This man Mayweather is the perfect topic for my column this week, he has certainly put blood ,sweat and tears into ensuring that such a debate is even possible.
Floyd Mayweather is the best boxer alive.
If you do not believe it, just ask him. He certainly has no problem with telling you that himself.
Asked to expand on his interesting theory whilst on a breather from club hopping and splashing cash with P.Diddy and Ray Jay, he said the following:
?I got respect for Sugar Ray Robinson. I’ve got respect for Muhammad Ali,? said Pretty Boy Floyd before his dominating unanimous decision victory over Sugar Shane Mosley last Saturday. ?But I’m a man just like they’re men. I put on my pants just like they put on their pants. What makes them any better than I am?
If we were discussing equality amoungst humanity that would be an appropriate question pretty boy Mayweather but this is the serious business of the debate on whether or not you are the best fighter alive.
Mayweather has been reported as saying that it?s out with the old and in with the new, that Muhammad Ali is one hell of a fighter but Floyd Mayweather is the best and that Sugar Ray Robinson is one hell of a fighter but Floyd Mayweather is the best.
Cocky, arrogant and seriously overconfident does not even begin to describe Mayweather, but could there be a grain of truth in all this talk?
Mayweather moved to 41-0 Saturday night after dominating Shane Mosley. He pushed past George Foreman, Sugar Ray Robinson, and Felix Trinidad, who all suffered their first career losses at 40-0.
Yet there are still others ahead of him, the likes of Rocky Marciano, who retired at 49-0, Larry Holmes, who got to 48-0, and Willie Pep, who got to 62-0.
Julio Cesar Chavez also won 88 straight at one point in his career, and Pep had another streak in his career where he went 72-0-1. Joe Calzaghe retired at 46-0.
So surely he cannot be the best?.
Not only is Mayweather?s won-loss record untarnished though, his side of the judges? scorecards is excellent too, he has five ?120s? (ten points from judges in all twelve rounds).
He has more 120s than Bernard Hopkins (4), Manny Pacquiao (2), Winky Wright (4), Shane Mosley (0), and Oscar de la Hoya (3).
One would argue though that since the ten-point system is new, one cannot base such arguments on it, especially when the system in question was nonexistent during the times of Ali, Pep and Robinson.
However, two fighters that had longer undefeated streaks than Mayweather also posted more 120s.
Joe Calzaghe had eight, and Julio Cesar Chavez had sixand Pernell Whitaker had nine. In other statistics that I obtained from ?all headline news?, I found out that Mayweather has lost a total of 106 rounds out of nearly 700 that were scored and recorded.
That would be a winning percentage of nearly 85%. Pacquiao has won less than 70%. Sugar Ray Robinson won less than 70% of his scored rounds.
Muhammad Ali won about 75% and Pernell Whitaker won 79%.
Joe Calzaghe is the closest fighter to Mayweather?s mark, having won 82% of scored rounds.
Mayweather often gets criticised for ducking the top fighters in his weight class, he is usually accused of only willing to fight boxers who are past their primes.
This discussion of course must bring in Philippine superstar Manny Pacquiao, who was meant to fight pretty boy Floyd before a row over pre-fight drug-testing derailed negotiations.
Many say the fact that Floyd is insisting on drug testing is indicative of his fear of facing Pacquiao whilst others believe that Manny must just give in so we can see one of the greatest fights of our time.
Manny has a spiritual belief about taking blood before the fight but he has no problem about testing afterwards, Floyd insists on blood tests for steroids before the fight. Something will definitely have to give because until the two meet, all talk of either fighter as the best ever is far too untimely.
