What factors do you consider when determining a fighter’s greatness?

[GhostofDempsey]

We can all agree that quality of opposition and overall skills are primary factors when considering fighters for all time greatness. But what other traits or intangibles do you consider?

Do you consider longevity and durability? Does it require a certain degree of “greatness” to come out with a winning record after 100, 200 or more fights? Do we factor that in when comparing a fighter with 200 fights to one with 40 or less fights? How do we compare and rank Leonard with 40 fights to Robinson with 200? Or Spinks with 32 fights to Moore with over 200?

How about how they come back from losses, or cope with adversity during a fight? Recover from KO losses, have successful comebacks, fight and win beyond a certain age? How hard did they challenge themselves, or did they play it safe?

What are the most important factors to you?

[The Old LefHook]

I closely inspect the shade of a man. Shade rules all, my daddy used to say. Look at the dangerous shade on Dempsey. Look at the shade on Hafey. Mister, that is toughness that will raise goosebumps on ye. See the shade on Liston.

[Willie Pep 229]

I like knockouts . . . two reasons

. . . (usually) puts the fight beyond corruption

. . . the game is prize fighting and boxing shouldn't be an end unto itself

KOs are recognized; decisions are third party exclamations of greatness.

Knockouts are the definitive end of a prize fight and the more definitive wins a fighter has the greater he is. Decision wins seem somehow incomplete. Decision wins leave doubt and greatness shouldn't be something that can be doubted.

We are talking of 'greatness' and not who is the GOAT?

[markusmod]

Certainly his level of opposition, did he duck any major fights, and how he won and lost his biggest fights.

[HOUDINI563]

The ability to take punishment and not quit no matter what.

Cleverness, the ability to avoid destructive blows.

The ability to slip, parry, duck, bob and weave as well as feint and then counter to vital areas of an opponent all as an integrated science.

Endurance. The ability to fight long bouts and not exhaust oneself.

The ability to strike ko blows.

Killer instinct.

[QueensburyRules]

- -Many fighters debut ****y, others unsure, but after 10 fights or so, the greats tend to develop an aurora of greatness about them because of intangible factors.

[Willie Pep 229]

Is that 'shade'?

[LeOoze]

By the quality of great wins. Fighters like Moore would have hundreds of fights, and most of them would be ehhh, but no doubt he has some great wins.

A great win to me is a great fighter in their prime. What makes a win even greater is if said fighter is removed from their prime.

Ie: Muhammad ali KO'ing George Foreman. He was already past it and the fact he was able to KO an ATG who would never get KO'd again is one of the GOAT wins in boxing

What you do in your prime matters the most though.

[markusmod]

By the quality of great wins. Fighters like Moore would have hundreds of fights, and most of them would be ehhh, but no doubt he has some great wins.

A great win to me is a great fighter in their prime. What makes a win even greater is if said fighter is removed from their prime.

Ie: Muhammad ali KO'ing George Foreman. He was already past it and the fact he was able to KO an ATG who would never get KO'd again is one of the GOAT wins in boxing

What you do in your prime matters the most though.

Agree here.

[The Old LefHook]

They should have the shade of Hafey, the beard of the vampire, the milking muscle of Sharkey and the dance steps of Webb.