Ali - Ken Norton (some say Norton won all 3 fights) Roy Jones Jr - Antonio Tarver (see above) Manny Pacquiao - JMM (the itch Pac just hasn't scratched yet) Shane Mosley - Vernon Forrest (when they weren't pros yet, too!) Vernon Forrest - Ricardo Mayorga (some say Forrest won the second, but...) Well, that's all I can think of...any more?
When I say "lesser", I don't mean in terms of skills...I mean in terms of popularity and hype. None of the "lesser" guys I mentioned were more popular than the guy's whose number they had...even YOU have to admit that. But, I must add, while you're right that JMM may not be "lesser" than Pacquiao, all of the rest are definitely not as skilled as the guy they beat, but for some reason, had the guy's number.
The obvious one to me is Pep - Sadler. Sadler was an ATG but I'd say comfortably lesser than Pep, yet really had his number. He gave Pep every kind of trouble.
Yeah, but wasn't later in pep's career and after the plane accident? I think many people would say he wasn't the same fighter after that, in terms of his speed and reflexes.