Which fighters have beaten the most world champions in the various weight divisions?

Harry Greb would have beaten more lineal light heavyweight champions than anybody else. We are talking 7 or more.

 

Depends what you mean by champions. Only champions or also beltholders.

 

If we only included lineal champions, then at least we would be comparing like for like between eras.

 

That must be a slight exaggeration!

 

delete

 

that was my thought for the thread to be honest.

looking at robinson for instance, he beat sammy angott and lamotta for the lightweight and middleweight titles aside from winning the welterweight title, though it was vacant. winning the middleweight title, the REAL title, 5 times should count more than beating the WBA, WBC or WBO champions

if you include titleholders, it becomes way too messy

 

It is, I meant seven.

Mike McTigue
Jack Dillon
Battling Levinsky
Tommy Loughran
Jimmy Slattery
Maxie Rosenbloom

 

Robinson defeated 5 welterweight champions:
Armstrong
Zivic
Servo
Gavilan
Basilio

... and 6 middleweight champions:
LaMotta
Graziano
Turpin
Olson
Fullmer
Basilio

 

If we're only talking lineal champions then, surely, no one can top Louis at heavyweight as he of course beat 6:

Schmeling
Sharkey
Carnera
Baer
Braddock
Walcott

Holyfield has beaten more than 6, but how many can we consider lineal? Hmm... maybe there are enough to beat Louis?

 

Douglas
Foreman
Holmes
Bowe
Tyson
Moorer

Also six.

 

Yeah... I thought Holyfield might beat, or at least tie, with Louis.

 

How many has pac beaten?

 

Must be at least a dozen, but of course spread over many divisions...
and it would be quite a job determining which are lineal and which aren't!

 

How would anybody think that a win over the WBC WBA IBF WBO champion, was worth more than a win over the lineal champions toenail?