Boxing used to be beautiful and the rules were appropriate. There was only one champion whom everyone knew and respected, and everyone knew he was the real deal.
– Joe Frazier
Unfortunately, many experts in the world of boxing agree that a sport like boxing is literally dying. This is explained by many reasons. Starting from the existence of a huge number of boxing associations with their own champions, and ending with the still not developed clear and transparent system of sporting competitions.
Adding fuel to the fire is the fact that the so-called “real old champions and their shadows” have already ended their careers. Undoubtedly, there are many promising and talented newcomers in the ring today, but if you ask an ordinary person what comes to mind first when they hear the word boxing, most will probably mention names like Tyson, Ali, Roy Jones.
All these champions, besides their sporting talent, also had a fantastic charisma that simply made millions of boys and boxing enthusiasts stick to their TV screens and enjoy the spectacle with genuine delight. But let’s not dwell on the sad part. Today, AdmiGram.com remembers five boxers who were not only the greatest, but also made the most significant contribution to the spectacle and popularization of this sport at their time.
The 5 greatest boxers of our time
© Florida Memory / Wikimedia Commons
First of all, we want to note that we do not intend to offend the great boxers of the past century who engraved their championship names in boxing history with blood. To understand what we have lost in boxing, one only needs to look at the champions who existed before. What was once simply considered their achievement is now just an otherworldly and unattainable record in the world of boxing.
- Edward Henry «Harry» Greb (USA) (1894-1926) remained undefeated for 178 fights from 1916 to 1923.
- Packey McFarland (USA) fought 97 matches (5 draws) without a single defeat from 1905 to 1915.
- Pedro Juan Carrasco García (Spain) won 83 consecutive fights from April 22, 1964, to September 3, 1970.
- Archie Moore (USA) scored 129 knockout victories in professional fights from 1936 to 1963.
- LaMar Freeman Clark (USA) achieved 44 consecutive knockout victories from 1958 to January 11, 1960. On one evening, December 1, 1958, he knocked out 6 opponents while performing in Bingham, Utah, USA.
© Wikimedia Commons
- Rocky Marciano (USA) – the only world champion in all weight categories who did not suffer a single defeat throughout his entire sports career (1947-55). He won 43 of his 49 fights by knockout.
- The longest registered boxing match took place between Andy Bowen (1867-94) and Jack Burke in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, on April 6-7, 1893. It lasted 110 rounds – 7 hours 19 minutes (from 21:15 to 4:34) and was stopped due to the obvious lack of active action by the boxers (later declared a draw). After this, on May 31, 1893, Bowen won a bout lasting 85 rounds.
- Joe Louis holds the record for the longest tenure as champion, 11 years and 252 days, valid for all weight categories.
- The longest championship fight (according to the Queensberry rules) took place on September 3, 1906, in Goldfield, Nevada, USA. Lightweights Joe Gans (USA) and Oscar ‘Battling’ Nelson (the Iron Dane) fought in the ring. The fight was concluded in the 42nd round when Gans was declared the winner due to his opponent’s disqualification.
But let’s return to our top five. It’s simply impossible to determine who among them is better due to objective reasons, so we have listed them in alphabetical order.
Muhammad Ali
© Wikimedia Commons
– Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.
Muhammad Ali, born Cassius Marcellus Clay on January 17, 1942, in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA, was an American professional boxer who competed in the heavyweight division; one of the most famous boxers in the history of the sport. The most recognizable athlete on the planet.
Muhammad brought beauty, speed, and power to boxing, and with his wisdom and charisma, he completely changed the public perception of a true champion. In those times, the performances of a black boxer were a challenge to society. Every match was an event where the black boxer invariably emerged victorious from the ring.
He fought against great boxers like Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Ken Norton, and many others. Yet he defeated them, showcasing his incredible talent and remarkable will. Many of his major fights became legendary and were named, ‘The Thrilla in Manila’, ‘The Rumble in the Jungle’. Ali was the first to start predicting the outcomes of his fights and became famous for his amazingly accurate and sharp phrases.
Everything had its own name or meaning; his opponents had nicknames like ‘the bear’ (Liston), ‘the mummy’ (George Foreman), ‘the washer woman’ (George Chuvalo), and ‘the rabbit’ (Floyd Patterson); his maneuvers had names like ‘Ali shuffle’, ‘rope-a-dope’, and ‘anchor punch’.
Roy Jones Jr.
© mborowick / Wikimedia Commons
– If God gave you any gift, try to use it to the fullest.
Roy Jones Jr., born January 16, 1969, Pensacola, Florida, USA, is an American professional boxer, the first in the history of boxing to become a world champion in middleweight, then managed to win titles in second middle, light heavyweight, and heavyweight divisions.
A silver medalist at the Olympic Games, a world champion in middleweight (IBF version, 1993–1994), second middleweight (IBF version, 1994–1996), light heavyweight (WBC version, 1997, 1997–2002 and 2003–2004; WBA version, 1998–2002; IBF version, 1999–2002), and super heavyweight (WBA version, 2003) weight categories.
Despite the ups and downs, Roy Jones’ biography is forever engraved in the history of boxing. The American Boxing Writers Association named Jones ‘Boxer of the Decade’ in the 1990s. He was repeatedly recognized as the best boxer in the world regardless of weight class. All of his fights were incredibly thrilling and spectacular.
Thanks to his phenomenal speed and reflexes, Jones did whatever he wanted in the ring, moved as he pleased, struck from different distances, from different points, at any angle. Almost all of his bouts were more like a show than boxing matches. Jones did everything for the spectators to enjoy the athletes’ confrontation in the ring. Roy Jones is one of the most gifted boxers in the history of boxing.
Floyd Mayweather Jr.
© ian mcwilliams / Wikimedia Commons
– I’m that guy who’s on a different level than you. I’ll outsmart you and dissect you in the ring.
Floyd Mayweather Jr., born Floyd Sinclair on February 24, 1977, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA, is an undefeated American professional boxer who competed in the welterweight division. Mayweather also remained undefeated in his amateur career, having fought in 90 matches.
He is a multiple-time and nearly undisputed world champion in the super featherweight, lightweight, light welterweight, and welterweight divisions. He was regarded as the best boxer regardless of weight class according to Ring magazine (2005–2007, 2012–2015). Mayweather was named Fighter of the Year by The Ring magazine (1998, 2007) and the Boxing Writers Association of America (2007, 2013, 2015).
Despite his controversial and sometimes scandalous behavior outside the ring, Mayweather was a highly disciplined and motivated boxer in sports. Those who know Floyd personally say that inside and outside the ring, he seems like two different people. In all of his bouts, Floyd displayed an incredible and phenomenal sense of his opponents, as if he knew in advance everything his opponent was going to do.
Furthermore, utilizing his signature defense, he remained almost untouchable to the punches thrown by his opponents. Many disliked Mayweather because of his scandals, arrogance, and blatant boasting outside the ring, and they watched his fights only hoping that he would eventually lose. All his fights were spectacular and interesting; his entrances into the ring were like theatrical shows. His signature defense and the art of calculating his opponent’s game plan are worthy of study in boxing textbooks.
Manny Pacquiao
© roger alcantara / Wikimedia Commons
– Alright, this is my final weight class.
Emmanuel Dapidran ‘Manny’ Pacquiao, born December 17, 1978, in Kibawe, Bukidnon Province, Philippines, is a Filipino professional boxer competing in the welterweight division. He is the first and currently the only boxer to become a world champion in eight weight divisions. Pacquiao is a world champion in the lightest, second lightest, super featherweight, second super featherweight, lightweight, first welterweight, welterweight, and first middleweight divisions.
He is also the first and currently the only five-time lineal champion in five weight divisions. Named ‘Boxer of the Year’ in 2006, 2008, and 2009, as well as ‘Fighter of the Decade’ by the Boxing Writers Association of America. Recognized as the best boxer regardless of weight class by Ring Magazine from 2008 to 2011. He was also named the Best Athlete of 2009 by the American Academy of Sports.
Pacquiao is undoubtedly one of the greatest fighters of modern times. In the ring, if allowed by his opponent, Manny did everything and simply outclassed his opponent. He always fought at a blistering pace, explosive power, and fierce lightning-fast combinations from different angles — these are the trademarks of the Filipino.
Outside the ring, Pacquiao is involved in charity work. He established the Manny Pacquiao Foundation to improve the quality of life in the Philippines and to help people from other parts of the world facing issues such as poverty and illness. He has invested in numerous projects, such as a cancer research and treatment center on Mindanao Island, organized medical missions, provided scholarships to talented but impoverished students, and promoted environmental awareness.
Mike Tyson
© BillCramer / Wikimedia Commons
– Fear is your best friend and your worst enemy.
Michael Gerard ‘Mike’ Tyson, born June 30, 1966, in Brownsville, Brooklyn, New York, USA, is an American professional boxer who competed in the heavyweight division. He is one of the most famous and recognizable boxers in the history of world boxing. At the peak of his career, Tyson possessed excellent speed, knockout power, and superb defense, surpassing most of his opponents in these aspects.
Mike mastered the art of psychological warfare against opponents and used the Peek-a-Boo style. The technique and fighting style of Joe Louis, the ‘Brown Bomber,’ one of the best mobile punchers in boxing history, served as the basis for this style.
He holds several world records that remain unbeaten to this day: the youngest heavyweight world champion (at 20 years and 144 days); the youngest undisputed heavyweight world champion (at 21 years); the boxer who took the least time from debut to win titles of world champion and undisputed heavyweight world champion (1 year 8.5 months and 2 years 5 months, respectively).
He is the first and only undisputed champion to win three major titles successively; the highest-paid heavyweight in history; of the top ten highest-grossing fights in boxing history, Mike Tyson participated in six; the only one to defend the title of undisputed champion (WBC, WBA, IBF) six times in a row; holds the record for the most rapid knockouts (9 knockouts in less than 1 minute); and scored the fastest knockout at the Junior Olympic Games (8 seconds).
image on top: rcelis / Wikimedia Commons
