By Mark Ona: The honor of having the pound-for-pound title next to your name is a prestigious one. One that says, that no matter what weight class a boxer is in, he is considered to be the best boxer in all of the sport. Although the title might be considered fantasy (because we will never see a match between Klitshko and Mayweather), it is a legitimate one at that. I base my rankings on the belief that everyone’s pound-for-pound list is supported by these guidelines:
• Quality of opposition
• Win-Loss Record
• Overall Skill & Performance
• Title[s] currently held
Obviously, the argument for the top spot is between Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr. and Manny “Pac-man” Pacquiao. Because of all the controversy between both fighters about the blood testing issue, the only thing we can do at this point is debate on who the pound-for-pound title should belong to. Considering the principal standards that are stated above, I give my opinion on who should be regarded as the best boxer of our era.
I don’t believe that anyone can honestly argue with the set of skills that Floyd Mayweather Jr. has. Whether you favor his style or not, Mayweather Jr. possesses skills that have dominated the sport of boxing for a long time. His speed and accuracy, along with his (defense) ability to nullify any offense that his opponents attempts is remarkable. His style has often been disparaged by many of his critics as boring, because at times his fights may seem lackluster and uneventful.
Something we must understand as fans of the sport is that his style is one of the reasons he holds a record of 40 wins and no losses, and has won six world championships in five different weight classes. I, and I’m sure along with many others believe that the other reason he is 40-0 lies with his (the entire Mayweather camp) smart choice of opponents.
I have confidence that the opposition in the beginning of Mayweather Jr’s career was justified because of his obvious status, however, after his initial fight with Jose Luis Castillo I felt that his challengers have been tailored to compliment his style and continue his unblemished record. With so much controversy surrounding Mayweather Jr. and Mosley; or Mayweather Jr. and Paquiao about who is avoiding who, the bottom line is we will never truly know. I definitely commend Floyd on his wins over fighters like Diego Corrales, Zab Judah, Oscar De la Hoya even though I think most would agree that De la Hoya was 3+ years past his prime; and his second fight with Jose Louis Castillo because I felt that Castillo should have won their first bout.
We have also witnessed Mayweather Jr’s public announcements about whom he would like to face in future bouts, but the problem is that he hasn’t faced them yet. Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been blessed with a God-given talent that has brought him much success and praise; and right now he has the opportunity to go down in history as one, if not the greatest boxer of all time if he fights the top contenders of the sport. Unfortunately, until then, he cannot be labeled as the Pound-for-Pound best boxer in the world.
Comments are closed.