Underrated defensive fighters

[Suckmedry]

Jake La Motta did not have underrated defensive skills, he was a guy that got hit and kept coming.

[TheGreatA]

Jake La Motta did not have underrated defensive skills, he was a guy that got hit and kept coming.

I have to disagree. He's one of the better inside technicians I've seen on film and this included defensive ability, not just his offense. He got hit as he came forward against opponents with longer reach. Still, even if he got hit he rolled with the punches to take away the impact.




7:35

[Suckmedry]

I have to disagree. He's one of the better inside technicians I've seen on film and this included defensive ability, not just his offense. He got hit as he came forward against opponents with longer reach. Still, even if he got hit he rolled with the punches to take away the impact.




7:35

That's good but it still isn't defence, he is still getting hit.

I agree Jake was better technically than a lot say, he was smarter than he got credit for, but he was still a pretty open target most of the time.

[TheGreatA]

That's good but it still isn't defence, he is still getting hit.

I agree Jake was better technically than a lot say, he was smarter than he got credit for, but he was still a pretty open target most of the time.

Being able to roll with the punches isn't defense?

LaMotta made himself an open target because he was a relentless aggressor, there aren't too many pressure fighters who didn't get hit. I'd say that LaMotta had above average defense for a swarmer, not on the level of Duran, Tyson but above the likes of Jorge Castro, Ricky Hatton who just get hit a ton.

Of course I'm not going to claim that LaMotta was a great defensive fighter by any means but his defense is overlooked as most people think he was a walking punching bag which is an exaggeration. He didn't have the natural instincts/ reflexes but technically he was solid.

[Suckmedry]

Being able to roll with the punches isn't defense?

LaMotta made himself an open target because he was a relentless aggressor, there aren't too many pressure fighters who didn't get hit. I'd say that LaMotta had above average defense for a swarmer, not on the level of Duran, Tyson but above the likes of Jorge Castro, Ricky Hatton who just get hit a ton.

Of course I'm not going to claim that LaMotta was a great defensive fighter by any means but his defense is overlooked as most people think he was a walking punching bag which is an exaggeration. He didn't have the natural instincts/ reflexes but technically he was solid.

Of course.

Well rolling with punches, you are still getting hit, I guess it can be seen as a form of defence but the best defence is not getting hit on the target area at all, and instead making them miss or land on your shoulders, arms, eblows, gloves.

[TheGreatA]

Of course.

Well rolling with punches, you are still getting hit, I guess it can be seen as a form of defence but the best defence is not getting hit on the target area at all, and instead making them miss or land on your shoulders, arms, eblows, gloves.

Yes but sometimes you've got to make the conscious choice that you're going to get hit and try to do your best to avoid being hit too much, or too hard. LaMotta made that choice. He wasn't a Sugar Ray or a Willie Pep but he was physically stronger and had to take the fight to quicker boxers, even if it meant he had to take a couple of punches in order to land his own.

It's the same as Joe Frazier, he got hit a lot, but he also made his opponents miss a lot. No one's going to be able to evade all the punches from a Sugar Ray or a Muhammad Ali.

[Jim Jeffries]

Yes but sometimes you've got to make the conscious choice that you're going to get hit and try to do your best to avoid being hit too much, or too hard. LaMotta made that choice. He wasn't a Sugar Ray or a Willie Pep but he was physically stronger and had to take the fight to quicker boxers, even if it meant he had to take a couple of punches in order to land his own.

It's the same as Joe Frazier, he got hit a lot, but he also made his opponents miss a lot. No one's going to be able to evade all the punches from a Sugar Ray or a Muhammad Ali.

I don't think anyone could survive 6 fights with Ray Robinson without getting knocked down, the first 5 without getting stopped, without having some semblance of defense.

[Joey Giardello]

Being able to roll with the punches isn't defense?

LaMotta made himself an open target because he was a relentless aggressor, there aren't too many pressure fighters who didn't get hit. I'd say that LaMotta had above average defense for a swarmer, not on the level of Duran, Tyson but above the likes of Jorge Castro, Ricky Hatton who just get hit a ton.

Of course I'm not going to claim that LaMotta was a great defensive fighter by any means but his defense is overlooked as most people think he was a walking punching bag which is an exaggeration. He didn't have the natural instincts/ reflexes but technically he was solid.

good post Great A

[BOLLOCKS]

Cotto.....

[mhager91490]

I always thought that Jeff Fenech was underrated defensively, he could actually be very good defensively on the outside when he concentrated but his offense would wane as a result. On the inside he was very adept at slipping and blocking punches and he was hard to really hit with a clean punch. Not a defensive wizard by any stretch of the imagination but for a guy with a four corners offense he was better than one would think.