It's Mayweather. Roman Gonzalez and Canelo Alvarez next up. If Donaire beats Inoue, he's right up there with them (though I fancy him among the next up on the list either way). EDIT: Yeah, Ward up there too.
But he beat the shittiest versions of them. Him and Pac both still have the strongest claims to fighter of this decade just because the young 'uns weren't hungry enough. That's just sad.
What's interesting to me about the names you listed is that 1 of 2..I think they're pretty solid names. 2 of 2. I seriously think that each of those names were ragged on as not even being a challenge for Pac. Broner is over rated on this board (going into the fight with Pac) Clottey never beat a major fighter. Got Dq'd vs Baldomir, won a vacant title against Judah he lost next fight. Thats his legacy IMO. Rios is a plodder who wins only by forward march. No plan b. Bradley was called a muscle bound man with no power. Algieri at best was considered a spoiler. Maragrito is my greatest definition of a hype job. About a 50% KO rating...& It was Arum that started that "most dangerous fighter" label. Why...why don't they want to fight me? Heck he 's got nothing worth taking. Other than a beating. Now I respect Thurman but acknowledge the board's plea to consider he has stayed injured. Some say he was over rated. Not me, I think this a GREAT win for Pac. Not proof for being fighter of the decade though. This is what I read about the fighters you named...going into the fight with Pac. But when Pac beats them, now they are worthy names of him earning fighter of the decade? I'll go either Loma or Fury. For a guy to win a title as early as Loma? Has multiple belts? Or the feel good story of Fury will probably get it...IF he rematches and wins.
Margarito beat Cotto, beat Martinez, took on an albiet overhyped but undefeated power punching Cintron and ruined him, gave Williams a great fight, gave Pac a very good fight... ect. I can understand someone thinking hes overrated and not liking him... but, the definition of a hype job? Seems a bit harsh. He fought good fighters... beat some, lost some, gave others hell. Tested himself. Thats not really the mold of a hypejob.
I gotcha. We will agree to disagree. He couldn't cut Cotto 2nd fight. Not bruise him. Yet bludgeoned him 1st fight. Beating Martinez in his early stages meant he was better than Martinez. At that stage in his career. Martinez ..was he even ranked when they fought? I don't remember. Went 0-1-1 with Santos. But as you pointed out he Gave Williams a helluva fight. A williams who got out boxed by Quintana I. Put to sleep by Serg. Neither Williams, Margarito will make any HOF. Will never be mentioned as ATGs. Rito was a worhorse with a high workrate IMO. He had a hellatious chin. No way does that equate to Arum calling him the most feared man that even Floyd won't touch. That is why I call him the greatest hype job. He never came close to meeting that label.
I wanna' take a look at what previous fighters of the decade did to deserve their honors. Ha ha. Wikipedia already has Canelo's name filled in for 2010s. 20s Harry Greb: Gibbons x2, Norfolk, Tunney, Loughran x4, Flowers, Slattery, Walker, Rosenbloom 30s Henry Armstrong: Wolgast, Arizmendi x3, Wright, Ross, Ambers, Garcia 40s Ray Robinson: Angott x3, Zivic x2, LaMotta x4, Armstrong, Gavilan x2 50s Ray Robinson: Villemain x2, LaMotta, Turpin, Graziano, Fullmer, Basilio 60s Muhammad Ali: Moore, Jones, Liston, Patterson, 70s Roberto Duran: Marcel, Kobayashi, Buchanan, Ishimatsu, De Jesus x2, Viruet x2, Mamby, Palomino 80s Ray Leonard: Duran x2, Hearns, Hagler, Lalonde 90s Roy Jones Jr: Hopkins, Toney, McCallum, Hill 00s Manny Pacquiao: Ledwaba, Barrera x2, Marquez x2, Morales x2, De La Hoya, Hatton, Cotto 10s Floyd Mayweather: Mosley, Cotto, Canelo, Pacquiao
Clottey, Margarito, Mosley, Bradley x3, Broner, Thurman There aren't a lot of guys who can top that. Mayweather can, just barely because he's got Pacquiao on his ledger. Mosley, Cotto, Canelo, Pacquiao. Ward comes next with Bika, Abraham, Froch, Dawson. He didn't beat Kovalev either time; which makes his resume really thin, especially losing the Kessler win to last decade. If I had to pick a word to describe Ward's career it would be lethargic. He really sat on his laurels after the super six. You can't give the honor to Canelo because he actually lost most of his big fights and the guys he beat were all old and tiny. His resume is Mosley, Cotto, Jacobs, and maybe Trout. Lomachenko is the most talented new guy this decade but the only opponents he's had that actually impressed me at all were Russell Jr, Linares, and Campbell. Usyk has a better resume in Glowacki, Huck, Bellew, Briedis, and Gassiev. I guess Gonzalez' should be in the conversation with Estrada, Yaegashi, Viloria, Sosa, and Rungvisai. Who else? I guess if we're gonna' be fair we can add Golovkin's name to the mix for beating Canelo twice and Jacobs once, but I think he needs more names to really qualify, good as a double Canelo is. So where's that leave us? 1.Mayweather 2.Pacquiao 3.Gonzalez 4.Ward 5.Donaire 6.Usyk 7.Golovkin 8.Lomachenko 8.Martinez 9.Canelo 10.Inoue
Mayweather 2010-present destroys Pacquiao 2010-present. To not acknowledge this is a near travesty for someone who would consider themselves informed on the sport of boxing. Put your agenda aside. Put your "b, bu, but"s aside. It's clear as day. Lineal/#1/2/3 WW - Mosley #3 WW - Ortiz #1 JMW - Cotto top 10 WW - Guerrero Lineal/#1 JMW - Canelo (in the conversation for FOTD) top 10 WW - Maidana top 10 WW - Maidana Pacquiao (apparently in the conversation for FOTD) back-end top 10 WW - Berto 0-0 McGregor 10-0 Don't make me type up Pac's 2010-present ledger. It's a massacre.