Ranking the Great Pugilists

The victory of Manny Pacquiao proved that he is the alpha dog in the super featherweight division. Barrera is too old, Marquez appears to be legit though, and others are well below Pacquiao's abilities. I consider boxing as my favorite individual sport because of the physicality and bloodshed involved. Through the years of watching boxing matches, I have been enamored by some and captivated by many. Paquiao is one of the best, but let's see if he belongs to the greatest boxers that I have seen.

10. Marco Antonio Barrera..... He has the uncanny ability to make comebacks and get up while being down. Plus he has the coolest monicker in boxing - "The Baby Face Assasin".

9. Felix Trinidad..... Before he decided destroy his career by challenging Bernard Hopkins, King Felix was amazing. His unbeaten streak is well publicized including his win over De La Hoya.

8. Oscar De La Hoya..... After capturing Olympic Gold, De La Hoya slowly paved his legacy. Despite all the losses, he still managed to change the world of boxing.

7. Evander Holyfield..... It is hard to find a physically challenged boxer such as Holyfield who dominated his division. Unsurprisingly, he did it using his wits.

6. Joe Calzaghe..... The guy is one of the most underrated boxers I have seen. All he did was to defend his title 20 times and stay unbeaten after 43 fights.

5. Julio Cesar Chavez..... I was beginning to grasp the sport of boxing when Chavez was at his prime. He was mesmerizing crowds then and destroying opponents in his path.

4. Bernard Hopkins..... After spending time in jail and getting beat by Roy Jones, Hopkins quickly learned the ropes. At present he is a partner of Golden Boy and manages to win.

3. Lennox Lewis..... Defeating Mike Tyson cemented the career of Lewis. Even before that fight, he was such a monster in the ring.

2. Roy Jones, Jr..... Watch Roy Jones and you will definitely be entertained. He has the capacity to give opponents boxing lessons and give a whole lot of beating.

1. Mike Tyson..... If you plan to watch Mike Tyson fights, you have to be glued on the TV screen. Just one blink and you will miss the entire match.

I would like to extend my apologies to Floyd Mayweather Jr., Winky Wright, and Erik Morales. It is noticeable that Pacquiao is absent in the list. Well, he never was an undisputed champion, he never had a sterling amateur-to-prime career, and he is one-dimensional. There will come a day when Manny will become part of the best. If only he can focus on boxing and knockout his political ambitions.