Probably not top 10 but somewhere in the top 20 is fair for him one of the best fighters of the modern era but past greats have him beat just on how much they fought and who they were able to beat. But among fighters in the last 50-60 years not many that can surpass him.
Top 10/15, had the Pacquiao fight happened when he was in his prime and beat him he would have automatically jumped in my top 5 but history -and consequentially p4p ratings- aren't made of what-ifs unfortunately. And that W he got will have a huge ass asterisk for many reasons I won't expand here. Why did he take a pause after that Hatton fight btw? Injury? Because that lapse of time would have been perfect to make the fight happen'. Despite his antics, he mastered his Homelander persona of boxing and you can't deny his accomplishments. I found both his earlier, KO artist Pretty Boy persona and his more defensive, tactical Money stylistic evolution equally pleasurable to watch.
I have him 25 - 30. A very talented fighter but didn't always test himself against the best in the divisions he passed through
Just outside my top 30 I think, but I tend to rate older fighters higher anyway I think. I enjoy watching Mayweather actually, but he has far too many asterisks in his resume for me to rank him in my top 30.
you mean all things considered the fight was for 2010 ? , not 5 years later .. anyone actually pay for that one ? This is a good range I suppose
they were clearly still great fighters at that point and the same pacquiao would go on to win a title. It would have been more impressive several years back but still an great win.
As a comparison, the Pac-May fight from 2015 is probably somewhere in between Leonard-Hearns 1 and Leonard-Hearns 2. You’re certainly not talking about the shopworn versions that Leonard and Hearns were by 1989 but you’re definitely not talking about the peak versions who met in 1981 either. It's a win that deserves respect but nowhere to the level it would have got had it happened in 2010 when it should have done. Had he won it then, May’s place on a p4p list would be significantly higher. As a spectacle, though. I’d have killed for it to have been like Leonard-Hearns 2!
the 2010 fight that never happened ,,, both swapping years for 5 years straight as the p4p 1 and 2 best fighters in the world. it was the biggest fight since the 81 hearns leonard fight. 2010 .. the fight that never happened and the day boxing died oh well .. we did get the GREAT Marquez Vazquez wars just before that tho
If you want a comparison between boxing now and boxing back in the 80s, the Leonard-Hearns/Pac-May comparison is an apt one. There was no unnecessary waiting around for Leonard-Hearns - they were at their peaks and they made the fight. Everyone knew the optimum time for Pac and May to fight was 2010 - it was perfect - but promotional indifference and boxing bull**** allowed it to slip past its best before date and the sport’s reputation and history has suffered for it in my opinion. For anyone who wonders why we have Tyson-Paul as a spectacle, it’s those kind of promotional **** ups that have led to this situation. And Pac-May was one that actually happened. Nowadays, the best fights happening are the war of words between fighters on Twitter. Ok, maybe I’m being too harsh. We had Fury-Usyk last weekend, we had Crawford-Spence last year and we will hopefully get Bivol-Beterbiev once Beterbiev has recovered, so it’s not all bad… however, there are perfect moments for great matchups to happen and those perfect moments lead to greater fights and performances: Leonard-Hearns in 1981, Mayweather-Pacquiao in 2010, Crawford-Spence in 2018/19… but nowadays those windows to make the best matchups at the best times are just allowed to pass so we never know what the best version of the dream matchup would have looked like. That’s the source of the frustration, I think.
I've been away for a bit and didn't see it ,, and now Usyk beats Fury .. as he stands now.. would you rank him over Floyd all time p4p ? you would have to right giving up that weight to AJ and Fury ,, and Floyd was a cherry picker. lol
