Name some fighters who actually have a legit clame to being the best of all time?

Floyd Patterson, wins over Liston and Ali really would've sealed it.

 

Their case aint as strong as Robinson`s tho if you take everything into account.

JMO :good

 

Chers mate, I needed that :thumbsup

 

Not for me mate, no chance.

Pep was a single-weight champion, that is not the greatest fighter ever by any manner of means IMO. His achievements pale in comparison to those of Henry Armstrong, I can't even envisage a decent argument for having Pep over him, so that rules Willie out in my own rankings.

Ali? Again, I personally can't justify him as a GOAT contender. He has an ATG resume, he has great longevity as a heavyweight, and so with effort you could probably make a decent(ish) argument for him being the equal of Robinson in those respects, but I just don't see Ali as being close to an equal of Robinson in terms of ability. Even Ali at his best was quite clearly an inferior fighter to Ray Robinson.

Therefore, just like the Pep-Armstrong comparison rules out Pep from serious contention for the GOAT placing, the Robinson-Ali comparison rules out Ali.

And I'm left with my five/four again.

 

:huh If you take everything into account, you can make an extremely strong case for Langford IMO.

 

Fair enough but I think the highlighted part is harsh on the actual ability of Muhammad Ali at his best.

Sure, Robinson was the best fighter that ever lived, complete as they come, as close to perfect as their has been but Ali at his peak is certainly on the same tier, no doubt at all in my mind.

 

Seeing is believing, we will never be able to judge the way we can with say a Duran. Thats why I dont go there regarding the Langford`s & Greb`s.... but I`ll never put them down either... for the exact same reasons.

:good

 

Fair enough amigo, but I do disagree. To say someone is in the same tier in my mind means they are of a very, very similar standard, to the point where they are almost interchangeable, where you would not argue with someone who had them in a different order from yourself, but I genuinely don't think of Robinson and Ali like that. Whatever way I think of it, I always have Robinson on top, clearly. I think he was definitely a better fighter, it's not really that close, and they are certainly not interchangeable. JMHO.

 

What about Armstrong then? Considering his achievements (one could argue the greatest achievements of any fighter ever), you don't feel a compelling case can even be made to have him over SRR?

 

I rank Greb and Langford over Robinson. Consistently.

 

Joke?

 

Pep doesnt have a claim to no1, probably not even top 5 IMO but his resume is far deeper then just who he beat defending his title at his favored weight...Beating some of the best Bantams and Lightweights of the day, and alltime actually.

Armstrong and Robinson have always been my no1 or 2..and Ive swapped them several times.

Greb and Langford have the best argument out of the rest...I certainly dont have any issue with lists that have them at no1.

 

Agreed 100%. In fact, that's my all-time top 5 P4P right there. The order may be debatable, but I think a top 5 should somehow comprise those fighters.

Personally, I favor Armstrong as the #1 ATG. Greb could probably just as well take that spot, but I hesitate to go that extra step and put him over the others without having actually seen him fight.

Agreed again. I don't see Ali and Pep as having cases for the #1 spot, or even being on the same tier as the fighters listed above.

 

Robinson, Armstrong, Greb, Ali, Langford, Pep