Boxing has been one of the most popular sports of all times and it remains a multi-million dollars industry to this day with super fights taking place every month and being televised in many countries around the world.
However, which boxers are the greatest of all time remains a topic of great debate. It is tough to judge which boxers are better than others from different weight divisions so the argument remains subjective and a matter of opinion.
Here is a list of the top 5 pound-for-pound boxers that many feel to be the greatest boxers across all the weight divisions to ever grace the ring.
Many boxing purists may not agree with this decision but who could disagree that the man who started his career as Cassius Clay is not only the greatest boxer of all time but the greatest sportsman of all time. He defeated many rivals in their prime including Sonny Liston in 1964 and George Foreman in 1974 and remains to this day one of the most charismatic sportsmen of modern times.
Active just after the Second World War, Sugar Ray Robinson set the benchmark by which all future boxing icons would be judged. His legendary status is summed up by the fact that two boxing legends in the form of Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard both regard Robinson as the greatest ever. He didn’t take a 10 count in 202 fights and was only halted once by Joey Maxim. He had it all and many consider him to be the greatest of all time.
A man who is just as famous for his cultural status as his boxing ability, Louis was the first black heavyweight champion to be welcomed by the people. His reign as champion marked a turning point for the way black boxers were treated and he was so much more than just a boxer. He gained 54 knock outs in his 71 bouts and changed the face of boxing forever.
Frazier is a man who became a boxing legend at a time when boxing was full of men who would go down as the greatest of all time. He fought some of the most talented boxers of all time and defeated them. He is remembered for his 1975 Thriller inManilafight with Muhammad Ali and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Foreman was another boxer who was around in the golden age and fought the likes of Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier. Foreman is still the oldest heavyweight champion due to his win over Michael Moorer in 1994 at the age of 45 years old.
Many other boxers could be considered for the top list including Henry Armstrong, Roberto Duran, Willie Pep, Sugar Ray Leonard and even modern day icons such as Joe Calzaghe, Vladimir Klitschko, Lennox Lewis, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.
As was stated earlier, it is all a matter of opinion and no two lists of the greatest boxers of all time will be the same. Each boxer has something different and each has a different impact on every supporter of this sport.