Joony's Top 10 Super Middleweights of All-Time

to say the division has always sucked may be harsh - but it is accurate. Up until the opening bell rings for the Calzaghe-Kessler fight this weekend, the super middleweight division is best known for its unfulfilled potential.

 

i just found steve farhood's recent ranking and it's as followed:

1. roy jones
2. joe calzaghe
3. nigel benn
4. chris eubank
5. james toney
6. steve collins
7. sven ottke
8. frank liles
9. chong pal park
10. mikkel kessler

actually, looking back at my list, i rated benn a bit too low. i think benn would've kicked the shit outta ottke and also think that he had better competition.

i might as well eliminate nunn and replace him w/ kessler.

 

Yep it was pretty terrible until around 1993 or so (With the exception of Leonard-Hearns II...which actually should have happened at a lower weight). Too bad Toney ate his way out of the division (or maybe he was fleeing from having to face Jones again) and that Jones couldn't get fights made with the other top fighters during his time there.

 

Accepted (generally), but then after this it wans't terrible at all, really- the Benn-Eubank fights were big fights between very good (arguably world class) fighters, then there was Benn-McClellan, which notwithstanding the end was a FANTASTIC fight between two very good (arguably world class) fighters then came Collins (who had big fights with both Benn and Eubank) before Calzaghe came along. Not to mention RJJ (who some have argued was in his prime whilst at 168)-Toney...

...can't really call these 'terrible' matchups, terrible fighters or even 'unfulfilled potential' (as Jake states above).

168 gets a bad rep because, that before this period, and after Calzaghe-Eubank, the division has been largely sphericals. No division is good all of the time- there will always be lulls. 168 started poor, became exciting, then got poor again. Swings and roundabouts...

Saturday conclusively brings to a close the most recent 168 lull, though :cheer:

 

These lists are always subjective but I would say that it is a pretty solid 10 there - My only issue would be that Kessler is not there. This is due to the lack of real top sm's due to the division's short lifetime and the fact taht its generally overlooked by middles and light heavies. Win or lose he has acheived a lot so far and beaten a few name sm's.

I do think its the only divsion in boxing that would have so many europeans in its top ten ever which could be wown to the WBO.