Who has/had the best jab in boxing? What made it special?

[Complex]

A simple question but very hard when you think about it?

Ike Quartey had a jab that could put opponents on their backs.

Lennox Lewis possessed one that was very deceptive, it would go from pawing to power in a split second, might be the best by a Heavyweight I have witnessed.

What say you?

[Motown]

Re: Who has/had the best jab in boxing? What made it special?

A simple question but very hard when you think about it?

Ike Quartey had a jab that could put opponents on their backs.

Lennox Lewis possessed one that was very deceptive, it would go from pawing to power in a split second, might be the best by a Heavyweight I have witnessed.

What say you?

Ali & Robinson in terms of speed, Sonny Liston & Foreman in terms of Power. I would have go w/ Larry Holmes tho...dude had deadly jab. he had the perfect combination of speed, precision and power.With an 80" reach...that combination is devastating.

Bert Sugar was quoted as sayin " Larry Holmes had a jab that came out so fast that it sounded like a baseball being thrown 90 miles an hour, hitting a catchers mit, when it exploded off of someones face."

[Hova57]

Re: Who has/had the best jab in boxing? What made it special?

Yea I would say larry jab young evander jab was good too. Chavez body jabs to setup the hooks were good too

[thelwig14]

Re: Who has/had the best jab in boxing? What made it special?

Wlad and Lennox have the best two jabs ever. The only difference between the two is Lennox was better at varying his power...almost throwing the perfect changeup in baseball...and Wlad can absolutely stop you in your tracks with the most powerful jab in heavyweight history while throwing the highest jab output in history.

Other than those two...Holmes, Ali, Vitali and Liston in that order. Those 6 guys are on their own jab planet.

[Motown]

Re: Who has/had the best jab in boxing? What made it special?

Wlad and Lennox have the best two jabs ever. The only difference between the two is Lennox was better at varying his power...almost throwing the perfect changeup in baseball...and Wlad can absolutely stop you in your tracks with the most powerful jab in heavyweight history while throwing the highest jab output in history.

Other than those two...Holmes, Ali, Vitali and Liston in that order. Those 6 guys are on their own jab planet.

I respectively disagree w/ Wlad & Lennox...they have or had great jabs, but they weren't even in same zip code as Holmes...sorry.

[grunt]

Re: Who has/had the best jab in boxing? What made it special?

Liston was known for his jab.
Pinklon Thomas had a great job.
Buster Douglas when he was in shape and motivated had a nice jab.

[bbarr43]

Re: Who has/had the best jab in boxing? What made it special?

Gonna go out on a limb and say prime Ali. My thought is being tied to his footwork and elusiveness though also. Has the speed, power and snap to make you feel it, tie in the combos, all while getting in and out before you can reciprocate. Although my next candidate would be Lennox. A boxer that tall with that kind of reach doesn't have to do too much to hit and keep away. I didn't like him back in the day, but never gets his respect, he gave all the greats of his day, including Tyson & Holyfield trouble.

[MikeRo72]

Re: Who has/had the best jab in boxing? What made it special?

Larry Holmes prime weapon was his lead jab. It was fast, it was heavy, and he used it to measure his distance from his opponent. Hands down, not even an argument here fellas. With respect to the other great fighters mentioned on this thread Larry Holmes jab was what other fighters knew was coming but couldnt get out of the way of.

Today the jab has sort of changed with natural southpaws fighting orthodox and using their strong hand as the jab. Cotto has a fantastic super fast double jab, PBF uses his jab to paw, measure, and set up his counters. See the JMM fight. P-Will throws whats almost a back hand "pimp slap" from his waist to his opponents head. Throws it early and often. And the K Bro's jabs are super heavy but slow. But they pack so much weight behind their jabs that it's like a normal fighters cross. See Arreola's face for an illustration of what that jab does.