S'true. I know certain fighters reps grow and their careers are maybe looked at with different eyes as time goes on but I can't see Wlad gaining the respect that Holmes slowly gained. Maybe I'm wrong and biased because I followed a lot of Larry's title span and not as much with Wlad but idk, Holmes is a Fcking legend!
Ive had Marciano at #3 for a while now. But Lewis,Holmes,Foreman and Holyfield are all honorable choices for that spot.
I do not agree with Lennox Lewis on 3. Because he just fought journeyman until he faced Ruddock in 1992. Also just 44 Fights in his career overall. If we agree on that the basis of the assessment is the whole career, all achievements, records, titles, title fights, defenses etc...then there is no doubt that Ali and Louis must be Number 1 and 2. And after them comes a big gap up to place #3. In my opinion there is a strong argument for Holyfield at #3. Because like Ali he faught during a very competitive era in boxing. He faced all the good fighters at the time (Probably almost all Top 10 guys from 1990 to 2000). He beat the most and gave em all big fights, won the Title 4 times. Even the old EH fought guys like Lewis, Ruiz, Byrd, Rahman, Toney, Valuev and This content is protected gave em good fights. That shows how competitive he was. Prior to that he had a very succesfull amateur career and was dominating the cruiserweight division. What i'm trying to say is: He was on top Level for a very long time. Although i hated him for headbutting my favorite Boxers...my #3. (btw: idk if he was on the Juice or whoever was on juice at the time) Don't missunderstand me: I don't wanna take anything away from Lewis. He is a Legend and the last Lineal Champ. But i see him more in the #5-10 sector like Tyson, Foreman, Frazier, Marciano. But really hard to evaluate #1,2 Ali, Louis (i can not decide who is 1,who is 2) - gap - gap -gap #3 Holyfield #4 Holmes
I am as big of a Frazier fan as this forum has...but I find Marciano Frazier and Tyson to be on a very similar level (one I include Holyfield in as well). I think placing those 4 in any order is very logical and debate worthy.
It is not matter of personal preferences. Marciano was undefeated and cleaned his era( good or bad era still he did clean the house), Frazier did beat a 1971 Ali , and his only losses were against 2 all time greats, holyfield did beat Tyson twice and he is 4 years older than him, Lewis avenged any defeat he had and was retired as champion. Like i said in legacy Tyson has no chance to be ranked above these guys. Not even close
I have had Sullivan, Jeffries, Johnson, and Marciano in there at one time or another. I would raise no objection to Foreman, Holmes, or Lewis, and perhaps others as choices.
If I'm looking at it h2h - Lewis or Foreman If I'm looking at it based on resume/achievements - Holmes, Holyfield, Lewis If I'm looking at it from a historical perspective - Johnson If I'm looking at from a p4p perspective - easily Marciano If I'm looking at it from a skills perspective - Lewis and Holy All things considered I voted from Lewis
It is debatable. No one has ever cleaned out a division, weak or otherwise, in the fashion Tyson did. He literally blitzed through every title holder or challenger in scary fashion until his demise.
The only two people with a fighting chance for this imo are Holmes and Lewis, and these two are very very close. Holmes' 20 or so title defences are undeniable, and that sort of longevity and consistency has only been achieved by 3 heavyweights in history; Wlad, Louis and Holmes himself. Lewis only managed around half that and was still inconsistent, he also never had his biggest legacy fight due to Bowe's blatant ducking. Lewis' top 5 wins are better H2H, and I'd pick the corresponding wins to beat the other, E.G: Vitali > Norton, Holyfield > Witherspoon, Tua > Shavers ect ect. Although, Holmes was never iced by a gatekeeper and a mediocre contender in his prime. I favour résumé over consistency, but it's really a switch between preferences. I can't see anyone else topping these though. Guys like Foreman, Marciano and Wlad simply didn't achieve enough imo to be considered for this one.