Some guy named Stecker ranks the Top 20 Fighters since 1990.

[MrChug]

DISCUSS...agree? Disagree?

I have my problems with the order...giving far too much credit to some rather than others.

http://sports.si.cnn.com/default.asp...cker/index.htm

The Greatest Fighters Since 1990


By Julius Stecker
Boxing Columnist


Julius Stecker
Debates are always fun, whether they are at a local tavern over a beer with your buddy or with a coworker at a work related banquet. In football and basketball, it doesn’t ever seem like a day goes by when I here somebody discussing, "who is the better basketball player - Magic Johnson or Larry Bird, or who is the better quarterback, Tom Brady or Peyton Manning?" There is nothing in sports like a good old fashion list of greats. These discussions are always fun and enjoyable, and sometimes darn right intriguing. So how do you come up with a good list fighters?

First throw out your allegiances, just because you are a fan of a fighter, doesn’t mean he was the best fighter. Heck, I love Arturo Gatti and Micky Ward, but neither of them even makes honorable mention on my list. You have to examine the level of compe ion, the quality of the wins, the numbers of years that the fighter was among the elite, and last but not least, how dominate each was in their primes.

This is not a list of who was the most exciting fighter, it a list of who I feel was the best. Some on this list will probably move up, and some may move down in the next few years. But right now, this where I feel each of these future Hall of Famers sits in this underrated era of boxing, the period since 1990. So let the debates begin.

20. Kosta Tszyu
Kosta Tszyu was one of the most dominating Jr. Welterweight’s of the last 20 years. His laser like right hand was one of boxing's best punches. The win that defined his career was his concussing knockout over former undisputed welterweight champion Zab Judah. I wish he would have moved up and challenged Shane Mosley or Oscar De La Hoya. But he didn’t, so he doesn’t move higher up the list.

19. Ricardo Lopez
Great technician, who seldom made mistakes, and retired undefeated. Unfortunately for him, he never had a career defining fight

18. Azumah Nelson
There will never be another Professor. He was a great boxer, and he knew when to go in for the kill. Who could forget his destructive victory over an excellent Jeff Fenech in their 2nd fight? He was a two division champion but failed in his attempt to be a three division le holder, losing to all time great Pernell Whitaker

17. Erik Morales
The man has never given us a bad fight. He owns wins over fighters like Marco Antonio Barrera, Junior Jones, and Manny Pacquiao. He was perhaps the most exciting fighter of the last 20 years. He lost to a very ordinary Zahir Raheem, even though he may have been past his best, and he had got some gift decisions. That pushes him down this list.

16. Michael McCallum
Yes, the original Body Snatcher. The man was explosive inside the ring. Everybody talks about his body attack. But he was a masterful boxer as well. His win over Donald Curry was an example of his mastery, but it was during the 1980’s, but McCallum was still an excellent fighter in the 90’s, evidence of his match-ups against James Toney.

15. Manny Pacquiao
The story is not finished yet with Manny Pacquiao; a few more years like last year will put him in the rarified top 10 or top 5 of this list. Rarely does boxing have such a dynamic exciting fighter who is also good as well He holds wins over Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales. But he has some early career loses, that pushes him down for right now. But watch out, he may get much higher.
Mike Tyson will go down as one of the most powerful heavyweight champions of all time.

14. Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson once was the biggest and baddest man on the planet. He was knocking everybody out. And he became one of the most popular sports figures in the world. In 1990, Buster Douglas knocked him out, in the biggest upset in boxing history. After that, he was never the same. He would reclaim his crown, but Evander Holyfield knocked him out again in 1996. He had two excellent wins over Razor Ruddock in the early part of the 90’s.

13. Winky Wright
Wins over Shane Mosley and Felix Trinidad earn him this spot. Even though both were past there best weight, Wright still decisively beat both. He would rank higher except he has loses to Fernando Vargas and Harry Simon. A win over Bernard Hopkins would push him up this list.

12. James Toney
James “Lights Out” Toney is the fighter every other fighter admires stylistically. He is one of the most skillful fighters of the past 20 years, and is also one of the most accomplished. His propensity to get out of shape moves and lack of discipline him down a little on my list.

11. Lennox Lewis
Lennox never gets his due. He was the best Heavyweight fighter of the 1990’s. He had it all from power to excellent boxing skills. He would have ranked higher had he not been knocked out twice by Hasim Rahman and Oliver McCall.

10. Marco Antonio Barrera
Barrera was a brilliant prizefighter; his two wins over Morales demonstrate his greatness. And nobody will forget his dominating performance over "The Prince" Naseem Hamed. Barrera is a legend and first a ballot hall of famer. Boxing will miss him when he is gone.

9. Felix Trinidad
Perhaps the greatest Puerto Rican fighter ever, he has one of the best-left hooks I have ever seen. He is a destructive force, whose relentlessness was second to none. Nobody will forget his crushing win over Fernando Vargas. People should not forget he was one of the greatest welterweights ever as well. Would have rated higher but he was destroyed by Bernard Hopkins, was shut out by Winky Wright and got a very questionable decision against Oscar De La Hoya

8. Oscar De La Hoya
Oscar haters are going to be mad at me for this. But Oscar was a legitimate 4-division champion who fought the best fighters of his era. And while doing this he won more then he lost. His combination of speed and grace made him a fan favorite and his Hollywood looks made him a favorite of female fight fans. Regardless of what you think, he will go down as a first ballot Hall of Famer. Nobody on this list has fought better compe ion.

7. Shane Mosley
Shane Mosley makes my list this high because he was such a dominant and dynamic Lightweight, an excellent Welterweight and a good Jr. Middleweight. The reason he ranks in front of De La Hoya and Trinidad, because he beat De La Hoya twice. His accomplishments are similar to Trinidad, but Mosley performed better against De La Hoya and Wright then did Trinidad. His loses against Vernon Forrest and Wright hurt him, but his improvement in the rematches against these bigger fighters is admirable. Right now he is the most underrated fighter of this era.

6. Julio Cesar Chavez
The greatest Mexican fighter of all time. He was just like Trinidad, except he had a better chin, but not as big a punch. He will be forever remembered for his comeback victory over Meldrick Taylor in 1990. But it was his work at 130 and 135 that made him a legend. He was so dominate for so long, and while some below him may have beaten him, none of them have put down the legacy he has. But no matter what the record says, he lost to Pernell Whitaker
Bernard Hopkins (r) won 47 of 52 fights, including 32 by knock out.

5. Bernard Hopkins
Bernard does everything right, give or take a few bad management decisions in the middle of his career. He lives right, fights right, and understands the fight game better then any fighter I ever saw. He cares only about winning and that is what he has done since he won the Middleweight le in 1995. His wins over Trinidad, Antonio Tarver and De La Hoya have defined his career. A win over a smaller Wright would be great, but it would be hard push him past the top 4 here.

4. Roy Jones Jr.
If you had asked me before beginning of 2004, I would have told Roy was the best fighter of the past 20 years. He went through his career basically unchallenged, beating great fighters on this list like James Toney, Mike McCallum and Bernard Hopkins. But after his knock out loses to Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson, he has lost some of his luster. But regardless, you can’t take away what the man accomplished. He was the most talented fighter I had ever seen.

3. Floyd Mayweather Jr.
All you have to say is he has won five les in five different weight classes, while keeping an unblemished record (38-0) in the process. His victory of De La Hoya was decisive, but yet it was not the spell blinding performance he had hoped. Some consider him the most skilled fighter since Willie Pep, now that may be going to far, but who is to say he isn’t. His lack of quality wins over ‘A’ opponents pushes him down the list a little. Still he is a great fighter none the less.

2. Evander Holyfield
Forget the fighter who is fighting now past his prime in his 40’s, that guy isn’t Evander Holyfield. The guy I am talking about is The 80’s and 90’s version of the Real Deal. He was in my opinion was the second best fighter of this generation. It is not because of what he only did at heavyweight. It was because of what he did at heavyweight and cruiserweight. He dominated the cruiserweight division, and went on to become the most exciting heavyweight fighter since Muhammad Ali. Yeah he didn’t win all of his heavyweight le fights, but he won a lot more then he lost. And he pretty much beat every bigger fighter he ever fought, besides Lennox Lewis. For sheer excitement, heart, and passion there will never be another Evander Holyfield.

1. Pernell Whitaker
Pernell Whitaker was the Willie Pep of our generation, sorry Floyd. He was so good he barely lost any rounds in his prime. In my opinion, he is the greatest lightweight of all-time and was a damn good welterweight too. He boxed circles around, Azumah Nelson, Julio Cesar Chavez and everybody else in between. Even when he was way past his prime, he fought a prime De La Hoya even up. The man was just amazing. His quality of wins earns him this spot.

Honorable Mention: In No Particular Order Johnny Tapia, Terry Norris, James “Buddy” McGirt, Rid Bowe, Virgil Hill, Iran Barkley, Antonio Tarver, Joe Calzaghe, Meldrick Taylor, Vernon Forrest, Mark Johnson, Khaosai Galaxy, Julian Jackson, Gerald McClellan, Jeff Fenech, Orlando Canizales, Daniel Zaragoza, Juan Manual Marquez, Michael Carbajal, Humberto Gonzales, Ike Quartey, Fernando Vargas, Michael Nunn, Jose Luis Castillo, Diego Corrales, Naseem Hamed

Best of the Future
Miguel Cotto, Jermain Taylor, Ricky Hatton, Chad Dawson, Antonio Margarito, Paul Williams, Rafael Marquez, Edwin Valero, Amir Khan, Andre Berto.


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[LEONARD]

Those are boxers, not fighters...

#1

[Evan]