Will it ever be possible for anyone to be new #1 ATG

No people hold on to the Past too much. Much as I think alot of Modern fighters would woop the old school guys Ali gets the Nod and Ray does too

 

No.

 

In my opinion no matter how good a fighter is nowadays they will never get recognised as being better than fighters of the past, its just the way the world is. Do people really think that there is no fighter that will ever come along that is better than an Ali or Robinson.

 

No, because nostalgia means we discredit any fighter of today who could feesibly be considered as good as those before him.

But in 50 years time, I fully expect fighters of today to be seen as some of the ATG ever, it's just nostalgia.

 

Those who say "people hold on too much to the past" are the ones who have no knowledge of it. There were more gyms, better trainers, more competition, less titles and longer championship fights in the past. Guys like Floyd and Paq would have been succesful, but certainly less dominant. When I see DeLaHoya, even in his prime, gassing out towards the end of a 12 rounder, I think, what would have happened if he had to go 15? Yet many would consider him an ATG.
Yeah, track and field has progressed since Jesse Owens, and baseball players run faster and hit harder than in Babe Ruth's day (steroids may have a part in this too), but being a better athlete doesn't always make you a better fighter.
You see guys getting title fights after 20 fights, sometimes less. Guys like Robinson, Armstrong, Pep, Benvenuti, Monzon had to fight 40, 50, 60 or more times. It's difficult to compare the much more pampered fighters of today to the boxers who had to go through much more to achieve sucess.

 

They fought in an era where the amount of great fighters was absolutely limited, fought day in day out against tomato cans and sometimes even lost against them.

We've seen in EVERY single sport that professionalism, training methods and preparation has meant greater levels of success, yet we're so blinded by nostalgia in boxing that we forget this is the case.

And the argument about 15 rounds makes me laugh - the fighting style, pace and equipment was so different back then compared to today, fighters also hit lots harder today than they used too, anyone disputes that? They're a ****ing moron.

Take a look at the HW's. Tell me how many 6'7, 255lb fighters Ali/Louis/Marciano faced... now tell me how many of those 6'7, 255lb fighters had a crisp jab, textbook defense, a great right hand and stopping power with either glove.

 

There's the "New Ray Robinson". :think He lost a majority decision to Brad Solomon, but that's just a minor speedbump...

 

You make a few good points, however...

If you're talking about ATG as being a fighter who could beat other fighters, then you have to take into account their abilities, the likelyhood of a result against the two of them and if they were beaten in their careers.

Undefeated fighters offer up the fact that no one found a way to beat them, very few fighters go through their career undefeated and fewer still do it while being "The Man" in a weight class.

Talking about the achievements of fighters like Sugar Ray but not talking about the losses is a double standard too. I can forgive Ali his losses past 1974-75 but the losses to guys like Norton and Frazier? For everyone saying "Ali was out of his prime" while judging RJJ so harshly for being out of his, that reaks of Nostalgia.

The reason Ali is seen as "the greatest" comes mostly from the fact that he never got beaten until his enforced break away from boxing. Not being defeated makes you great in my view.

That's why in this era, I'll always put Calzaghe ahead of Hopkins, because their careers were similar and while Hopkins has bigger name recognition on his, he lost.

Where as, I put RJJ ahead of both of them - because in his prime (prior to the move to HW), he was as close to unbeatable as any other fighter.

That's the way I judge things, how good is a fighter on their average day, not their best day.

 

I would say there's no doubt a guy could come along & have all the skills, dedication, natural ability, etc, to become one of the very finest P4P fighters of all time. However, as someone has already said, the sport has changed, for the better & worse.

Fighters are simply not active enough for my liking in order to compete for such a greatness. I mean, for example, look at guys like Harry Greb & Henry Armstrong. In a twelve month period, Armstrong defended a title 11 times!

Nowadays, a top level fighter similar to Armstrong, would have to wait three to four years to have that many bouts. Remember, I'm not talking about a contender, I'm talking about a champion!

 

of course it can be done