The Top 100 Pound for Pound All-Time Greats

Lennox Lewis is back!!! I binned Ad Wolgast. It came to me in a dream.

 

Tier I

1) Sam Langford
2) Harry Greb
3) Ray Robinson
4) Henry Armstrong
5) Bob Fitzsimmons
6) Ezzard Charles
7) Benny Leonard
8) Muhammad Ali

Tier II
Joe Gans, Mickey Walker, Archie Moore, Roberto Duran, Packey McFarland, Joe Louis, Willie Pep, Sugar Ray Leonard.

Tier III
Terry McGovern, Pernell Whitaker, Charley Burley, Holman Williams, Barney Ross, Tony Canzoneri, Jimmy McLarnin, Sandy Saddler.

Tier IV
Gene Tunney, George Dixon, Barbados Joe Walcott, Roy Jones, Billy Conn, Kid Gavilan, Stanley Ketchel, Eder Jofre, Tommy Loughran, Tommy Gibbons.

Tier V
Julio Cesar Chavez, Ruben Olivares, Alexis Arguello, Jose Napoles, Emile Griffith, Jack Britton, Carlos Monzon, Marvin Hagler, Jimmy Bivins, Tommy Ryan.

Tier VI
Mike Gibbons, Evander Holyfield, Fighting Harada, Michael Spinks, Thomas Hearns, Carlos Ortiz, Ike Williams, Jimmy Wilde, Abe Attell, Young Corbett, Freddie Steele.

Tier VII
Ted Kid Lewis, Carlos Zarate, Luis Manuel Rodriguez, Bernard Hopkins, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao, Salvador Sanchez, Wilfredo Gomez, Vincente Saldivar, Rocky Marciano.

Tier VIII
Miguel Canto, Harold Johnson, Manuel Ortiz, Dick Tiger, Lloyd Marshall, Freddie Welsh, Jack Dempsey (np), Jim Driscoll, Lou Ambers.

Tier IX
Fritzie Zivic, Pascual Perez, Bob Foster, Panama Al Brown, Azumah Nelson, Mike McCallum, Oscar De La Hoya.

Tier X
Sammy Mendell, Teddy Yarosz, Young Griffo, Johnny Kilbane,

Tier XI
Jake LaMotta, Erik Morales, Wilfred Benitez, Larry Holmes, Benny Lynch, Juan Manuel Marquez, James Toney, Fidel LaBarbara, Beau Jack, Lennox Lewis, Kid Berg, Marco Antonio Barrera, Sammy Angott, Pete Herman.

Missing Out
Kid Norfolk, Les Darcy, Tiger Flowers.

Also considered
Joe Frazier, Apostolini, Joe Calzaghe, Philadelphia Jack O'Brien, Kid McCoy, Nico Locche.

 

OK gents. Here are the first three tiers numerised. Is numerised a word?

01 – Sam Langford
02 – Harry Greb
03 – Sugar Ray Robinson
04 – Henry Armstrong
05 – Bob Fitzsimmons
06 – Ezzard Charles
07 – Benny Leonard
08 – Muhammad Ali
--------------------------
09 – Willie Pep
10 – Joe Louis
11 – Roberto Duran
12 – Joe Gans
13 – Packey McFarland
14 – Archie Moore
15 – Sugar Ray Leonard
16 – Mickey Walker
----------------------------
17 – Barney Ross
18 – Terry McGovern
19 – Tony Canzoneri
20 – Pernell Whitaker
21 – Charley Burley
22 – Holman Williams
23 – Jimmy McLarnin
24 – Sandy Saddler

Have at it. Remember that Tiers 4-11 are still open for discussion, but any problems with tiers 1-3 should be expressed by re-ordering the above.

 

Flea mentioned but nothing major in his favour. I thought he would make it also but he never quite pierced the bubble.

 

I can open up the Frazier Lewis thing again but i'd like to toss in George Foreman too. In the end his second career means more to me in these circumstances and you can argue for him. So:

Frazier
Foreman
or Lewis?

I'll leave it open until Monday night - if there's nothing definitive we'll stick with Lewis.

 

Pete Herman - went 7-3-2 in Bantamweight world championship bouts but showed outstanding bouncebackability to pick up the title for a second reign. He beat Jimmy Wilde, Kid Williams, the superb Johnny Coulon, Frankie Burns, Jackie Sharkey, Zulu Kid, Joe Lynch went 62-13 was stopped just once and never heard the ten.

I have absolutely no doubt he belongs in this type of company, BUT, should he be removed for Jung Koo Chang?

Chang didn't beat fighters as good I don't think but he has fewer prime lossses and more defences, all be it of the disputed rather than the undisputed title.

Perez, Garcia, Torres and Zapata are among his best wins for 38-4 (also stopped just once). He's 16-2 in defene of his light-fly strap and failed to make a dent at fly.

Anyone got a strong feeling on this one?

 

No, not at all.

 

Jings.

Where would you come down on junking Lewis for Chang?