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Umm...hope everyone likes. Just done. Will gladly defend each person's place on the list
1. Floyd Mayweather Jr. - Floyd has been flawless since his rise from the lightweight rankings he has gone on to be simply flawless at 140/147. After his decisive victory over former welterweight champion Zab Judah, much is expected of his next fight at welterweight, which is likely to be against the resurging Oscar De La Hoya or Mexican powerhouse Antonio Margarito.
2. Winky Wright - Possibly the most well traveled and well rounded of the middleweights, Winky Wright finally broke through to the national spotlight with 2 victories over Shane Mosley. Since those two fights, he has gone on to pick apart Puerto Rican legend Felix Trinidad in what was one of the most masterful showings of the jab and defense in middleweight history. In December he garnered a decision over awkward middleweight contender Sam Soliman. His fight with Jermain Taylor is one of the most anticipated fights of the new year.
3. Manny Pacquiao - The Thrilla from Manila has proved to be the unifying force in the super featherweight division. He shocked the world in late 2003 with a savage beating of 129 lb legend Marco Antonio Barrera, and then went on to knock Juan Manuel Marquez down 3 times en route to a controversial draw. He met Erik Morales in early 2005 in what turned out to be a fight of the year candidate, losing a unanimous decision. He avenged that loss in his last fight, being the first fighter ever to knock out the Mexican legend. He looks to put another victory on his record July 1, when he faces Mexican bantamweight champion Oscar Larios.
4. Joe Calzaghe - Calzaghe is coming off the most important and spectacular win of his career. His 12 round dismantling of Jeff Lacy in their transcontinental super bout shot the longtime 168 lb champ to the top of many pound for pound list. Calzaghe landed at will with breakneck speed and astonishing accuracy. With other 168 lb champions, Kessler and Beyer seemingly uninterested in a Calzaghe unification fight at this time, Calzaghe signed for a fight with Roy Jones Jr. and Antonio Tarver conqueror Glenn Johnson but had to pull out with a hand injury.
5. Marco Antonio Barrera - Possibly the most exciting fighter in the entire sport, Barrera’s most recent foe was the compact, power punching Rocky Juarez. The two engaged in what could be a candidate for fight of the year. Barrera came away with a split decision victory after some controversy over the scorecards. With 2 victories over Erik Morales, and others over the likes of Naseem Hamed, Kevin Kelley, Johnny Tapia and Robbie Peden among others, Barrera is looking to avenge his most recent loss by rematching Manny Pacquiao.
6. Ricky Hatton - England's newest boxing hero did a number on Australian boxing legend Kostya Tszyu to become 140 lb champion in June of 2005. He followed up that breakthrough victory with a devastating 9th round knockout over the awkward WBA champion Carlos Massua. On the high of those two victories, Hatton moved up to welterweight in hopes of landing a super fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. He took on WBA champion and relative unknown Luis Collazo and stole a controversial razor thin 12 round decision over the slick southpaw. Hatton now has his sights set on moving back down to 140 or taking on WBA mandatory Oktay Urkal.
7. Rafael Marquez - Rafael is one of the least talked about champions of boxing, less so then his older and heavier brother Juan Manuel. Despite the lack of buzz surrounding him, Rafael has proven to be a dominating force at bantamweight. He engaged in a thrilling 4 round bout against Silence Mabuza on the Jeff Lacy - Scott Pemberton undercard winning by TKO in the 4th round. Marquez is scheduled to rematch Mabuza in August.
8. Jermain Taylor - Jermain Taylor rise from the U.S. Olympic ranks has been meteoric. Only 5 years after his pro debut, Taylor found himself on the right side of a split decision against longtime middleweight kingpin Bernard Hopkins. The second fight with Hopkins proved to be equally as close as the first with the same outcome, a decision victory for Taylor. While questions and controversy still surround the Bernard Hopkins bouts, Taylor faces perhaps his toughest test when he squares off with defensive wizard Winky Wright. The fight will be Taylor’s second defense of his middleweight title, a fight in which he will be stepping into as an underdog.
9. Isreal Vazquez - Vazquez’ third bout in his trilogy with fellow Mexican Oscar Larios on the Bernard Hopkins - Jermain Taylor card ended in the third round after Larios suffered a serious gash caused by a Vazquez punch. On June 10, Vazquez stopped former super flyweight Ivan Hernandez in the 4th round of their title fight. With competition thin at super bantamweight, Vazquez is weighing his options on moving up in weight to fight the likes of Chris John or Juan Manuel Marquez.
10. Jose Luis Castillo - Less then a year ago Castillo was on a career high. Despite losing via TKO in round 10, Castillo’s May 7, 2005 engagement with Diego Corrales will forever go down as one of the greatest fights in boxing history. In the rematch fight, Castillo failed to make the 135 lb limit for the fight by 3 lbs so the fight went on without any titles on the line. Castillo dropped Corrales in the 4th round of their rematch before the referee stopped the fight. After winning against the overmatched Rolando Reyes, Castillo set the stage for a third fight with Corrales. At the weigh in, Castillo weighed 139.5 lbs and the fight was promptly canceled. With the cancellation came heavy fines, a missed payday, the cancellation of a fight with Miguel Cotto in November and the loss of respect from boxing fans around the world. The future looks bleak for Castillo in the time being, and only time will tell how he deals with this major setback.
Your thoughts? I would love to see some other lists.
1. Floyd Mayweather Jr. - Floyd has been flawless since his rise from the lightweight rankings he has gone on to be simply flawless at 140/147. After his decisive victory over former welterweight champion Zab Judah, much is expected of his next fight at welterweight, which is likely to be against the resurging Oscar De La Hoya or Mexican powerhouse Antonio Margarito.
2. Winky Wright - Possibly the most well traveled and well rounded of the middleweights, Winky Wright finally broke through to the national spotlight with 2 victories over Shane Mosley. Since those two fights, he has gone on to pick apart Puerto Rican legend Felix Trinidad in what was one of the most masterful showings of the jab and defense in middleweight history. In December he garnered a decision over awkward middleweight contender Sam Soliman. His fight with Jermain Taylor is one of the most anticipated fights of the new year.
3. Manny Pacquiao - The Thrilla from Manila has proved to be the unifying force in the super featherweight division. He shocked the world in late 2003 with a savage beating of 129 lb legend Marco Antonio Barrera, and then went on to knock Juan Manuel Marquez down 3 times en route to a controversial draw. He met Erik Morales in early 2005 in what turned out to be a fight of the year candidate, losing a unanimous decision. He avenged that loss in his last fight, being the first fighter ever to knock out the Mexican legend. He looks to put another victory on his record July 1, when he faces Mexican bantamweight champion Oscar Larios.
4. Joe Calzaghe - Calzaghe is coming off the most important and spectacular win of his career. His 12 round dismantling of Jeff Lacy in their transcontinental super bout shot the longtime 168 lb champ to the top of many pound for pound list. Calzaghe landed at will with breakneck speed and astonishing accuracy. With other 168 lb champions, Kessler and Beyer seemingly uninterested in a Calzaghe unification fight at this time, Calzaghe signed for a fight with Roy Jones Jr. and Antonio Tarver conqueror Glenn Johnson but had to pull out with a hand injury.
5. Marco Antonio Barrera - Possibly the most exciting fighter in the entire sport, Barrera’s most recent foe was the compact, power punching Rocky Juarez. The two engaged in what could be a candidate for fight of the year. Barrera came away with a split decision victory after some controversy over the scorecards. With 2 victories over Erik Morales, and others over the likes of Naseem Hamed, Kevin Kelley, Johnny Tapia and Robbie Peden among others, Barrera is looking to avenge his most recent loss by rematching Manny Pacquiao.
6. Ricky Hatton - England's newest boxing hero did a number on Australian boxing legend Kostya Tszyu to become 140 lb champion in June of 2005. He followed up that breakthrough victory with a devastating 9th round knockout over the awkward WBA champion Carlos Massua. On the high of those two victories, Hatton moved up to welterweight in hopes of landing a super fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. He took on WBA champion and relative unknown Luis Collazo and stole a controversial razor thin 12 round decision over the slick southpaw. Hatton now has his sights set on moving back down to 140 or taking on WBA mandatory Oktay Urkal.
7. Rafael Marquez - Rafael is one of the least talked about champions of boxing, less so then his older and heavier brother Juan Manuel. Despite the lack of buzz surrounding him, Rafael has proven to be a dominating force at bantamweight. He engaged in a thrilling 4 round bout against Silence Mabuza on the Jeff Lacy - Scott Pemberton undercard winning by TKO in the 4th round. Marquez is scheduled to rematch Mabuza in August.
8. Jermain Taylor - Jermain Taylor rise from the U.S. Olympic ranks has been meteoric. Only 5 years after his pro debut, Taylor found himself on the right side of a split decision against longtime middleweight kingpin Bernard Hopkins. The second fight with Hopkins proved to be equally as close as the first with the same outcome, a decision victory for Taylor. While questions and controversy still surround the Bernard Hopkins bouts, Taylor faces perhaps his toughest test when he squares off with defensive wizard Winky Wright. The fight will be Taylor’s second defense of his middleweight title, a fight in which he will be stepping into as an underdog.
9. Isreal Vazquez - Vazquez’ third bout in his trilogy with fellow Mexican Oscar Larios on the Bernard Hopkins - Jermain Taylor card ended in the third round after Larios suffered a serious gash caused by a Vazquez punch. On June 10, Vazquez stopped former super flyweight Ivan Hernandez in the 4th round of their title fight. With competition thin at super bantamweight, Vazquez is weighing his options on moving up in weight to fight the likes of Chris John or Juan Manuel Marquez.
10. Jose Luis Castillo - Less then a year ago Castillo was on a career high. Despite losing via TKO in round 10, Castillo’s May 7, 2005 engagement with Diego Corrales will forever go down as one of the greatest fights in boxing history. In the rematch fight, Castillo failed to make the 135 lb limit for the fight by 3 lbs so the fight went on without any titles on the line. Castillo dropped Corrales in the 4th round of their rematch before the referee stopped the fight. After winning against the overmatched Rolando Reyes, Castillo set the stage for a third fight with Corrales. At the weigh in, Castillo weighed 139.5 lbs and the fight was promptly canceled. With the cancellation came heavy fines, a missed payday, the cancellation of a fight with Miguel Cotto in November and the loss of respect from boxing fans around the world. The future looks bleak for Castillo in the time being, and only time will tell how he deals with this major setback.
Your thoughts? I would love to see some other lists.
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