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So, this is a top 10 list of the greatest light welterweight fighters of the last 24 years, from 1990 to the present day. I was going to make one with an earlier time frame but...that required too much research lol
So here goes:
So here goes:
1. Julio Cesar Chavez Sr.
Titles Held: WBC and IBF
Defences: 17
Clearly one of the greatest fighters ever, fearsome, aggressive, powerful and with a titanium chin, much of CHavez's reign at the weight were in his latter years. A time when he wasn't as great as he had been at lightweight and super featherweight, yet, the fact that he was the leading fighter of his generation at the weight just go to show how great he was. The losses to Randall and Oscar do subtract a little from his run.
2. Kostya Tszyu
Titles Held: Wbc, WBA and IBF
Defences: 13
Tszyu could easily have been ranked as the very best 140 pounder I've ever seen but he suffered a horrendous KO loss, in his prime to a good but far from great fighter. His comeback was impressive and the run he had till the beating from Hatton was spectacular. Much of the second half of his career was hampered by injury and although he never had the longevity of Chavez, he made up for it with quality.
3. Ricky Hatton
Titles Held: Lineal Championship, IBF, IBO and WBA
Defences: 5
I'm discounted Hatton's run with the WBU title but it was a prety good run in itself, beating guys like Ben Tackie, Vinch Philips and Ray Oliviera is impressive for a man still in his early twenties. The fact that he looked dominant adds to the wins but his crowning moment will always be the stoppage of Tszyu. It was a brutal, rough and ugly fight but he eventually wore out the older champion and made him quit. He would stamp his authority one last time against Paulie Malignaggi, a final great performance.
Titles Held: WBC and IBF
Defences: 17
Clearly one of the greatest fighters ever, fearsome, aggressive, powerful and with a titanium chin, much of CHavez's reign at the weight were in his latter years. A time when he wasn't as great as he had been at lightweight and super featherweight, yet, the fact that he was the leading fighter of his generation at the weight just go to show how great he was. The losses to Randall and Oscar do subtract a little from his run.
2. Kostya Tszyu
Titles Held: Wbc, WBA and IBF
Defences: 13
Tszyu could easily have been ranked as the very best 140 pounder I've ever seen but he suffered a horrendous KO loss, in his prime to a good but far from great fighter. His comeback was impressive and the run he had till the beating from Hatton was spectacular. Much of the second half of his career was hampered by injury and although he never had the longevity of Chavez, he made up for it with quality.
3. Ricky Hatton
Titles Held: Lineal Championship, IBF, IBO and WBA
Defences: 5
I'm discounted Hatton's run with the WBU title but it was a prety good run in itself, beating guys like Ben Tackie, Vinch Philips and Ray Oliviera is impressive for a man still in his early twenties. The fact that he looked dominant adds to the wins but his crowning moment will always be the stoppage of Tszyu. It was a brutal, rough and ugly fight but he eventually wore out the older champion and made him quit. He would stamp his authority one last time against Paulie Malignaggi, a final great performance.
4. Oscar De la Hoya
Titles Held: WBC
Defences: 1
Titles Held: WBC
Defences: 1
The Golden Boy is often remembered for his title reigns at welterweight and light middleweight but some of his most impressives performances came at 140lb. He was impeccable at the weight, big, strong, fast and destructive, if only he could have stayed there a bit longer. A short but savage reign at the weight, filled with quality takes him into the top 5.
5. Timothy Bradley
Titles Held: WBC and WBO
Defences: 6
Titles Held: WBC and WBO
Defences: 6
One of the most gifted fighters of his generation, Bradley earned his first title overseas against a well respected champion in Junior Witter. I remember watching that fight i#and it was a complete performance. Quick, aggressive and determined, Bradley used this throughout his reign, beating stand outs such as Peterson, Holt and Alexander. That final fight left a bad taste in the mouth, with neither man being truly effective and his admitted ducking of Amir Khan takes the shine off of an otherwise great legacy at the weight.
6. Miguel Cotto
Titles Held: WBO
Defences: 6
Titles Held: WBO
Defences: 6
One of the most fearsome fighters at the weight, Cotto had immense power and looked to be an unstoppable knock out artist. He also showed a vulnerability against Torres but bounced back to win by stoppage. Big fights never materialised at the weight but watching Cotto at the weight just made you think, "who can beat this guy?". The prospect of a Hatton fight was mouth watering but it never happened.
7. Amir Khan
Titles Held: WBA and IBF
Defences: 5
Titles Held: WBA and IBF
Defences: 5
One of Britain's brightest lights, Khan solidified his place as a leading light welter by beating the durable and underrated c#titlist Kotelnik, then continued to dismantle Paulie Malignaggi and go to war with the division's most feared punches, Marcos Maidana. It was an impressive run, taking into account the one sided unification of Judah. Khan would possibly place higher if he hadn't lost to Peterson and suffered at the hands of Danny Garcia.
8. Danny Garcia
Titles Held: Lineal Champion, WBC and WBA
Defences: 5
Titles Held: Lineal Champion, WBC and WBA
Defences: 5
Garcia has his fair share of detractors but what he did to Amir Khan and then followed that up with a lopsided points victory over Lucas Matthysse solidifies his legacy as a top 140 pounder. Remember, Matthysse was thought of as the wrecking ball of the division and Khan was thought of as a step too far. Garcia doesn't too anything spectacular outside of impressive power but he is well schooled and a thinking fighter. The man at 140lb right now.
9. Manny Pacquiao
Titles Held: Lineal Champion and IBO
Defences: 0
Pacquiao is here because of one punch, one devastating, career handing hook which knocked Hatton, he reigning champion at the weight, into the middle of next week. It was brutal and beautiful in equal measure and just gets you thinking, what more could he have done at 140?
9. Manny Pacquiao
Titles Held: Lineal Champion and IBO
Defences: 0
Pacquiao is here because of one punch, one devastating, career handing hook which knocked Hatton, he reigning champion at the weight, into the middle of next week. It was brutal and beautiful in equal measure and just gets you thinking, what more could he have done at 140?
10. Devon Alexander
Titles Held: WBC and IBF
Defences: 2
Titles Held: WBC and IBF
Defences: 2
The lasting image of Alexander at light welterweight is him quitting in the biggest fight of his career but maybe he should be remembered for his stoppage of Juan Urango, an accomplished fighter or his domination of Junior Witter. In terms of skill and speed, few in the division have come close to Alexander.
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