Your Hottest Takes:

Topuria could've done quite well for a boxer I imagine.

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But, yeah, I agree.

 

Despite the clear H2H dominance, when was the last time you saw Saddler rated over Pep p4p or even at FW?

I would pay top money to sit ringside for Saddler Vs PBF at 130 lbs, Madison Square Garden, 1948.

 

I have always preferred boxing anyway. I have seen some MMA fights and can't get into it the same way.

 

Some more.

* Leon Spinks had a damned good chance of defeating Norton had he chosen to defend against him rather than meet Ali in the rematch. He's also kinda underrated in general.

* The 1930's featherweight division is probably as deep as that division has ever been, and there are at least five guys in that division who are stone cold locks for spots in the top twenty. The fact that Miller held the championship for so long makes him automatic for top 10, and a serious contender for top 5. The fact that Armstrong ultimately emerged as its top fighter makes him automatic top five, and a very legit contender for GOAT at the weight.

 

Gary Russel Jr. might’ve been better than Hamed, Morales, and Barrera h2h.

 

JCC is the king of Mexico and one of the greatest inside fighters of all time, credit owed to Duran as one of them too but I like what I see from Chavez a lot more but Duran’s reputation for it is what carries him… I suppose that’s a hot take actually.

 

I think one bit here is sometimes the best kickboxers didn’t have access to a boxing gym where I used to live there was no martial art available but Tae Kwon Do and BJJ… now if you started making waves in the kickboxing world would you want to be “exposed”or move to boxing where you aren’t somebody yet? Sometimes it’s just humans being human I’ll be honest if I was a top flight kickboxer making 1/5 a contender makes in boxing I’d still stay because I’m historic in one place and the other is uncharted and could ruin my marketability.

 

Seldom, but I believe Saddler has a legitimate argument for being placed above Pep. Usually, the argument in favour of Pep is that he defeated several boxers who beat Saddler (Terranova, Sierra, Demarco, Savoie & Leslie). However, some context to this argument should be provided. Saddler lost to Jock Leslie in his 2nd professional bout when he was only 17 yrs old. He lost via DQ to Canadian Savoie (born in Montreal) in a fight that took place in Montreal. Both of his losses to Demarco were split decisions (I wish footage of their fights existed - there is some wild discrepancy in scores for their last two fights) and he stopped Demarco in their 1st fight ! Saddler also fought the more experienced version of Demarco. It should also be noted that Saddler KO'd two fighters who stopped Pep - Tommy Collins and Lulu Perez.

My dream matchup is Sandy Saddler v Sal Sanchez at 125 lbs.

 

MMA doesn't pay enough to siphon elite talent from boxing.

MMA technically stole Ngannou from boxing but that was a unique situation.

 

Surprisingly muay Thai guys tend to do better in boxing then kickboxers from what I've seen. The GOAT of Muay Thai Smart even became a world champ (before losing to Jeff Fenech)

 

I have Foreman ahead of everyone bar Ali and Louis.

Mike Tyson is a tad overrated. Tyson Fury is grossly overrated.

Kostya Tszyu is the hardest hitting 140lb man of all time and top 3 all time at the weight. I think he would’ve beaten Floyd and Prior too.

GGG won the first two fights against Canelo.

And there’s no such thing as a lucky punch. A win is a win. A loss is a loss.

99.9% of excuses fighters (and their rusted on fans) make after a loss are nonsense.

 

Outside of Tszyu beating Mayweather and Pryor I don't think any of these are so controversial

 

Having Foreman as the third best heavyweight is a horrible take.

 

I do not disagree with the original point of sanctioning bodies counting for more. They will, in the end, have more sway over matchmaking choices. However, I cannot be made to agree that The Ring is somehow less credible, or that they are based mostly on "feelings". I think that description is more appropriate to the body that initially "felt" it was unjust to sanction a boxing match between two Russians because of the war in Ukraine.

For one, whether or not The Ring appears to "piggyback" off of the bodies' rankings is irrelevant as this alone does not detract from its greater accuracy and credibility. While the alphabet organizations have more concrete rules, and the option to exercise those rules on a given fighter, under that surface of order is irrefutable, widespread corruption. And, if not outright corruption, they can also, at times, become victims of their own rules, as in the case of Dubois at heavyweight. I do not mean to say that The Ring is above its own biases, but it is not as directly motivated by immediate financial gain as are the various belt organizations.

One need only look at its website for multiple examples:

At heavyweight, The Ring has Usyk as champion with the man he recently deposed as number one contender. Okolie, Wardley, Huni, and Chisora top the others' lists. What pathway did these men go through to earn this distinction over Fury, Parker or Kabayel? And this is just going off of current times. In the last decade, Wilder, for instance, seemed exempt from defending his trinket against Whyte, not once, mind you, but on numerous occasions.

As in light heavyweight: Bivol is champion, Beterbiev the leading contender, with Benavidez right behind. Meanwhile, neither the WBC nor WBO have Benavidez in their top ten, but they curiously have Morrell, the guy he just beat, in the top three. The IBF have Eifert and Wallace ahead of even Beterbiev in their ranking. When you have Eifert as your top contender, it should be glaringly obvious how deeply flawed your system truly is, in my opinion.

In the wake of Canelo, Crawford, and Haney's move up, I think it's fair and rational to have those divisional championships vacant for the moment. The Ring has the titlists in each division in their top five. Again, I find this much more preferable to what occupies the other bodies' top five- untested regional contenders, and fringe contenders their champions already beat.