5 greatest fighters you have seen in your lifetime as a fan

Usyk, Lomachenko, Crawford, Canelo, Briedis.

 

First amateur fight in 2005, same year I really got the bug.

Pacquiao
Mayweather
Juan Manuel Marquez
Inoue ( seen him live)
Usyk

HMs Lomachenko as an amateur 2008 Olympics fight vs Russian Selimov.
Joe Calzaghe as well beating Lacey was a special performance.
Andre Ward as well

 

Haven't you seen Nayoa Inoue or prime Roman Gonzalez? Both easily greater than Briedis.

 

Started watching boxing in 2006, 2007 hardcore.

So

Mayweather
Pacquiao
Usyk
Crawford

Caught tail end of Calzaghe.

SO #5 is Hopkins, Calzaghe, Ward or Marquez probably..

 

I was a fan of boxing when Whitaker and JCC, and even Duran and Hearns, were still competing, but I never watched any of them live during their respective primes.

Of those I did and excluding active boxers, as I only assess a fighter's greatness post their retirement:

1. Mayweather
2. Pacquiao
3. RJJ
4. Holyfield
5. Hopkins

That's greatness based on their entire career records. The best I ever saw live was RJJ at his peak.

 

I caught fighters like Whitaker and Chavez at the end of their careers. For me I would say:

1. Floyd
2. Pacquiao
3. RJJ
4. Hopkins
5. Lewis

Best overall fighter I ever saw peak wise was RJJ. He truly looked unbeatable and was shocked when he lost. Especially since I met him a month before the second Tarver fight. His career after Tarver 2 knocks him down for sure. Floyd is the best all around. In terms of skills, dominance, legacy, longevity, etc. Pacquiao is a close second with some bad losses bringing him down. Hopkins was a straight up alien. I doubt I will ever see longevity like him again for a very long time. He just IMO wasn't a better fighter than RJJ, Floyd and Pacquiao and he didn't have a better overall career. Lewis is by far the best heavyweight I have seen. I didn't appreciate him enough while active but he was truly a great fighter. He had it all except a chin.

 

In no order:

Floyd
Manny
Usyk
BHop
DLH

Shoutout to Wlad, Loma, Crawford, Canelo, GGG, Inoue, JMM, Calzaghe, Lennox (most of his career before my time)...I do NOT rate RJJ for his ties to BALCO and PED usage

 

RJJ, Leonard, Duran, Mayweather, Whitaker.

 

Lomachenko, Usyk, Golovkin, Pacquiaio, the Klitschkos, Lewis, RJJ and hell yeah, I remember seeing Duran beat up Barkley as a kid.

 

Roberto Duran
Larry Holmes
Sugar Ray Leonard
Marvelous Marvin Hagler
Julio Cesar Chavez

 

Usyk
Oscar
Manny
Loma
Jones

 

Come on children.....I was a kid watching Friday night fights on b&w tv's in the 50's. I know my father of course supported all the Italian boxers like Basilio, Pep, Graziano, Marciano, LaMotta etc. My actual first memory was listening to Clay-Liston II on a transistor radio with my old man.

 

LOL my old man made out Mancini was the god of war or something

 

Chocolatito
Chocolatito
Chocolatito
Chocolatito
Chocolatito.

 

Duran
Chavez
Leonard
Tyson
Arguello