Before Muhammad Ali or Roy Jones Jr., the biggest brash, bold trash talker around was the first African-American Heavyweight Champ Jack Johnson. Matt is a CPU Mii from Wii Sports, Wii Sports Resort, and Wii Party. Perhaps in a different time, Johnson’s rise to greatness would be less stressful or obstructed by interruptions unrelated to the sport enabling him to reach his full potential. Honorable Mentions: Luis Rodriguez, Carmen Basilio, Dixie Kid, Wilfred Benitez, Billy Graham, Young Peter Jackson, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Curtis Cokes, Tommy Bell, Felix Trinidad, Jackie Fields, Ceferino Garcia, Fritzie Zivic, Young Corbett III, Oscar De La Hoya, Mysterious Billy Smith, Carlos Palomino, Marlon Starling, Shane Mosley, Pipino Cuevas, Honey Melody, Cocoa Kid. For over a decade, Johnson was the most famous and hated African American on the planet. Pacquiao’s key to victory is to not hold back and go for broke. There’s been a back and forth Marciano debate for decades. Unfortunately and to no fault of his own, Marciano won all his fights and never had a fresh legendary nemesis to prove his worth with an exclamation point. Eventually Ali was stripped of the heavyweight title, banned from boxing, and faced imprisonment during his undefeated prime for refusing to fight in Vietnam because of his religious beliefs.

Regardless, he would give punishment all night long.

Legitimacy to documents and institutions and halls of fame are derived from the understanding that they will be re-valued and evolve era to era and epoch to epoch. A pair of welterweight greats: Sugar Ray defeats Gavilan. 10. Chavez is a 6 time champion in 3 different divisions. It is only when these warriors fought other legends, took losses, and reasserted their dominance did people learn how good they were as they earned their places in boxing history. No surprise that Muhammed Ali is the best boxer of all time!

Although it was hard to imagine Ali finally being completely out-matched by someone, Foreman was seriously hurting everyone else, Frazier who was viewed on par with Foreman was swatted down 6 times toward a 1st round KO and an aging Ali didn’t seem like a wise challenge. Being the first African-American Heavyweight champ alone should secure him a spot on any top ten listing. He was allowed to hold and use his forearms at will and without that Floyd would have lost plenty of fights. In the end, Foreman knocked Lyle down for a third and final time, putting an exclamation point on one of the most thrilling heavyweight bouts of all time. To be fair Foreman was short counted (his corner advised him to take the 10 count-half of Zaire were dancing in the ring by the time the referee counted to 4). He’s at the point where ego and age meet. The fight was one of the most anticipated fights in boxing history billed as “The Fight of the Century”. Jack Dempsey is definitely one of the most popular American boxers in history. Regardless, his greatest achievement is defending the welterweight title more times than anyone else in boxing history. He voiced his disapproval of the reasons, or lack there of, why we were at war in the first place. Record: Won 66 (KO 51), Lost 6 (KO 1) , drawn 9, Dempsey was described as a “superhuman wild man.”. Having a check list of over 8 Hall of Fame boxers he eclipsed cements the fact that Robinson should always make the top 3 on any list. Marciano took the Heavyweight title from a 38 year-old Jersey Joe Walcott. Barbados Joe Walcott: The hard-hitting “Barbados Demon” stood just over five feet tall, but he not only bested middleweights and even heavyweights, but was also a welterweight world champ with wins over Mysterious Billy Smith and “Young” Peter Jackson before he lost his title to Dixie Kid under the most suspicious of circumstances.

Being the first African-American Heavyweight champ alone should secure him a spot on any top ten listing. Whenever the greatest of all time are discussed, his name will be at the very top of the list for a very long time to come. The 70s was definitely the pinnacle of heavyweight boxing, no doubt. He asked why he should be forced to fight for a country that hasn’t even given his people their rights and equality at home yet, all to help murder and oppress other people of color 10,000 miles away. Very accurate on Pacquiao vs Mayweather too.