The boxing GOAT discussion is contentious and has been ongoing for quite some time now. Boxing’s long history, which spans centuries, means that the sport has produced some all-time great fighters. The many different weight classes and eras of boxing make this discussion even more complex. With that being said, let’s discuss who is the greatest boxer of all time.
Boxing GOAT Case: Sugar Ray Robinson
First up is Sugar Ray Robinson. Sugar Ray Robinson was a five-time world champion who finished his career with an impeccable record of 174-19. He also had six draws and two fights ruled as no-contests.
It is also important to note that 12 of his 19 losses happened when Robinson was 39 years old or older. Robinson defeated a total of 15 world champions during his career. That began when Robinson defeated Tommy Bell to win the vacant welterweight world title on December 20th, 1946.
Robinson won the world middleweight title in 1951 and became a five-time world champion by defeating Carmen Basilio in their thrilling match in 1958. The Ring, a prominent boxing magazine, named Robinson’s rematch with Basilio in 1958 as the 1958 “Fight of the Year”. During Robinson’s era, there were only eight weight classes and each weight class only had one champion.
As a result, title unification bouts didn’t really exist back in those times. A fighter was either the world champion of a certain weight class or they were not.
In addition to his tremendous overall skill, Robinson was also entertaining, as demonstrated by several of his fights winning The Ring’s “Fight of the Year” award. He won 109 fights by knockout and was involved in many exciting fights throughout his career. There are many reasons why so many boxing fans, commentators, and even current boxers consider Sugar Ray Robinson the best pound-for-pound boxer of all time.
Case for the Greatest Boxer of All Time: Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali is another boxer that is often brought up when discussing who is the greatest boxer ever. Ali reigned as the undisputed heavyweight champion for a five-year period beginning in 1974 and ending in 1978. Additionally, Ali held the title as the Ring heavyweight champion for a short period from 1978 to 1979.
Muhammad Ali (then going by his birth name, Cassius Clay) first fought for the world heavyweight title on February 25th, 1964. His opponent, Sonny Liston, intimidated most people who interacted with him. Liston had also recently thoroughly defeated Floyd Patterson twice, a former heavyweight champion, by knocking Patterson out in the first round of both fights. On the other hand, Cassius Clay had unconvincing wins in his previous two fights against Doug Jones and Henry Cooper.
The betting odds had Clay as an 8:1 underdog against Liston. Most people even interpreted Clay’s pre-fight trash talk as a consequence of Clay’s fear of Liston. Cassius Clay shocked the world by beating Sonny Liston in six rounds. Clay dominated the sixth round of the fight, landing many effective punches, and Liston did not leave his corner to answer the bell for the seventh round of the fight. This made Clay the new heavyweight champion by TKO.
Clay ran to the ring’s edge and shouted to the ringside press. His now iconic words were: “Eat your words! I am the greatest! I shook up the world. I’m the prettiest thing that ever lived.” Clay changed his name to Muhammad Ali shortly after his first fight with Sonny Liston.
Muhammad Ali’s Boxing GOAT Case: Title Defenses and Ali’s Refusal to be Drafted
Ali made his first title defense in a controversial rematch with Sonny Liston. Ali dominated and beat Liston by knockout in the first round. However, the punch that knocked down Liston was difficult to see and many speculated that Liston took a dive in that fight. Regardless, it is officially a win on Ali’s record.
Ali made eight more consecutive defenses of his titles. He won the WBA heavyweight title by defeating Ernie Terrell by unanimous decision in February of 1967. The WBA had stripped Ali of the title after he joined the Nation of Islam. Ali then knocked out Zora Folley in the seventh round to retain his titles.
However, Ali refused to be drafted into the United States Armed Forces on April 28th, 1967. The WBA stripped Ali of his title and other boxing commissions later did the same. Ali was found guilty of violating the Selective Service Laws due to his refusal to be drafted.
After this, Ali paid a bond and stayed out of jail while his appeal to overturn the verdict was ongoing. Eventually, the US Supreme Court reviewed Ali’s case in 1971 and overturned his conviction on June 28, 1971. It had been a unanimous 8-0 decision with Justice Thurgood Marshall recusing himself from the case.
Ali had lost several of his prime years, being aged 25-29 while he was unable to box due to his refusal to be drafted. One must wonder how much stronger Ali’s boxing GOAT case would be if he was able to box during these years.
Return to Boxing and Title Fight with Joe Frazier
Muhammad Ali returned to boxing on October 26th, 1970 and beat Jerry Quarry in three rounds after Quarry suffered a cut. Ali then defeated Oscar Bonavena via a dramatic TKO in the fifteenth and final round. This victory meant that Ali was the #1 contender in heavyweight boxing.
Ali fought Joe Frazier on March 8th, 1971 at Madison Square Garden. The two battled for 15 rounds, but Ali received quite a bit of punishment and Frazier knocked Ali down in the final round. Frazier won by unanimous decision, handing Ali his first professional loss.
After the defeat, Ali won several more fights before defeating Joe Frazier in a rematch on January 28th, 1974. Because of this win, Ali earned a title fight with George Foreman, who had recently dethroned Joe Frazier.
Muhammad Ali’s Boxing GOAT Case: “The Rumble in the Jungle”
Muhammad Ali fought George Foreman in the famous “Rumble in the Jungle” on October 30th, 1974. Foreman was undefeated and known for his devastating knockout power, so as with Ali’s first fight with Liston, most expected Ali to lose convincingly. Ali implemented his rope-a-dope tactics before countering Foreman effectively midway through the fight.
Foreman hadn’t gone past the fourth round in a fight since 1971 and his stamina waned as the fight wore on. Ali knocked Foreman down in the eighth round with a combination of punches and Foreman could not make the referee’s count. Ali was now the WBA, The Ring, and WBC heavyweight champion of the world.
Three-Time Heavyweight Champion and Retirement
The now two-time heavyweight champion fought several more times before a brutal third fight with Joe Frazier. Ali won by unanimous decision but considered retiring from boxing after the fight.
Ali defended his titles six consecutive times after the third fight with Joe Frazier prior to his first fight with Leon Spinks. Spinks had only fought seven times as a professional boxer at that point. However, Ali hadn’t trained properly prior to the first Spinks fight and was considerably out of shape. Spinks upset Ali by split decision.
However, Ali returned for a rematch with Spinks and won by unanimous decision to become the heavyweight champion for the third time. Ali announced that he was retiring from boxing on July 27, 1979. Considering the state of Ali’s health at that time, Ali should have stayed retired at that point.
Instead, he returned to face Larry Holmes for the WBA and The Ring heavyweight titles on October 2nd, 1980. Holmes, a long-time fan of Ali’s, dominated the fight with ease. Ali’s trainer Angelo Dundee went into the ring and told the referee to end the fight after the tenth round. That was the only stoppage loss of Ali’s career.
Ali fought for the final time on December 11th, 1981 and faced Trevor Berbick. Ali lost by unanimous decision. Muhammad Ali retired from boxing for good after the loss to Berbick.
Boxing GOAT Case: Ali’s Legacy
Muhammad Ali is recognized by many as the greatest heavyweight boxer ever. However, his decision to continue boxing after the rematch with Leon Spinks means that his legacy is tarnished a bit by those later fights. Still, Ali is rightly considered one of the greatest boxers in the sport’s history.
Joe Louis’s Boxing GOAT Case
Joe Louis belongs in any discussion about the greatest boxer of all time. Louis was the heavyweight champion of the world from 1937 until he retired temporarily in 1949. Louis’s heavyweight championship reign is the longest championship reign in boxing history. During his reign, Louis defended his title 25 consecutive times.
That is the record for most consecutive title defenses in any weight class. Joe Louis made his professional boxing debut on July 4th, 1934 and fought until he hung up the gloves for the final time in 1951. Louis amassed a record of 66-3 over his career with 52 wins by knockout.
Joe Louis knocked James J. Braddock out cold in the eighth round of their title fight on June 22nd, 1937. Louis became the new heavyweight world champion. Additionally, Louis avenged one of his few losses in a rematch with former world heavyweight champion Max Schmeling by smashing him with punches until Schmeling’s trainer had to throw in the towel. The 1938 rematch with Schmeling lasted a total of two minutes and four seconds.
Joe Louis vs. Max Schmeling 2 is widely considered one of the most important sports events ever. After Louis’s resounding victory in the Schmeling rematch, Louis didn’t lose a boxing fight until Ezzard Charles beat him by unanimous decision on September 27th, 1950. Louis’s third and final loss came against Rocky Marciano, one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time.
Rocky Marciano won the fight by TKO in the eighth round. Marciano retired with a perfect professional boxing record of 49-0 with 43 knockouts. Joe Louis losing to an all-time great heavyweight like Marciano doesn’t significantly diminish his case as the greatest boxer ever.
Sugar Ray Robinson Has the Strongest Boxing GOAT Case
As with all debates about the greatest athlete ever in a certain sport, this is not definitive. However, given the accomplishments of all three boxers on this list, Sugar Ray Robinson has the strongest case for being the greatest boxer in the sport’s history. He was a five-time world champion and had some all-time great fights during his time. Muhammad Ali and Joe Louis had outstanding boxing careers, but Sugar Ray Robinson has a stronger case than them as the greatest boxer ever.
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