What's your top 5 in arguably the deepest decade in boxing? I should say what's your 2-5, since Leonard is the consensus greatest fighter of the decade Anyway, my top 5 would be: 1. Leonard 2. Hagler 3. Spinks 4. Sanchez 5. Hearns
No. He didn't do enough in the 80s that would warrant putting him above those 5 guys. He's definitely top 10 though.
Would Chavez rank above Duran? I agree with your top five, although I'd swap Hagler and Spinks. I would say that the 70s and 40s were deeper than the 80s.
Leonard Hagler Sanchez Holmes/Tyson pickem Spinks Want to put Hearns, Pryor, Galaxy, Duran, Arguello but not sure if I can.
I'm not sure if Galaxy had the resume to make the top 10, though to be fair, Galaxy is underrated based on his dominance. I'm actually a really big Galaxy fan, but I think he was the second greatest Asian of the 80s. Chang was the greatest. I think my 6-10 would be: 6. Tyson 7. Chavez 8. Pryor 9. Duran 10. Chang Pedroza, Holmes, Qawi, Galaxy, Fenech, Holy, McCallum, and Nelson would be the top HMs who come to mind. Tyson definitely over Holmes, as he unified the titles and was far more dominant than Larry. Duran loses points because he was inconsistent in the 80s. He had bigger wins in the decade than Chavez, but I'll give it to Chavez for his unbeaten dominance in the decade.
I'd agree with your five pal. Tyson, Chang and Holmes all have a shout at pog 5 though imo. I could see Watanabe and Laciar in the top ten depending on preference and acceptable-level bias.
I’ve just been putting together a list for the same as part of ESB’s p4p per decade. X, I had the same 5 as you but I switched Hagler and Leonard - honestly, they are clearly 1 and 2 but it doesn’t matter much what order. I had Sanchez just making the top 5 but Hearns was above him in 4. I think he pretty clearly should be above Sanchez imo.
If Laciar were around today he'd be regarded as highly as Chocolatito. In the 80s, he doesn't even make the top 10. That's how absurdly and incredibly stacked the 80s was. Laciar should be in the Hall. Far more deserving than fuckin Froch and Bradley.
Hard to say honestly since there’s so many great fighters throughout that era. Best 5 fighters of the 80s for me would probably be: SRL Marvin Hagler Salvador Sanchez Michael Spinks Larry Holmes Followed by (in no order): Thomas Hearns Mike Tyson Evander Holyfield Roberto Duran Mike McCallum Alexis Arguello Azumah Nelson Dwight Muhammad Qawi Jung Koo Chang Julio Cesar Chavez Eusebio Pedroza Donald Curry Jeff Fenech
Duran is the toughest to rank of everyone from the 1980s but I can’t think of two more different fighters from each other than Duran and Chavez in that decade. Duran has arguably the best win of the era but has the most ignominious defeat of the decade directly after it. The 80s would have been a very different decade without Duran - his impact (positive and negative) was huge. Inside top 10 is definitely possible depending on criteria but so is outside the top 10. Very hard to place. Chavez pretty much flew under the radar for most of the decade until 1987 and the Rosario win. From that win on, he started to make his mark - he was a consistent presence as a p4p top 10 fighter and would ascend to the top of the sport with his win over Taylor (combined with Tyson’s defeat to Douglas) almost exactly a decade after Duran had done so against Leonard, But that was in 1990.
The 80s is so deep that you can make an argument for almost any order after the first three or four names but a top 10 ends up leaving out some amazing fighters. I have people in the lower half of the top 20 who could easily be top 10 with different criteria.
My top 5: 1. Marvin Hagler 2. Sugar Ray Leonard 3. Michael Spinks 4. Thomas Hearns 5. Salvador Sanchez After that, it’s tricky - really tricky.
I have Tyson at 6 and above Holmes for the 80s but I would have Holmes above Tyson all-time based on his additional work in the 70s, whereas Tyson’s work in the 90s isn’t enough to keep him ahead of Holmes overall. Totally arguable the other way, of course.
My 6-10 are changeable and not set in stone but I have number 6 as Tyson as well and agree with your argument about Tyson over Holmes but Holmes makes my top 10 too. Duran is either rounding out the top 10 or in the upper half of the top 20. Depends on my criteria and my mood - the highest of highs and lowest of lows of any fighter in the 80s. He scores high on impact on the sport, single defining wins (Leonard, Moore, Barkley) and longevity but low on consistency, dominance (after June 1980) and single defining defeats (Leonard, Benitez, Lamg(!) and Hearns).
Here’s my current top 15 (it will change): Marvelous Marvin Hagler Sugar Ray Leonard Michael Spinks Thomas Hearns Salvador Sanchez Mike Tyson Larry Holmes Julio Cesar Chavez Azumah Nelson Roberto Duran Jung Koo Chang Jeff Fenech Eusebio Pedroza Aaron Pryor Evander Holyfield Having some of these fighters as low as I do upsets me, but the 80s was stacked - they can’t all be top 10.
Lower weight guys like Galaxy, Roman, Chitalada and Laciar would be rounding out my top 20. Someone like Brian Mitchell might just miss out but would be in my top 25, I think. Like I say, the 80s was deep.
Another tough to rank fighter is Wilfredo Gomez. His peak was in the 70s so he would definitely be higher there (top 10) but he was still in his prime at the very beginning of the 1980s and coming into the Sanchez fight, he was ranked either no. 1 or no. 2 p4p in the entire sport. Plus, he carried on dominating super bantamweight until the end of 1982, even after the loss to Sanchez at featherweight and then won the title against LaPorte. But his win over Rocky Lockridge at super featherweight was a hometown gift decision and was preceded by a savage KO at the hands of Azumah Nelson. He might make the top 20 but not sure. Arguello has a similarly spotty record in the 80s - he’d be top 5 for the 70s, I think - but entered the decade as one of the best fighters in the sport still as a super featherweight. He was lineal lightweight champion from 1981-1983 but the defeats to Pryor hurt his overall standing and he didn’t really fight much after 1983. I couldn’t find a place for him in my top 20.
Here’s another one to try and place - a fighter who was an absolute mainstay of the 1980s: Edwin Rosario. Clearly not top 10, but what about top 20? Probably not. Top 30, I’d think. And his rival Hector Camacho? Top 20? Top 25?
1. Leonard 2. Hagler 3. Spinks 4. Sanchez 5. Hearns 6. Pedroza 7. Chang 8. Holmes 9. Chavez 10. Duran Tyson, Holmes, Qawi, Galaxy, Fenech, Holy, & Nelson.
