When debating the world?s greatest boxers of all time, Rustico Torrecampo, Al Iovino and Jack Downey don?t get a mention.
And for good reason ? between them they didn?t even win a title.
What they did , however, was beat fighters who went on to become greats.
Downey outpointed Jack Dempsey, world heavyweight champion from 1919-26, in 1915. Iovino knocked out Henry Armstrong seven years before he would simultaneously hold the world featherweight, lightweight and welterweight crowns in 1938.
And Torrecampo knocked out Manny Pacquiao, then an unbeaten 11-fight prospect, in the third round of their 1996 scrap. Torrecampo had seven bouts after that and was victorious in only two. He retired in 1997.
Pacquiao, on the other hand, has gone on to greatness, lifting world titles at flyweight, junior-featherweight, featherweight, junior-lightweight, lightweight and, last Sunday, at junior-welterweight when he blew away Ricky Hatton. His record stands at 49 wins (37 KOs), three losses and two draws.
The fighting Filipino is a throwback to boxing?s more illustrious past, when unbeaten records didn?t mean a thing.
That?s the beauty of losing ? it?s possibly the best way for boxers to learn from their mistakes. An L on a record doesn?t only mean loss, it also stands for lesson.
Locally, Brian Mitchell, Baby Jake Matlala, Sugarboy Malinga, Vuyani Bungu and Lehlohonolo Ledwaba all lost at least one fight before they won SA titles.
Granted, not every loser is destined for greatness, but almost every great has lost at some point in his career.
Some lose early in their careers, others once they?re already stars. Sugar Ray Robinson, universally regarded as the world?s all-time best pound-for-pound fighter, Joe Louis, Roberto Duran, Ray Leonard, Gene Tunney and Muhammad Ali all suffered defeats that ultimately contributed to them becoming legends, mainly because they avenged those losses.
But in the modern game, too much importance has been placed on the unbeaten record.
No other sport has such an obsession: Manchester United lose occasionally, so too does Rafael Nadal. Even Michael Schumacher didn?t win every race.
Yet in boxing there is a delusion that one day an all-conquering messianic figure will emerge.
The fascination with the unbeaten record stems from world heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano, whose perfect 49-0 record is hallowed in pugilism. The fact is Marciano was well managed, at times being kept away from opponents considered dangerous.
Promoters have since followed suit, creating fighters with unblemished records by selecting beatable opponents.
Nowadays, too many boxers are winning their early fights by quick knockouts. It may impress the gullible public, but those fighters are not gaining the experience they would have if they?d gone up against competent fighters and tough journeymen.
America?s only gold medallist at the 1996 Olympics, David Reid, was rushed into winning a world title bout and, soon afterwards, he was pummelled by Felix Trinidad in a super-fight. Reid had four more fights and quit the ring with a record of 17-2.
Britain?s Naseem Hamed had natural talent but he, too, stopped learning too early and when he finally landed in the deep end, against Marco Antonio Barrera, he imploded.
And the once-unbeaten Hatton, who made his name by defeating an over-the-hill Kostya Tszyu, was out of his depth against Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather.
The modern game has seen two unbeaten fighters ? Mayweather (39-0) and Welshman Joe Calzaghe (46-0).
Mayweather, Pacquiao?s predecessor as the world?s pound-for-pound king, is exceptionally skilled, but he makes his comeback later this year. His ordained path surely leads to Pacquiao, and that will be an intriguing fight.
Calzaghe retired last year with a 46-0 record, but few fans outside Wales would suggest he?s the planet?s greatest super-middleweight. Who would dare mention Calzaghe?s name in the same breath as Robinson, Leonard or even Marvin Hagler?
Boxing fans have every reason to celebrate Pacquiao, but let?s not forget the contribution of those three losses.
