My Current Pound-For-Pound List, as of July 2011

My definitive and up-to-date p4p list as of 12/7/11:


(criteria: recent results + impressiveness of recent performances + my assessment of all-round ability at this point in time + consideration of career up to this point)


1.Manny Pacquiao
Why?: Has barely lost a round in his last 7 fights. Small enough to still make lww with ease, yet has decimated everyone he's fought in and around his current weight range.

2.Floyd Mayweather Jr
Why?: Hasn't been fighting much, but when he does he shows no signs of letting his great abilities slip.

3.Sergio Martinez
Why?: By my cards, he's on the hottest run in the sport, beating Cintron, Williams twice, Pavlik and Dzinziruk in his last five to come from nowhere to #3. Sadly, has a pathetic next fight lined up.

4.Wladimir Klitschko
Why?: A very dominant and now long-reigning champion, hasn't lost in 7 years and was recently commanding if not spectacular in high-profile fight with Haye. Resume isn't stellar but this is due to weak division. Is beating the best they have.

5.Nonito Donaire
Why?: Brilliant and getting better. Had to wait a long time between his win over Darchinyan ('07) and his next win over a p4p-class fighter in Montiel ('11), but big fights should become available at bantam to allow him to challenge the Pacquiao-Mayweather #1 and #2 axis.

6.Juan Manuel Marquez
Why?: Since dropping disputed decision to p4p#1 Pacquiao in '08, Marquez has only lost one fight, against the much bigger Mayweather. Has established himself as the number 1 lightweight in the time since, with dominant victories over Casamayor, Diaz (twice) and Katsidis.

7.Timothy Bradley
Why?: Impressive win over Devon Alexander, added to wins over top lww's Lamont Peterson (who drew with Victor Ortiz), Junior Witter and Kendall Holt have seen Bradley climb as others have fallen. Undefeated = consistent.

8.Andre Ward
Why?: Undefeated, consistent, favourite to win the Super Six, looks very rounded and commanding. Hasn't had stellar opposition so far in his career, but looked excellent dominating Kessler (who went on to defeat Froch), and has beaten top 10 guys like Bika and Abraham with ease.

9.Giovani Segura
Why?: Two superb KO wins over p4p-placed Ivan Calderon are principal reason, as his weight class does not contain many other stars. Avenged his only defeat by KO in '09 and has since made a string of solid title defences.

10.Pongsaklek Wonjongkam
Why?: His consistency places him above many guys who have better names on their resumes. Wonjongkam has a brilliant 81-3-1 record, and has only lost once since 1996. Stand-out win over undefeated Koki Kameda in 2010, has made 2 successful title defences since.



Best of the rest (NOT in order):


Amir Khan
Why didn't he make the cut?: Comes very close, but 2 of his last 4 fights have been Salita and McCloskey, and many feel he made very hard work of Maidana. The Judah fight should tell us more.

Miguel Cotto
Why didn't he make the cut?: Last 3 fights have been stoppage defeat by Pacquiao, and wins over the less than stellar Yuri Foreman and Ricardo Mayorga. Not on the p4p level at the moment.

Carl Froch
Why didn't he make the cut?: By my cards, he's 2-2 in his last 4. As good as he looked vs Abraham and Johnson, this isn't quite p4p form.

Vitali Klitschko
Why didn't he make the cut?: Recent opposition has been too weak.

Bernard Hopkins
Why didn't he make the cut?: Also came very close, but wins over Ornelas and Jones were meaningless, and performances against one opponent (Pascal) not enough to get back in there yet. A win over Dawson would make a difference, would be good to see B-Hop make a successful title defence.

Tomasz Adamek
Why didn't he make the cut?: Recent opposition has been too weak.

Lucian Bute
Why didn't he make the cut?: Recent opposition has been too weak.

Yuriorkis Gamboa
Why didn't he make the cut?: Comes close, but needs a win over a big name, proven fighter first, or at least more wins against top fighters.

Chris John
Why didn't he make the cut?: Comes close, but needs to be busier and like Gamboa try for a big name, proven opponent soon.

Joseph Agbeko
Why didn't he make the cut?: Has wins over Darchinyan and Perez and a loss to Perez in his last 3. A win over Mares would make him a serious contender for the top 10.



All comments about this list welcome :bbb

 

I will admit, Bradley's reluctance to fight Khan is strange to me as well, but I have been impressed by him against Peterson (only saw this fight recently) and Alexander, and the fact that he is undefeated and so has that consistency means he ranks higher than guys who have had recent losses. Who would you have in your top 10 instead of him?

 

FYI, to anyone else who replies, merely criticizing a p4p list is not very conducive to two-way boxing discussion, if you disagree with one/some of my choices, then produce your own list so we can compare and debate. :good