As for the people saying Manny, no.. just no. Manny has the amazing tendency to dive in with his powerful legs and fall off balance if his punch is slipped. He also turns his opponent toward the CENTER of the ring instead of toward the ropes, which gives them an out and puts himself in a terrible position. He is a gifted athlete but i wouldn't go as far as to call his footwork anything other than sloppy. It's very sloppy and there isn't much thought put into it. When a fighter constantly spins himself into a corner, that isn't good foot work at all.
Exactly, I guess you said it better ;).
Yes, good call, he's definitely up there. Although not that "it isn't even close" ;). Just look at Yamanaka and Rigondeaux, they are absolutely brilliant in the way they move as well.
I feel as though Rigo and Yama use their legs brilliantly as well, but not as frequently as Sillakh. As proven, Sillakhs chin is pretty damn sad, and so it makes sense now why his movement has been perpetual. He never stops bouncing or moving laterally all the while punching simultaneously and maneuvering his way around the ring at the right spot at the right time.
These type of things you don't get from rigo, as his footwork is sporadic. He only takes a step or 2 at the appropriate time, it isn't constant. He knows HOW to use his feet that's for sure, but I don't believe they are near as educated as TBR's.
If only the kid had the ability to take a punch....sigh
EDIT:
As for the people saying Manny, no.. just no. Manny has the amazing tendency to dive in with his powerful legs and fall off balance if his punch is slipped. He also turns his opponent toward the CENTER of the ring instead of toward the ropes, which gives them an out and puts himself in a terrible position. He is a gifted athlete but i wouldn't go as far as to call his footwork anything other than sloppy. It's very sloppy and there isn't much thought put into it. When a fighter constantly spins himself into a corner, that isn't good foot work at all.
he's begun to slow and plod a good deal of late (bradley, mosley, marquez,) but when he fought ricky hatton, oscar de la hoya, even miguel cotto, his footwark was nothing like you describe. even in spots against margarito he showed the spectacular footwork. he was having trouble keeping it up at that stage in his career. the legs are always the first thing to go on a fighter.
de la hoya and pacquiao is a perfect example. oscar had respectable power, even then, and pacquiao cut in and out because he was trying to keep from getting hit. he was a huge dog, and there were still questions about whether or not he would simply fall over when a strong punching WW hit him on the chin. when he fought cotto and took his best gas that was no longer a question, but especially before the de la hoya fight that was a question on everybody's mind
i'm sure i dont need to tell you that most folk thought oscar was going to kill manny, and that undoubtedly had an effect on manny's outlook and gameplan (to move in and out with angles to get his offense off, while primarily boxing on the outside.)
No-one of the fighters you mentioned made Pacquiao move forward constantly, only Cotto when he was already done and start running and I suggest you watching that fight to see how Manny has no idea whatsoever of how to cut the ring off.
Not only Marquez showed weaknesses in Mannys footwork, Morales did the same thing in first and even second fight moving slightly backward and landing jab on him when Pacquiao was off balance.
When Pacquiao was forced to move forward in constant motion his footwork was turning very ordinary, he was off balance very often and had no ability of cutting off the ring whatsoever, thus I think his footwork is rather overrated(not that it wasn't impressive).
and he's always looked like junk against marquez
a boxer like marquez will leave you looking like you are lost at sea.
When Pacquiao was forced to move forward in constant motion his footwork was turning very ordinary, he was off balance very often and had no ability of cutting off the ring whatsoever, thus I think his footwork is rather overrated(not that it wasn't impressive).
he's begun to slow and plod a good deal of late (bradley, mosley, marquez,) but when he fought ricky hatton, oscar de la hoya, even miguel cotto, his footwark was nothing like you describe. even in spots against margarito he showed the spectacular footwork. he was having trouble keeping it up at that stage in his career. the legs are always the first thing to go on a fighter.
de la hoya and pacquiao is a perfect example. oscar had respectable power, even then, and pacquiao cut in and out because he was trying to keep from getting hit. he was a huge dog, and there were still questions about whether or not he would simply fall over when a strong punching WW hit him on the chin. when he fought cotto and took his best gas that was no longer a question, but especially before the de la hoya fight that was a question on everybody's mind
i'm sure i dont need to tell you that most folk thought oscar was going to kill manny, and that undoubtedly had an effect on manny's outlook and gameplan (to move in and out with angles to get his offense off, while primarily boxing on the outside.)
When Pacquiao was forced to move forward in constant motion his footwork was turning very ordinary, he was off balance very often and had no ability of cutting off the ring whatsoever, thus I think his footwork is rather overrated(not that it wasn't impressive).
beautiful footwork?
kind of an odd set of criterion i'd think
some nice mentions so far
i'll add chemito moreno and jorge linares
linares may not be effective, but i could watch that kid shadowbox all day.
best footwork i've seen in person was sergio martinez
he literally floats around the ring. it's unreal how fleet that dude is.
the best/most talented footwork of recent years is manny pacquiao in my opinion. he was never a fundamentalist or a technician with it, but that was not how he fought in his prime. it comes down to covering distance (moving,) and remaining balanced (in a position where you can avoid and throw punches,) and manny pacquiao did that very well.
he used to dart around the ring with tremendous speed with lightening fast changes in direction. he could land fast shots with full power while cutting in and out. he was hurting huge WW. there have been only a handful of fighters in history with a combination of speed and power like that.
pacquiao did that best 2-3 years back. recently he's started to only display his footwork for parts of rounds, or certain rounds and not others. and very recently (the past few fights,) he's simply began to deteriorate / lose coordination / slow down.
Ismayl silLakh and it isn't even close. His legs are his defense. The man diesnt slip punches, he dodges them. Second coming of Ali with his legs.
Yes, good call, he's definitely up there. Although not that "it isn't even close" ;). Just look at Yamanaka and Rigondeaux, they are absolutely brilliant in the way they move as well.
Kell Brook's is a bit plodding at times which gets him caught. He only has one gear... Heck he even dropped VS Jones because he has no balance at times.
Rigon changes up speed and is agile. Pretty good.
Hopkin's is supreme. He does not rely on speed but placement, and actually helps him get out.
Andre Ward uses his feet pretty well as part of his defense and offense.
Agree on Rigondeaux as well.
Worst footwork - I've seen two fine examples lately, Amir Khan and that Matthebula guys.
That Matthebula's footwork was horrendous though he did do well tbf to him.
Mathhebula almost tripped over himself while throwing a punch. That fight was awesome!
Rigondeaux. He just makes it look like he's got everyone else on slow motion replay as he gets in and out. The stuff he was doing against Kennedy, practising his shots before getting in and letting them off was priceless.
Worst footwork - I've seen two fine examples lately, Amir Khan and that Matthebula guys.
That Matthebula's footwork was horrendous though he did do well tbf to him.