Myth: Roberto Duran has a better resume than Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.

Someone like Charles is great, Robinson is great, Napoles is great. There is a very big gap between fighters like Benitez and the truly great. Look, maybe my criteria is higher then yours?

 

You've literally just named two top five fighters, and one of the best welterweights ever. Of course they're great, but you don't have to be in the top 30 P4P to be an all-time great. That's way too steep.

And the gap between someone like Napoles and Benitez isn't particularly big.

Benitez was an all-time great.

 

You need to be better then Benitez to be considered great in my books.

What do you think qualifies him to be great?

I'm not mindlessly hating the radar either, I love Wilfredo he was my first boxing hero.

 

Well, champion at 17, over a fighter as good as Cervantes is a good start. He beat another elite fighter for the title at the next weight up in Palomino, and then obviously whitewashed Duran - as well as scoring wins over other good contenders along the way - Razanay, Curry, Chiaverini, Western, Villa, etc

That's a better resume than say, Chavez's. Beating an all-time great at 17 is more impressive than any of say, Mayweather's wins. Same as whitewashing the best fighter ever.

 

Mm. 17 isn't quite the truth, he was about 19.

He got bounced like a basketball against Curry and lost in my opinion the first time around.

Both Palomino and Cervantes may have beaten him.

Beating Duran was his final hurrah, stupendous single win sure but look at what was to come right after for Duran...

Wilfred's two years coming should also matter and so should being easily handled by two actual great fighters.

You can't rank him in there league he wasn't we can see that on film.

I see Wilfred as a fringe great, on the cusp but he didn't quite have the habits to etch over the line.

Also, according to you Duran is the best. to me he is great.

Now, I am being picky, when calling someone great with so many elite fighters to choose from you have to!

 

Whether he was 19 or not is just rumours, I'm more inclined to believe the records. And even if he was 19, it's still an incredible win.

He showed up on a week's notice and still beat Curry, then beat him when the roles were reversed in the rematch.

There's no case for either beating him IMO. Benitez beat them both 9-6/10-5.

I don't see what's so bad about two losses to Hearns and Leonard. Ignore that stoppage against Leonard, that fight should've gone the distance. Ask yourself, is Duran not great because he got trounced by those two? He lost to two of the three best welterweights ever, big whoop.

Alright, he whitewashed a great fighter. Splitting hairs aside, it's still an amazing win and Duran was in very good condition for that one. Benitez was just that good.

You're not being picky, you're being unreasonable. Benitez should be ranked as an all-time great by any measurement. Maybe not on the same level as those who you have mentioned, such as Robinson or Charles - but still up there. His record is more impressive than Whitaker or Chavez, for instance. If they don't make the cut, I'm done here.

 

Obviously Mayweather is one of the greats. His career was more successful than anyone. He doesn't compare to Pacquiao or Duran from a pure boxing sense.
Floyd protected his undefeated record and sold it that way. Its not his fault that he didn't have great rivals coming up the way Duran did with DeJeuss and LATER Ray Leonard. Lack of top end quality.

The otherside it's even worse. Stepback a distance look at Mayweather's record over the course of his career. It's come into focus clearer. Where is it? Where's his record? The turned pro in 1996? 97? He didnt have his 50th fight uuntil few years ago. Over a 21+ years he had only 50 professional fights. Felix Trinidad had that many and he retired in 2005? Chavez? Roy Jones put in more work and he was critizied for being a partime basketball player. Rocky Marciano got his 49 bouts in how many years?

I'm critical of Ray Leonard when some of his American fans place him basically next to Sugar Ray Robinson. Leonard fought about 38 fights. Again Ray Leonard a great fighter but it's splitting hairs at the elite level. It's a pretty big differences.

I'm not expecting a modern boxer to go all Harry Greb for us and have 300 fights. Mayweather is at the opposite end of that spectrum considering the length of his career. Hell Larry Holmes did more than Floyd Mayweather. Floyd beat Oscar, Holmes beat Ali.

The man made a ton of $, preserved his body and sold that 0. Being a defensive style of fighter he had to find something outside the ring to sell and he did. Sharp marketing but some fans need to take it literally.

Roberto Duran had more knockouts by 1975 than $ had total fights over 20 years. Duran set a record for consecutive knockouts in title fights at that time. 10 straight. Henry Armstrong pissed 50 fights in about 1 year.

It's much needed perspective.

 

DeJesus is 100% better than Castillo and Corrales, and Duran isn't his only good win.

 

Sorry Mr. Lara is on the same level as Benitez.

 

You seem emotional, how about you compose yourself then get back to me.