How many lightweights would you favour to beat prime Arguello?

Benny Leonard
Duran
Barney Ross
Pernell Whitaker
Gans
Canzoneri
Ike Williams
Perhaps a few others but this is not a knock on Arguello, Lightweight
is a loaded division

 

Mayweather
Pacquiao
Whitaker
Duran
Mosley
JCC

 

Two masters of accumulating damage on the other guy as the fight progresses. I pick JCC at 135 because the foot speed counters Arguello's jab better than when he was heavier. I think JCC accrues rounds based on activity.

There is a world where this is just a 135lb version of Hearns-Duran though.

 

Well lightweight historically is full of absolute horrible *******s more than any other division, so it's not wild to say that any number between five and twenty five might turn the trick on any given Sunday considering that Arguello had become a bit stiffer of leg and slower. The ruleset might be important re the early 20th century lads.

Even outside of the likes of Duran, Gans, Pea, Leonard and not including the early bunch who we lack footage of, you're talking about the likes of Amber's, Armstrong, Williams, Canzi, Ross, Mandell, Chocolate, Angott, Brown, Ortiz, Elorde, Laguna, Buchanan, DeJesus, Mayweather, Chavez, Rodolfo Gonzalez, Locche, the young Naples, the young Langford, Welsh, McFarland etc. Even world class tricky characters like Joyce, Lane, Dawson and such might turn out to be far from an easy night. Not to say that they'd all necessarily beat him, but I'd be less than comfortable making him a clear favourite over any of that lot. There are a lot of excellent fighters at the weight though that he might batter on the right night. The likes of Kansas, Jack, Montgomery, Rosario, Mando Ramos, Teo Cruz, Nazarov, Castillo, Carter, Loi, Lomachenko etc. Mosley and DLH are interesting because of being lesser fighters but with a big size advantage, though I'm not sure Mosley had the spine to stick it through a firefight with someone like Arguello.

 

Basically agree with everything said here.

 

Buchanan
Sweet pea
Chavez

 

Duran, Armstrong, Whitaker.

 

Not enough responses have said Carlos Ortiz. Ortiz was too versatile for Arguello.

 

This.

 

I sure as Hell would not pick Pac over Arguello at 130 or 135.

 

I think Alexis was already starting to be post-prime by the time he was at 135.

He lost to Vilomar Fernandez at 135 and imo Jose Luis Ramirez (it’s a close fight so I’m not saying robbery but I had JLR winning iirc by one point by virtue of the knockdown).

Apart from those two bouts, his only outings at 135 of note were a stoppage of Cornelius Boza-Edwards (who was a 130-pounder really) and title wins over Jim Watt, Ray Mancini, Roberto Elizondo, Bubba Busceme and Andy Gannigan.

His best win at 135 is either over Watt (a limited but game fellow against whom Alexis fought a very disciplined fight) or Mancini (a very aggressive and capable but at this point pretty green challenger).

So Ramirez and Gannigan, both southpaws, knocked him down, which makes me think any hard-hitting southpaw is going to give him trouble at this weight. Mancini certainly had success until the championship rounds (and AA’s methodical approach to break him down) caught up with him. Bubba Busceme gave him some issues as did, obviously, Vilomar, so movers might also provide some trouble.

Finding only a handful of lightweights all-time to be able to beat Arguello at that weight seems a stretch given his resume at lightweight.

Alexis would beat his share of guys and give others a good go, but he was far from an unstoppable force at a weight where he really only has about eight fights of any note.

 

,,,very nicely done...Can't argue with this at all