P4P Floyd Mayweather Jr Vs Sugar Ray Leonard

Leonard's win over Hearns, Hagler and Duran is already enough to put him over Mayweather imo. I think Mayweather knew when to leave, which is one thing he has over Leonard.

 

I have not done a list in a few years. At that time SRL was near my 15 spot? But not sure of the exact place. Floyd was still active, and the thought of this conversation would have been laughable to me. But now? Today? Again I have not done a recent list, but I think you make a valid point. Off the top of my head I say yes, but not unequivocally.

 

Any way you cut this or dice this Leonard is the better more complete fighter
Were not talking longevity here just who the better fighter is and its Leonard.

 

I'm pretty sure we've gone over this in this server a million times. Duran looked good in training, though there are counter statements with Duran's weight cut.

I personally am a big Hagler fan and I think he won the fight barely, but Leonard went 5 years with only 1 fight before fighting Hagler, though Hagler could be argued to be past prime as well.

It's just really a perspective argument when looking at Leonard

I don't care about longevity that much honestly, only competition and other feats they accomplished during their time. Mayweather lasted longer, no fault of Leonard, Mayweather just aged well. But Leonard accomplished more in his time

 

Leonard is a better fighter than Floyd Mayweather. In every way. Head to head, pound for pound, period. Ray Leonard fought in a much more competitive and skilled era than Floyd. And if they shared a ring, Ray would lay a beating on Floyd. Floyd's longevity certainly helps his historical standing. But, the state of his competition when he fought them is the main reason he was able to last so long. Only Leonard's fight against Hagler had the cards so stacked in his favor. When he beat the other All Time Greats like Hearns, Duran, Benitez, he did it in their primes.

 

I can’t see a way for Mayweather to be over Leonard. I tend to agree with the majority that Mayweather was very selective about whom he fought and when and that’s obvious when looking at the names he fought and when he fought them. That hurts his standing just as much as his longevity and unbeaten record helps him.

A lot of Mayweather is speculation IMO. Could he handle true adversity? Would he face a great fighter in their prime? Could he be the one champion in his division and rule a strong division? I appreciate top competition or a dominant reign where the champ even fights on the road. It’s a red flag to me when a guy faces a bunch of none-prime guys and moves in and out of divisions without establishing himself as the only champion there. What if the drug testing was a big more on a level playing field? I have my own personal suspicions about Mayweathers tests not being on a level playing field.

It’s possible he could but we don’t know and that’s astonishing when for about 12-13 years he could have had any fight he wanted.

Mayweather is a great fighter but there’s too many *s for me to put him over Leonard who I know is in my all-time top 20 without having to think too hard. I’d have to bend over backwards to consider Floyd that lofty a ranking.

 

Mayweather was better. Better defense, counterpunching, sharper punching, better ring IQ, bulletproof chin....Leonard has the best win between them but looped punches, was easier to hit, and was capable of fighting a dumb fight (Duran 1).

I assume we’re talking about 130 Mayweather. Leonard was never that good.

 

Because some guys dont age well despite there yrs. Just the way it is. Some guys get washed up by there mid 20's and some can go to mid 30's it all depends on how your body handles the strain and wear and tear of being a professional fighter. You have no control over that. If you did everyone would have Archie Moore type longevity. Just isnt happening.

 

SRL was loved by fans (which I was), and was the media darling of his era. His charismatic persona and infectious smile just made him very likable. His crowd pleasing style and showmanship enabled his star and popularity to rise. He was known not just to boxing fans or even sports fans but the general public. He was in commercials and magazine covers, and was largely loved during his day. Boxing was a mainstream sport or at least close with boxing a regular fixture of free tv sports programming. He was loved during his time.

Contrast that to Floyd.IMO no less talented, but certainly not loved either by the media or boxing fans. His arrogance about his “0” and money, made him distasteful to many. Domestic abuse stories made him even easier to dislike (I was one of those who found him distasteful). His style was brilliant craftsmanship but not flashy or appealing to watch for many. He later got an undeserved rep for running IMO. Boxing was no longer mainstream stateside and he never received the accolades and love that SRL did. Mayweather would never be as loved during his era, or even close to how SRL was.

To me the deck was stacked against him early. One was loved the other largely disliked. One was world famous, one largely known just in boxing circles. One charismatic one less so. One flashy and crowd pleasing the other strategic and minimized risks in the ring.

To me not really much separating them, just not sure if Floyd can shake the social stigmas to be evaluated favorably among many?

 

A fighter has lots of control over it. Mayweather stays fit year round while Leonard got into alcohol and cocaine. Hopkins lived an extremely disciplined life. It’s not surprising that he was the best fighter in his forties maybe ever.