Benny Leonard

To answer this is order

One of the greatest fighters of all time.

Yes.

No.

Presumably.


I don't know. I doubt it.

Maybe. A lot of his best work was in the teens. I guess it depends on how you feel about moving up weights

 

Sadly there are no modern books on him. Leonard has the deepest lightweight resume of all time. He has in fact arguably the deepest single division resume of all time. He had a famous fight with Jack Britton that he lost on foul; you can find an argument that it was fixed. I think he has a win (or at least a no decision win) over Britton previously.

Anyway Leonard was probably considered the greatest fighter of his time, although general sportswriters would probably say Dempsey in the same way that Tyson or any other dynamic heavyweight might be rated over the lower weight guys. I don't know if I'd rate his resume over Greb but it is not far behind if at all.

 

Best lightweight of all time in my book. A lot of people will rank Duran higher but comparing resumes and the fact that Duran went up in weight and didnt campaign exclusively at 135, Leonard has it all over him.

I guess the reason Duran gets ranked number one at times is due to the fact that he beats so many guys in a H2H sense and the fact that his fights are available on film.

He fought all comers, black or white, the whole pound for pound thing wasnt even in existence in his time I believe.

I highly doubt there was ever talk of a fight between the two, way too much size difference. I'd be willing to bet it was never mentioned.

There is certainly an argument for fighter of the '20's based on his wins in the early part of the decade but I'm doubtful he would get it over, say Harry Greb.

 

A serious argument to be made for him being Top 10 ATG Pound for Pound.

 

Leonard was dynamite. Incredible boxer. KO puncher. Clever, tough, powerful. He also felt Dempsey was the greatest hwt he ever saw.

 

A few points on Benny Leonard...
He was considered the greatest lightweight along with Joe Gans by all who saw him dominate the greatest assortment of lightweights such as Lew Tendler, Freddie Welsh, Johnny Kilbane, Charley White, Ever Hammer, Richie Mitchell, Rocky Kansas, Joe Welling etc, for SEVEN years,in
over 200 bouts. He was considered during the "golden age" of boxing the best fighter of his day which included Jack Dempsey, Gene Tunney
, Harry Greb, Mickey Walker. Johnny Dundee, Jimmy Wilde... Benny Leonard
even beat the great WW Jack Britton dropping him to the floor but was disqualified because he rapped Britton on the side of the head. His great trainer Manny Seamon revealed that he was in the dressing room before the
fight when Leonard's "connected" manager Billy Gibson told Leonard "Benny you can't win tonight".Seamon a respected alltime trainer revealed this after
Benny Leonard died in 1947 refereeing fights at St. Nicholas Arena, NY.
I have a biography of Leonard called "Leonard the Magnificent", written by Nat Fleischer who saw his entire career...
Leonard was considered every bit as great a lightweight as Ray Robinson was as a welterweight...A great Boxer, a deadly puncher, and considered the
best "thinker" in the ring by all. Hence a perfect fighter...

 

Ray Arcel trained Duran. He considered Leonard and Robinson the two best ever. Specifically he noted Leonard's mental energy.

 

Well, none of us can be perfect.

 

He also died in 1947. So he missed everyone after Louis; no Marciano, Ali, Lewis, Tyson, Holmes, etc. Probably since he grew up in NYC, he never saw Jack Johnson, Jeffries or Corbett. So...

 

... and even if he had lived long enough to have seen all those that came after Louis, he would still have picked Dempsey as the best ever. That's just how it works!

 

I purchased that book "Leonard the Magnificent" in 1947 when it was published for the sum of $2.00...No inflation then.. Nat Fleischer a close friend of Benny Leonard, opened up the book with these words :
"A lightweight more brilliant than any other than the greatest of them all---the Immortal Joe Gans ?
His name was benny Leonard. He combined the boxing ingenuity of Young Griffo-the masterful technique of James j Corbett- the
clout of Jack Dempsey- the alertness of Gene Tunney- the speed of Mike Gibbons etc. Some experts place him even above Joe Gans as the greatest lightweight of all times----------
Pretty heady words about the immortal Benny Leonard...