Best I've faced! Boxers top ten they faced..

[MRBOOMER]

Bumpity........

[Gonzalez_Boxing]

Bumpity........

Great read. Thanks for posting.

[El Gitano]

Best I’ve Faced: Marcos Maidana

Marcos Maidana won world titles at junior welterweight and welterweight in the early part of the decade. In his penultimate fight, the Argentine‘s fan-friendly style gave Floyd Mayweather Jr. one of his toughest challenges.

He was born in 1983 and raised on a farm in Margarita, a small town of around 5,000 people, and remembers himself as a poor but happy child. When he was 14 years old a man came to his hometown and organized a boxing tournament. “El Chino” won by knockout and progressed quickly.

“I looked good as I rapidly started to knock all my opponents out,” Maidana told ******.com through his manager, Sebastian Courtesi. “So they took me to the city of Santa Fe, which is a big city, where it was tougher because I had to be on my own. Then I was called up for the national team, so I had to live in Buenos Aires – definitely a major city.”

He took part in 84 amateur contests, winning in the region of 70. He also won three national titles. During his time in the unpaid ranks he beat Lucas Matthysse in three of their four fights. Unfortunately, they never met as pros.

“Matthysse is a great fighter,” acknowledged Maidana. “We used to compete for a spot on the national team. I beat him three times and we had a draw. Three of those fights were tough and close but I came on stronger in the end.”

Maidana attempted to qualify for the 2004 Olympics but lost – dubiously, he feels – at the qualifying stage. It wasn’t such a bad thing: “Definitely the Olympic style was not for me, so I wanted to become a pro,” he said.

Maidana made his professional bow in the summer of 2004 and won his first 18 fights, with only one lasting the distance. By this time he was getting noticed outside South America and signed with German promoter Universum. He won seven more fights, five in Germany, before unsuccessfully challenging the proficient Andriy Kotelnik for the WBA 140-pound title. Maidana gave the Ukrainian all he could handle but lost a split decision by the slimmest of margins.

Unperturbed, he resurfaced in the summer of ’09, when he took on then-rising star Victor Ortiz. The two engaged in a wild all-action affair. Both were down multiple times before Maidana stopped Ortiz in the sixth round.



Over the next 18 months Maidana stayed active, fighting twice in Argentina and once in America, where he knocked out previously unbeaten Victor Cayo on HBO with a debilitating bodyshot.

In late ’10, Maidana met Amir Khan for the WBA strap – Khan had dethroned Kotelnik – at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. He had to overcome a near-disasterous first round, getting off the canvas from a Khan bodyshot before giving the Brit all he could handle in a barnstorming fight, though again he came up short on the cards.

The following spring he returned to Las Vegas to face modern-day legend Erik Morales. Early on, Morales‘ superior boxing brain gave the rugged Argentine fits. However, as the fight wore on the naturally bigger Maidana was able to heavily mark up Morales‘ eye. To the Mexican’s credit, he fought with grotesque swelling that rendered his left eye nearly blind. In the later rounds, Maidana was able to take a hold of the fight and ultimately won a majority decision.




alt
Marcos Maidana stands over Adrien Broner after knocking him down during their fight, which Maidana won by unanimous decision, in 2013. (Photo: Naoki Fukuda)

Marcos Maidana won world titles at junior welterweight and welterweight in the early part of the decade. In his penultimate fight, the Argentine‘s fan-friendly style gave Floyd Mayweather Jr. one of his toughest challenges.

He was born in 1983 and raised on a farm in Margarita, a small town of around 5,000 people, and remembers himself as a poor but happy child. When he was 14 years old a man came to his hometown and organized a boxing tournament. “El Chino” won by knockout and progressed quickly.

“I looked good as I rapidly started to knock all my opponents out,” Maidana told ******.com through his manager, Sebastian Courtesi. “So they took me to the city of Santa Fe, which is a big city, where it was tougher because I had to be on my own. Then I was called up for the national team, so I had to live in Buenos Aires – definitely a major city.”

He took part in 84 amateur contests, winning in the region of 70. He also won three national titles. During his time in the unpaid ranks he beat Lucas Matthysse in three of their four fights. Unfortunately, they never met as pros.

“Matthysse is a great fighter,” acknowledged Maidana. “We used to compete for a spot on the national team. I beat him three times and we had a draw. Three of those fights were tough and close but I came on stronger in the end.”

Maidana attempted to qualify for the 2004 Olympics but lost – dubiously, he feels – at the qualifying stage. It wasn’t such a bad thing: “Definitely the Olympic style was not for me, so I wanted to become a pro,” he said.

Maidana made his professional bow in the summer of 2004 and won his first 18 fights, with only one lasting the distance. By this time he was getting noticed outside South America and signed with German promoter Universum. He won seven more fights, five in Germany, before unsuccessfully challenging the proficient Andriy Kotelnik for the WBA 140-pound title. Maidana gave the Ukrainian all he could handle but lost a split decision by the slimmest of margins.

Unperturbed, he resurfaced in the summer of ’09, when he took on then-rising star Victor Ortiz. The two engaged in a wild all-action affair. Both were down multiple times before Maidana stopped Ortiz in the sixth round.




Over the next 18 months Maidana stayed active, fighting twice in Argentina and once in America, where he knocked out previously unbeaten Victor Cayo on HBO with a debilitating bodyshot.

In late ’10, Maidana met Amir Khan for the WBA strap – Khan had dethroned Kotelnik – at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. He had to overcome a near-disasterous first round, getting off the canvas from a Khan bodyshot before giving the Brit all he could handle in a barnstorming fight, though again he came up short on the cards.

The following spring he returned to Las Vegas to face modern-day legend Erik Morales. Early on, Morales‘ superior boxing brain gave the rugged Argentine fits. However, as the fight wore on the naturally bigger Maidana was able to heavily mark up Morales‘ eye. To the Mexican’s credit, he fought with grotesque swelling that rendered his left eye nearly blind. In the later rounds, Maidana was able to take a hold of the fight and ultimately won a majority decision.




Maidana, who had held the WBA interim title, was upgraded to full champion and defeated future Boxcino champion Petr Petrov in four rounds before abdicating his throne to move up to 147 pounds.

At his new weight, Maidana dropped a wide decision to Devon Alexander. He put the listless performance down to an intestinal infection.

He put the loss behind him and won three fights – all by stoppage – against Jesus Soto Karass, Angel Martinez and young veteran Josesito Lopez to earn a shot at Floyd Mayweather Jr.‘s protege, Adrien Broner.

Maidana showed the young upstart no respect throughout the promotion and in the fight, dropping the WBA beltholder in the second and eighth rounds en route to a definitive points win. He was awarded THE RING‘s “Upset of the Year” for 2013.



Having beaten the pupil, he was able to parlay that into an even bigger fight with the master. He met Mayweather in May 2014 in a RING/WBA/WBC unification bout. After 12 hard rounds at the MGM Grand, Mayweather emerged victorious by majority decision.

Maidana’s performance was enough to deserve a rematch. The second time, however, Mayweather was able to outfox him to win a wide decision.

[El Gitano]

Looking back he says his best wins were against Ortiz and Broner: “Unforgettable nights for me. With Ortiz the fans started booing me and then ended applauding me. With Broner it was a great feeling to have 15,000 Mexican fans cheering for me.”

The same two opponents figure prominently in his proudest moments.

“Both when I beat Victor Ortiz to win my first world title and when I beat Broner for my third,” he explained. “Golden Boy Promotions took me like an opponent for ‘the new Golden Boy‘ as they used to call him (Ortiz). We were like 10 Argentine’s at the Staples Center against thousands of Mexican fans and it was a battle for the ages. That day I guess I earned some respect in America and especially among Mexican fans, which I love.

“In the fight with Broner I felt totally motivated, as he is a loudmouth, was unbeaten, considered by some as ‘the new Floyd‘ and was the favorite for most people. But I owned him since the first time we met. It was the first and only time I played mind games and it worked. Yet in the ring he was tougher than I expected and he really earned my respect.”

Maidana (35-5, 31 KOs) hasn’t fought in 21 months and refuses to commit to any future plans about returning to the ring, simply saying, “I don’t know yet. I am comfortable for now.”

The 32-year-old lives in Calchaqui, about 20 kilometers south of Margarita, with his wife Mariana. They have a young daughter together and he also has a son from a previous relationship. His younger brother, Fabian, is a pro boxer, fighting at welterweight.

“I am a family person who tries to spend as much time with them as possible,” he said. “Also, I love fishing and hunting since those are the kinds of things that people from the country usually like to do.”

He agreed to speak about the best fighters he has fought in 10 categories.

BEST JAB
Floyd Mayweather Jr.: Although it was not damaging, Floyd’s jab keeps you at distance and gives himself the proper distance to throw the following punches.

BEST DEFENSE
Mayweather: You can barely land more than two consecutive punches on him. You can catch him in relatively solid fashion with the first, but he would adjust his body to soften the second and then he’s either gone or grabs you.

BEST CHIN
Mayweather and Erik Morales: These two guys had solid chins. I caught them with clean punches and they would never blink.

FASTEST HANDS
Amir Khan: He is just too fast with his hands and able to throw 4-5 punches out of the blue.

FASTEST FEET
Mayweather: The way his legs position him to either defend or to attack is just amazing.

SMARTEST
Mayweather: He just simply used (his intelligence) to do everything just right.

STRONGEST
Adrien Broner: I know people think I gave him the beating of his life but trust me, Adrien is really strong. The last round against him he came at me like a true warrior, asking for more and more.

BEST PUNCHER
Victor Ortiz: This is the hardest puncher I’ve faced. He didn’t drop me three times in our fight for nothing. Yet, I knocked him out.

BEST SKILLS
Mayweather and Morales: Although two totally different styles these guys really know how to box and to get away from dangerous situations to come back with their own arsenal.

BEST OVERALL
Mayweather: Simply the best of his time. Undoubtedly the best I’ve ever faced is Floyd Mayweather. Too smart, slick and also has a tough chin. I put a lot of pressure on him, especially in the first fight, and I guess it was such a close bout. In fact, I thought I had won the fight when the final bell rang. He was never able to do anything in that first encounter and I was the aggressor throughout. The rematch was different since he took the bike. And when Floyd does that there‘s not much you can do to catch him.

[robertzimmerman]

Bumpity........

Thank you so much for this thread mate.

It's been an absolute pleasure to read.

I can't wait to read more of these in the future.

Cheers.

[BrometheusBob.]

Paulie Malignaggi
source: http://www.rin gtv.com/491309-best-f...ie-malignaggi/

BEST JAB

Amir Khan: To be effective with the jab you must control range and when you get into position you rely on your hand speed. Amir had that down very well in our fight.

BEST DEFENSE

Adrien Broner: Adrien stays in the pocket so that he can roll and slip what’s coming his way and when he does catch a shot, it rarely lands flush. There is method to that Mayweather defense, although Floyd is a lot better at it. Both Gavin Rees and Marcos Maidana exploited Broner’s vulnerability to the overhand right and that’s because Adrien doesn’t bend at the knees.

BEST CHIN

Lovemore Ndou: Lovemore was never stopped as a professional and had a great chin. I did drop him in our first fight but that was one of the sharpest performances of my career. I won my first world title from him and was really on my game that night.

BEST PUNCHER

Miguel Cotto: Miguel was a consistently hard puncher. The guy hit me and I was actually asking myself if it was real. He broke my orbital bone in Round 2 and that’s damage you pick up in a car accident. Don’t believe all the bulls–t about an injury like that going numb either. The pain never goes away and it’s your adrenaline that carries you through.

FASTEST HANDS

Khan: When he found the range his hand speed never let him down. Amir could pull the trigger very quickly and in that sense, he’s like a gunslinger in the Old West. He was the fastest on the draw and very difficult to counterpunch. He also has a very deceiving rhythm, which makes it difficult to time him.

FASTEST FEET

Khan: Amir was the only guy who completely nullified my main asset, which is quickness. He took the lead in our fight and I couldn’t fall back on my speed because his speed topped mine. Very early I could tell it was going to be tough and it obviously was. Amir will be a nightmare for any opponent because he uses fast feet to acquire the range and then releases fast hands when he gets there.

SMARTEST

Cotto: Miguel is so good at making you feel uncomfortable and making you fight his fight. He takes you completely out of your comfort zone and even when you’re doing well against him, you still know you’re in danger. He cut off the ring, maneuvered me into certain areas, made me overthink, and that’s when panic sets in. He has excellent ring intelligence. You can’t tell how good Miguel is until you’re in there with him.

STRONGEST

Shawn Porter: He came from a higher weight and has a background in wrestling and football. Also, he has the type of physique where he can excel in that body-to-body contact. It was very difficult to maneuver on the inside against him and locate the correct punching angles. Shawn was very strong and tenacious on the inside and he kept the action there as often as he could.

BEST OVERALL SKILLS

Cotto: Miguel’s technical skill is excellent. If you see a still picture of him throwing a left hook, his right hand is always right by his chin. If he’s throwing the right, his left hand is by his chin. He has terrific balance, keeps his hands very high and is always in good position.

BEST OVERALL

Cotto: He had the power, the ring intelligence and the unique ability to know when I was hurting. Many times in my career I would catch a good shot to the head or to the body and play possum in order to kill the clock. The problem was Miguel always knew when I was hurt and would jump right on me. He had real killer instinct and that, combined with his power, technique and desire, makes him what he is. All these years later and I can say, ‘Hey, that’s the best fighter I ever fought.’”

[iamboxing]

Nice read....did Naseem Hamed ever do one of these. I know Vasquez said Naseem was his hardest opponent. Would love to know who Hamed thinks had best defence, jab, ring smarts, footwork..etc I know Barrera was his hardest but I'm guessing he'd say Kelley had the hardest punch(?)

[El Gitano]

BEST I’VE FACED: ORLANDO SALIDO

Orlando Salido is the embodiment of the hard-nosed Mexican warrior. He’s never had anything easy in life or inside the ring. The 22-year veteran has had to scrap for everything he’s ever accomplished in a career that, so far, has procured five world titles in two weight classes.

Salido was born in the northern Mexican state of Sonora in Ciudad Obregon on November 16, 1980. His early years were particularly tough.

“Growing up was very difficult for me,” Salido told ******.com through Ricardo Jimenez. “My family was very poor and when I was 13 years old, my father passed away. Then one day, I was away at school and came home to find out my mother was gone. She left to marry another guy and left without saying goodbye.

“I, along with my sister, was left in the care of my grandmother, who was very, very poor. We literally lived in a cardboard-style house on a dirt floor. Food was very hard to come by, so I had to steal from stores in the area, so me and my sister could eat. This was a very bad time in my life and I started hanging around the wrong people. A lot of these people were drug users but I did not ever use drugs. I needed a place to sleep and I crashed wherever I could.”

When Salido was around 10 years old, a friend introduced him to boxing. He visited the Nuevos Valores gym in his hometown. The facility was owned by Victor Barron, who over 25 years later is still his trainer. Initially, he knew nothing about boxing but was determined to work hard in an effort to make something of himself. When he had to fend for himself and family, boxing came to the forefront.

At just 15, Salido decided to turn pro.

“First, I turned pro for survival, so I could make money to feed myself,” admitted the now 36 year old. “I really had no idea what I was doing other than I would work out a little bit and if someone called, I would take a fight if I was in shape or not because I needed the money.”

“Siri” had 18 fights in the first four years of his career, all of which took place in Mexico. His record was a less than stellar 11-6-1 (7 knockouts).

However, when his long-time friend Fernando Rojo – the same person who introduced him to boxing – moved to the United States, he was offered an opportunity to also make the move.

“I did not have my papers,” he said. “So I had to pay to cross into the U.S. by a ‘coyote.’ Those are people who take you out through the desert to cross illegally. Thank goodness that was a long time ago and I am 100 percent legal now.”

He lived with his friend and another gentleman called Obando who worked in the business and helped make fights. Salido admits he became disenchanted with boxing and worked in construction. After a few months he felt the yearn to box again and when he was given another opportunity he promptly took it.

“I took my first fight in the U.S. versus William Abelyan and lost a six-round decision,” he said. “My second fight in the U.S. was when things started to turn for me and I started to believe I could do something in boxing. That fight was in Las Vegas back on May 18, 2001 and it was an eight-round draw vs. Mark Burse. At that time, I started to really train and prepare for fights like a pro.”

In late 2001, he upset former WBO 130-pound titlist Regilio Tuur and lost a disputed majority decision to another former world champion, Alejandro Gonzalez.

His big break came the following year when he was brought in as an opponent to face unbeaten Lamont Pearson on TV. The grizzled Mexican upset the IBF No. 1 contender by unanimous decision.

The next day Salido headed to Las Vegas and signed with Top Rank. Their union lasted nine fights, he won the first eight to earn a shot at the WBA/IBF featherweight belts held by Juan Manuel Marquez.

Although, Salido dropped a wide unanimous decision and parted with Top Rank soon afterwards it was a good learning curve. He met his now manager Sean Gibbons who promptly aligned him with Fernando Beltran of Zanfer Promotions.

In the fall of 2006, as chief support to Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Carlos Baldomir, Salido beat Robert Guerrero by unanimous decision for the IBF 126-pound title. However, he tested positive for a steroid and the result was voided. To this day Salido is unsure of what happened.

“I have never in my career or life used any performance-enhancing drugs,” he stated. “Also, two days after the positive test came back from Quest Diagnostics, we went to another lab in California by the name of Lab Corp and the same test came back negative. So to this day, it still is a mystery to me.”

After returning he worked his way back to fight for the then vacant IBF crown, he met fellow Mexican, Cristobal Cruz, dropping a unanimous decision.

To his credit, much as he has had to in life, he showed incredible perseverance and in May 2010, beat Cruz to finally win the IBF featherweight strap that had so far eluded him.

In his very next outing he looked to unify with Yuriorkis Gamboa. Despite dropping the Cuban, he lost a seesaw contest.

In the spring of 2011, Salido headed to Puerto Rico to face Juan Manuel Lopez for the WBO featherweight laurels.

Most expected the burgeoning Puerto Rican star to continue his assent to the top of the sport. However, Salido, wasn’t particularly impressed by Lopez.

“Looking at the record of ‘JuanMa’ Lopez, I felt I was fighting the better competition of fighter and he was knocking out B-class fighters and that I had 11 losses but I have learned a lot from them and I knew if I got through the first few rounds, JuanMa was mine.” he explained.

With the fight poised, perfectly even on all three scorecards, Salido tore through Lopez stopping him in front of throngs of his fans in the eighth round.

Salido considers it to be the best win of his career: “It came against a undefeated boxer who was a big favorite in his hometown. That win took me to the next level.”

After one title defense and a near disastrous performance in a non-title bout the two were once again in unison, 11 months later for their eagerly anticipated rematch.

The second go around proved no different, again Salido touched down and despite being behind on points his indomitable spirit proved too much for Lopez, who cracked and fell apart in the 10th round.

His next big opportunity came 10 months later when he headed to New York to face another rising star, Mikey Garcia. After four rounds, Salido had yo-yo’d on and off the canvas four times but refused to stay down. He charged back and was giving Garcia problems before an accidental head clash broke Garcia’s nose and the fight was halted. The bout went to the scorecards and Garcia was well ahead on points, thus retained the title.

When Garcia decided to move up in weight, Salido was matched with Orlando Cruz to fill the vacancy on the undercard of Juan Manuel Marquez-Tim Bradley at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. Salido showed little compassion bludgeoning another Puerto Rican to regain his old belt.

In early 2014, Salido took up the challenge of uber talented former two-time Olympic gold medalist Vasyl Lomachenko. The seasoned Mexican veteran lost the title on the scales but edged the Ukrainian by split decision.

He decided enough was enough and moved up to junior lightweight and fought for the WBO interim title while awaiting the opportunity to fight for the full championship. Salido met Thai warhorse Terdsak Kokietgym, in a thriller, both recovered from multiple knockdowns before Salido stopped the brave Thai fighter in the penultimate round.

His two fights in 2015 were instant classics. He lost a close decision to Rocky Martinez for the full WBO status and then gave the Puerto Rican all he could handle (and then some) only for the rematch be ruled a draw, despite most believing Salido deserved the decision.

Salido is 3-1-1 in world title fights with Puerto Ricans and is arguably the best placed active fighter to speak on the heated rivalry between the two countries.

“It’s always something special when Mexican and Puerto Ricans boxers get in the ring because of the great tradition of boxing in both countries,” he said. “Fans get very passionate about these fights and for me it’s a great honor to represent Mexico in these fights.

“You always go in there to win, but when you face a Puerto Rican there is more at stake than just a victory, there is pride and your country.”

Last June, Salido sought out another tough challenge and faced then WBC titlist Francisco Vargas. The two Mexican’s fought toe-to-toe for 12 outstanding rounds, again at the conclusion, the fight was rendered a draw. The fight was named Fight of the Year by THE RING magazine and BWAA.

On Saturday, Salido (43-13-4, 30 knockouts) will return from a near 12-month hiatus to face Aristides Perez (30-9-2, 16 KOs) in his hometown of Cuidad Obregon, on the Azteca network in Mexico and on BeIN Sports in America.

Salido had been linked with a fight with Takashi Miura last December, but that was cancelled to due injury. Since then there have been talks of a rematch with Lomachenko, which now appears likely for August, providing Salido is victorious on Saturday.

Salido has achieved a lot in his career but he considers the recognition to be worth more than the titles he won.

“I had some difficult times in my career and it took a long time for me to be recognized for what I’ve done,” he explained. “I am very proud to say that for first time in my life I am finally getting the credit that I earned in the ring and that makes this time in my life my proudest moment in boxing.”

Salido, is married and has four children. He lives in Phoenix, Arizona. Outside of boxing he owns some property in America and Mexico and also a children’s party business, where he rents out bouncy castles, all of which keeps him busy when he’s not in training.

“I am grateful to able to give my kids the opportunity to have a better life than I had,” he said proudly. “I know that they will be able to get a good education and do whatever they want with their life. I love being at home with them and spend as much time as I can. I like to do work around the house and work on my cars.”

He graciously agreed to speak to ******.com about the best he faced in 10 key categories.

[El Gitano]

BEST JAB
Juan Manuel Marquez: He used it in so many ways, as a counter, to keep his rhythm and to start his offense. When I fought Juan Manuel Marquez I did not have the experience at the elite level. I would have liked to face him later in my career and see how I would have done against him as a world champion after facing some of the great boxers I did after I fought him.

BEST DEFENSE
Marquez: He was always one step ahead, he saw everything that was coming and kept me off balance.

BEST CHIN
Rocky Martinez: I landed some great shots in the second fight and he took them very well.

FASTEST HANDS
Vasyl Lomancheko: Just very quick with his punches.

FASTEST FEET
Lomachenko: He moved very well in the ring.

SMARTEST
Marquez: He knew what he wanted to do in the ring and executed it to perfection, (he was) just very smart in there.

STRONGEST
Regilio Turr: He was just very strong physically in the ring, one of the few times I did not feel that I was the bigger and stronger man in the ring.

BEST PUNCHER
Mikey Garcia: He has very heavy hands, much stronger than I expected and he was very accurate

BEST SKILLS
Marquez: He was just on top of his game when I fought him, great boxing, sound defense, smart and a great counter puncher.

BEST OVERALL
Marquez: Marquez is the best fighter I have ever faced, a complete fighter with great boxing skills, sound aggressive offense, always ahead of me. He was playing chess while everyone else was playing checkers.

[hugh grant]

Who's the best GGG or nel o have faced?