6 All-Time Great Boxers Who Were Better Than Floyd Mayweather

Floyd Mayweather, whose legacy will be written in less than two weeks against Manny Pacquiao, said he respects Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Robinson, but he’d never consider them better fighters. That begs a question: What was he smoking? It also sparked a thought: Who are the fighters who rank above the undefeated Mayweather, using skills, social impact and overall career as barometers. Muhammad Ali The self-proclaimed Greatest was just that. He was 56-5 with 37 knockouts in his career, and he carried the sport with his style, personality and outspoken commitment to equal rights for Black people. As a fighter, he had many epic battles, with his knocking out the seemingly unbeatable George Foreman in Zaire in 1974 as a highlight. He became an icon, a standard-bearer for the sport and humanity, the most recognizable figure in the world. The Greatest. Joe Louis The Brown Bomber (66-3-0, 52 KOs), who successfully defended his heavyweight title a record 25 straight times, expressed Black people’s anger at a time when racism, Jim Crow, segregation and most any other disadvantage was a part of a hard life for African-Americans in the 1930s. Moreover, his matches with German Max Schmelling embodied the broader political and social conflict of the times. The fights came to symbolize the struggle between democracy and fascism, and Louis' 1936 first-round knockout of Smelling catapulted him to first true Black national hero in America. Sugar Ray Robinson Perhaps no boxer had the combination of style, grace, speed, talent and toughness of Robinson. There was no weakness to his game. And he fought every imaginable opponent, as his 128-1-2 with 84 knockouts professional record attests. He was a stylistically beautiful fighter, one that inspired Muhammad Ali. “Rhythm is everything in boxing,” he said once. “Every move you make starts with your heart, and that's in rhythm or you're in trouble.” Sugar Ray Leonard The latter part of Leonard’s career does not matter; he was fulfilling a fighter’s need to fight, despite declining skills. At his best, he was as skilled as his namesake, as tough as anyone and possessed a killer instinct that belied his charming out-of-the-ring nature. Leonard earned more than $100 million in the ring and spent none of it, according to his lawyer, Mike Trainer, instead living off his endorsements. He was among the first to make that amount of money and maintain it. He was 36-3-1 with 25 KOs and epic battles against Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran and Marvin Hagler. Marvin Hagler Hagler, who changed his first name to “Marvelous,” was the most dominant fighter of the 1980s, holding the middleweight championship from 1980-1987. He made 12 undisputed title defenses and holds the highest KO percentage of all middleweight champions at 78 percent. Because he was such a powerful force, his stellar defense and ability to take a punch often was underrated. He quit the sport after Sugar Ray Leonard beat him in 1987 by a split decision that Hagler believed was unjust. He never returned to boxing. Mike Tyson Troubled as an individual, Tyson dominated the sport perhaps like no other. He was explosive and tactical, a combination that made him the “baddest man on the planet.” At the height of his excellence, it was hard to imagine Tyson (50-6-0, 2 NC with 44 KO) losing to anyone. In fact, Tyson’s intimidation factor was so high fighters often were outwardly frightened before a bout. A Tyson fight was not to be missed. His Brooklyn, inner-city demeanor represented a culture in the ‘80s that embrace his bad-boy mystique.

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