Greatest 'minor' belt heavyweight champion?

Of those listed, Povetkin.

 

Surely it´s Poncho Carter who koed the reigning IBO champion Pinklon Thomas in winning the prestigious WBF vacant crown.

By all accounts he looked better than Tyson or Holyfield in destroying the 34 year old Thomas who was on a run of 13 straight wins!

Remarkable result, it´s a shame Poncho Carter doesn´t get the credit he deserves, he´s not even in the Poll. Travesty!

 

Johansson because he became the real champ. I personally would consider Lennoxs an example regardless if he actually turned out to be the best because crowning him in the beginning didn't make sense. To me the argument should decide the champs validity not whether the organization is major or not. There are quite a few alphabet champs since the 80s started I don't consider "major". Chief examples being the 80s WBA and Charles Martin of the IBF. At other times I considered the WBA and IBF to consistantly make the best decisions.

For fighters who didn't go on to be major champs I guess I'd judge by them either A getting title shots or B fighting those who did in minor title bouts. Henry Cooper and Evangelista come to mind as good candidates.

Another thing could be fighters who collected a lot of minor belts. Sam Langford comes to mind for holding a lot of minor titles. He had the FBF, NSC and "colored" world titles the Australian belt and the Mexican belt. Thats a lot of belts for that era.

Otto Wallin had a good case before this last fight. He doesnt even have the Euro belt(which Kabayel has)"European Union" belt which is apparently a new one. Even now his 2 losses are to Fury and Joshua and no alphabet belts.


I consider the European belt major until 1938 when everyone agreed to recognize the same champ. This is also a good date because its the same year Louis beat Schmeling. I think Commonwealth had major status in the 19th century and the turn of the 20th but lost this status because its champs kept losing and fighters outside the UK stopped fighting for it. But there isn't a clear line there I just feel it lost its status long before the European belt did. If you count those periods as minor Peter Jackson and Carpentier would be good picks. Peter Jackson also won the Pacific Coast belt.

 

Sam Langford was Mexican HW champ and also French HW champ,,or champion some French boxing club.

 

Gimme Archie Moore, who won the Nevada version of the heavyweight title beating Nino Valdez over 15 rounds in 1955.

 

I voted for Povetkin, though I'm sure Thomas & Nielsen will be discussed,

I would like to add Kudo's too Lee Savold, who fought in a Schedualed fuelled Top Tough Overall Era, who equally fought a good few Top & Noted men and even into the LATE Stages of his own Career.

Savold should be remembered more than he is.

 

Nielsen? No. 47 y.o. Larry Holmes schooled him completely. And while I rank Larry as the third greatest HW ever after Ali and Louis, at 47 he way past it

 

I never voted for Nielsen nor took up a case for him, I just know that he often comes into such discussions...

No. 47 ???, what on BoxRec and so what,
especially if it is a Creditable List, that's pretty good measure over a 150 Years of Boxing, where there has been 1000s of Heavyweights

I voted for Povetkin, which equally could be wrong, in favour of another!

 

If I'm understanding this correctly, Thomas should be left off because he also held a major belt similar to IBO titlists Fury, Lewis and Wlad.

 

That's how I see it

 

Yes! Great name to throw out there! He also held the Black (called The Colored or Negro Title at that time) World Heavyweight Championship.