Would This Be An Acceptable Order For Top 3?

Nope. I’m of a smaller percentage that believes Louis is number 1, but him and Ali are locked in at 1 and 2.

I think you could make a very contentious argument for Uysk at 3, but if you have him at 2, it doesn’t make sense. He’s either above both Ali and Louis, due to the boxing game moving on in terms of skill and quality or you put him below both

 

I got
Ali
Louis
Holmes

 

H2H IMO it’d go…

Louis
Usyk
Ali

OR

Usyk
Louis
Ali

for greatness it’s like…

Louis - Ali
Usyk

 

I would say Uysk does have the advantage of giving you no reasons to doubt his ATG stature though. I hold Rocky in the same regard.

Just a few examples of heavyweights I personally have above Uysk,

Lewis - has two knockout losses despite both behing avenged

Holmes - never unifying in a very odd era, not necessarily his fault. Also you can argue he had a lot of close fights against very green opposition that he never rematched.

Just a few examples, not to get into a massive argument about the top 10/15/20, but there’s no way you can have Uysk inbetween Ali and Louis or Louis and Ali.

He’s either above them both with the line you’re trying to cook or behind them both (which for me is the right answer)

 

That Usyk, he’s so hot right now…
He sure is, someone needs to throw an ice bucket over him.

The list is not acceptable, you must visit your local catholic priest this weekend for you have indeed sinned.

I remember when the sport had moved on, when Joshua and Fury couldn’t be beaten by a smaller guy because they were too big…

Ali, Louis , Lewis, Holmes, Frazier, Foreman and Tyson are all well above Usyk

 

Most folks are, but I am Puerto Rican!

Didn't know that about Ali. It's very interesting he took his political role seriously without going into politics later.

Yeah, when I point out the 1880s version of "the world" being just tiny given most of europe didn't even box let alone the world sometimes folks take exception to that and tell me about how popular boxing was in the 1880s in the nations that did box.

I can't tell you where your line is there but I can tell you it's a dead issue by the 1840s. As in even those jamooks recognized they hadn't achieved a world sport to claim a world title over.

It's not really for me to say what is world or isn't or what is participation and isn't. That said some of the argument found in it are silly.

You've once again conflated popularity and rating with participation. That's fine, to be fair those are the stats that are easy to find and so cite and speak about in public, but the fact is every nation you have mentioned has grown since the 60s

Mexico had a population of 43 million in 1965

132 million in 2025.

If 4 million people liked boxing in 1965 that'd've been 10% the entire population. If 4 million people today like boxing it's 3% of the population.

Mexico in fact does not need boxing to be as popular as it was to produce more boxers than it ever had before. If Mexico had 10% of the population in boxing in 65 and only 5% today you could claim it's popularity is halved but the reality is it's putting out more boxers, views, etc, than it had at the height of its popularity.



Popularity is an internal metric that doesn't matter to the rest of the world. I'll prove it. Explain the popularity of boxing in Germany far outpacing the participation from Germany. Boxing being a popular sport in german did not translate to Germans taking control by numbers or ratings.


So again, the sword falling out of fashion did not hurt it's production.

Boxing falling out of fashion in Mexico does not even speak to the production of boxing in Mexico.








Finally, if you have a Russian in top rating before the fall of the USSR, that speaks to the tencity of that man not the openness of that nation. It is sick to turn one man's triumph into another man's procedure. Cubans abandoning their families, their homes, their lives, to be pro boxers and making rank does not make an international sport. it makes my point for me and does it in kinda a dirty way. That's twice now you've woe-is-me'd while downplaying the rest of the world's struggles.







Let me be very direct with this last statement; In no way is popularity even worth mentioning as an obstacle in the same conversation as men whose nation is not just at war but on the weaker side of it. If you're going to cast the world as "a handful of ukrainians doing well" Then your "But US and Mexico ain't so popular" stance seems childish.


Promise war is more obstacle than what is and is not a fad at the moment.

 

Less kids. This is not about population, it´s about kids, population grew because people don´t die early, but everybody everywhere had less kids in the last 25 years..
A good stat for you to provide here would have been the number of kids getting into pro boxing compared with before.

 

I imagine either one of us would do if we could. I'm not even sure where to get that stat. I did have a look, I found the following:


Boxing is estimated to generate over $1.3 billion in global revenues annually
The global boxing equipment market is valued at approximately $6 billion and is expected to grow annually by 4%
The average ticket price for major boxing events has increased by 25% over the last decade, averaging $85 per ticket in 2023
The professional boxing industry contributed approximately $4 billion to the U.S. economy in 2021
The United States accounts for approximately 40% of the global boxing market, making it the largest single country market
The global market for boxing gloves alone is valued at over $1 billion, with the highest demand in North America and Europe
The global boxing video game market is valued at over $600 million and is expected to grow annually by 8%
The average prize money for top-tier professional bouts is now over $1 million, with some fights reaching $10 million or more
In 2023, the number of registered professional boxers worldwide surpassed 400,000
The popularity of boxing in Nigeria has grown by 45% in recent years, especially among youth
The number of female boxing gyms increased by nearly 35% between 2019 and 2023
The number of amateur boxing participants in Europe has grown by 20% in the last five years, reaching over 2 million athletes
The total number of amateur boxing clubs worldwide exceeds 10,000, with significant growth in Southeast Asia
Youth boxing participation is highest in the United States, with over 250,000 registered teenage boxers in 2023
In 2023, the number of internationally ranked boxers increased by 15%, indicating growing global competitiveness
Youth boxing programs are supported by over 150 non-profit organizations worldwide, contributing to youth development
60% of new boxing fans are under the age of 35, indicating its appeal among younger generations
As of 2023, the number of women competing professionally in boxing has increased by 40% in the last five years


But I really can't say how true any of this stuff is. I'm a little suspect websites like statista are now AI driven.

That said, stats are kinda beside the point. Or rather, I'd say even if I was right the counterpoint of raw stats on who is boxing is really all we need to know what's going on and it's suspect it's so difficult to find. At least imo. Not bad sir. I dunno.

 

There was a time when Manny Pacquiao was "recognized" as the greatest boxer to whom ever lived.