Best I've faced

[Chrismart]

Ray Mercer - June 2019

BEST JAB
Larry Holmes: I learned how to throw my jab off Larry. He had one of the best jabs in the world, ever. I’ve got to give that to him; his jab was awesome. He used the jab for a lot of things: to hurt you, set up the right hand, he used it well.

BEST DEFENSE
Francesco Damiani: He was a southpaw, he took away my jab, he looked kinda big, he was awkward. This guy could really move and he was a boxer.

FASTEST HANDS
Evander Holyfield: He was just fast. Before you know it the jab is coming back. He was a smaller guy, so he was obviously faster than the big guys.

BEST FOOTWORK
Holyfield: When he threw punches he didn’t just hit and stay there, he was a very smart fighter. He’d hit you and move to the side. He’ll come back with something and move to the other side. He’s real slick on his feet.

BEST CHIN
Bert Cooper: We had fight of the year in 1990. That dude took everything I had and I took everything he had. We both ended up in the hospital. Lennox Lewis and Holyfield took a good shot.

SMARTEST
Lennox Lewis: He knows when to battle and when not to battle. He listens to his trainer, he’s smart in a lot of ways. He gets in there and you think he’s not going to throw this and he does. He hits you with stuff you don’t think you’ll get hit with. He’ll set you up.

STRONGEST
Lewis: We were coming in and bumping into each other. He wasn’t budging and I wasn’t budging. He’s got some slick moves, he’s a big man, everything he did was slick and strong. He was definitely the strongest.

BEST PUNCHER
Wladimir Klitschko: He was a bigger and stronger guy. I really didn’t know him so when he hit me I was like, ‘Damn, where did he come from?’ I was in shape and he was just a powerful dude, his jab and everything, very heavy-handed, more than Lewis.

BEST BOXING SKILLS
Holyfield: Everybody knows he’s got the skills to hit and move, hit and not get hit. He was slick, everything his trainer told him to do he does. He was in a position to punch all the time, that’s one thing that amazes me, you have to have good footwork for that. He knows all the moves, he’ll make you pay for your mistakes. He’s just a natural, he’s got everything, he’s complete, he’s the Real Deal.

BEST OVERALL
Lewis: He’s a big guy, he was a great champion, he’s a strong guy, he had one of the best trainers in the world in Emanuel Steward, that’s half the battle. Emanuel Steward could get Lennox Lewis to fight the fight Emanuel wants him to fight. (Lewis) is one of the best of our generation.

[TonyGe]

I'm a Lewis fan but Ray gave him all he could handle and then some.

[True That]

Merciless Ray Mercer!!!

I enjoyed reading his "Best I've Faced"

Good to see Lennox Lewis get plenty of acknowledgement from Mercer.

[Chrismart]

Buddy McGirt - June 2019

BEST JAB
Pat Coleman: It’s a pick between two guys, Saoul Mamby and Pat Coleman. When Mamby jabbed he had a sort of half open glove, it was just annoying, he could hit you from different angles because he had so much experience. Coleman had that stinging jab, it was a jab you had to think about, you couldn’t just walk through it. I’m going to go with Pat Coleman.

BEST DEFENSE
Pernell Whitaker: Pernell had natural ability and his natural ability along with Georgie Benton’s teachings made him better and harder for everybody else to hit him. It’s very deceiving because he’d be right there one minute, and when you punched he didn’t go anywhere, he stays there. He just had this natural instinct of going with the punches and catching them.

FASTEST HANDS
Meldrick Taylor: He didn’t have the best defense but his handspeed was so fast that you thought you were surrounded [laughs]!

BEST FOOTWORK
Whitaker: That’s an interesting question. Even though Frankie Warren was a pressure fighter, his foot movement was really good especially on the inside, he would get inside and give me different angles. He’d be right in your face quick, his balance was perfect. Pernell didn’t move much, he’d stand in front of you and turn you around. From that southpaw stance he was phenomenal, he could turn you and slip, he could get under the shots and still be in the same place; his balance was great. He had it down to a tee.

BEST CHIN
Frankie Warren: When we fought the second time, I hit him with shots that would have knocked anybody else out. Some of the shots I hit him with I put my ass into [laughs]. He wouldn’t go anywhere, even though I knocked him down, he was just in my ass constantly. I had nightmares about him for about two months after the fight!

SMARTEST
Saoul Mamby: He was very tricky. I hit him with a shot, a good right, I saw his legs buckle and I’m going in for the kill. I thought I’d be the first one to stop him, when I threw a right hand he slipped and hit me with a left hook to the liver. I’ve never in my life been hit like that to the liver. When we got into a clinch he told me to slow my young ass down [laughs].

STRONGEST
Warren: Frankie Warren and Vincent Releford. If I had to pick, I’d go with Frankie Warren. He was short, he’s an ex-football player and was on me so much you felt you were fighting two people.

BEST PUNCHER
Vincent Releford: He could just punch, he could punch with both hands. He hit me with a body shot and I felt it in my nasal passage but didn’t go down. I went down against Tony Baltazar, and for seven rounds I didn’t know where I was or who I was fighting. When I looked up it was Round 9 and I said to my manager, ‘How did we get to round nine?’ He said, ‘Keep doing what you’re doing.’ I said, ‘What’s that?’ He said, “Keep boxing.’ I won every round after I got knocked down but I don’t remember anything from the fight to this day.

BEST SKILLS
Whitaker: I’ve got to say Pernell. Meldrick could box but he was easy to hit. Pernell could box but he was hard to hit.

BEST OVERALL
Whitaker: Pernell, believe it or not he was a helluva body puncher. I give credit where credit is due, and he was the best.

[Chrismart]

Leo ‘Torito’ Gamez - June 2019

BEST JAB
Johnny Bredahl: Without a doubt the best jab I faced was against Johnny Bredahl. He was a good fighter; he had a lot of height. He had a great, fast jab that kept his rivals at distance.

BEST DEFENSE
Kaaj Chartbandit: Kaaj Chartbandit had the best defense. He knew a lot and had a great amateur career.

BEST HANDSPEED
Pichitnoi Sithbanprachan: He was the fastest fighter I faced. Even when I defeated him, he gave me a lot of problems. My experience made the difference that night.

BEST FOOTWORK
Sithbanprachan: I was not able to find him inside the ring. He drove me crazy.

STRONGEST
Myung Woo Yuh: He was a rough man, even when I was beating him, he never went back.

SMARTEST
Yuh: He was very intelligent.

BEST PUNCHER
Hugo Soto: He really can hit. This Argentinean puncher had an incredible record with 34 knockouts in 58 fights.

BEST CHIN
Yuh: He was very brave and rough. Despite hitting him hard, I could not made him go back.

BEST BOXING SKILLS
Sithbanprachan: He was very fast and very skilled with his hands and feet.

BEST OVERALL
Yuh: He is the best overall. He had everything: power, strength, intelligence and stamina. Apart from that, he made 19 defenses and was a top boxer in that division.

[Chrismart]

Stevie Johnston - July 2019

BEST JAB
Cesar Bazan: He was so tall and lanky with his left jab and I couldn’t get in like I wanted to. I think he had the best jab of them all.

BEST DEFENSE
Jose Luis Castillo: In the second fight with Castillo, he trained really hard and was really hard to hit that fight. I give it to Castillo.

BEST HANDSPEED
Sharmba Mitchell: He was lefthanded and really fast. He was a good boxer.

BEST FOOTWORK
Mitchell: Probably Sharmba again. He knew how to work his feet really good being a lefthander.

STRONGEST
Castillo: Edner Cherry, mmm no, I take that back, Castillo was. The second fight with Castillo, he was in better shape, he came to keep his title. I thought I beat him but they robbed me and said it was a draw. He was really strong that fight.

SMARTEST
Castillo: Every time I hit him once, he was always coming back with two or three. I was like, ‘Damn.’ I felt like I was surrounded. He went to the body a lot, that was his game plan. The first fight he was doing more head hunting, the second fight he was going to the body, it took my legs away from me a little bit. The second fight he was really on his game.

BEST PUNCHER
Bazan: Castillo again, no wait, I take that back. The first fight with Bazan, he had a good left hook.

BEST CHIN
Edner Cherry: I give that to Cherry. I remember just hitting him and he just kept coming.

BEST BOXING SKILLS
Angel Manfredy: He was a good boxer. He had a good jab, he was a good counterpuncher, he was tough. I had to be on my game that night ’cause he was in shape and he was ready to take the title, but I was just a smidge better that night.

BEST OVERALL
Juan Lazcano: He was really tough. He was willing to take a shot to give a shot, he was on his game that night.

[Chrismart]

Emanuel Augustus - July 2019

BEST JAB
Omar Weis: He was popping that thing from every direction. He changed his jab up in speed and power. Really good at jabbing going backwards. I couldn’t time his jab.

BEST DEFENSE
Floyd Mayweather Jr.: His jab and movement made it difficult to catch him clean. His shoulder roll made it hard to land clean head shots, so I punched his elbow, shoulder and forearms.

FASTEST HANDS
Mayweather: What he lacked in power he made up for in speed. After him everybody looked like they were in slow motion.

BEST FOOTWORK
Mayweather: I just wanted to put my head in his chest and punch everything. He’s another dude who could fight going backwards. He was really agile and could fight going backwards to run you into that counter right.

SMARTEST
Wale Omatoso: He set up that right hand over multiple rounds and changed it up. He’s the kinda’ guy that hits you so many times with the left that you’ll beg for the right. But he was outside of my weight class.

STRONGEST
Ruslan Provodnikov: Everything he touched me with had me saying, ‘Oh my God’. That dude was strong. I couldn’t back him up and was so strong that even the shots I landed were draining me.

BEST CHIN
Micky Ward: I kept catching him clean and he just kept coming. That fight was so fun. I’m not known as a big puncher but I just couldn’t hurt him with hard clean shots. We were in there slinging leather like two men possessed.

BEST PUNCHER
Provodnikov: Everything he hit me with hurt. Some guys you can block and some you better just make miss. It’s like he had bad intentions on everything. Even his jab hurt.

BEST BOXING SKILLS
Mayweather: I wasn’t a fan of his style but he did his thing. He had fast hands, good footwork and a defense that forced combos because his reflexes made it hard to catch him with one shot.

BEST OVERALL
Mayweather: As much as I hate to say it [laughs]. I didn’t see him as special then. I would have loved to fight him again at my weight of 140 pounds. He was good at what he did, though. Not being a big puncher forced him to excel in the things he became known for; good jab, speed, footwork, defense, counter-punching and distance control.

[Chrismart]

Pernell Whitaker (From August 2015)

BEST JAB
Buddy McGirt: I didn’t really get hit with them jabs. I tried to keep guys on defense. That was one of my best assets. That’s where I start off at, using the jab and being constant, keeping my jab out there. I think every fighter should have a good jab; a good jab could take you a long way. Of the guys I fought I would say Buddy McGirt had the best jab.

BEST DEFENSE
Azumah Nelson: (Laughs) That’s a tough one because it never took me long to get to anybody. But if I picked someone, I would say Azumah Nelson. I don’t think nobody on this planet had a better defense than I did. There are a lot of fighters with good defense but not like Pernell Whitaker.

BEST CHIN
McGirt: Had a pretty good chin. It’s kind of hard to say who had a good chin. I liked hitting to the body; I liked to work from the body up. McGirt took a good punch.

BEST PUNCHER
Julio Cesar Chavez: Everybody I’ve been in the ring with was considered a big puncher. The one who stands out the most would be Julio Cesar Chavez. I didn’t experience any big shots. I don’t like taking punches.

FASTEST HANDS
Oscar De La Hoya: I made all these fights so easy, it’s hard to say who had the better hand speed. I consider all of them being great, they just weren’t quicker than I was, though I would say Oscar De La Hoya had good hand speed. They start off with speed but by the time I break ’em down, the speed’s over.

FASTEST FEET
Diosbelys Hurtado: I didn’t have a problem with anybody. All the fighters I fought were good fighters. It’s hard to give credit when you make guys look so bad all the time. I would say Diosbelys Hurtado had good feet. Like I say I just went in there and took fighters out of their fight game, turn them into being ordinary fighters.

SMARTEST
All of them: All of the guys I fought were smart fighters; I was just a little smarter. Chavez was pretty smart, De La Hoya was a pretty smart kid, McGirt, I fought him twice, he was a veteran. I don’t have no favorite.

STRONGEST
Nelson : I didn’t give anybody the opportunity to punch. I tried to be the complete boxer. I outboxed all off them. The one that comes to mind is Azumah Nelson. He was a strong guy. He just kept coming forward.

BEST SKILLS
Chavez: [He] was just a good fighter. He had great boxing skills, he was a big puncher, you had to be careful. You don’t get caught up with him, going toe to toe.

BEST OVERALL
Nelson: I liked Azumah Nelson. He kept on coming, he never gives up, he hung in there.

[Chrismart]

Gerry Penalosa - July 2019

BEST JAB
Jhonny Gonzalez: It was hard to get inside because of his jab and he was tall at bantamweight. He used his jab to keep his distance and so he can control throw his favorite punch, the right cross.

BEST DEFENSE
Hiroshi Kawashima: He rolled with my punches and was quick. He was a southpaw and had good footwork, handspeed and head movement.

FASTEST HANDS
In Joo Cho: It was hard to counter against him because of his height and fast hands. He had no intention to brawl. He kept his distance and used his handspeed.

BEST FOOTWORK
Cho: He was too fast and had long legs. German Meraz kept running and focused on how to survive and last the distance.

BEST CHIN
Rolando Bohol: I hit him hard, but he was still standing and always used his experience.

SMARTEST
Rolando Pascuar: He was born with talent. He had one plan to be a tricky boxer. I stopped him in eight rounds, I pressured him and made him work, and in the later rounds he was tired and done.

STRONGEST
Daniel Ponce De Leon: Ponce De Leon and Juanma Lopez, they hit me hard. They were both heavier than me, that’s why. I would pick Ponce De Leon.

BEST PUNCHER
Gonzalez: He could KO you with one punch, he is tall and big at bantamweight. Gonzalez had the best right cross.

BEST BOXING SKILLS
Kawashima: He gave me my hardest fight; he was untouchable, a complete fighter. I beat him because I was hungrier than him and in tip-top condition.

BEST OVERALL
Gonzalez: He is a complete fighter; can fight inside or outside and has power. I was lucky that night. My best wins were against Kawashima and Gonzalez

[Chrismart]

Gaspar Ortega - August 2019

BEST JAB
Isaac Logart: I was always physically and mentally trying to avoid punches. I was even doing it with my body before the bell rang, especially by moving my waist. Logart was very fast in his jab.

BEST DEFENSE
Kid Gavilan: It was very difficult to hit Gavilian with a solid punch because he could move his upper-body side-to-side beautifully.

BEST HANDSPEED
Tony DeMarco: He didn’t have far to throw a punch. He was right in front of me and never took a step back, so his punches seem super-fast. There was a lot of toe-to-toe action.

BEST FOOTWORK
Logart: He was always moving around. It’s hard to hit a moving target and he was very fast on his feet.

SMARTEST
Emile Griffith: He really knew how to box and could adjust his style at any time.

STRONGEST
Griffith: When I fought Emile, he was the only one who could hurt me. After the fight I was urinating blood.

BEST PUNCHER
Carmen Basilio: He could hit you from all angles. Just when you thought you were out of his range, or were well covered up, he found a way to land a shot. Florentino Fernandez was very heavy-handed. If he hit you with a clean shot you knew you were hit.

BEST CHIN
DeMarco: I hit him with everything I had and he just kept coming.

BEST BOXING SKILLS
Kid Gavilan: He was a real good fighter, though not a hard puncher. His footwork was excellent, always on his toes and ready to move so he could dart out of harm’s way or set his feet to throw punches. He had great balance, which enabled him to have superior upper-body movement for bobbing and weaving. His jab and hand speed was very fast, accurate, and he had a sneaky bolo punch. He was elegant in the ring.

BEST OVERALL
DeMarco: He was a hard puncher. When the bell rang he was after you right away; he was aggressive. First, I have to say he was truly a gentleman in and out of the ring; he always fought a clean fight. Fighting him was like trying to move an immovable object. He had tremendous determination, willpower and heart. Combined with his punching power and aggressiveness, it made him extremely dangerous in the ring.