10 of the fastest boxers

When it comes to the question of who is, or even who was, the fastest boxer in history, the answer is almost impossible to give. What does one actually mean by fastest? Do they mean the quickest to throw a single punch? A combination of punches? To move their head? To their body? To run around a ring? A combination of the above? Do they look at it on a pound for pound basis or do they strictly mean the "fastest" across all weight categories?

Sadly with so many questions to think about it's difficult to nail down an answer as to who is the quickest. Though here's a list of ten that could be considered for various reasons.

Although a name few will be familiar with the Argentine Light Welterweight was a fighter who lacked power, didn't punch lightning fast and didn't really get the recognition he deserved, he did do one thing few could. Locche could move his head, his body and his feet surprisingly quickly, in fact he often made fighters miss by such a distance he got a free shot on them. Despite rarely defending in a typical way of holding a high guard, Locche got the nickname "El Intocable" (The Untouchable) due to his lightning quick defensive movements that frustrated much more powerful fighter such as Paul Fuji who retired due to the frustration that he got throwing and missing against Locche.

Although others may feel that other heavyweights were quicker, such as the head and hand speed of a prime Ali, or the foot speed of Floyd Patterson Tyson's combinations in the 1980's were some thing else. A prime Tyson combined devastating power with lighting speed and threw his shots in bunches with the intention to hurt his opponents, cut them down and stop them as quickly and as violently as possible. Though the "prime Tyson" argument is one that never ceases to end, a "young" Tyson was something else, that really stood out out blisteringly quick, deadly accurate, and hard to land clean on. Though of course Tyson went off the rails some what and after his loss to Buster Douglas was never the same fighter that he once been.

Hector Camacho maybe remembered as a flamboyant and lively character who seemed to have his career split into several parts, though he is also remembered for having some of the fastest feet in the sport. Sadly many fans seem to remember his as a bit of a runner, and forget that as well as some of the fastest legs in the sport he was also able to throw frighteningly fast punches. Although the combinations went in later years his single punches were frighteningly quick for a man many remember unfairly as havng a bit of a yellow belly. Machos shots were quick, making an elusive fighter even more difficult to beat, first they had to catch him, then avoid the shots he could throw before firing anything back. In 88 fights, some as recently as May 2010 (just days before Camacho was 48) he has never been stopped and yet faced some of the best fighters of the 1990's and 1980's (including holding a win over Howard Davis Jr).

Although many may feel its a bit odd to include someone like Benny Leonard, who fought over 100 times in the first half of the 20th century it's only fair to give the great man his due. Going on the available footage of Leonard is admittedly misleading, the film used to record the fights is choppy, black and white and not upto todays standard, though it's with out question only part of what showed Leonards impressive speed. Leonard often dared people to hit him whilst placing his hands down, then moved away with ease, it's even said he tested his agility against cats and didn't let up until he beat the cat. Though the footage shows a faster move with explosive punches, he's only at #7 due to the fact boxing, on the whole, has risen in quality since then, many of his opponents probably made him look faster than he actually was

If you want a fast puncher few, if any, were quicker than Howard Davis Jr, who tends to get over looked due to the era he boxed in and the fact he never won a world title. Davis possibly had the fastest pure hand speed of any fighter, and was surprisingly faster than many smaller fighters. In a career that started back in 1977 and ended in 1996 Davis lost 6 of 43 fights (2 by stoppage) yet lost mostly in world title shots, including 2 attempts to win the WBC Lightweight title and a shot at the IBF Light Welterweight title. The problem for Davis is as quick as his hands were offensively he lacked the power to quite manage to do it at the top level.

If pure hand speed is how you measure your fastest few could ever hope to compete with the lightning punches of Meldrick Taylor. After winning Olympic gold Taylors speed took him the IBF Light Welterweight belt. Though unlike some speed demons who have only one speedy feature Taylor could do it all, fast legs, incredible reflex and handspeed that really was blink you'd miss it with both single shots and combinations reigning in unbelieveable speed. Taylors career would come off the rails though when he faced Julio Cesar Chavez in 1990 and suffer his first loss, being stopped with 1 second left, after this Taylor was never quite the same fighter. Although he would later go on to hold the WBA Welterweight title he was slightly slower than he had been and was caught by punches he once would have avoided.

After debuting at just 15 Benetiz would explode on to the scene aged 17 when he beat Antonio Cervantes the great Light Welterweight. Though other than his age Benitez, like Locche had some inert ability to move out of the way of punches, slipping and sliding everything despite being pinned against the ropes by bigger, stronger and more powerful fighters. His defensive abilities earned him the nickname "El Radar" for his ability to move out of the way for his opponents onslaught. Though as well as being a defensive master he had lightning, hard, accurate punches that made him dangerous when he attacked. Though his record of 53-8-1 includes 4 stoppages losses, a surprisingly high number for a defensive master, 3 of them came late on in his career including a broken ankle against Davey Moore whilst the first came against the great Sugar Ray Leonard. Benitez carried his speed up to Light Middleweight and claimed titles in 3 separate division.

Between Middleweight and Heavyweight few, if any could compete with Jones' speed, starting with with his movement, that could easily frustrate even the best of the era, he was there one second and gone the next, his foot speed was exceptional and yet it was his single shot hand speed that most remember Jones for. Rather than many, such as Joe Calzaghe, who would throw fast flurries of punches, Jones would, at his prime throw only single, lightning fast shots, moving in and out of range in what seemed like only a single move. Leaping hooks seemed to be his trademark though he could, when he wanted to, show all the skills of an all round fighter. Like many on this list he was able to drop his hands, dare an opponent to hit him, move and land a perfect shot on them, infamously imitating a fighting cock when he knocked out Glenn Kelly.

Like most on this list Leonard just seemed to have more time than his opponents, he threw combinations that opponents just saw as a flurry of red leather, he moved like a blur, he could stick his chin in your face move and detonate a hard shot on your chin before you knew what was happening. Annoyingly for his opponents he spent much of his "spare time" in the ring taunting and annoying you, something that is often at the centre of conversations about the "No Mas" fight with Roberto Duran. Leonard at times seemed the perfect fighter, able to fight toe to toe with most, available to drop opponents, with boundless stamina, though it was always his speed that seemed to give opponents the most trouble and even saw him becoming the first man to stop Wilfred Benitez a speedy defensive master. Unlike most on this list however Leonard wasn't defensively inclined all the time and could fight with the best of them, famously stopping Tommy Hearns in the 14th round despite being behind on the cards after 13.

Unconventional, unique, different, amazing, brilliant. All words that spring to mind when talking about Pernell Whittaker, though they all come after "fast". Whittaker merged everything about speed and could turn defence into offence in a blink of an eye, his movement was instant, his punches were blinding, his reflexes seemed to make viewers think he had read the script before the opponent. After winning gold at the 1984 Olympics Whittaker turned pro and at times seemed unhittable, infamously avoiding a flurry of punches by Oscar De La Hoya in 1997 in a fight many felt Whittaker was robbed in. The difference between Whittaker and many of the others on this list was that he just combined things so perfectly, he could move, he could punch, and until very late in his career you could have argued his record should have been unbeaten only losing controversially. The black marks against Whittaker come mainly in the fact he tested positive for cocaine late in his career, though had already established himself as a great well before then. In 46 fights he was stopped only once, in his final fight, not due to a punch by the opponent but a broken clavicle.

Of course many will disagree with this list, feeling that Patterson and Ali were quick heavyweights and so deserving of a place on the list, or Willie Pep had faster moves than Locche, or that modern fighters including Joe Calzaghe (for his flurries), Shane Mosley (for hand speed), Floyd Mayweather Jr (for Movement, handspeed and footspeed), Manny Pacquiao (for handspeed, footspeed and movement) and Zab Judah (hand speed) all deserve a mention amongst others. The problem with this sort of a list is that it's impossible to decide whos actually the quickest. Many will also feel that Sugar Ray Robinson deserves a mention, for all round speed, though is left out as I tend to feel his speed wasn't his greatest attribute (his all round ability, for me, was better than just his speed) whilst a young Tommy Hearns landed shots on Saensak Muangsurin that were frighteningly quick.

Though for those missing (and those missing from the previous paragraph) a point could well be made for tens of others and therefore this isn't a definitive list.

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