I don't think this got posted in the decade by decade breakdown thread or elsewhere. Apologies if so. Not too bad an effort. Tough job. Every decade covered except the present. 1. Sugar Ray Robinson 2. Harry Greb 3. Henry Armstrong 4. Ezzard Charles 5. Roberto Duran 6. Willie Pep 7. Muhammad Ali 8. Sugar Ray Leonard 9. Joe Louis 10. Pernell Whitaker
My guess is that many people will disagree with the inclusion of Leonard and Whitaker on this list because they had just over 40 fights. Leonard has 4 massive wins....Benitez, Duran, Hearns and Hagler. He also beat Hagler after a virtual 5 year lay off in his first fight as a middleweight. My guess is that if Leonard had 80 fights - mostly against tomato can journeymen - the same calibre as most of Pep's opponents he'd more than likely be on everyones top 10 on here.
It would help Leonard's case if he had 80 fights, yes or no? Even if 30 of those 80 were journeymen and 10 were bums-- because that set would have been considerably more dangerous than the beautiful people Leonard was sniffing with INSTEAD OF FIGHTING!
So simply keeping busy against tomato cans makes you greater? So great infact it pumps up a fighters placing on a pound for pound list by 10-15 places.. What percentage of Pep's opponents were simply padding his record....I'd say about 95% out of his 200 plus fights. :good
Leonard didn't have to fight out of necessity. Perhaps he could've enhanced his place by holding down the undisputed 147 crown for however long he felt it necessary although defending a belt never seemed to be his schtick. Leonard vs a "rated contender" was something of a joke, Leonard being superior to a silly extent. You had better be a true All-Time Great. He abandoned most that is traditional and wrote his own road map out to greatness. In many circles, considered the #2 welterweight of all-time regardless. "I never wanted to be champion, I wanted to be great."
I think after Willie Pep, it opens up to quite a few guys: Ross, Moore, Gavilan, Williams, Hagler, Rodriguez, Chavez, Monzon, Jofre, Marciano. I don't think I'd have qualms with lists that include any of those guys over Ali, Leonard, Louis or Whitaker. They're all roughly thereabouts.