Toughest world-level fighter you've seen?

[JuicyJuice]

(Joe Grim doesn't count )

Guys like Rocky Marciano, Marvin Hagler, Steve Collins, Wayne McCullough, Jake LaMotta, Tony Zale, Carmen Basilio, Bobby Chacon, Beau Jack, Battling Nelson and Matthew Saad Muhammad spring to mind.

But for me, Chris Eubank may of been the toughest guy. Afterall, the main focus of his training was learning to absorb punches - so he was beaten up pretty much for 15+ years straight! When we think of Eubank we tend to just remember him posturing his way through contests against what were supposedly no-hopers, barely throwing punches, and being a pompous pain in the ass. But I think the man was the ultimate warrior, in terms of technique he did everything wrong but his chin passed the test every single time (and it was tested all the time!), and if you look back at it now he seemed to be quite super-human how he'd keep going back and defending his title almost every six weeks - struggling for his life in the last few days before the weigh-in (with no food or water).

[JuicyJuice]

Eubank says he won an amateur tournament in New York while concussed, he couldn't even remember winning it. He looked back at the handheld video's though. He said he only remembers being hit so hard in his semi-final match that he sensed flickering of white lights, and how it must of been just before his nervous system would be about to seperate itself from his muscles. He had a tough final to get though yet, on concussion mode and at a time when he was so limited in terms of skill that his best hope was all heart!

You later had the Logan fight where he took Logan's best punches and kept fighting back with more, the first Benn fight where he took Benn's best punches and was pissing blood for weeks due to internal damage (and also had a two-inch gash on his tongue, swallowing pints of blood during the fight), the second Watson fight where he took Watson's best punches alnight and came back from the brink of death to produce an uppercut from hell, the Calzaghe fight where he stood in front of Calzaghe and took a battering due to his fractured knee not allowing him to move about, and the Thompson fights two weights up where his eye completely closed both times and he never went down.

That guy was tough. And don't forget that he was pretty much forced to spar four or five times a week when he was in New York for all those years (if he wanted to stay a member of the gym), and that the 'sparring' sessions over there were infact all-out wars (and that Eubank became king of the New York gyms before coming back to England, after incorporating intense stretching into his training and martial arts into his boxing.. and told everybody who would listen when he started taking fights in England that he was a future world champion and prepared to die in the ring trying). Sure, his fighting heart went missing after the Benn 1 and Watson 2 fights but came out again in the end in the Calzaghe, Thompson 1 and Thompson 2 fights. Warrior, and he used to almost kill himself to make weight.

[JuicyJuice]

Also consider Eubank's upbringing and teenage years, he was NOT from the silver spoon society - far from it! He struggled on the streets of Peckham, having to steal food to survive. Then he struggled on the streets of the South Bronx, again often having to steal food to survive. He could of caved in as a person, but remained strong and determined.

[Heckler]

Joe Frazier, Muhammad Ali, Jack Dempsey, Rocky Maricano, Jim Jeffries, Micky ward, Arturo Gatti... the list goes on, TOUGHNESS is a quality lacking these days.

[JuicyJuice]

Arturo Gatti

Gatti said he'd be willing to die in the ring - one week later he quits on his stool.

He quite simply quit in his biggest fight.

[RockyMarcianofan00]

Butterbean

Jack Dempsey, Rocky Marciano, George Foreman, definitely Joe Frazier

[butterfly1964]

George Chuvalo.

[The Raging Bull]

I've never actually seen Eubank fight, but i've seen Marciano and jesus he could take a punch. I've seen him get an uppercut right in his face and he hardly even bothered about it. Probably the most determined fighter i ever saw.

[JuicyJuice]

I've never actually seen Eubank fight

How old are you, kid?

[sleazyfellow]

beau jack took sum bad beating from ike williams, and he didnt go down, so he ranks up there for me.