Whos the greater fighter SRL or FMJ

Mayweather for sure is a very talented fighter, and a perfecionist at what he did. Having said that, Leonard would have KO'ed him. As would Hearns and Duran.

But it would never have happened because Floyd would have stayed at Jr. Lightweight his entire career even if it meant starving himself to stay there. He would have had to.

 

FINALLY !!!!!!! ... someone who knows boxing !!!!

 

Well thanks, I try!

 

which is another reason why Floyd is ranked higher and will always be remembered as such

Floyd could do what Leonard couldnt

while Leonard is getting a boxing lesson from boxing's best, Floyd is outboxing and outworking boxing's best

The evidence is just so abundant; every contender and champion worth mentioning were totally outclassed

so forget those crusty old timers from the 1970s & 80s. they are really just upset that their man, tho great, couldnt match the far more numerous achievements of Mayweather. I remember Roy Jones in his time, also had this problem

 

Could you elaborate on the fighters you believe he avoided?

 

I believe Leonard did the same for Hagler. 158lbs.

 

Leonard just about.I rate Floyd above Hearns,Whitaker and Chavez but just below Leonard and Duran.

 

Me too. For me he's ahead of Hearns and Chavez with a bit of daylight, ahead of Whitaker though they're very close, behind SRL though really close & behind Duran with a bit of daylight.

 

100% spot-on!! Look at the guys SRL beat--has Floyd ever beaten anyone close to the caliber of these fighters?!!

 

Hagler weighed 159lb.

 

This thread again. Don't remember if I gave a thorough break down, but this is my take.

Big legacy wins: Leonard. Not even close. The Canelo fight is aging like wine, but Canelo wasn't of the caliber of guys like Hagler, Duran, etc at the time Floyd beat him. There really isn't any comparison whatsoever. The wins over Pac, Oscar, Mosley, and Canelo are for sure great wins over great HOF worthy opponents, but 3 were past their prime and 1 was fairly inexperienced. Ray beat multiple prime HOFers. I put huge stock in beat a great champ when he's at his peak.

Longevity: Obviously it's Mayweather. Once again, not even close. Leonard took multiple breaks, had less fights, and was a little inconsistent in his performances. Floyd aged gracefully and was a consistently elite fighter right until the end.

Ring IQ: Don't care who gets upset, this goes to Mayweather. He is probably the smartest individual, or af least one of them, across all weight classes. Top 10 for sure with a great ability to adapt and stick to a game plan. His dismantling of guys like Judah, Guerrero, Corrales, etc were beautiful to watch, just totally picked them apart like a kid in science class dissecting a frog. It's amazing how Floyd made world class opposition look like amateurs. Leonard did that a few times, but even in his prime he struggled with guys he should have dominated. Floyd was still showing elite IQ pushing 40. This isn't to say Leonard wasn't smart. He was a very smart boxer and outboxed skilled guys like Duran in the rematch, Benitez, etc. I think I'd give Leonard 8/10, Floyd a solid 10.

Athleticism/physicality: by this I do NOT mean who had more physical talent/gifts. What I mean is how well they used their individual talents in the ring. For instance, Amir Khan has amazing hand speed but didn't always use it well and didn't live to his full potential with that hand speed. This category is kind of close because in his prime, PBF was a very sharp punching physical guy, but you have to look at the whole career. At the end of the day, boxing is a fight, not just a mere sport or a chess match and how well you can become physical with your opponent is an important point of discussion. Floyd had lots of great physical tools such as his nimble footwork, using his forearm to control guys, being sure to vary the speed and angle of his punches to avoid being predictable, etc. But Leonard was the more physical guy. He was more than willing to fight on the inside and get dirty and he was good at it. Leonard had better lateral movement reminiscent of Ali and was a bit more well rounded than Floyd fighting at any range at any intensity. Floyd, especially as he grew older, hated being taken out of his comfort zone as seen in the Maidana fights and struggled with guys who didn't agree to his slower paced chess like rules. So I'll go with SRL.

Offense: Leonard. No need to elaborate.

Defense: Floyd, no need to elaborate.

Stamina: Floyd, but I'll put an asterisk* since he didn't have to fight in a 15 round era like Leonard. Floyd was more consistento overall, but Leonard at his best was no slouch having superb stamina for a quick active guy.

Heart: This one is tricky because Floyd rarely got badly hurt, and it was even more rare that he was behind on the cards or struggling. You can only point to a few isolated incidents such as struggling with Judah before he made adjustments, getting hurt by Mosley, etc. You can't fault Floyd for not getting hurt that much and being so skilled that few guys managed to come close to outboxing him. His defense and ring IQ were just phenomenal. You also can't be petty and being up fighters you feel Floyd should have fought or suggest x fighter would have beat him to doco points. All we can do is judge him as is. That being said, I am always more impressed with a guy who gets off the floor to win, comes from behind after being hurt or outboxed than a guy who rarely gets hurt. The discussion is who has more heart and it's obviously Leonard.

I could go on into other categories but you see the point that they have some similarities but they're also very different. it's very close and a matter of preference. I think it's absurd to suggest one guy is way better than the other overall.

 

SRL could beat every boxer Money beat. Could Money beat every boxer SRL beat?

 

With respect I don't think the raw numbers mean that much without analysis, I mean Sven Ottke was 34-0 and he was hopeless and Evander Holyfield was 44-10-2 and a legend.

 

This is an EXCELLENT post ... spot on analysis .. well done

 

He’d die making 130 and 135, while Mayweather potentially could beat any Leonard opponent. Edge Mayweather.