Rankings: Pacman holds off Mayweather

In April, 32 boxing journalists from around the world cast votes in the Yahoo! Sports pound-for-pound rankings. All 32 voted for Manny Pacquiao as the top boxer in the world. April was the last month that Floyd Mayweather Jr. was eligible because he had last fought in May 2010 and the poll's rules require a fighter to compete at least once in a 12-month span to be eligible. But in that poll, Mayweather not only wasn't first, he wasn't second. He finished third, well behind middleweight champion Sergio Martinez, as well as behind Pacquiao. After defeating Victor Ortiz in dramatic and controversial fashion on Sept. 17 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, Mayweather once again became eligible for the rankings. His fourth-round knockout of Ortiz clearly impressed the voters, as he received 17 of the 43 first-place votes cast to finish in second. Still, Pacquiao, who fights No. 5 Juan Manuel Marquez on Nov. 12 in Las Vegas, held onto the top spot by getting 26 first-place votes. Pacquiao was voted either first or second by every voter, but opinion was more divergent about Mayweather. In addition to his 17 first-place votes, Mayweather received 16 seconds, seven thirds, two fourths and a fifth. The choice of who should be first between Pacquiao and Mayweather has long been contentious. I've asked five poll members – Al Bernstein of Showtime and The Boxing Channel, Mike Coppinger of BoxingScene.com, Marty Mulcahey of MaxBoxing.com, Lem Satterfield of ******.com and Dave Weinberg of the Press of Atlantic City – to explain the thought process behind their votes. Coppinger and Weinberg voted Mayweather first and Pacquiao second. Bernstein voted Pacquiao first and Mayweather second. Mulcahey had Pacquiao first, Martinez second and Mayweather third. Satterfield went with Pacquiao first, Martinez second, Nonito Donaire Jr. third and Mayweather fourth.

Comments (6)

Double_L

Pacquiao's worst win in the last 5 years, Clottey would've handed Ortiz his ass. David Diaz?

14y ago

Kenny_MF_Powers

#2 is pretty good for a guy who only fights once every so often. You mad?

14y ago

Pullcounter7451

if anyone puts wifebeater at #1, he'll sit on his laurels and duck pac.

14y ago

KillerRightHook

Pacquiao's worst win in the last 5 years, Clottey would've handed Ortiz his ass. Ortiz would lose his head if he sees this http://i44.tinypic.com/dh6aux.jpg :lol1: :lol1:

14y ago

abduljakul

Their comments follow: Al Bernstein : I kept Manny as No. 1 because he has been No. 1 and is still performing very well. Floyd is an amazing fighter and defies logic by coming back after these layoffs to fight so well, but I will keep Manny there for now, unless he loses or performs in a subpar way against Juan Manuel Marquez. Hopefully Floyd and Manny will decide who is best inside the ring." Mike Coppinger : I chose Floyd Mayweather as No. 1 because I had him there prior to his inactivity, and I see no reason not to put him back after a knockout victory over the No. 2 welterweight. Controversy or not, Mayweather was dominating Ortiz and well on his way to a knockout or wide points victory. Also, these rankings are objective, and I thoroughly maintain that Mayweather would beat Pacquiao, should they ever meet, as Mayweather would use his effective counter-punching and defense to defeat the Pacman. Marty Mulcahey : I voted Floyd Mayweather Jr. at No. 3 based mostly on lack of activity, with his aging (Ortiz excluded, of course) opposition a secondary consideration. I found Sergio Martinez's stoppage results to be more compelling, and Martinez also achieved this against an equal caliber of opponent – if his foes’ primes are considered. An average of one fight a year does not create an equal margin of error, because the sample size is too small to properly evaluate when compared with his contemporaries, in my opinion. Lem Satterfield : I left Manny at No. 1 because he has not lost. As far as the rest, I believe that Mayweather could be better than the other two and also Pacquiao, but that his inactivity measured against the activity of those such as Martinez and Donaire should leave him behind them. In addition, Martinez and Donaire have each vanquished opponents who are better, in my mind, than Ortiz. Martinez beat Pavlik, Williams and Dzinziruk, and Donaire beat Montiel. I could easily see Mayweather above either of them , but that is my rationale. Dave Weinberg : I voted Mayweather No. 1 before he became ineligible for the poll because of inactivity. Since he fought again and won again, I saw no reason to demote him. He's still the best in my eyes until someone beats him.

14y ago

Check_hooks

This shouldn't be a suprise to anyone. Floyd struggled with and never hurt Ortiz. Maidana beat Ortiz's ass worse than floyd did and he didn't have to sucker punch him to win.

14y ago