The pound for pound list analyzed; Swiftly: part II

By Boxing News - 05/20/2016 - Comments

Image: The pound for pound list analyzed; Swiftly: part IIBy The Sandman: Recently, I wrote an article with the claim that Danny “Swift” Garcia was the current number one pound for pound fighter in the world. Many called Garcia a “B” level fighter, lucky, or claimed he had been gifted victories. I will be analyzing some of comments made, and responding.

Comment 1: “I want to see him fight a worthy adversary, riding that win for like five months now about time to get back in the ring”.

Response: Boxing fanatics seem to have short term memory. Boxing fans have accused Danny Garcia of fighting bums, but then claim that he lost to Lamont Peterson and Mauricio Herrera. Lamont Peterson and Mauricio Herrera are both excellent fighters. In the fight with Peterson, Garcia’s stamina was exposed, allowing Peterson to easily win the last couple of rounds in the fight. Ultimately, Peterson’s low work rate in the first half of the fight cost him the victory. Had Peterson tried to win earlier rounds, he would have exposed himself to a knockout loss. The strategy was to catch Garcia winded, and this was only going to happen towards the end of the fight. Had they fought 15 rounds, Yes, Peterson may have been able to stop Garcia. Danny Garcia has fought world class fighter and former world champions.

Comment 2: “I laughed at this article until tears go out..”

Response: stop laughing so hard.

Comment 3: “This is the most hateful article i have read! To say that Danny Garcia is considered a great after those poor performances is ludicrous. And to bash Golovkin for wanting to unify all the belts in the middleweight division is also hateful! its not his fault that fighters don’t want to fight him, so before moving up on weight his goal is unification and WBO champ Billy Joe Saunders is next!”

Response: Your right, GGG does have the right to unify, just as Danny Garcia did. It is not GGG’s fault that his division is not stacked with talented opposition. He can unify and call himself a unified champion. However, he cannot call himself a pound for pound fighter. This only happens when you fight the best. Usually if a fighter’s division is not loaded with talent, they go up or down. Yes, he has not lost a round, but no one expects him to lose a round with the guys he is fighting. Not losing rounds does not qualify you to be a pound for pound champion.

Comment 4: “is the writer on drugs?”

Response: No

Comment 5: “Mr Sandman I can’t believe what you’re writing. First off Garcia landed a lucky punch against Khan, he wasn’t even looking when he threw it. Secondly he got punished by Peterson the second have of their fight and squeaked out a victory.If he steps up to welterweight and fights Brook, Porter and Thurman.”

Response: In boxing there are no lucky punches. Garcia exploited Khan’s weak defense and the fact that Khan had lost his foot movement. He did not have to look because he knew Khan was not going to move. Additionally, Garcia dropped Khan a total of three times. Lightning does not strike the same place twice, does it?

Officially, Danny Garcia has not been outpointed. He has had difficult fights and yes, he does have flaws. With that said, his opponents do not have enough time to wear Garcia down to win more than 6 rounds. They can easily win 3-4, but never more than 5. Luckily, some boxing matches are 12 rounds not 3-4. Beating Garcia looks easy, but has not been done yet. He adjusted very well against Guerrero, and knocked Guerrero’s head around all night with counter shots and pot shots. Garcia doesn’t seem to have a weak chin, absorbing Guerrero’s shots and Lucas Matthyse’s as well, something Peterson could not do.

The list stands.

1. Danny Garcia

2. Canelo Alvarez

3. Terrence Crawford