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Saddo’s Official Pound 4 Pound List. UPDATED… 1st October 2009:
1: Manny Pacquiao
The Filippino phenomenom just keeps his spot. However, he has refused to get lazy off the back off his demolition of Ricky Hatton in 2 rounds. He next plans to take on Miguel Cotto in November at a 145lb catchweight & a chance to become the first 7 division champion in boxing history. A win would undoubtedly seal his status as an All-Time Great as well as setting up a fight with Floyd Mayweather to decide who is greatest of this era. A win would see him off into a life of politics. Even a defeat to Cotto opens up possibilities such as a rematch with nemesis Juan Manuel Marquez, & with his lineal belt at 140 still there, there would remain plenty of challenges.
2: Floyd Mayweather Jr
Mayweather returned from a 21 month layoff to beat the man widely considered the 2nd best fighter in the world. Granted there were size advantages, but the manner in which he beat him was particularly impressive & may be the reason that Mayweather was #1 on half of all votes polled. His next step is almost certainly a fight with the winner of the Cotto-Pacquiao fight, and should Pacquiao win, it would be a huge event as well as a chance for Mayweather to take back his crown. Should he win there a fight with the Berto/Mosley winner is available, or if he could make the weight, a fight with the Williams/Pavlik winner.
3: Shane Mosley
Mosley has still remained unable to find himself to get in the ring with those who command the big paychecks. Additionally, his actions following the Mayweather-Marquez fight have damaged his reputation & possibly his ability to get an immediate fight with Mayweather. It now looks likely that he will face young gun Andre Berto in January, although a win there might very well get him the fight with Mayweather, Pacquiao or Cotto that he desires.
4: Bernard Hopkins
The Executioner remains inactive throughout 2009 & with time not on his side it is a wonder how long he will remain here. His next fight should be against Roy Jones Jr, in a rematch of their 1993 clash. A win over the one man ‘Nard believes to have legitimately beaten him would likely be the cherry on an impressive Hall of Fame career. Should he wish to continue though, the Chad Dawson-Glen Johnson winner awaits.
5: Juan Manuel Marquez
The Mexican legend drops 3 spots following his one-sided beating at the hands of Floyd Mayweather Jr. However, Marquez was well above his fighting weight against the faster man & has no shame in defeat. His next move is unclear. He has the option of going back down to Lightweight and taking on either mandatory Michael Katsidis or Venezuelan puncher Edwin Valero. Otherwise he may take on another super-fight against Ricky Hatton or opt to go for a belt at 140 against Timothy Bradley. There is also the possibility of a 3rd fight with Manny Pacquiao should his old nemesis fall at the hands of Miguel Cotto.
6: Miguel Cotto
A small drop for Cotto through no fault of his own, however, by the time of the next vote, he could very well find himself near the top of the list or out of it altogether. That is because he faces up to Manny Pacquiao in a fight that could very well define Cotto in one way or another. A beating from the Filippino superstar & many will say that it was not cheating by Antonio Margarito, that Cotto just wasn’t up to the task. A win & Cotto proves all the nay-sayers wrong & establishes himself as one of the best fighters of the era, whilst also possibly putting a stamp on Margarito’s guilt.
7: Paul Williams
The Punisher holds his spot on the list thanks to his domination of Winky Wright back in April. However, his next step will make a big difference to how he is ranked. He faces Kelly Pavlik in December for the Lineal Middleweight Championship of the World. A win here could very well see him ranked with those right at the pinnacle & also placed amongst boxing’s superstars.
8: Chad Dawson
Bad Chad Dawson makes his first appearance in our Pound For Pound rankings having slowly built up through posters’ estimations throughout the year. It comes off the back of two decisive wins over Antonio Tarver last year. There still remain doubts about Dawson, but wins over Glen Johnson, Tarver & Tomasz Adamek speak for themselves. His next step is rematching Johnson, who he controversially beat last year. Should he win there a fight looms with the Bernard Hopkins-Roy Jones winner & a chance to establish himself clearly as the best Light-Heavyweight in the world.
9: Ivan Calderon
There is a sizeable drop for the diminutive Puerto Rican & that is in no doubt due to his consecutive fights with Rodel Mayol. The first was called off in the 6th, leading to a Technical Draw, the rematch 3 months later finished in the 7th this time giving Calderon a victory. Both times it was cuts to his forehead that brought an early end to proceedings, & it followed a similar situation last year against Hugo Cazares. Many fear the 5ft fighter is beginning to decline & much hinges on his next fight, if as expected he takes on the highly rated Brian Viloria.
10: Rafael Marquez
Rafa falls a spot this time, but still managed to narrowly hold off other challengers to take this position. Although he has not fought since his May destruction of Jose Mendoza, Rafa chose to forego another fight against journeyman opposition & it appears he is instead set for a fourth battle with Israel Vazquez, should his old nemesis defeat Angel Priolo later this month. The winner of that will surely find themselves further up this list.
This is the sites Official P4P list Put together by JazMerkin compilied and updated by the sites members. If you want to be part of making this Pound for Pound list please put your opinions on this thread….
P4P Discussion and Voting Thread
Forums 100 favourite fighters
as voted by the members and put together by Britkid April 15th 2006
100 Gary Mason
99 Martin Castillo
98 Dennis Andries
97 Julian Letterlough
96 Emile Griffith
95 Sammy Langford
94 Scott Harrison
93 Darrin Van Horn
92 Luisito Espinosa
91 Charley Burley
90 Wilfredo Gomez
89 “Jersey’ Joe Walcott
88 Mike McCallum
87 Jorge Arce
86 Simon Brown
85 Carl Thompson
84 Sir Henry Cooper
83 Nicolino Loche
82 Benny Leonard
81 Sonny Liston
80 Frank Bruno
79 Zahir Raheem
78 Jorge Paez
77 Michael Gomez
76 Carlos Zarate
75 Barry McGuigan
74 Michael Spinks
73 Michael Nunn
72 Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym
71 Willie Pep
70 Kirkland Laing
69 Herol Graham
68 Jake LaMotta
67 Harold Brazier
66 Terry Marsh
65 Steve Collins
64 Ike Ibeabuchi
63 Mickey Ward
62 Jeff Lacy
61 Salvador Sanchez
60 Sultan Ibragimov
59 Antonio Margarito
58 Larry Holmes
57 Aaron Pryor
56 Pancho Villa
55 Amir Khan
54 Johnny Tapia
53 Felix Strum
52 Gabriel “Flash’ Elorde
51 Wlad Klitschko
50 Alexis Arguello
49 Diego Corrales
48 Kid Diamond
47 Alex Arthur
46 Azumah Nelson
45 George Foreman
44 Bernard Dunne
43 Kassim Ouma
42 Ken Buchanan
41 David Tua
40 Wayne McCullough
39 Lloyd Honeyghan
38 Ricardo Lopez
37 Emanuel Burton (Augustus)
36 Shane Mosley
35 Joe Frazier
34 Miguel Cotto
33 Vitali Klitschko
32 Ricardo Mayorga
31 Zab Judah
30 Ray Robinson
29 Jose Luis Castillo
28 Chris Eubank
27 James Toney
26 Rocky Marciano
25 Kostya Tszyu
24 Joe Calzaghe
23 Bernard Hopkins
22 Naseem Hamed
21 Lennox Lewis
20 Evander Holyfield
19 Manny Pacquiao
18 Ronald ‘Winky’ Wright
17 Nigel Benn
16 Arturo Gatti
15 Julio Cesar Chavez
14 Felix Trinidad
13 Roberto Duran
12 Pernell Whitaker
11 Marco Antonio Barrera
10 Oscar de la Hoya
9 Ricky Hatton
8 Ray Leonard
7 Marvin Hagler
6 Tommy Hearns
5 Floyd Mayweather Jr
4 Erik Morales
3 Muhammad Ali
2 Roy Jones Jr
1 Mike Tyson
There we have it, Iron Mike gets the win, thanks to everyone who voted.
