Top Ten Heavyweights

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by OLD FOGEY, May 2, 2008.


  1. OLD FOGEY

    OLD FOGEY Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    This is a list I recently came across of the top ten heavyweights.

    1. Rocky Marciano
    2. Muhammad Ali
    3. Joe Louis
    4. Joe Frazier
    5. George Foreman
    6. Jack Dempsey
    7. Larry Holmes
    8. Jack Johnson
    9. Mike Tyson
    10. Sonny Liston

    What do you think of this list? Respectable or awful? If you had to grade it from A to F, what grade would you give it? Why? This is not my list by the way. Would you have any guess who made this list?
     
  2. Bokaj

    Bokaj Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    It can never be totally wrong to rank a guy with 49-0 as nr. 1, even if I wouldn't myself. What I'm more concerned with is the low ranking of Holmes and Johnson, and that Lewis is absent all together. These are guys who were dominant in their own time after all.
     
  3. ChrisPontius

    ChrisPontius March 8th, 1971 Full Member

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    There are some respectable people who rank Marciano higher than Ali / Louis. I don't see it, though, in my opinion they are a lock for #1 and #2.

    But it's all subjective; i would give it a B. Especially after the top3, all his rankings are defendable. I would've put Lewis or Holyfield (Tyson's daddy) in there instead of Tyson maybe. I would have Johnson a few spots lower as well.
     
  4. SuzieQ49

    SuzieQ49 The Manager Full Member

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    why holyfield over tyson? tysons title reign was far in every way better than holyfields, tyson was far less inconsistent and far more dominating in his prime than holyfield, tyson fairs better vs the rest of the field h2h than holy. Tysons 1980s title reign alone gets him in the top 10.
     
  5. Sizzle

    Sizzle Active Member Full Member

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    Ultimately "ranking" a list consists of grading it based on how similar it is to yours, I feel.

    However, I like this list.

    It ranks Tyson highest in the modern era which is good. It has Ali, Louis, and Marciano top3, despite the arrangment. Frazier ahead of Foreman is iffy, but all in all I like the list - 9 of the ten names appear in my top10, so I can't complain.

    B+
     
  6. OLD FOGEY

    OLD FOGEY Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Any reaction to the list as a whole. Good? Bad? Didn't know diddly? Probably knowledgeable?
     
  7. Maxmomer

    Maxmomer Boxing Addict Full Member

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  8. Marciano Frazier

    Marciano Frazier Well-Known Member Full Member

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    I'd give it a B. More or less, all of the selections are reasonable, though I'd have the order somewhat different and a couple of different names at the end (but Liston and Tyson are my #11 and 12).

    The biggest "stand-out" unusual points are Marciano at #1 (not my opinion and goes against the consensus, but given that Marciano won the championship, defeated the best competition of his era and retired without ever losing a professional fight, this is a defensible position) and Frazier above Foreman (somewhat harder to justify, given Foreman's destructions over Joe, but Frazier did ultimately defeat more contenders and dangerous opponents than Foreman did, holds the best single win between the two of them, and did much better against their main common opponent in Ali, so I see this also as defensible, though I once again disagree with it). I believe that there is a reasonable argument in favor of each of the rankings on this list.
     
  9. SuzieQ49

    SuzieQ49 The Manager Full Member

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    more dangerous? who was more dangerous than ron lyle?
     
  10. Marciano Frazier

    Marciano Frazier Well-Known Member Full Member

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    First, you didn't read my sentence correctly. The wording indicates that Frazier beat a GREATER NUMBER of dangerous fighters than Foreman did, not necessarily that the dangerous fighters he defeated were MORE DANGEROUS than the ones Foreman did.

    Second, though "dangerous" may be interpreted by some as meaning more of a threat to knock you out, eg. harder hitting, Ali was certainly much more dangerous, meaning likely to beat you, than Lyle was, and so was Quarry. Maybe Ellis, as well.

    But again, defeating "more contenders and dangerous fighters" is, qualified by the first subject in the phrase, a reference to quantity and not quality.
     
  11. Quickhands21

    Quickhands21 Well-Known Member Full Member

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    1.Ali
    2.Joe Louis
    3.Larry Holmes
    4.Marciano
    5.George Foreman
    6.Jack Johnson
    7.Mike Tyson
    8.Holyfield
    9.Lewis
    10.Gene Tunney
     
  12. Seasoned Veteran

    Seasoned Veteran Member Full Member

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    Where is Dempsey? No Frazier?
     
  13. Quickhands21

    Quickhands21 Well-Known Member Full Member

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    Dempsey wa the most overrated champin in heavy history..i have frazier at about 11
     
  14. Seasoned Veteran

    Seasoned Veteran Member Full Member

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    Since Frazier beat Ali once and had two close fights with him, I like him higher than 11 but that is a personal choice.

    Huge fan of Dempsey and think that he would have a good chance of beating a few on the list, but again personal choice.
     
  15. housecat

    housecat Member Full Member

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    Tyson on a top 10 of all time list....LMFAO.

    Horrible list.