Who's the best defensive boxer ever?

Question

my grandfather says Willie Pep.. i say Pernell Whitaker.

Answer 1

My brother :-)

Na, it's Willie Pep !

Answer 2

i believe it was Willie Pep

Answer 3

here are a few of the greatest.

willie pep

benny leonard

ray leonard

nicolino locche

ray robinson

pernell whitaker

jimmy wilde

muhammad ali

roy jones

gene tunney

kid gavilan

charley burley

Answer 4

Willie Pep and Pernell Whitaker are the first two names that come to mind for me. Though, if I had to pick one of them, I would have to say Willie Pep. I say this, because look at how many fights Pep has amazed us when it comes to defense. He had well over 220 pro fights.

As great as Whitaker was in defense, who is to say that he would have had that same performance, just after half the fights that Pep had.

Answer 5

ROY JONES SPEED MADE HIM THE BEST DEFENSIVE BOXER OF ALL TIME

Answer 6

Both Pernell and Pep were spectacular and hall of famers, each with arguments that are valid.  

Several others who deserve mention are Winky Wright,  James Toney and Roy Jones Jr.

Wright stands right in front of his opponents and makes them miss, slipping and countering with the best of his era.

James Toney brings an awkwardness that makes him so difficult to hit, he won titles from middleweight to heavyweight and was competative with the heavyest hitting heavyweights of his era.

Roy Jones Jr., at his peak had a combination of speed and quickness that made it almost impossible to land a clean shot on him.

Of the five, Willie Pep is the best know for defensive wizardry, but each of the others have their place in history as well.   Opinions will vary, and history will always give Pep the honor, but others too have left their mark on boxing.

Answer 7

a young Wilfred Benitez.

Answer 8

there are three boxers that come to mind when talking about defensive skills

Willie pep: the legendary willie pep, the man known for winning a round without throwing a single punch (some people say t's not true but the video is on youtube) his elusiveness,speed and reflexes were astonishing, he was such a master of defense that often he played with his opponents for several rounds just to show his superiority, he could get you from any angle and make you miss whichever way he wanted, pernell was good at making you miss but willie pep was good at making you miss and look stupid at the same time i haven't seen a boxer that was this good in my lifetime.

pernell whitaker: sweet pea was a fantastic fighter, he could make you miss in a phone booth, his reflexes and boxing skills were very impressive and his resume is a living testament to that. He was physically stronger than willie pep and he could mix it up with bigger opponents the only difference between him and willie pep is that willie pep relied a lot on both foot work and upper body movement while pernell whitaker relied mostly on head and upper body movement alone,however willie pep fought well over a 100 fights and that is what gives willie pep the edge.

Nicolino locche: the best defensive fighter that nobody knows, this guy was amazing, he had the best over all defensive skills i have seen, he relied on head and upper body movement but he also kept his guard up and well placed, he had good foot work and great coordination,personally i admire him the most because willie pep and whitaker had natural skills but this guy had to develop his defensive abilities from scratch, anyone who wants to become a boxer should watch videos of his fights.

Answer 9

Pernell was good, very good, but Willie was GREAT!  His defense was so masterful, he won a round without even throwing a punch.

I am surprised that nobody mentioned Bernard Hopkins.  Many people remember him from his recent outings which are clinch filled but look at some of his performances from the late 90s-02/03.  He would control the ring, use angles, shoulder rolls, and was difficult to hit with a clean shot.  And he was such a good counter puncher, he often forced his opponents to stop punching because they knew they were going to get hit in return.