Yes, I'm that guy.
Walters one upped Rigo against Donaire. I know what you are going to say (weight class, Rigo took his soul etc.). But the size difference wasn't that great in this fight, and Donaire didn't fight like his soul had been taken.
So if Rigo is top 5 P4P based solely on beating Donaire, shouldn't Walters be on the list, too?
When Donaire tried to box he had a jab in his face. He fought the only way he could.
Didn't see that. Donaire was the more skilled fighter but he got too excited when he hurt Walters at the end of the 2nd round. He started loading up and looking for one shot after that.
i wouldnt put him on the list now, but he is close. if he beat gonales, lomachenko, mares or even gradovich i think he is in there. if he (or anyone else) cleans up at 126 without an abundance of help they will be in the top 5 or better imo.
Might have had something to do with the fact he was facing Rigo who completely undressed him that night.
Donaire almost took this guy out in the 2nd round. Honestly, if he'd boxed more and stopped loading up every shot, he might have won.
When Donaire tried to box he had a jab in his face. He fought the only way he could.
actually Donaire in the Rigo fight had shoulder issues and was struggling to make weight you could argue he was better last night. He did have some flashes of brilliance like the end of the second round and was keeping most of the rounds competitive until round 6.
I'm more talking mentally than physically. Donaire was awful against Darchinyan and wasn't much better in his last fight. He's been on a downward slope since the Rigo fight.
It wasn't the same guy. Not by a long shot.
actually Donaire in the Rigo fight had shoulder issues and was struggling to make weight you could argue he was better last night. He did have some flashes of brilliance like the end of the second round and was keeping most of the rounds competitive until round 6.
The Donaire from the rigo fight would have probably suffered the same fate, he didnt looked good in the rigo fight at all.
Might have had something to do with the fact he was facing Rigo who completely undressed him that night.
Donaire almost took this guy out in the 2nd round. Honestly, if he'd boxed more and stopped loading up every shot, he might have won.
Walters should be inching very very close to the bottom 10 of the pfp class. And why not?? In a hot division he damn near labelled himself king. One more victory of stunning proportion like that and you can bet your sweet a$$ somebody is gonna need to be exited and Walters inserted into the top 10.
It wasn't the same guy. Not by a long shot.
The Donaire from the rigo fight would have probably suffered the same fate, he didnt looked good in the rigo fight at all.
Its crazy how you have 1 loss and the guy that beats you goes to top 5 P4P with the win but when you beat the same guy and outdo him and KO him, you're not even close to P4P
It wasn't the same guy. Not by a long shot.
Its crazy how you have 1 loss and the guy that beats you goes to top 5 P4P with the win but when you beat the same guy and outdo him and KO him, you're not even close to P4P
I've kept a list of p4p top 30 the past two-three years or so. I had Rigo at 7 and Nonito in at #12 before last night. After the Walters fight, I completely dropped Donaire from the rankings and put Walters in at the back end at number 23. I think his dominance against a once-pound for pound elite fighter as well as Darchinyan who was arguably a p4p top 10 himself back in the day makes it clear that he can hang with the best at 126. It's not just the number of quality fighters you've beaten (two), it's how you've beaten them and the OP makes a good point that if we put Rigo up so high on the list, we should probably do the same for Walters unless you make the argument Donaire was a completely shopworn fighter, and I don't think that was the case. Do you think Jhonny Gonzalez could beat Walters? The only guy I see having a shot is Lomachenko, but he isn't on my list because of the whole career record of 2-1 thing.
Sorry, but that sounds very unconvincing.
1) You don't take the spot of the guy you beat. Maidana wouldn't have been #1 if he had beaten Floyd. Algieri won't be #2/3 if he beats Manny. Gonzalez didn't become a P4Per by beating Mares. The list goes on and on.
2) Neither do you have to beat a P4Per to become one. Andre Ward's best win is Froch, and Froch only became a P4Per after their fight. Roman Gonzalez has yet to beat a P4Per and he's on nearly everyone's P4P list. Again, the list goes on.
3) As for who beat the "better Donaire"... That's up for discussion. One thing is for sure though: Donaire didn't look worse vs Walters than vs Rigo. If anything, he looked better.
Just to make it clear: I'm not actually arguing that Walters should be P4P. All I'm saying is that maybe we should reconsider Rigo' lofty ranking.
It doesn't need to sound convincing because it's actually what happened, even if we disagree.
Rigo fought a better version of Donaire. That's not even up for debate. Donaire's sheer dimensions and power for 122 are crazy. At that time Donaire looked like no matter what all he had to do was touch you at some point and he'd win.
You're right about Maidana, but he'd almost certainly hit p4p lists if he beat Floyd. Algieri will also if he beats Pac. Though not 2-3 as Pac isn't 2-3. :/..
And Ward beat the best available competition in addition to the man a weight class above him. His current spot is well deserved.
He's good and you could argue it but like everyone else is saying, this wasn't the same Donaire. Donaire got overly aggressive right after he hurt Walters early on and that led to his demise.
Donaire was much more dominant and was physically superior to the opposition he was facing at 122. Even with the physical advantages and a 10 plus pound weight advantage Rigo took it to him.
At 126, Donaire does not have those same physical advantages. While he's still a good fighter and a top 5 guy in this division, he's not imposing his will on anybody at this weight. He has to rely on his skills and experience.