The Chavez fight is not one of the biggest robberies ever like some people like to say. I mean, I think that fight wouldn´t make my top 10 in the biggest robberies of all time... It´s a wrong decision, that´s for sure I don´t think you can see more than 5 rounds to Chavez....
I got to say, I've changed my tune. I still think he was gifted the Vasquez affair. But he is probably a top 25 ATG.
I think I had it a draw after deductions. Fact is I rate Vasquez so highly that even if he'd lost the decision that night I still would've given Pea P4P props for fighting as he did.
Lots of reasons not to like Floyd Mayweather. Braggart, cherry-picker, classless, woman-beater. Take your pick. If you like him, whatever. You're welcome to it.
I was going to respond.. but then I saw this post was done almost 5 years ago...Seamus has changed his mind on the matter after all that time... So no need to respond.. We all know I have a whitaker blow up doll in my room.. so what else needs to be said.
Had the Rivera I fight a draw, but Pea faded badly over the distance. He was probably lucky to leave the winner. I'll give you that this was a close fight that very well may have gone to the wrong man. Pea set it right with a conclusive, dominant win in the rematch, though. I tend to forgive fighters for getting small gifts if they rectify that situation with incredibly decisive return affairs. Whitaker undisputably proved to be the better fighter, and outclassed Rivera in their second go around. That's good enough for me in this scenario. The boxing game universally regards the Chavez fight as one of, if not the, worst decisions of all time. That's all that needs to be said. It's not just the majority opinion, its the near consensus, and that is how history will always remember it. It will always help Whitaker. A faded, coked up Whitaker beat the Russian. I think I had it 114-113 if memory serves. He beat Vasquez by a couple of points, too. Thought it was a great, close fight, but I have never, ever considered the outcome as anything but, and I LOVE watching that one. I'd argue Whitaker beat Vazquez more clearly than Floyd beat DLH, and I thought both were reasonably clear decisions.
Nobody beat him until he started to decline, he produced some of the most skilled boxing ever caught on film, he rarely lost rounds never mind fights and he was the first to blemish the record of the GREAT Julio Cesar Chavez. I`d say he was a pretty special fighter, better than any fighter fighting today, that`s for sure. Easily one of the best boxers in history. Probably the best in the last 25 years.