It’s a two-man race for the top spot.
That much has not changed.
In that race, the last man seen running can make the difference in which one is observed leading the race.
After a dominant win over Shane Mosley in May, a win where Floyd Mayweather overcame a shaky second round to rout his man, it was easy to see in the mind’s eye how he would deal with the only real rival he has.
Then Manny Pacquiao got back into the ring on November 13th. So did Shane Mosley, back in September.
Put both of those factors together and this is the first pound for pound update since the end of the summer.
1) Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 KO)
Age: 31
Current Titles: WBC Jr. Middleweight/154 lbs.; WBO Welterweight/147 lbs.
Career Titles: World Flyweight/112 lb. champion (1998-99); World Featherweight/126 lb. champion (2003-2005); World Jr. Lightweight/130 lb. champion (2008); World Junior Welterweight (2009-10); additional alphabelts at 112, 122, 130, and 135 lbs.
Last Five Opponents: Antonio Margarito, Joshua Clottey, Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton, Oscar De La Hoya
Next Opponent: TBA
2) Floyd Mayweather (41-0, 25 KO)
Age: 33
Current Title: World Welterweight
Career Titles: World Jr. Lightweight champion (1998-2001); World Lightweight champion (2002-04); World Welterweight/147 lbs. (2007-09); additional alphabelts at 130, 135, 140, 147 & 154 lbs.
Last Five Opponents: Shane Mosley, Juan Manuel Marquez, Ricky Hatton, Oscar De La Hoya, Carlos Baldomir
Up Next: TBA
The Take on the Top Two: Pacquiao has a record for lineal World titles, having won them in four separate weight classes. He’s won title claims in four other weight classes now with his Jr. Middleweight belt win over Antonio Margarito, bringing him to a grand total of eight divisions with honors. Mayweather? He’s got four lineal titles as well, one each at Jr. Lightweight and Lightweight and two at Welterweight after regaining his rights to those honors against Mosley. He’s got belts in two other weight classes to bring him to five divisions traveled. These are clearly the two most decorated men of this era. After the Margarito win, it’s Pacquiao who stands as the superior of the two for now, the man who should be favored if and when these two get it on. There are multiple factors that go into that thinking. The easiest is the impression Pacquiao left in dismantling Margarito but that can be tempered by remembering that Margarito was beaten worse by the same Mosley Mayweather just schooled.
Ironically, while Mosley is a bonus in that comparison, it is Mosley that tips the scale to Pacquiao anyways. Mosley, coming off more than a year’s layoff, didn’t look good against Mayweather; he looked just as bad against Sergio Mora his next time out in September. The Mora draw was an indication that Father Time had as much or more to do with the slow, exhausted Mosley that Floyd confronted than Mayweather himself did. In contrast, Pacquiao got a Margarito who could come forward and keep trying for more than a couple rounds. Pacquiao can also point to more frequent activity in the ring with four fights to Mayweather’s two in the last two years, and three during Mayweather’s retirement year in 2008. It can be easy to forget, but there is really something astounding at play with Pacquiao. A former Flyweight champion is now one of the two best Welterweights in the world and he fights for the finish no matter the weight class. That’s what pound-for-pound should be all about, that’s what fan friendly is all about, and the ball is really in Mayweather’s court to prove otherwise. So, for now, the number one spot goes back to Congressman Manny Pacquiao.
3) Juan Manuel Marquez (51-5-1, 37 KO)
Age: 37
Current Title: World Lightweight/135 lb. Champion (2008-Present)
Career Titles: Additional alphabelts at 126, 130 lbs.
Last Five Opponents: Floyd Mayweather Jr., Juan Diaz (Twice), Joel Casamayor, Manny Pacquiao, Rocky Juarez
Next Opponent: November 27, 2010 vs. Michael Katsidis (27-2, 22 KO)
The Take: His career accomplishments complimented the mastery still evident in the Diaz repeat in the summer. Even at 37, he remains behind only the last two men to defeat him and he continues on as the Lightweight king. Katsidis is outmatched technically but Marquez is bound to age eventually and a young banger like Katsidis should make it interesting. If he does, or doesn’t, and the smoke clears with Marquez still champion the Mexican veteran will find a field growing with intrigue. Robert Guerrero is a threat. Brandon Rios might be ready by next summer. Marquez has plenty to keep him busy.
4) Fernando Montiel (43-2-2, 33 KO)
Age: 31
Current Title: WBO Bantamweight/118 lbs. (2009-Present); WBC Bantamweight (2010-Present)
Career Titles: Additional alphabelts at 112, 115 lbs.
Last Five Opponents: Rafael Concepcion, Hozumi Hasegawa, Ciso Morales, Alejandro Valdez, Diego Oscar Silva
Next Opponent: TBA
My Take: Bantamweight is one of the best weight classes in boxing both in terms of depth and quality. From this corner, it appears for the moment to be the very best. It has a leader. There is sometimes a separation between pound for pound thinking within a given moment and against the stretch of history. Some fighters are better regarded when viewed as bodies of work rather than as performers from fight to fight. Mexico’s Montiel is proving to be one of them. Traveling to Japan to face the red hot Hozumi Hasegawa in April, Montiel landed an impaling pair of left hands to hurt his man and finished him along the ropes, winning the first unification match at Bantamweight in almost forty years. Hasegawa left with a broken jaw and Montiel arrived, finally, at the sort of accolades predicted for him many years ago. Montiel’s “draw” in that run leaves room for some skepticism. A non-title fight against Alejandro Valdez which saw both men on the floor probably should have ended in a stoppage loss on a cut after round three, a reminder of why Montiel has been on the pound-for-pound fringes for so long: he’s had a tendency to have bad night at the wrong times. That is weighed against being a titlist in three weight classes with a record in title fights of 17-2 with 13 stops, the most recent an obliteration of a Rafael Concepcion who had been a tough night for Jorge Arce and Nonito Donaire. Montiel has finally found a way to get his body of work and the moment to line up.
5) Paul Williams (38-1, 27 KO)
Age: 29
Current Title: None
Career Titles: Two alphabelt reigns at Welterweight
Last Five Opponents: Kermit Cintron, Sergio Martinez, Winky Wright, Verno Phillips, Andy Kolle
Next Opponent: November 20, 2010 vs. Sergio Martinez (45-2-2, 24 KO)
The Take: Williams has either arrived at a career making moment or the middle of an epic trilogy. It could well be both. He and Sergio Martinez, in a non-title December 2009 classic, left fans breathless. Now, they look to do it again. Win and Williams is the lineal king at 160 lbs., a fulfillment of so much of the promise the boxing world has seen in a rise that includes quality wins from 147 to 160 lbs. The 6’1 southpaw is a freak of nature and an offensive machine but, increasingly, questions can be raised about defensive holes and lapses. That those flaws make him even more watchable is all the better for fans.
6) Sergio Martinez (45-2-2, 24 KO)
Age: 35
Current Titles: World Middleweight/160 lb. champion (2010-Present)
Career Titles: Alphabelt at 154 lbs.
Last Five Opponents: Kelly Pavlik, Paul Williams, Kermit Cintron, Alex Bunema, Archak TerMeliksetian
Next Opponent: November 20, 2010 vs. Paul Williams (38-1, 27 KO)
My Take: Martinez went from nowhere to the heart of things quickly…if by quick we mean the measure of big stage attention. It took years of hard work before opportunity truly knocked and the athletic Martine has answered. Whether at the beginning of a long reign or destined to see his title soon depart, Martinez’s off the floor win over Kelly Pavlik and narrow loss last year to Williams carved him his place in the fistic lore of his time. Defeat Williams in their rematch and he’ll carve a little deeper, almost certainly locking up Fighter of the Year honors for 2010.
7) Timothy Bradley (26-0, 11 KO)
Age: 26
Current Title: WBO Jr. Welterweight (2009-Present)
Career Titles: Additional alphabelt at Jr. Welterweight
Last Five Opponents: Luis Abregu, Lamont Peterson, Nate Campbell, Kendall Holt, Edner Cherry, Junior Witter
Next Opponent: January 29, 2010 vs. Devon Alexander (21-0, 13 KO)
My Take: Bradley is the best fighter in arguably boxing’s deepest current pool of talent. There are some divisions which struggle to field more than five real candidates for the top of the class. Jr. Welterweight has a top ten which isn’t big enough for all of the talent swimming around. Bradley burst from the pack in 2008 with an upset win, on the road, over the long avoided Brit Junior Witter to win the WBC belt. Since then, he’s only faced one fighter (Cherry) who would be considered a softer touch and through 2009, Bradley found ways to look better in each outing. He came off the floor to win a unification battle with Holt and was dominating veteran former Lightweight titlist Nate Campbell before an accidental cut shortened their affair in the third. Perhaps most impressive, Bradley bested the unbeaten Lamont Peterson while showing off a fully developed toolbox. Bradley began aggressively, dropping Peterson, and then met him in the trenches for sustained warfare as Peterson willed himself back into the fight. As Peterson got close, Bradley changed tactics again, moving and boxing to contain the affair. He has become a genuine jack of all trades, a combination of elite speed, footwork, defense, and offensive activity who reminds that the application of the sweet science need not be dull. A toe in the water at Welterweight versus Abregu hinted at potential futures but business remains at 140. A unification showdown with Alexander, who looks deceptively vulnerable after his last outing, is one of the best matches that can be made among boxing’s rising stars.
8) Wladimir Klitschko (55-3, 49 KO)
Age: 34
Current Title: World Heavyweight Champion (2009-Present)
Career Titles: Multiple Heavyweight alphabelts
Last Five Opponents: Samuel Peter, Eddie Chambers, Ruslan Chagaev, Hasim Rahman, Tony Thompson
Next Opponent: December 11, 2010 vs. Dereck Chiosra (14-0, 9 KO)
The Take: Klitschko is the most dominant division ruler in the sport right now. It’s not always entertaining to watch, but Klitschko has all but cleaned out the Heavyweight division, short of a fight with his big brother. A knockout of Sam Peter made it thirteen straight wins. Those wins included three active titlists (Chris Byrd, Ibragimov, and Chagaev). His top three available challengers, Haye, Alexander Povetkin, and Tomasz Adamek, are all taking their time to get to him, a rare occasion when the Heavyweight king is struggling to give away title shots. There’s a reason for it. While previous failings keep him derided in some circles, and not without merit, Klitschko under Emanuel Steward has mastered fighting tall behind one of the best jabs in boxing and a mammoth right hand. David Haye looks like the only fighter out there with the speed and power to make a run at Klitschko but suddenly Haye wants to talk business after years of talking trash. Maybe Haye doesn’t see what many others do in his chances?
9) Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (77-3-1, 41 KO)
Age: 33
Current Title: World Flyweight/112 lb. Champion (2010-Present)
Career Titles: World Flyweight (2001-07)
Last Five Opponents: Suriyan Por Chokchai, Ray Megrino, Koki Kameda, Rodel Tejares, Takahisa Masuda
Next Opponent: TBA
The Take: Thailand’s Wonjongkam walked onto undefeated Koki Kameda’s home turf in Tokyo, a little slower and a little more reserved than he was in his prime, but with all the education that his many rounds have given him. He left the ring having regained lineal and WBC Flyweight honors, added recognition from Ring Magazine, and probably sealing his eventual induction to the Hall of Fame. The Kameda win also allowed for a new perspective on Wonjongkam. In recent vintage, since losing the title to rival Daisuke Naito in their third fight in 2007, he’s gone 10-0-1, made a strong case to having reclaimed the title in the fourth Naito fight (ruled a draw), and bested solid contender (now titlist) Julio Cesar Miranda. Across his career, since the lone stoppage loss of his career in 1996, Wonjongkam has gone 66-1-1; he’s broken Hall of Famer Miguel Canto’s consecutive title defense record at 112 lbs. by three with seventeen; and now he has masterfully outboxed the biggest young star in the world below Bantamweight to reclaim his title. It all adds up to earned recognition as one of the best fighters in the world but age may be creeping on him. The Chokchai fight was far closer than could have been predicted and sends his sliding a notch below Klitschko. Wonjongkam needs to be moved sooner than later towards opponents who can add something substantive to his ledger.
10) Anselmo Moreno (30-1-1, 10 KO)
Age: 25
Current/Career Titles: WBA Bantamweight (2008-Present)
Last Five Opponents: Nehomar Cermeno (twice), Frederic Patrac, Jorge Otero, Mahyar Monshipour, Wladimir Sidorenko
Next Opponent: TBA In the final spot, the choice ultimately came between the second best fighter in boxing’s best weight class and the debated top of the very tough Super Middleweight field. Moreno got the nod over Lucian Bute because his best wins have come against tougher opponents and gets the nod over Ward because he’s been proven at the elite level for a little longer. It’s a tentative hold with lots of changes possible given matches to come. For now Moreno has some qualities which stand out. He’s a road warrior, always an eye catcher, who has traveled to defeat the previously undefeated Sidorenko twice and Monshipour and Cermeno in their first contest. While the scoring has been close in some of those affairs, the outcomes were little in doubt. With the defeat of Ivan Calderon, Moreno might be boxing’s best defensive fighter not named Mayweather. Moreno conveys shades of Pernell Whitaker in the ring, not as consistent in going to the body but still able to fight inside while also able to frustrate foes. He can leg it out and peck them to death. He can stand inches away and making men miss by a hair while tagging them with quick southpaw counters. At only 25, Moreno is making noise for more travel and more challenges and may only be hitting his prime. His only blemishes came early on in four round affairs where a single point extra in his favor could have meant an undefeated mark. Little known in the United States, he would be a welcome addition to the flurry of quality action at Bantamweight.
Five More Who Could Easily Be Here: Giovanni Segura, Celestino Caballero, Luican Bute, Andre Ward, David Haye
Five More Who Could Be Here Shortly: Marco Huck, Juan Manuel Lopez, Yuriorkis Gamboa, Jean Pascal, Chad Dawson As always, feel free to agree…and disagree. This list is for entertainment purposes only and based purely on imagination, hypotheticals and conjecture just like every other pound for pound list ever written. Neither it nor any other such list made up of such illusory ingredients should be used to forward corporate agendas of any kind.
That doesn’t make it any less fun to argue about.
Source: http://www.boxingscene.com
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