Manny Pacquiao or Thomas Hearns- Greater Fighter?

Wow. What a comparison. Hearns dominated more but lost his two biggest fights. I pick Thomas Hearns. Manny was good but hard to say. Why would you make this comparison?

 

They both were the high levels. Hearns opponents were probably more high level on the all time list. Manny engaged and so did Hearns. How do you compare? Hearns problem is losing to Hagler and Ray. The Barkley fight can be the JMM fight. Manny was outclassed by Floyd and yet you never saw Hearns really outclassed. Both moved up and won in many divisions.

 

Hearns, Manny climbed the steroid ladder

 

Maybe harder for a light flyweight midget to rise and be successful all the way up to welterweight than a 6’1 welterweight to do the same up to cruiserweight. Did Hearns win a world title at Cruiserweight?

 

Regardless of the thread meaning to get to your comment is this proven Manny took roids?

 

Yeah, he did. You do not climb from 126 pounds to 147 and get bigger, faster and stronger

 

well if he did he didn't have the length or body of Hearns so he had to accomplish it somehow. Not saying he did it, but the pressure was on him.

 

Hearns has wins against Pipino Cuevas, Wilfred Benitez, Roberto Duran, Juan Roldan, Sugar Ray Leonard & Virgil Hill
And losses to Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler and Iran Barkley x2

How does Manny compare? They must be really close.

 

Pacquiao. Don't get me wrong - if they were around in the same era and met at 147, it'd have been a bloodbath with Manny getting his head near enough removed from his shoulders. Suspect that Roach loves Manny way too much to ever let that fight happen. But that's to be expected given their respective natural sizes and frames, ala Duran-Hearns. Pound for pound, Pacquiao's achievements are greater.

Tommy won titles in five weight classes, but never established himself as the bona fide or clear number one in any of them. Leonard and Hagler put paid to those ambitions at Welter and Middle; Steward was reluctant to make the McCallum unification fight at Light-Middle; his 168 lb title was really a pit-stop and hardly an impressive showing; and the titles were splintered on both occasions he picked up a belt at 175. I guess Hill was the most highly-regarded Light-Heavyweight titlist in 1991 (no Ring belt then, unfortunately), but no sooner had Tommy dethroned him he dropped a decision to Barkley in his very first defence.

Appreciate that these three guys ain't Sugar Ray, or Hagler for that matter (although a couple of them are in the next kind of bracket), but nevertheless Pacquiao absolutely hammered good champions such as Barrera and Hatton for lineal titles at 126 and 140 in two of the most impressive performances of the decade - and I even scored the second Marquez fight, where he earned the top dog status at 130, in his favour, albeit that's the only fight in four that he won against JMM. I tend to feel that Pacquiao's win rate in his really defining moments is better than Tommy's and his list of victims generally reads more impressively (best wins are debatable, but sheer volume is in Manny's favour), especially in the context of some of them. Manny was still at 130 lb in March 2008 - if you'd have said to me that by the end of 2009 he'd be beating the breaks off Cotto at 145 (again, one of the defining big-fight performances of the decade), I'd have said you were off your rocker. But that's what he did.

Hearns had the raw ability, and is perhaps unlucky in direct comparison as he had greater fighters in his way. But if you don't get the results, you can't really get the credit. I feel Pacquiao's achievements outstrip Hearns'.

 

Right, because nothings shouts, “STEROID FREE!” like a rail-thin welterweight moving up to cruiserweight

 

That would suggest that JMM is a lesser fighter to Manny ...I dont think so

 

Marquez is much less a fighter than Manny as Barkley is to Hearns.

Everyone has someone who has thier number and these guys had it. Their legacies are pretty close. Manny did not have as many guys at his level and Hearns had many. When Manny fought his level he lost to Floyd and Hearns lost to Marvin and Ray. Thomas and Manny persevered when their generation were retired.

Hearns had a group of guys who he is identified with namely Leonard, Duran and Hagler. Manny does also, but not a fab 4 nickname. Cheers everyone.

 

great comparison and 2 of my favorites … These 2 of any other fighters since the 80's belong in the older eras, They earned it!! Active, fought everybody, went up in weight because they just wanted to fight to prove they were the best... Exactly what boxing has failed to deliver for many many years …. close for me, maybe Tommy just ahead