is much smarter than Old Foreman.

How about Valuev? The guy had limited athleticism but still won most of his fights by keeping in strictly on the outside.

Nobody was smarter than Hopkins.

Valuev? Eh...I don't know. Being 7'0 tall with a long reach doesn't make you smart, just advantaged.

[Cardinal Buck]

^I can't think of a single instance of Valuev fighting stupidly. It's true that he never adapted to pull out a win though.

[Panamaniac]

A different take? (havn't read every post)

Rocky Marciano - for walking away from the fight game while he was still in possession of all his faculties. Could have hung around for at least one defeat, but made his mark on the sport and went out on the top of his game.

If quitting while ahead is not smart, I don't know what is...

Rocky may not be the only fighter to retire undefeated (with at least 40 fights), but he's arguably the first and/or best known. If there are any others of note out there, kudos to them too.