...beaten any other boxer in their weight class based on a performance on a particular night, if it wasn't for their opponent beating them...:good Simply put, said boxer wasn't good enough to beat his opponent, but based on the performance, effort, etc he displayed...he, in your opinion, would have beaten any other boxer in his weight class in the ring that night.
Leonard-Hearns 1. I don't see any other WW around that time that would've beaten Hearns. Duran and Benitez had left 147, and I don't think they beat Hearns at 147 either. Benitez was better at 154 than he was at 147 (you could argue the same for Hearns and say he was sturdier and more comfortable), and you saw how that fight ended up at 154 when they fought. Hearns is always a terrible, terrible matchup for Duran, even the Montreal version of Roberto in my opinion. Duran would fare better than he did in 1984 but I still don't think he wins. Hearns had already wasted Cuevas. Stafford? Curry (green)? McCrory? Don't see any of them beating Hearns. The 140 lb. Pryor? Different case in the pro ranks than their amateur bout.
Havn't seen the first bout, or know enough about it to comment. But I certainly agree with the following two.
I wouldnt have picked any other 154lber at the time to beat Fernando Vargas the night he fought Hoya. Same goes for JC vs Kessler Morales vs Pac 1 Mosley vs Hoya 1