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Last edited by Benncollinsaad; 08-28-2009, 05:37 PM. -
Here are the most notable names Jones beat at 168, in chronological order:
Glenn Wolfe
Thulani Malinga
James Toney
Antoine Byrd
Vinny Pazienza
Tony Thornton
Merqui Sosa
Eric Lucas
And Calzaghe's most notable names:
Chris Eubank
Juan Carlos Fereyra
Robin Reid
Omar Sheika
Richie Woodhall
Mario Veit
Charles Brewer
Byron Mitchell
Jeff Lacy
Sakio Bika
Mikkel Kessler
Draw your own conclusions. I just think Jones' list looks a bit more impressive.Comment
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Her's what Cliff wrote:
5) Roy Jones Jr. – 10.25 Points*
Record: 52-5, 38 KO
Titles: IBF (1994-96, 5 Defenses)
Titlists/Champions Faced – 3: (Malinga, Toney, Lucas)
As was the case earlier with Toney, hypothetical conjectures and mythical match making would rate Jones no lower than two and, given his prodigious talents, a strong case for the top spot would be in order. It’s not a stretch to say he may never have lost a single round contested in the class and he stands as arguably the finest prizefighter of his time. However, like many a fighter who competed in multiple divisions, Jones score is limited here by how little of his career was contested seriously in the division. To his credit, the business he got done was of the most serious variety. Before challenging Toney for the IBF belt at 168, Jones faced off with the same tough Malinga so many other notable Super Middleweights of the time met. While most defeated him, for the first seventeen of a nineteen year run no one could keep Malinga from the final bell…except Jones. Jones, in style and with prejudice, devastated the iron-chinned Malinga with ease inside of six rounds. His win over Toney has been well covered over the years, a star making turn against a man most regarded as an heir apparent to then Pound-for-Pound king Pernell Whitaker. Add in Lucas as well, not a great fighter but a tough out for years at 168; Jones dominated him as the second half of a stunt twin bill which included playing in a minor league professional basketball game. Jones would years later face another name on this list in Calzaghe, at Light Heavyweight, but that doesn’t count in this division and that wasn’t the Jones Calzaghe would have faced at 168. It’s a great what if worthy of the arguments it generates.
1) Joe Calzaghe – 26.5 Points
Record: 46-0, 32 KO
Lineal World Champion 2006-08, 3 Defenses
Titles: WBO (1997-2006, 18 Defenses); Ring/WBO/IBF (2006, 1 Defense); Ring/WBO (2007-08, 2 Defenses); Ring/WBO/WBA/WBC (2007-08, 0 Defenses)
Titlists/Champions Faced – 7: (Eubank, Reid, Woodhall, Brewer, Mitchell, Lacy Kessler)
It was a matter of coincidence timing the authoring of this Super Middleweight review. Just days ago, Calzaghe announced he was retiring from the sport. History tells us, even leaving at the advanced fighting age of 35, the Welsh star is likely to return. The calendar will tell that tale.
It’s unlikely to have much impact on his Super Middleweight resume.
Calzaghe’s career was analyzed in great detail previously at this site (http://www.boxingscene.com/?m=show&id=16920) but some of the key points there bear repeating here. Calzaghe, like Ottke, would post 21 successful title defenses of their original diadem in the division. Each had a long night with Robin Reid and it is blight on both men’s careers that they never squared off. The stain is bigger for Ottke.
That’s because Calzaghe made up for it in other areas. Calzaghe is the only man to have held all of the major sanctioning bodies in class, fought the second most fellow titlists, and he stopped or posted a commanding unanimous decision over six of them. He ended the Super Middleweight run of Eubank to capture his first title and halted the rise of his heir apparent in Kessler before a crowd of over 50,000 in his native Wales.
Should he remain retired, the undefeated ledger of Calzaghe will remain a source of debate. His resume would have been bolstered with fights against the likes of Ottke and Liles and how he would have fared in earlier years against eventual Light Heavyweight foes Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones is the fodder of the best of barbershop debates. Regardless, with twenty five years of history invested, a championship standard is established at Super Middleweight.
The standard is Joe Calzaghe.Comment
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steve collins beat eubank twice and benn twice that will be all thank you...Comment
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