"If you look at his record, and the fighters that he's defeated, you cannot beat that," Floyd Mayweather's status as one of the sport's finest ever fighters is debated by a panel of Sky Sports experts
Saturday 5 June 2021 18:42, UK
Floyd Mayweather has proclaimed himself as 'The Best Ever,' but can he really be regarded as the sport's finest fighter? The Panel of experts give their verdict...
Mayweather dominated the sport for decades while compiling a perfect 50-fight record that included victories over stellar rivals in five weight classes.
But where does Mayweather rank amongst the other champions throughout history?
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I wouldn't say the best ever, he's the best of his generation. Mayweather is a master of the sweet science. Hit and don't get hit. That's what boxing is all about.
The crowd may want to see someone get knocked out, but he has perfected that style like a fine art. He is one of the few fighters in the modern generation that really appreciate the sweet science and still manage to gain the massive financial rewards.
His style is not crash, bang wallop, so how has he managed to create such a vast fortune and attention? Technically he is supreme. You go there to watch him win or lose. He's either the villain or your hero.
I think he's the best of his generation. How do you compare guys in the past to now? You can only be the best of your era. Look at Sugar Ray Robinson. You cannot match what he achieved in the sport.
But Floyd has shown longevity and the fact he's undefeated as well. I think you can only ever be the best of your generation and you have to say, without a doubt, he has been that.
He is the best of a generation, but I'm not sure if he's the best of all time. I actually thought he lost in that first fight against Jose Luis Castillo.
But his résumé is amazing. He fought Zab Judah at his best, Miguel Cotto, he beat Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez. You cannot give him stick for his résumé. He fought everyone, didn't he.
Mayweather makes you fight his fight. You cannot do that unless you've got the speed and the ability that he has.
That's up for debate, because you're always going to get names that are thrown out there like Sugar Ray Leonard and Sugar Ray Robinson. Everyone has got their favourite, but I would say that he definitely ranks up there.
He's definitely the best of our modern era. If you look at his record, and the fighters that he's defeated, you cannot beat that, and he's still got his O. He's got to go down in history, because he's defeated everyone.
No. I'm not a big fan of comparing boxers of different eras, because I just don't think you can really do it, with any particular merit or precision. It's fun, but for me, it doesn't really work. Mayweather is the best of his era and that's all you can do.
Résumé wise, I would put someone like Sugar Ray Leonard above Mayweather. If you go all the way back to someone like Sugar Ray Robinson, the comparisons become less valid.
People argue that boxing has changed the least and it's one of the sports where you can make a strong case that fighters from 50 years ago were better than fighters now. But boxers are not going to fight as regularly now as they did then. People argue, 'Oh they all fought every week and they all fought the absolute best opponent,' which didn't always happen.
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