Greater Legacy: Vassiliy Jirov OR Daisuke Naito?

Who?

 

Jirov got stopped by a shot Moorer, Naito has a win and a draw over Wonjongkam and has the overall stronger resume. I vote Naito

 

Never heard of Naito. Jirov was hard as nails but should have never gone up to HW. Didnt have the frame for it. Tough tough man.

 

This is an interesting comparison, because these guys seemed to have careers that had opposite trajectories.

Jirov was a decorated amateur with a Olympic gold and several medals at the world championships, so I doubt anyone was surprised that he quickly won a world championship in the paid ranks. Beating Arthur Williams isn't the most prestigious way to kick off a title reign, but his non-title win over the excellent Dale Brown validated Jirov's ability. He also became one of two men to finish Jorge Castro.

After losing to Toney he seemed to lose a step. Losses to Mesi and Moorer put him on a path to obscurity as he faded away with a series of nondescript wins.

By contrast, Naito's first meaningful exposure was getting starched by Pongseklek Wongjongkam in what was apparently the fastest kayo in the history of world title fights. He lost to Wongjongkam again, but eventually rebounded to win their third fight. He surprised the world when he did that. He also be Koki Kameda's brother, who was a bit of a novice.

I vote for Jirov.