The Evolution of Champions: Stories Behind Boxing Rankings

Picking the Best is a Challenging Task

Different Boxing Weight Class Means Lots of Opinions

Boxing rankings are some of the most difficult to settle on, especially when it comes to deciding who was the best fighter of all time. There are different boxing shows and boxing organizations that have featured prizefighters through the years. Everyone has an opinion and some are wilder than others but they shouldn’t be dismissed if cases can be made.  Be sure to check your local listings for boxing this weekend to see who’s fighting.

Who Is the Best Boxer of All Time Statistically?

Arguably the best boxer of all time is legendary heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano. He was 49-0, never defeated, and never fought to a draw in an iconic career. Boxrec has Floyd Mayweather Jr. at 50-0. However, the quality of some of his opponents tilts the scales in favor of the late, great Marciano.

What one finds is that many fighters diminish their overall marks by not knowing when to stop. Look at some of the greats they entered the ring far past their peak and ended up taking losses. Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson are examples. Ali lost three of his final four fights when he no longer was as sharp and swift. Tyson lost to Buster Douglas. He had wins after that but four of his last five fights wound up in defeat. Boxing champions are remembered for their heyday but some would have been far better stopping sooner.

What Boxer Has the Most Knockouts in History?

The sport has changed through time with the advent of companies like Top Rank Boxing, Golden Boy, and other promotions shaping careers. You also no longer see boxers in the ring as frequently as they were a century ago. Now, a top fighter may have one or two bouts a year. A century or so ago careers would see fighters battle hundreds of times.

For example, Billy Bird from the United Kingdom somehow had 356 fights. He won 260, including 139 by knockout. A great heavyweight whose name will certainly be remembered is Archie Moore. He had an astounding 132 knockouts. From 220 fights, 186 wins. Talk about keeping busy. Remember, boxers back then didn’t make anywhere near the amount of money fighters today make. They were working for a living and that meant frequent boxing matches.

Others with a slew of knockouts are Young Stribling (129 KOs), and Sam Langford (126 fights). You could put together two or three boxers today and they won’t have as many collective bouts as these guys had matches.

Which boxer has never been knocked out?

Canadian heavyweight George Chuvalo fought 93 fights, many against top competition, including Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. Another heavyweight who stayed on his feet in a career of 76 bouts, is Oliver McCall.

Of course, Marciano and Floyd Mayweather Jr. are undefeated and never knocked out. Mayweather took a knee against Carlos Hernandez when he hurt his hand. 

Who Are Some Great Multi-Division Champions?

Some fighters have moved from weight class to weight class with success in their careers. It is an incredible challenge because when moving up you are sometimes fighting bigger and stronger opponents and dropping in class can sap strength as you try and cut weight.

Sugar Ray Robinson is regarded as one of the greats in the history of the sweet science. He was 173-19-6 in a sparkling career. Robinson won the welterweight and middleweight titles in a long career. He fought Joey Maxim at Yankee Stadium attempting to win the light heavyweight title. Robinson was ahead on all the cards but it was more than 103 degrees in the ring that Bronx summer night. He collapsed at the end of round 13 unable to finish the 15-round bout.

Other fighters who won titles at multiple weight classes were the likes of Manny Pacquiao, Sugar Ray Leonard, Mayweather Jr., and Roy Jones Jr. They are all familiar names due to recency bias and time in the ring when many boxing aficionados of this day and age remember them fondly.

So, Who Is The Best of All Time?

Notice, we say who is the “best” of all time. That’s a nod to Muhammad Ali being “The Greatest.” The truth is if you go strictly by record, Marciano has to be considered the best of all time. Heavyweights eventually lose a step or speed and get caught. That never happened to Marciano.And when you look at other names we have mentioned they either fight someone late in their career who is younger and able to defeat them or they don’t know when the time to hang ‘em up has come. It is a different game today when you can make a life-changing sum in one night. Back when boxing had its golden age and “Friday Night Fight” was televised weekly the combatants had to fight more to make a living. It led to many health issues in later life and a myriad of fighters who suffered through financial crises.

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