How good were Hagler's skills a pure boxer?

[Mendoza]

How good were Hagler's skills a pure boxer?

[he grant]

Extremely ... he had a killer jab, in his prime very good speed and a variety of well schooled punches thrown in combinations ... he could also box lefty or righty ....

[natonic]

Extremely ... he had a killer jab, in his prime very good speed and a variety of well schooled punches thrown in combinations ... he could also box lefty or righty ....

Spot on. I'll just add that he had deceptively good movement for a middleweight.

[Russell]

I've always felt that being able to switch from orthodox to southpaw at well, and do both well is worth serious credit by itself.

[mcvey]

How good were Hagler's skills a pure boxer?
Hagler was seriously good he had a great variety of shots, very good positional sense ,excellent foot work and balance.Marvin was allways in position to throw another punch if the first one missed,he understood pace and how to judge it,he was a ring mechanic of the first order,a fighter who honoured his calling.

[Manassa]

Same kind of fighter as Carlos Ortiz. Like McVey said, a mechanic - about as good as any fighter can get. The only ones slightly better are those once-in-a-blue-moon specials like Roberto Duran, Willie Pep or Ray Robinson.

[AREA 53]

Marvin's exhibition against the Big Punching Tony Sibson is a perfect example of Marvins versatility, in choosing to initially Box a potentially very dangerous opponent. excellant skill and mobility

[Sweet Pea]

Hagler was seriously good he had a great variety of shots, very good positional sense ,excellent foot work and balance.Marvin was allways in position to throw another punch if the first one missed,he understood pace and how to judge it,he was a ring mechanic of the first order,a fighter who honoured his calling.Nice post. Couldn't have put it better.

[mcvey]

Same kind of fighter as Carlos Ortiz. Like McVey said, a mechanic - about as good as any fighter can get. The only ones slightly better are those once-in-a-blue-moon specials like Roberto Duran, Willie Pep or Ray Robinson.
Carlos Ortiz is an excellent comparison imo,both guys were thoroughly schooled in the noble art.

[META5]

Hagler was seriously good he had a great variety of shots, very good positional sense ,excellent foot work and balance.Marvin was allways in position to throw another punch if the first one missed,he understood pace and how to judge it,he was a ring mechanic of the first order,a fighter who honoured his calling.

Funnily enough, I rarely see mention of how good Marv's defence could be in his prime. Many times that it looks like he's been hit, on slow motion, he's JUST slipped the punch and is now in position to counter.

His jab was an ATG one in my book. He busted up fighters badly with it ... like a MW equivalent of the heavy Liston or Foreman jabs, but much more fluent.

[Drew101]

Put his punches together very well, was adept at slipping, parrying and blocking shots, and had a knack for creating optimum angles for his shots. Plus his punching technique was superb from either stance.

[Mendoza]

Does anyone think Hagler was a slow starter?

Was Hagler on the decline vs Mugabi?

[Russell]

Was Hagler on the decline vs Mugabi?

Most definitely.

Hagler was in many a fight that wear fighters down.

[JIm Broughton]

Hagler's boxing skills are somewhat underrated IMO. At his best he was one of the most highly skilled MW's there was. Excellent footwork, in an economical not flashy way. Good head movement. Good feints. Threw hard, fast intelligently placed combinations and was adept at slipping and countering. Oh yeah, can't forget his concrete chin. If I sound a little biased then I'm guilty as charged but I've always felt that overall he's the best MW champ of all time. Not by a wide margin mind you but still the best.

[redrooster]

his best performance came in the first hamsho fight.

[WhataRock]

Does anyone think Hagler was a slow starter?

Was Hagler on the decline vs Mugabi?

As is being discussed in another thread he did sometimes start slow but there are several examples where he just blew out guys or dominated from the start. I guess you could say that was just another part of his game that was well balanced.
As Mcvey put it Marvin understood pace, if it seemed he was starting slow it was more then likely very deliberate.

I dont think he was at his physical peak against Mugabi. Plus he was carrying in injuries, maybe more then just the back.

[Robbi]

I loved Hagler's rhythm when fighting. He had very smooth co-ordination with his hands and feet and general technique, but I liked the jerky movements with his upperbody and head when coming forward. It was as if he was stuttering. Anyone who has seen Hagler fight will know exactly what I'm talking about. Thats just my way of describing his rare style when using the shoulders and head in a fighting stance and posture. It usually happened when neither him or his opponent weren't throwing any punches.

[sweet_scientist]

It's not a popular opinion (at least around here) but I think Hagler's pure boxing skills were better than Bernard Hopkins'. More fluidity and a better jab in particular at his best.

[sweet_scientist]

I loved Hagler's rhythm when fighting. He had very smooth co-ordination with his hands and feet and general technique, but I liked the jerky movements with his upperbody and head when coming forward. It was as if he was stuttering. Anyone who has seen Hagler fight will know exactly what I'm talking about. Thats just my way of describing his rare style when using the shoulders and head in a fighting stance and posture. It usually happened when neither him or his opponent weren't throwing any punches.

Good post, his rhythm was remarkable. Would totally befuddle fighters, especially the more slowish, hard punching, more straight forward type of characters. I think Hagler would have put a terrible beating on someone like Pavlik.

[WhataRock]

It's not a popular opinion (at least around here) but I think Hagler's pure boxing skills were better than Bernard Hopkins'. More fluidity and a better jab in particular at his best.

I actually agree.

I think there is an element of unorthodoxness to what Bernard does that IMO makes him appear less technically proficient then some make out, I particularly see it in his right hand.. But that doesnt mean it is a negative, he makes it work .

I dont know if Ive worded it right or anyone even knows what I mean here but I often thought Bernard is not the pure boxer many people believe he is but at the same time it doesnt detract from him in anyway as a fighter, if anything its a positive for him.

[sweet_scientist]

I actually agree.

I think there is an element of unorthodoxness to what Bernard does that IMO makes him appear less technically proficient then some make out, I particularly see it in his right hand.. But that doesnt mean it is a negative, he makes it work .

I dont know if Ive worded it right or anyone even knows what I mean here but I often thought Bernard is not the pure boxer many people believe he is but at the same time it doesnt detract from him in anyway as a fighter, if anything its a positive for him.

Yeah I'm with ya Rock. Bernard has technique galore, even if it is an unorthodox technique.

Ultimately though, I'm more impressed with his ability to scrap than his ability to purely box.