The Boxing Marvel Jack Britton.

Jack Britton fought as a Welterweight from 1904 till 1930. Britton is considered as one of the greatest Welterweights to ever live for his achievements. He is truly one of the all time greats. I am gonna share some info about him and my opinions and thoughts.


Professional record: 240:59:41 (including newspaper decisions)

3 Time Lineal Welterweight Champion
3 Time World Welterweight Champion
37 Fights against Champions
Beat 5 Champions
34 Fights against Hall of Famers


Apart from his achievements, Jack Britton was arguably the most skilled fighter of his time. He was not a hard hitter but a very clever fighter that knew every trick in the book. Another interesting thing about Jack Britton is that he started his career at Bantamweight and moved up to Welterweight eventually fighting at Middleweight.

Britton is recognized as one of the greatest Welterweights by boxing historians. He is rated Number 3 Greatest Welterweight to ever live by The Ring Magazine founder Nat Fleischer, He is also ranked number 10  greatest Welterweight by Herb Goldman.

Britton did not hit hard, but he was one tough and durable fighter. Only getting knocked out once in a career with over 300 fights. He also fought multiple times per month like a lot of other greats of his time. Between 1905 and 1911 he fought nearly 100 times against the toughest and most clever Lightweights of his time. Britton became known fighting the greatest Lightweight of his time Packey Mcfarland. The fight came to a draw. The decision was very close. 

Britton fought the best of his time in multiple fight series. He fought Ted Kid Lewis 19 times, Charley White 2 times, Soldier Bartfield 8 times, Benny Leonard 3 times, Mickey Walker 2 times and the list goes on. Britton definitely holds one of the greatest CV's/resumes ever fighting multiple Champions, Hall of Famers and top 10 contenders multiple times. 

Final thoughts: In my opinion, Jack Britton is a very underrated fighter by a lot of boxing fans and should be at least in the top 20 greatest fighters of all time. Depending on how you rate fighters he could make into the top 10. Britton left a legacy behind him that should not be forgotten.

PS: Thanks Ben Worsley for the extra information. 

1885-1962

Top 10 Boxers of All Time.

In this post, I am gonna list my personal list for the top 10 pound-4-pound greatest boxers of all time list. This is purely based on opinion and what I have learned and researched so, for example, someone like Jack Britton won't be on this list because I simply do not know enough, but even if I did I don't think this list would change a lot.

Number 10

Tony Canzoneri 

Just his achievements title wise is enough for him to be remembered as one of the greatest little men to step in the ring, being 5-time Lineal Champion in 3 weight divisions just shows what kind of legend Canzoneri was. 

Lineal Featherweight Champion- World Featherweight Title

2-time Lineal Lightweight Champion- 2-time Lightweight Title

2-time Lineal Light Welterweight Champion- 2-time Light Welterweight Title
Over 20 Title Fights
8 Defenses in total
38 Fights against Champions
Beat 8 Champions
23 Fights against Hall of Famers
Fought 12 Hall of Famers beat 9

Had an amazing CV/resume having a professional record of 141-24-10 (including newspaper decisions) and beating multiple Hall of Famers and Champions. Some of the names he beat are Johnny Dundee, Jack Kid Berg, Lou Ambers, Banny Bass, Jimmy McLarnin and many other capable opponents. 

Truly an All Time Great that should be remembered.

Number 9

Joe Louis

Joe Louis is one of the finest Heavyweights to ever live and arguably even the greatest Heavyweight to ever live. He was the Lineal Heavyweight Champion for 12 years which is amazing on its self as an achievement but he was much more than that. 

Longest Lineal Champion from 1937 till 1949

Holds record of 25 Heavyweight Title defenses

KO'd 23 opponents in Title fights including 5 World Champions

Beat 8 Champions
Beat 8 Hall Of Famers

Only lost 1 of 27 Title fights to the great Ezzard Charles

He was also one of the best punchers that the sport has ever seen often giving brutal beatings to capable opponents. His second fight with Max Schmeling could be described as a perfect punch assassination. If boxing were to manifest into a human being that would be Joe Louis.

He beat Max Baer, Max Schmeling, Jersey Joe Walcott, Primo Carnera, Billy Conn and more. 

It was a hard decision to put Louis at only number 9. I debated if I should put him higher on this list over other fighters and he could possibly be ranked even in the top 5 if my mind changes.

Number 8 

Benny Leonard

In my opinion, Benny Leonard is the best Lightweight to ever live. He was Lineal Lightweight Champion from 1916 till 1925 and was almost untouchable during that period of time. He was a very clever fighter, was quick and he had some underrated power as well. In a 20 year span from 1912 till 1932 he only lost one fight.

Lineal Lightweight Champion

World Lightweight Champion

11 World Title fights 

9 Defenses

27 fights against Champions

Fought 11 Champions beat 9

26 Fights against Hall of Famers

Fought 9 Hall of Famers beat 7

Apart from that, he had an amazing CV he beat fighters like Johny Dundee, Jack Britton, Freddie Welsh, Charley White and many more. He was the type of fighter to control the fighter with his quick footwork and his positioning. He was truly a commander of the ring. 

Number 7 

Willie Pep

Willie Pep arguably perhaps had the best and the quickest feet in boxing history. He is also, in my opinion, the greatest Featherweight to ever live. Just the fact that he lost only 11 fights from over 230 is impressive enough but there is a lot more about him.

2 Time Lineal Featherweight Champion

2 Time World Featherweight Champion

14 World Title Fights won 11

9 Title Defenses

20 fights against Champions

Beat 8 Champions

10 fights against Hall of Famers

Beat 3 Hall of Famers

He beat capable opponents, for example, he beat Chalky Wright, Sandy Saddler, Willie Joyce, Jackie Wilson and more. 

Pep was extremely quick and from what I have seen his footwork is only rivaled by Muhammad Ali. Once he won a round without throwing a single punch. He would come in maybe faint then go out or he would hold you spin you around and then continue. He may not have the power of some other All time Greats but his skill made up for it. Definitely one of the most skilled fighters to ever live.

Number 6

Archie Moore

Archie Moore is arguably the greatest Light Heavyweight to ever live and I have to agree with that. The only one that could be considered a rival for that title is Ezzard Charles. Moore was able to reign with the World Light Heavyweight Title for 10 years or so but he captured his Title very late in his career at age 36. Being able to hold the Light Heavyweight Title or any World Title for so long past your prime is amazing. 

Lineal Light Heavyweight Champion

World Light Heavyweight Champion

12 World Title Fights won 10

9 Defenses

20 fights against World Champions won 10

Beat 6 World Champions

27 Fights against Hall of Famers 

Beat 7 Hall of Famers

He was also one of the greatest punchers that the sport has ever seen holding the record of most KO's at 145. He had a stacked resume with names like Cocoa Kid, Joey Maxim, Billy Smith, Nino Valdes, Lloyd Marshall, Bob Satterfield and more. He was also the only man to fight both Muhammad Ali and Rocky Marciano losing to both. I believe Marciano would get destroyed if Moore was in his prime.

Number 5

Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali compared to a lot of guys I mentioned above has a short career but he definitely has an amazing resume and deserves a spot on this list. Ali had most likely the fastest hands the sport has ever seen and also the most fluid feet ever. 

3 Time Lineal Heavyweight Champion

3 Time World Heavyweight Champion

WBA Heavyweight Title

WBC Heavyweight Title

25 Title fights won 22

19 Defenses

19 Fights against Champions

Beat 10 Champions

14 Fights against Hall of Famers

Beat 7 Hall of Famers

Now consider he did all that in just 61 fights and in one weight division insane. He had an incredible resume with names like Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Floyd Patterson, Cleveland Williams, George Chuvalo and the list goes on. His fight trilogy with Joe Frazier gave us one of the best rivalries in boxing history.

Number 4 

Henry Armstrong

Henry Armstrong is certainly the greatest little man to ever step in the ring. Holding the Featherweight, Lightweight and Welterweight belt at the same time. In an era that Louis was the face of boxing, he managed to shine as a small man. Armstrong was arguably the greatest pressure fighter to ever live. He would swarm his opponents down from round 1 till the end of the fight and throw punches non-stop.

Lineal Featherweight Champion-World Featherweight Title

Lineal Lightweight Champion- World Lightweight Title

Lineal Welterweight Champion- World Welterweight Title

Held all 3 titles at the same time

Record of 19 Welterweight Title Defenses

26 World Title fights won 22

29 Fights against Champions won 21

Fought 17 Champions beat 15

22 Fights against Hall of Famers

Fought 14 Hall of Famers beat 12

He fought opponents like Lou Ambers, Sammy Agnott, Juan Zurita, Sugar Ray Robinson, Aldo Spodli, Leo Rodak, Chalky Wright, Paul Junior and more. At some point in a 2 and a half year run, he went 46-0 with 39 KO's. In that 2 and a half year run, he also won his 3 belts and made 7 Welterweight defenses.

Armstrong also had brutal power having 101 KO's in his 151 wins. He would bob his head around till he was close to his opponent and then proceed to destroy him with ferocious punches. Truly an amazing fighter.

Number 3 

Harry Greb

Harry Greb was quite possibly the best Middleweight to ever live and also one of the most brutal fighters of all time. He was extremely fast on his feet being able to hit you with many shots and then bounce out unhurt. Not many realize that but Greb was a very unorthodox fighter that would punch from all angles including impossible ones. 

Lineal Middleweight Champion

World Middleweight Title

6 Middleweight Title Defenses

10 World Title Fights won 8

44 Fights against World Champions won 32

Fought 15 World Champions beat 13 of them

48 Fights against Hall of Famers

Fought 16 Hall of Famers beat 15

Beat 9 of the 13 fighters that beat him

Apart from his amazing achievements he had arguably the greatest resume in boxing history having nearly 300 fights with over 260 wins. Unlike a lot of other white fighters of his time, Greb had no problem fighting black fighters or any fighter no matter what size or color. Some of the names he fought were Jack Blackburn, Mike Gibbons, Gene Tunney, Jack Dillon, Mickey Walker, Johnny Wilson, Tommy Gibbons, Bob Moha, Soldier Bartfield and a whole lot more. He often fought Heavyweights as a Middleweight.

Number 2 

Sam Langford

Sam Langford is in my opinion, the greatest Heavyweight to ever live. He was also the most avoided/ducked and underrated fighter of all time. He fought from Featherweight and moved up all the way up to Heavyweight beating capable opponents in the mean time. He fought multiple times a month like all greats of his time.

Colored Middleweight Champion

5-time Colored Heavyweight Champion

63 Fights for Colored Titles won nearly 40 

Made nearly 40 Colored Title defenses

68 Fights against Champions

Fought 13 Champions beat 11

66 Fights against Hall of Famers won 30 

Fought 14 Hall of Famers beat 12 

Langford was KO'ing natural Heavyweights as a former Featherweight he has to be one of the best punchers the sport has ever seen. He also had epic multi fight series with other greats, for example, he fought Harry Wills 17 times, Joe Jeannette 14 times, Sam Mcvea 15 times, Jim Flynn 5 times, Jack Blackburn 5 times and the list goes on. After Jack Johnson won the World Heavyweight Title he did not want any piece of Langford avoiding him till he finally lost his title. Johnson would always make excuses to avoid Langford and other greats of that time.

Langford could lose to a guy and then KO him 2 weeks later. He also had amazing durability and stamina often fighting for more than 20 rounds back then that was considered normal. Also, the gloves they used were pieces of old leather that could hardly reduce any damage. 

Number 1

Sugar Ray Robinson

Sugar Ray Robinson in my humble opinion, is the greatest boxer to ever live. He was virtually flawless in the ring and had the resume and achievements to match that. He is considered the greatest boxer to ever live by most boxing historians and hardcore fans. By 1951 Robinson was 132-1-1. After he retired and came back that's where the majority of his losses come from. 

World Welterweight Champion
World Welterweight Title
5 Time Lineal Middleweight Champion
5 Time World Middleweight Title
22 World Title Fights
4 Welterweight Defenses
4 Middleweight Defenses
38 Fights against World Champions won 26
Fought 18 World Champions won 14 of them
28 fights against Hall of Famers
Fought 12 Hall of Famers beat 10 of them

Just like any other fighter on this list he had amazing achievements. Being 6 time Lineal Champion in 2 weight divisions. Robinson could slug or outbox you and was able to adapt to almost any style. He is considered as the greatest fighter to ever live by the likes of Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis, Henry Armstrong and Roberto Duran.

Robinson fought names like Jake LaMotta, Henry Armstrong, Rocky Graziano, Jackie Wilson, Kid Gavilan, Frietzie Zivic, Aron Wade, Tommy Bell and more.


I would love to see your opinions about this pound-4-pound list and your list as well in the comments below. For me, this was hard to make since in the top 5 any fighter could take the number 1 spot. It was really close for either fighter to take the crown. This was my biggest post yet I don't know if I am gonna make more lists like this that depends if you guys want to. Otherwise, i will go back to breaking down fighters just like I've done before. Thank you for reading. 

Iron Mike Tyson.

Mike Tyson fought as a Heavyweight from 1985 till 2005 and is one of the most brutal boxers to ever live, trained by the well-known trainer Cus D'amato. I am gonna share my thoughts about him, his career and where I rate him compared to other great Heavyweights.

Professional record: 50-6-0

Lineal Heavyweight Champion

2 time WBC Heavyweight Champion

2 time WBA Heavyweight Champion

IBF Heavyweight Champion

15 World Title fights won 12

15 Fights against Champions

Beat 10 Champions

9 Title defenses

5 Fights against Hall of Famers

Beat 2 Hall of Famers

Tyson had power in both hands having 20 KO's in the first round. He also had fast hands being able to pull these combos that he did working his way up from the body to the head with his famous hook to the body and following with a uppercut on the chin. 

Another remarkable underrated skill that Tyson had is his ability to dodge punches. Using the peek-a-boo style that D'amato taught him in his advantage sometimes dodging lower than the belt. He would use that style and slip punches and then hammer you with hooks.

He had a successful career being the undefeated Heavyweight Champion at age 20 making him the youngest Heavyweight Champion to ever live. His career started going downhill after losing to Buster Douglas in 1990. Going to jail for a rape claim that never got proven cost him a lot.

In my opinion, even though I don't rate Tyson as highly as others do I don't think he became what he could and could have a much greater career but unfortunately that did not happen. But overall he had a good career.

Now, regarding where I rate him at as a Heavyweight, in my opinion, he is not as great as others think. A lot of people are impressed by Tyson and even rate him as the greatest but I do not agree with that a bit. I do not deny that he had amazing skill but rating him with Ali, Louis, and all these guys seems wrong to me. The level of fighters these greats fought against what Tyson fought does not compare. Sure he did win against Michael Spinks and Larry Holmes but Holmes was over his prime and even Tyson admitted that later after his career and Spinks, in reality, was a Light Heavyweight.

People often compare Tyson to the man many consider as the Greatest Of All Time Muhammad Ali and some say Tyson would beat him which I find completely wrong. The only real argument that I see about Tyson winning against Ali is that he was too aggressive and too strong for Ali which is also a bad statement considering Ali won against monsters like Earnie Shavers, George Foreman, Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier, Ron Lyle, Bob Foster, Floyd Patterson and the list goes and on. I believe possibly every single boxers that I just mentioned hits harder than Tyson so that argument goes out the window. Also just seeing how they compare in Title Fights and a number of fights is enough for me to pick Ali over Tyson. The Boxing Librarian made a video comparing their careers.


Final thoughts: Mike Tyson was an amazing Heavyweight in the 80's and 90's that grew up in Poverty and fought his way out of that lifestyle. Truly an amazing Heavyweight that gets the credit he deserves but sometimes too much of it.

The Manassa Mauler Jack Dempsey.

Jack Dempsey fought as a Heavyweight from 1914 till 1927 and is considered to be one of the greatest Heavyweight Champions to ever live. He was by far the most famous of his time. I am gonna share my thoughts and opinions about him as well as some info.

Professional record: 58-6-11 (including newspaper decisions)

Lineal World Heavyweight Champion

World Heavyweight Title

5 Title Defenses

8 World Title fights won 6

6 fights against World Champions

Beat 4 Champions

10 fights against Hall of Famers

Beat 6 Hall of Famers

He won the World Heavyweight Title in against the giant Jess Willard at only age 24, is the youngest to win the Heavyweight Title since Jim Jeffries. Jess Willard was a giant standing at 199cm (6'6) against the 185cm (6'1) Dempsey. Willard was also an amazing 27kg (60lbs) heavier than Dempsey. Despite that, Willard received a brutal beat down by Dempsey, Willard was knocked down 7 times in the 1st round. Dempsey was a powerful puncher that swarmed all of his opponents down, having 44 KO's in his 58 

Some say his CV is overrated, I don't agree with that since he fought many capable opponents like Tommy Gibbons, Gene Tunney, Fireman Jim Flynn, Louis Angel Firpo, Jess Willard, Battling Levinsky and more. The only Title fights he lost were against the legendary Heavyweight Gene Tunney. Unlike other fighters of his time, Tunney was boxing scientifically and did not brawl. He was a fighter in the 20's that could be a fighter today. He won against Dempsey 2 times by unanimous decision.

Now the thing I wanna talk is that Dempsey did not fight any black fighters and drew the color line instead which is the reason i dont rate him as highly as others. He avoided many black greats of his time like Harry Wills, Sam Langford and more. I rate both of these fighters above Dempsey for many reasons one being that he always ducked them. Another reason is sometimes Dempsey would not defend his title for a year or 2 and just partied instead. Another is that compared to Dempsey they had better longevity in their careers, especially Langford having 300 fights. Even though Dempsey is nothing to laugh at and was truly an amazing Heavyweight people should consider the reasons i listed above.

Final thoughts: Dempsey is obviously one of the deadliest Heavyweights to ever step into the ring. He was an incredible swarmer and a brutal puncher that could KO a horse if he wanted to. Even though i dont rate him as high as others do i respect him for the legacy he left behind him. But, in my opinion he should not be rated over legends like Jack Johnson, Sam Langford, Joe Louis and more. Till this day Genne Tunney does not get the credit he serves for beating Dempsey twice.

1895-1983

Why is Sam Langford So Great?

Sam Langford fought from 1902 till 1926 and in my opinion is the most underrated and avoided fighter of all time. I made a post about him but I was not happy with it since I don't think i shared the point I wanted to. This man could very well be the greatest fighter to ever live. having one of the most impressive CV's/resumes and fight series I've ever seen. I am gonna share why I believe he should be rated up there with Sugar Ray Robinson, Muhammad Ali etc.

Professional record: 213-43-53

Colored Middleweight Champion

5-time Colored Heavyweight Champion

63 Fights for Colored Titles won nearly 40 

Made nearly 40 Colored Title defenses

68 Fights against Champions

Fought 13 Champions beat 11

66 Fights against Hall of Famers won 30 

Fought 14 Hall of Famers beat 12 

Langford fought from Featherweight and moved up to Heavyweight. Following that, I wanna point out that he beat Hall of Famers in 4 divisions. While moving to up from Featherweight he was beating great fighters in the meantime. Knocking out natural Heavyweights as a former Featherweight, now just think about that. Langford only stood 1.71cm (5'7) and was beating Heavyweights that often weighed 15kg (30lbs) more than him. He has to be one of the finest pound-4-pound punchers in boxing history.

Another thing is the amazing opponents he fought in epic fight series. Fighting Sam Mcvea 15 times, Joe Jeannette 14 times, Harry Wills 17 times, Dave Holly 4 times, Jim Flynn 5 times,  Jeff Clarke 10 times, Battling Jim Johnson 12 times. He also fought Barbados Joe Walcott, Joe Gans, Jack Johnson, Stanley Ketchel, Tiger Flowers, Kid Norfolk and Philadelphia Jack O'Brien. All of these guys were amazing fighters either having The World or Colored divisional title. 

He often fought multiple times in a month unlike fighters do today. Maybe he would lose to a guy and then beat him a week or 2 later. Imagine what would happen if Langford fought in a more modern era he would smoke away the entire Heavyweight division. 

After Langford won the Colored Middleweight Title he challenged Jack Johnson for his Colored Heavyweight Title. Jackson won that fight and he out-weighted Langford since Langford was around 70kg (155lbs) at the time. After Jackson won the World Title in 1908 he avoided Langford. He did not want a piece of this man. Jackson said Langford was the toughest fighter he ever fought. Langford never got a shot at the World Title because of the color line back then. 

Back then it was not unusual for fighters to fight for 20-25 rounds or even more. Langford and some other fighters of his time could do that for fun. That just shows what kind of stamina and durability they had back in the day, fighting with 2-4oz gloves. 

He was also extremely powerful having over 120 KO's with over 200 wins. Once Harry Wills said That he thought he died after Langford knocked him out. In his 17 fight series with Wills, Langford started losing after 1918-19 because Langford was leaving his prime while Wills was at his peak at the time. Langford was one tough man fighting blind in one after 1916-17 and mostly blind later in his career. In his last bout, it was reported as a round 1 TKO loss for Langford, he was completely blind and 43 years old. 

The ESPN called him "The greatest fighter that nobody knows" for a reason, he was avoided for most of his career, for a shot at the World Title he even submitted some of his matches in order to do that. But sadly that never happened. Consider that when talking about great Heavyweights people always mentioned the likes of Jack Johnson but never mentioned other greats of his time like Langford, Mcvea, Jeannette and more.  

Final thoughts: In my opinion, Langford is the greatest Heavyweight that ever lived and in my top 3 pound-4-pound list. It is sad that people don't remember this man and don't mention him when talking about great fighters. Especially when you say Jackson might be the greatest Heavyweight and you don't even mention Langford and the legacy he left behind him. Langford should get the respect he deserves for what he has done inside the ring.

1883-1956

The Great Sugar Ray Robinson.

Sugar Ray Robinson fought from 1940 till1 1965 and is considered by most boxing historians as the greatest pound-4-pound fighter of all time. His amazing performance in the ring and his achievements earned him that title. He truly was one of the finest fighters to step into the ring and he left a legacy behind him. I personally think he should be in any pound-4-pound list at least in the top 5. He achieved a lot of great things in the ring.


Professional record: 173-19-6

World Welterweight Champion
World Welterweight Title
5 Time Lineal Middleweight Champion
5 Time World Middleweight Title
22 World Title Fights
4 Welterweight Defenses
4 Middleweight Defenses
38 Fights against World Champions won 26
Fought 18 World Champions won 14 of them
28 fights against Hall of Famers
Fought 12 Hall of Famers beat 10 of them

He was also considered as the greatest boxer to ever live by Muhammad Ali, Benny Leonard, Roberto Duran and Joe Louis.

Robinson did not suffer his first defeat till 1943 to Jake Lammota avenging that loss 4 times. By 1951 he had a record of 132-1-1. In 1952 he made his first retirement and came back 3 years later in 1955. Robinson suffered most of his 19 defeats after that comeback. He also had one unbeaten run of 90-0.
One more thing I would like to mention is apart from the amazing number of Champions he fought he also fought nearly 40 top 10 rated contenders.

He had an amazing chin only suffering 1 KO loss. Robinson's power was no joke either, having over 100 KO's in his career over 70 in the first 3 rounds. Now combine that amazing KO power and his durability with a flawless technique and lighting fast speed and you have Sugar Ray Robinson. Many say we never even saw the best of Sugar Ray Robinson on film.


Final thoughts: Just like I've mentioned before, I can't decide for an absolute pound-4-pound greatest since there a lot of factors and it's simply too hard to decide. Robinson, in my opinion, should be always mentioned when having a discussion about who the greatest is. You could make a 5 hour documentary about him in the ring and out side of it.



1921-1989

Harry Greb The Pittsburgh Windmill.

Harry Greb fought from 1913 till 1926 and is arguably the greatest Middleweight to ever live. I personally think he could be even the greatest boxer ever but I think a bunch of guys could take that spot (Langford, Robinson, Moore, Ali). He is without a doubt one of the greatest boxers to ever live for a few reasons I am gonna list below and I'm gonna also mention where I rate him regarding pound-4-pound greatest of all time.


Professional record: 261-17-19 (including newspaper decisions)

Lineal Middleweight Champion
World Middleweight Title
6 Middleweight Title Defenses
10 World Title Fights won 8
44 Fights against World Champions won 32
Fought 15 World Champions beat 13 of them
48 Fights against Hall of Famers
Fought 16 Hall of Famers beat 15
Beat 9 of the 13 fighters that beat him

He is ranked as the number 1 Middleweight and number 2 pound-4-pound fighter by the Boxing Research Organization.

It's also worth to mention that he was fighter of the year in 1922, 1924, and was rated as the best Middleweight of the year in 1923, 1924, and 1925. Fight of the year in 1922 against Gene Tunney (first one), fight of the year in 1925 against Mickey Walker. Was also upset of the upset of the year in 1923 against Gene Tunney (rematch).

Having nearly 300 fights with over 260 wins and only 17 losses is simply amazing. In one 6 year period, he went 152-3-7. Now imagine that in today's standards. For example, the man we call today the greatest of our era Floyd Mayweather Jr had 49 fights in 21 years. A lot of fighters were like that back then in Greb's era fighting multiple times per month. (Langford, Jeannette, Mcvea and much more). In 1919 he went 45-0 which is also worth to note.

That also brings me to say that he is the only man to beat the legendary Heavyweight Gene Tunney. Tunney received a brutal 15 round beating in the first fight, his nose was broken and was badly cut above both eyes. Gene Tunney said he never learned so much from a single fight.  The only reason he did not beat all the Champions and Hall of Famers he fought is that he only fought the ones he lost to once, other wise the result would have been different since he avenged 13 of his 17 losses. Also unlike many other white fighters of his time, he was more than happy to fight black fighters and never drew the color line.

Greb sparred with Jack Dempsey often dominating him. In one spar Greb headbutted Dempsey splitting his tongue. Often he would throw more punches than Dempsey could handle and then get out of his range. And let me reminds you that Greb was a middleweight while Dempsey was a Heavyweight. In his career, he often fought men much heavier and taller than him.

He could throw a punch from pretty much impossible angles. One of the greatest Welterweights Mickey Walker once said: "He hit from impossible angles, once after Harry missed a right to my face he spun all the way around so his back was facing me. I relaxed my guard and waited for him to turn around. But before I knew what was happening his left hand was stuck in my mouth. I still don't know how he did it but he hit me when his hands were facing the opposite direction". You can imagine what kind of unorthodox fighter he was. Also, he was extremely fast the great Heavyweight Jack Johnson once said: "You are the fastest man I've ever worked with, you are almost impossible to tag with a clean punch.

Greb was also very durable only suffering 2 TKO losses in his 17 losses. He was like a middleweight with the hand speed of Sugar Ray Robinson and the durability of Jim Jeffries.

Sadly there is no actual footage of Greb fighting. But ten of thousands watched him fight and they wrote articles and papers. Because we did not watch him does not mean that no one recognized his amazing skill and talent. Sadly Greb died in 1926 at the young age of 32 years old. He achieved so many great things while fighting blind in one eye for most of his career.


Final thoughts: Regarding where I put him in a pound-4-pound list I will just say easily in the top 3. I don't know if I could rate him as the greatest ever since I always switch between Greb, Langford, and Robinson for that spot at this point it's too close and hard to decide who is the greatest. But to me as long as it's these 3 I can see why any of them could be the number 1 fighter of all time.


1894-1926

The Easton Assassin Larry Holmes.

Larry Holmes fought from 1973 till 2002 and he was the Heavyweight king during his prime after the Ali era, people often forget about this great Heavyweight since he is shadowed a lot by the great Muhammad Ali. I believe he is truly underrated and what he has done is enough for me to call him an All Time Great Heavyweight, gonna share my opinions.

Professional record: 69-6-0

Lineal Heavyweight Title

WBC Heavyweight Title

IBF Heavyweight title

25 World Title fights won 20

19 Title Defenses

16 Fights against Champions won 11

Beat 9 Champions

Beat 2 Hall of Famers

5 Fights against Hall of Famers

He fought many capable opponents like Ernie Shavers, Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield, Ken Norton, Trevor Berbick, Muhammad Ali and Michael Spinks. Pretty much all of his losses came out of his prime for example when he lost to Tyson in 1988 he was 38 while Tyson was 21 at his best. Later in his life Tyson admitted that if that was a prime Holmes he would lose, but I am not under grading Tyson or anything Holmes had respect for Tyson as well. He suffered his first defeat in 1986 against Michael Spinks, he was 48-0 and was close to breaking the record of the undefeated Champion Rocky Marciano with a record of 49-0.

One more thing about Holmes is that he had arguably the greatest left jab in Heavyweight history. Also was a master technician and craftsman. It's also worth to note that he had a great heart, I've seen him get knocked down by Shavers by the most ferocious uppercut I've ever see and still get up and win the fight.

He is probably hated because he beat what was left from Muhammad Ali since Ali showed signs of Parkison in that fight sadly. But that is no reason to underrate him since he was the best of his era and dominated every Heavyweight he fought in his prime. 

Final thoughts: Just like I've said above, I believe he should be mentioned more when talking about Great Heavyweights. Hating on him because he beat an old Ali is just plain stupid, just for the record after the Ali fight Holmes cried. You have to give this man the respect he deserves for his achievements and performance in the ring. He was also one of the most committed people in the sport fighting till his 50's. 

Joe Jeannette.

Joe Jeannette fought as a Heavyweight from 1904 till 1922 and just like other fighters I've mentioned before, I believe he is one of the finest Heavyweights to ever live. Having epic multiple fights runs against the greats of his time, a resume stacked with names and the reasons I will list below is enough for me to rate him in my top 10 Heavyweight list, gonna share my opinion and some information about Jeannette.

Professional record: 119-25-20 (including newspaper decisions)

2 Time Colored Heavyweight Champion

Fought 5 Hall of Famers

32 Fights against Hall of Famers

Beat 4 Hall of Famers

Beat 3 Champions

16 Fights for the World Colored Heavyweight Title

Joe Jeannette was also a very tough fighter and one of the most durable Heavyweights to ever live, only losing twice by KO in his 25 losses. For example, once he fought against Sam Mcvea for 49 rounds and went down multiple times but he never gave up and always got up, in the end, he KO'd Mcvea. Also, his fight runs against other greats of his time are impressive fighting Sam Langford 15 times, Harry Wills 3 times, Sam Macvea 5 times, Jeff Clark 5 times, Jack Johnson 7 times.

I also wanna note that he had amazing power and a lot of people don't recognize that. Just like the boxing librarian always points out Jeannette had more KO's than Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano and Jack Dempsey. One more thing to point out is that he fought Jack Johnson 4 times inside his first 20 bouts almost winning one of them but for some unknown reason he got DQ'd, it's said that Jeannette dominated the fight. 

Sadly he was never able to fight Johnson again after he won the World Heavyweight Title against Tommy Burns in 1908 since Johnson did not want to take the risk of losing the title. I wish Johnson fought an experienced prime Jeannette a few times to see what would have happened.

Final thoughts: He might have not beat a lot of champions multiple times and he also lost to Langford a lot but, you have to consider that Langford might as well be the greatest Heavyweight to ever live (at least in my opinion). Also when he lost to Harry Wills in 1919 Wills did not fight the strong, accurate Jeannette he fought a 40-year-old man. Stacked resume with a lot of great names a fighter that needs his respect and definitely in my top 10 Heavyweights of all time.

Also regarding this blog, now that I've done a post about every member of the golden 4 (Mcvea, Langford, Johnson, Jeannette) I would like to know what you guys would like to see next.

1879-1958

Sam Mcvea.

Sam Mcvea was a Heavyweight that fought from 1902 till 1921 and was one of the great Heavyweights of his time, many often forget about him and his epic runs against other greats of his time. In my opinion, he was one of the finest Heavyweights to ever live and I'm gonna share why.


Profesional record: 75-18-13 (including newspaper decisions)

2 Time Colored Heavyweight Champion
32 fights against Champions
28 fights against Hall of Famers
Beat 4 World Champions
Beat 3 Hall of Famers


The thing that impressed me the most about Mcvea was his conditioning and the amazing fight runs that he had with other fighters of his time, he fought: Sam Langford 15 times, Jeff Clark 6 times, Jim Johnson 7 times, Harry Wills 5 times, Denver Ed Martin 4 times, Joe Jeannette 5 times. He could also fight 25 rounds for fun if he wanted to, often doing that. Once he fought Joe Jeannette for 49 rounds in a 2-hour battle.

He was also a massive puncher some people call him the Mike Tyson of his day because of his explosiveness. Even though he did not make a lot of defenses like other greats of his time did, he is nothing to laugh at since had such massive runs against all of these greats.

I wanna point out that when he fought the great Jack Johnson 3 times inside 11 bouts and was only 18 years old, they fought for the World Colored Heavyweight Title but Mcvea did not have the experience to beat Johnson. I believe it would be not so easy for Johnson to beat him if they fought some years later when Mcvea was at his peak, but sadly that never happened since Johnson avoided Mcvea among other fighters after winning the World Heavyweight Title since he did not want to take the risk of losing it.

Sadly he died of Pneumonia in 1921 other wise I believe he would fight in his 40's or maybe even in his 50's like Jack Johnson did.


Final thoughts: Even though I don't personally rate him over some other greats of his time (Jeannette, Johnson etc.) I believe he is definitely an all time great that should be respected for his toughness and heart shown in the ring.


1884-1921

The Hammerin' Hank Henry Armstrong.

Herny Armstrong is arguably the greatest pressure in fighter to ever live, his performance in the ring won him 3 titles holding them all at the same time, in a time that Joe Louis was the face a boxing he was able to shine as a small man and become a respectful pound-4-pound all time great. Some might even say he is the best boxer to ever live and even though that's not my opinion I honestly can see why they say that. Gonna share some of his achievements and where I put him regarding pound-4-pound.


Fought from 1931 till 1945

Professional record: 151-21-9

Lineal Featherweight Champion-World Featherweight Title
Lineal Lightweight Champion- World Lightweight Title
Lineal Welterweight Champion- World Welterweight Title
Held all 3 titles at the same time
Record of 19 Welterweight Title Defenses
26 World Title fights won 22
29 Fights against Champions won 21
Fought 17 Champions beat 15
22 Fights against Hall of Famers
Fought 14 Hall of Famers beat 12
He was also ranked 2nd on ''The Ring'' 2002 list of The Best Fighters of The Last 80 Years only behind the legend Sugar Ray Robinson
It's also worth to mention he was ranked as the 2nd greatest fighter of all time by the well known boxing historian Bert Sugar


Just from his achievements, you can see what kind of legendary fighter he was being the first and only to ever hold 3 Divisional belts at the same time. In his 151 wins, he had 101 KO's and that just shows what kind of punching power this man had. He also had a diamond chin since he only lost by KO twice in his 21 losses. He was undefeated in a 2 and a half year run went 46-0 with an amazing 39 KO's, he also won his 3 titles in that time and made 7 Welterweight defenses. That amazing run ended after he lost to the man he won the Lightweight Title from in a rematch, the capable Lou Ambers.


One thing that makes me confused is when some people say his CV/resume is overrated and I cannot understand how you think this kind of CV is overrated, beating multiple Champions, Hall of Famers and top 10 contenders multiple times. Surprisingly Armstrong lost 3 out of his 5 fights and after that, he pretty much stacked wins in his resume.


Final thoughts: In my humble opinion, this man should be on every top 10 pound-4-pound list for his performance in the ring and the achievements listed above. He managed to shine in the boxing world in an era where Joe Louis was the world's most famous man. Truly an All time Great and a fantastic fighter that fortunately gets the respect he deserves.


1909-1988

The Galveston Giant Jack Johnson.

Jack Johnson is considered one of the greatest Heavyweights in boxing history for his achievements and being ahead of his time, regarded as one of the greatest defensive boxers of all time. He made history by being the first black boxer to ever win a World Heavyweight Title in 1908 against Tommy Burns.

Fought from 1897 till 1931
Professional Record: 71-11-11 (including newspaper decisions)

Some of his achievements are:

Lineal Heavyweight Title
World Heavyweight Title
Colored Heavyweight Title
Was unbeaten Colored Heavyweight Champion
 8 Colored Heavyweight Title defenses
6 World Heavyweight Title defenses
25 fights against Champions won 19
Only lost 1 title fight to Jess Willard
18 fights against Hall of Famers
Beat 12 World Champions
Beat 7 Hall of Famers
Had in total 20 Title fights won 17
18 fights against Hall of Famers
Was World Heavyweight Champion for 7 years from 1908 till 1915
 It's also worth to note that boxing historian and "The Ring Magazine" founder Nat Fleischer ranks Johnson as the greatest Heavyweight of all time.



I think we can all agree that Jack Johnson is one of the finest Heavyweights of history, he fought in an era where black fighters were not able to take a shot at World Titles and especially in the Heavyweight division since then being the Heavyweight Champion of the World could mean being the world's most famous man, and the color bar would not allow that. Fortunately, Johnson managed to Win the World Heavyweight Title against the capable champion Tommy Burns. Johnson had a 34-year career fighting till his 50's never giving up and always showing his heart and spirit in the ring. The only loss he had in a Title fight was against the great Jess Willard Johnson was KO'd in the 26th round. And that gave me the opportunity to say that just like other fighters of his day he was able to fight 20+ rounds frequently and with boxing gloves that were 3-4oz that looked just like old leather. He was also a masterful technician regarded as one of the greatest defensive fighters of all time, he was able to adapt to almost any situation often changing style using his usual out-boxing for the first few rounds keeping the opponent away with his jab and then clinching if it got too dangerous, and then he tried to be more aggressive potentially KOing his opponent. Many criticized him for this style because it seemed boring compared to the usual brawls they had back then.


The thing that brings down Johnson the most is that after he won the World Heavyweight Title he often ducked fighters that he fought against previously on his career for the Colored Heavyweight title (SamMcvea, Sam Langford, Joe Jeannette) because he did not want to risk losing his title. Joe Jeannette once said: "Jack forgot about his old friends after becoming champion and drew the color line against his own people." He also never fought the upcoming great Heavyweight Harry Wills that started shining during 1914.


Final thoughts: For me easily in the top 5 Heavyweights of all time and he could be potentially in the top 3 if he fought the other top black fighters after winning the World Heavyweight Title. The man was ahead of his time using technique and abusing the jab in an era where most fighters brawled for a good 15 rounds. Even though I don't have him in my top 3 Heavyweights (number 4 behind Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Sam Langford) for the reasons above, I respect this fighter that truly had a tremendous effect on boxing and the world. I wonder what boxing would be today if he never existed.



1878-1946