Floyd Mayweather Vs Sugar Ray Leonard who wins prime for prime

I never said that all of their competition was mind blowing. But the best fighters they fought were all better than Floyd’s opponents, and on the level of Floyd himself.

What did Floyd do better exactly?

List me everything.


There’s an awful lot to consider.

Here’s some of them:


Timing

Balance

Accuracy

Technique

Shot selection/arsenal of shots

Ring generalship


Offence

Defence


Pressuring

Cutting the ring off

Volume/output


Boxing

Fighting

Swarming

Setting traps

Countering

Slipping

Blocking

Parrying

Switching


Composure

Controlled aggression


Strategies/game plans/tactics

Psychological skills


A fighter’s complete skill set covers absolutely everything, not just a shoulder roll defence.


Floyd was a technician.

Floyd had tremendous footwork. As above, footwork covers many things.

Floyd was just a great fighter.

He fought very offensively when he was younger, but far more defensively when he was older up at WW and JMW, and especially when he hand issues in his 30’s.


Now you have said that both Duran and Leonard didn’t possess Floyd’s skills, and that it wasn’t even CLOSE.

Now that is a very bold statement to make.


Please elaborate.

Give us a specific breakdown.


Possessing a better defence and better statistics, by being hit less against lesser fighters doesn’t constitute as possessing superior overall skills.


Although Floyd was a master technician with a tremendous defence, Duran and Leonard also possessed tremendous and varied skill sets of their own.

 

Fair enough. It’s not that he wasn’t great. I just think that there’s too much competition when you’re looking at the greatest of all time, across all divisions, throughout the entire history of the sport.

 

Theyre both amazing fighters and in my top 15. Duran and Leonard that is. By skills I mean what I stated. He was better at feigning, slipping, more accurate, better shot selection, countering, defensively, his jab, ability to adapt (that’s saying something because Leonard was also amazing at changing it up when needed), footwork (Durans footwork was amazing as well but different fighters), speed was pretty close. I don’t think Floyd’s power was on par with either and he was smaller. Leonard was a much better combo thrower. I’ve never seen a fighter like Floyd and despite what anyone may think of his opposition they some were great fighters and they couldn’t land clean shots on him. In boxing that’s insane to just not be hit cleanly by great opposition. That’s why I hold Floyd in high regard and I admit his toughest matches would be with SRR SRL and Hearns that’s because of there power and speed. I just don’t think he gets blown out by any of them like many of you do.

 

Leonard was FASTER then Floyd at Welterweight and that's a FACT.

 

p4p is interesting though. I'd probably take Mayweather, I wouldn't count Ray out though.

 

The fact is any resume can be discredited or downplayed. The fact that you did so with Ray's showed your agenda.

Benitez, Duran, Hearns and Hagler , are high quality wins over ATGS..Wins over 4 ATGs: 2 in their prime, 1 close to his prime, and 1 of the best middles ever who had not lost for 10 years .Even very few ATGs have better single wins.

Leonard is rated at least as a Top 15 ATG everywhere. You may have argued that his resume lacks a bit of depth, but you did not and discredited yourself by attacking a series of highly impressive wins over ATGs. That is it for me, I am out of there.

 

So was Mayweather

 

Agreed, but it's not guaranteed he'd win that way

 

I have no agenda whatsoever. I never liked Mayweather and his boxing.
However, my point is that if you downgrade and downplay Mayweather's resume, the same can be done to Leonard.

 

He'd have beaten Leonard the same way he beat all the others, by making him miss and countering.

 

I strongly disagree with this part of your statement: "Ray could match his technique, his accuracy, his timing and his overall arsenal of shots".
IMO Mayweather had better accuracy and timing.

Also, just cause I choose Mayweather to win, it doesn't mean I'm a fan.
I am not, I never like him, I found his style incredibly boring. Hell, at one point I was fantasizing of chaining him to his opponent so that he can't run anywhere, and that he'd get beat. I wanted to see him bloodied and badly hurt, I was dreaming to do that myself to him. I love brawlers and felt that he wasn't a proper man for not standing there and going toe to toe with his opponents.
So you can call me anything but a Mayweather fan.
However, despite all of that, I am not blind to the fact that under the current rules of the sport, the ******* can beat anyone.
Sure, it might not be a beating in the literal sense, the way I like it, but it would be a win nonetheless.

 

Pac has a good case for top 10 all time p4p.
Hell, he even has a case to be considered GOAT

 

Yes he is, with ease I might add.

 

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Here is some perspective. Floyd may not have beat his dad at Welter. Senior was lightening quick yet look at Leonard's demeanor the whole fight, it was lightwork for him.
Floyd Mayweather, Sr.
Wilfred Benitez
Pipino Cuevas
Pete Ranzany
Even without the top Fab 4 Junior is not gonna dominate the era. Their respective levels of competition were not in the same state. If DLH is one of his marquee wins and Oscar was over the hill. Mathematics right there. Guys like Ricky Hatton? Cue me up Tom Jackson voice COME ON MAN.

 

I still have Mayweather.