Which Heavyweight Champion Has The Biggest Gap...

I've never seen anyone, even Wlad's biggest advocates, rated him in the Top 3 other than the times when they were trolling.

 

The odd person gives him 3rd. But it's pretty small a number in comparison.

 

Leon Spinks.

 

Maybe I've been trolled then haha! If that is the case, I'll rescind my point.

 

This is Wlad’s domain. This is the definitive Wlad thread

 

Wlad is still currently underrated and in 10 years he will most likely be higher in the rankings and appreciated as he should be. Just like Lennox was.

 

I doubt it, it’s already ten years since he retired more or less

 

Yeah, and Lewis still was not rated in the Top 10 in Ring's HW survey in 2017. We'll see.

 

I don't understand the Wlad thing and why some rate him as highly as they claim he should be rated - he's a long-reigning titlist not champ. Similar to B-Hop, long-reigning but didn't overtake Hags or Monzon as THE champ.

Naturally, he didn't fight the best opponent in the division, fought on friendly turf with complicit refs and rebuilt his whole style to avoid having his chin checked.

Louis was taken out by Schmelling over many rounds of exemplary execution. Wlad was cold clocked by bigger punchers yes, but not a systemic dismantling - he didn't avenge his KOs, unlike Louis did, and whilst big and using his size well, I struggle to enjoy watching him fight.

 

He gets rated nowhere as high as people here are making out. He usually shows up either just in or out of a top 10 in the majority of lists on here. Some people will have him a lot higher than that range (3-6) and others also have him a lot lower than that range (15-20).

Not many are really saying he rates over Joe Louis. In fact I myself mainly rate Wlad below Joe Louis and Larry Holmes who are also long reigning champions mainly due to those losses.

 

Yeah, I should know better.

Gotta start talking boxing the barbers and the gym again properly - ESB can be like an alternative universe.

 

I have to disagree.
There seems to be a fairly hardcore cell of Wlad fans here who overrate him badly often putting him nearer top 5 than top 10.

 

I am looking at all fanbases combined.

 

Fair enough, I still think he’s one of the more overrated boxers out there overall

 

He was the champ from June 2009. He lost his titles in November 2015. Defended 11 times in the span of 6 and a half years. It is a definition of a long-reigning champion.

He beat every top contender of his day not named Klitschko. Beat 9 Top 10 guys over the course of his reign (15 during his whole career). Rebuilt his whole style to avoid having his chin checked just like Lewis. It's crazy to take a huge improvement as a negative. Not to mention the whole story behind this - knocked out 3 times, nobody, even his brother, gave him a prayer, but he turned around and became one of the most dominant champs in the history of HW division.

Wlad was never one shotted like Lewis did for example. Avenged 1 of his 3 early defeats. Not perfect, but if you see that other ATGs like Tyson or Foreman never avenged their losses, it's not extraordinary.