Who do you rate higher: Monzon or JC Chavez ??

It has been a couple of years since I have done a list, and I don't readily have my copy in front of me...going off memory alone, I believe I have had Chavez higher. That would still be my initial feeling today as well.

 

Monzon..obviously superior to Chavez.

 

I'll go with Monzon. He retired undefeated, while Chavez had a lot of controversy in his later fights

 

I'll go with Chavez, people talk about his later fights but for about the first 80 odd fights and lighter weights he looked to me one of the best I've ever seen.

 

Monzon.

 

Monzon, and it isnt even close.

Wins over a prime Camacho & Whitaker would help immensely. alas, those were the two mountains he could not scale

 

Monzon, easily, for ending his career on the streak he did, as a record setting undisputed and undethroned MW Champion. People who go out on the highest note get overlooked, deprived of the recognition they deserve. JCC had two draws and six defeats in his final 28 bouts, getting stopped twice.

Carlos was not defeated in his last 81 bouts (72-0-9) , was never beaten by stoppage, ended his career by going 31-0-0, those final eight wins in MW Title fights, walking away as undisputed champion.

JCC did officially get to 89-0-1 before his first official defeat, and 87-0-0 before the "draw" against Whitaker, but did have an opportunity to fatten up that career total early over lesser opposition. Monzon did it backwards, ending stronger against more difficult opposition as he got older.

 

Monzon by about 10 spots. Pretty comparable careers and ability level at their respective peaks, but Monzon shades both.

 

Monzon, tho not as easily as some here think.

 

Monzon and there is a fairly big gap between them.

 

I think 6 championships at three weights should get a little more respect than it is here. I would also contend that Chavez' best victims stack up pretty well against Monzon's. 1990 and before, Chavez was a terror, a great combination of skill, talent and relentlessness. The superstar status went to his head around 30 and I found him a bit distasteful after that.

 

it depends entirely on criteria. the easy answer may be monzon but based on what? he was one of the best, and most dominant, middleweights ever.
however his best wins are likely valdez, briscoe, griffith, benvenuti and napoles.

chavez was dominant in 130, 135 and 140 where he was top dog in each.
his best wins are likely rosario, ramirez, taylor, camacho and maybe haugen

on paper monzon looks a bit better but i think their top tier wins are comparable, and chavez showed dominance not just across weight but styles (same as monzon). they were both masters of their respective styles, though monzon showed more adaptability.

in the end, i don't see the gulf as being that big. and i ****ing hate chavez

 

beat me to it you articulate mother****er

 

It needed saying.

Monzon had one of those immaculate careers, nice and tidy, no loose ends, stayed on top of his game throughout, all things for which he should be complimented. As you said, it looks great on paper (and it was great).

Chavez was on his way to an impossibly immaculate career but the whole 100-0 thing was just a ridiculous bar to set, especially with his style, his increasing age and his rise in weight. Add the rockstar, prima donna mentality he developed and some damn fine (and some great) opponents and it's a lot sloppier career to evaluate. Still, watch him pre-Taylor, and he is an amazing fighter.