pernell whitaker , one per century ?

[tino]

did you notice that defensive wizards seem to appear more or less every 100 years .

there was willie pep , then sweat pea , and then ?

is there a defensive wizard on top of boxing ?

we see big hitters a lot , but geniuses of the game ?

any names of active or even modern boxers with magic defensive skills close to sweat pea's ?

one may argue for buddy mcgirt , IMO

[joeboxer]

I know what your saying. A beutiful defense is a rare thing. But not every 100 years.
How about James Toney. Do you think he made it from 160 to heavyweight by taking punches. He is a defensive genious. Not on the level of the guys you mentioned but still it is definitly what propelled him to the top.

Also Chris Bryd. That guy dosn't have nothing but defence.

[Famoso Matador]

I agree, James Toney has pretty good defense and is a great counter puncher. I still hate him though for his bad attitude.

[Kimmy]

I think allot of fighters may have been physically capable of being defensive wizards but shyed away from adopting the style. Todays fans appreciate more of the punchers and agressive styles such as Tyson and Pac Man. Pernell Whitter, as great as he was couldn`t sell the kinda tickets to make money. I believe if fans paid to see these defensive fighters in great number then there would be many more around! The ones in recent history were this way because it was the only way they were able to fight at a world class level.

[tino]

very good point guys , toney is master counter puncher , as byrd .

i think byrd comes closer to sweat pea because he compensates size and power weaknesses ring movement and ducking punches , toney stays in the pocket and relies mainly on upper body movement .

[jack_the_rippuh]

Yeah, Prime Byrd was crazy elusive. especially doing that bobbing thing.
Mayweather is pretty good to as far as defense goes, but if he would have stayed with his father, he would have been probably even better, in terms of defense...

[tino]

Yeah, Prime Byrd was crazy elusive. especially doing that bobbing thing.
Mayweather is pretty good to as far as defense goes, but if he would have stayed with his father, he would have been probably even better, in terms of defense...

mayweather is getting hit more these days , but i think that when he knows there is no or little risk he mixes it up more than before.

the corrales fight was a master piece of ring use timing and defense .

i dont like mayaether sr style. shoulder roll is too risky and works only with very slick fighters.

prime byrd yeah , A 230 pounds whitaker , but not as untouchable and magic as sweat pea was.

[oldgringo]

Nobody outside of Pep had the knack for defense that Pea had. He made more people miss than Barry Sanders.

Toney has a great defense, although it's nowhere near Whitakers, its unique and effective in it's own way.

Byrd is very slick and elusive. That's the only reason he's alive right now. He's pretty smart in the ring as well.

Mayweather is the closest thing to a Whitaker right now.

Sweet Pea was a once in a lifetime fighter.

[AintGottaClue]

its a shame i have never seen sweet pea fight

[cple]

Well, Pep and Whitaker are the cream of the crop when it comes to defense, so it can be argued that no one since or ever will surpass or even equal them. That's not to say that there hasn't been great defensive fighters between Pep's and Whitaker's eras. In fact, there has been many. I'd be hard pressed to find anyone who's defense is better than that of Miguel Canto, Jose Napoles, and Wilfred Benitez. Then there are fighters who didn't use conventional defensive technique, but were equipped with superhuman reflexes: Roy Jones, a young Muhammad Ali. Then there are the old-timers who were said to have been unhittable: Jack Johnson and Benny Leonard.