Perhaps; coincidentally though, his greatest fights and best opponents were all guys that came at him. Looking at it that way I think it's more a matter of styles that allowed him to shine the way he did in his biggest moments. I don't mean to sound like I'm downgrading him, because I think he's a handful and more for any featherweight that drew breath, but there's more there than meets the eye. His legend has indeed grown to somewhat untenable heights.
This is a great fight. The most extraordinary thing is that Tony Perez was the referee and he couldn't even find a way to ruin it. I'm sure he was trying.