is it someone who is just currently top 10 or top 5 in the division or someone who would be able to compete in other eras
fighter with unique quality, a vast expereince, utilising a broad range of skills and fighting for titles that are above the level of 'top 15' rankings. or it's just a phrase used by promoters and commentators to make what we seeing a special super duper bestestest fighter.
Truly elite fighters can fight against all styles and land consistently with their own shots against all styles. We call it elite complete. Obviously some styles cause more issues than others for fighters no matter great and elite complete they are but we see some ''elite'' fighters really struggle or who are unable to deal with certain styles at all. I'm not suggesting that Clenelo isn't elite. Of course he is. However, he's not elite complete because he really struggles against slickness. Many believe Roy was elite complete but how can you be elite complete when you have a glaring chink in your armour? Roy's chink being the boxing gods having cursed him with the mandible section of a sickly old lady. He just cannot take a flush pop on the whiskers and a boxer who cannot take a pop on the whiskers either has to be an amazing defensive specialist in order to be able to avoid getting hit or/and navigate their way through their careers by, as with Roy, avoiding legit punchers and KO artists and, credit where credit is due, Roy did a bloody stellar job of that during his steroid enhanced prime years. Stick Clenelo in with an elite slickster or Roy in with an elite puncher and they're up poop creak without a paddle The most notable active current elite complete fighters are Usyk, Loma, Crawford, and Inoue. Elite complete
Usyk, Beterbiev, Alvarez, Lomachenko, Crawford, Bivol, Inoue, Fury - I'd say there is just 8 current elite fighters.
Fighters with very few weaknesses. They don’t have to be P4P fighters. They just have to be among the best in and around their divisions. While there are some obvious names, you can argue that these fighters are among the elite: AJ Alimkhanuly Bam Rodriguez Ennis Tszyu Davis Ortiz Jr Opetaia Nakatani Benevidez
