By David Vaught, a family member of the great Archie Moore – Floyd Mayweather has become a very controversial figure in boxing. It seems like boxing fans either love him or hate him. He was a great defensive boxer, and he has now retired undefeated. The purpose of this article, however, isn’t to debate Mayweather’s skill, but to look at the way some fans judge a boxer on their boxing record alone.
Rocky Marciano
Marciano: The only truly revered Rocky
With all due respect to Rocky Graziano, Rocky Lockridge, Roman “Rocky” Martinez, the fictitious Rocky Balboa, and all those tough triers known throughout the world as a “Real-Life Rocky,” there is in truth only one Rocky that truly and deeply matters: Rocky Marciano – “The Brockton Blockbuster;” the man who the old timers claim was simply incapable of losing a fight.
Rocky Marciano’s legendary 49-0 record: For it to be truly broken, must it be a reigning heavyweight champion who reaches 50-0?
Back in 2015, when Floyd Mayweather tied beloved heavyweight champ Rocky Marciano’s 49-0 record, the late ex-champ’s brother, Peter Marciano, was less than moved. It would have been better, more newsworthy, more impressive, he said, if another heavyweight champion had equalled his brother’s astonishing numbers, not a welterweight.
Just recently, little star Roman Gonzalez was getting a ton of press as he closed in on “The Rock’s” record, but as we know, “Chocolatito” lost in a big upset and fell to 46-1 in the process. Now publications and boxing sites are talking about Thailand’s Wanheng Menayothin, the reigning WBC minimumweight champ who yesterday improved to 46-0 with a non-title six-rounder victory. Can he break Marciano’s record they are asking (or, in a sacrilegious move, some have asked if Menayothin can break Floyd’s 49-0 record!)
Video: Jersey Joe Walcott vs Rocky Marciano – Classic Rivalry Recap
This week Rummy’s Corner proudly presents the latest edition of a new ongoing series that will explore some of the greatest bouts in the rich history of professional boxing. This week’s installment of “Classic Fight Recap” is actually a two-in-one classic rivalry recap. Featuring the epic two fight series between former heavyweight champions Jersey Joe Walcott and Rocky Marciano. Their first epic encounter took place on September 23, 1952, and they would have a high profile rematch the following year on May 15, 1953.
The Garden’s Defining Moments: Marciano defeats Louis
MSG Networks (NYSE: MSGN) continues the special 20-part television event “The Garden’s Defining Moments” presented by SAP with “Marciano defeats Louis.” “The Garden’s Defining Moments: Marciano defeats Louis,” narrated by Ben Stiller, premieres Thursday, February 18 at 11:00 pm on MSG Network, following MSG’s telecast of Rangers \ Maple Leafs. Interview subjects include Mike Tyson, Joe Louis Barrow Jr., Ed O’Neil, Sugar Ray Leonard, George Foreman, Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini and more.
All Time Historical Survey Series Recap – The Original 8 Weight Classes & P4P
by Geoffrey Ciani – Over the course of a sixteen month period beginning in June 2009, I conducted a series of surveys that all began with a very simple question: Who are the ten best heavyweights of all time? While contemplating my own list of top heavyweight pugilists, I decided gathering the input of others might help display a more accurate portrayal of what a ‘true’ top 10 list should look like. Now of course this is not an exact science by any means. In fact, quite the opposite, it is an extremely subjective topic that is often skewed by personal bias, differences of opinion, individual tastes and preferences, and most importantly the absence of a universally agreed upon criteria with which to judge past fighters. Even with these inherent obstacles playing their natural role, however, we can still establish some degree of consensus.
The guidelines were simple. I had every person who voluntarily participated in each survey provide me with a chronological list of who they considered to be the ten best (heavyweights, middleweights, etc) in boxing history. Ties were not permitted, just a straight-forward list from one to ten. I then used a weighted-points system to assign values to fighters based on where they appeared on each individual’s list. First place votes received 25 points. Second place votes were worth 15 points, third place votes were 12, and fourth and fifth place votes were worth 10 and 8 points respectively. After that, the point differential was constant, with sixth place votes getting 5 points, seventh place votes getting 4, eighth getting 3, ninth place 2, and tenth place 1.