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Floyd Mayweather, JR – Sugar Ray Leonard: Who Wins?

Who do you think would win between Floyd Mayweather, JR. and Sugar Ray Leonard?

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PBF vs SRLBy Donny Lalonde

For sake of comparison, we will assume both fighters to be in the 147 pound range. If you will recall, Ray Leonard’s only loss in this classification was Roberto Duran, and Duran was at his peak. Duran was special, a once in a lifetime fighter. Similarly, Floyd Mayweather, JR. has fought some of his best fights at 147 pounds. Both are exceptional fighters, both excel in foot speed, hand speed, ring generalship, strong defense and excellent conditioning.

One interesting side note is that Floyd has fought the majority of his 147 pound fights over the age of 30. This fact is seldom discussed when people debate Floyd as being the all-time greatest fighter. One must give him credit for his longevity, consistency, and discipline. Few have the staying power or the ability to fight the distractions that life may throw at a famous, wealthy, and charismatic athlete. Floyd is a handsome man who has, for the most part, stayed out of the spotlight regarding illicit drug abuse or abusing his body with physical vices. His discipline and consistency give him the edge in comparing him to other great athletes.

Ray had the luxury of timing. His fights seemed to occur at a time where he had the edge over his competitors. His rematch with Duran occurred at a time when Duran was known to be ill prepared. He used Duran’s conditioning to his advantage in calculating his movement and theatrics in the second fight. Duran became frustrated, and we witnessed the “No Mas” debacle.
Ray’s first fight against Hearns did not yield him the luxury of good timing. He found himself battling a very dangerous fighter. However, he deserves credit for that which few give when they discuss Ray’s career. People generally point to his catch weight strategies, his waiting out Marvin Hagler’s demise before fighting him etc. Ray was a Welterweight his whole career. He was never a middleweight or a light heavyweight and certainly not a supermiddlweight. Ray fought the best of his generation in multiple weight classes and he found a way to win.
A discussion of Leonard at welterweight would be incomplete without discussing his wins over Wilfredo Benitez who was a masterful boxer. Although he was talented, Benitez failed to train adequately for his match against Leonard. One should not fault Leonard for Benitez’s lack of success against him in the ring. Ray not only fought a number of champions or former champions in his career at 147, he beat some of the greatest fighters ever at 147 pounds.

Floyd too has faced very good fighters. Although he fought Oscar De La Hoya past his prime, he was a welterweight, and the fight was very close. Floyd’s resume had the likes of Maidana, Guerrero, and Alvarez, who were all very good, if not great fighters. Nevertheless, those fighters were not in the same league as the fighters that Leonard faced. This is not a slight to Floyd, as he cannot control the era in which he fought. The competition was stiffer in Leonard’s era, and so he was not afforded the Marquis matchups as Leonard was.

Floyd’s stronghold in this discussion would have been solidified had he fought Manny Pacquiao in the prime of their careers. Whether the fight takes place or not, there will be an obvious asterisk on his resume, as some will say that the outcome may have been different depending on the time in their careers in which the fight took place.

Technically, from a skill standpoint, there is not a lot to separate them when it comes to speed, ring generalship, jab, movement, and combination punching. However, there are elements that make up a fighter that are not visible to the eye but become more transparent over the course of a career.

I refer to the heart, balls, intestinal fortitude, and ability to finish an opponent, chin, and the most telling desire and will to be a dominant athlete with a need to seek and destroy.
I can’t speak to Floyd’s chin because he never fought a Tommy Hearns, Marvin Hagler, or even a fighter of greater size and natural punching power as me at supermiddleweight as Ray did, but at 147 pounds, Ray had the chance to show his chin against Duran and Hearns. Having withstood the best from those two ATG’s, Ray has the edge in that area. Again, Floyd didn’t have the luxury of fighting the aforementioned greats or anyone in their league. Floyd has fought some strong punchers and has shown that he has the chin to withstand hard punchers, but due to his defensive genius and his lesser opponent level, Ray has to be given the edge here.

In being tested again by these ATG’s, Ray had the opportunity to show his intestinal fortitude. Take, for example, his first fights against Duran and Tommy. Ray displayed the ability to dig deep, pulling up reserves and resources that escape many, proving that his chin was as great as anyone in this weight class ever. In a similar fashion, Floyd has shown those qualities too, or he wouldn’t be the great fighter he is. But avoiding Pacquiao for so long takes him down a notch in any comparison of an all-time great fighter.

The respective records speak for themselves, relating to the desire to not only be great but to dominate and annihilate an opponent. Ray thrived on this. On the other hand, Floyd seems to be happy with a decision victory and self-preservation. As I have mentioned in a previous article, I don’t suggest this is a bad thing but it does show less intensity and less desire to stand apart from his opponents in a much more dominant manner. If they were to get into the trenches in a meeting between these two I would pick Ray to end up on top.

Ray was one of the best finishers in our, if not most any era, when he had an opponent in a vulnerable state. A burning fire raged within him as he destroyed his opponent as brutally and quickly as possible when he had him in trouble.

If I were considering other champions throughout history, Floyd ranks very high. He is, in fact, better than most. However, in a head to head comparison against, Ray at 147 pound weight class, I don’t see the comparison as close. Ray wins hands down. Ray was just as good, if not better than anyone else, with the exception of Ray Robinson and a healthy Duran.

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