Your top-5 HW peaks

[Gregoire1]

Name your top-5 HW boxers peaks. Not careers, not resumes, but only who was the best at peak yer and would beat most others in history.

Mine:
1. Ali
2. Tyson
3. Lewis
4. Bowe
5. Holmes

 

[Sharkey]

Taking guys with short peaks and pretending they'll have some great records against the rest of history's best heavyweights in hypothetical matchups is making them out to be something they're not.

 

[burningspear]

Yeah I like the premise, some decline for a myriad of reasons, drugs, jail, injury, mental health, lack of motivation, Tyson and Bowe jump out as two who were awesome but lacked the intangibles to maintain.

 

[borntoloseNOT]

Yeah I like the premise, some decline for a myriad of reasons, drugs, jail, injury, mental health, lack of motivation, Tyson and Bowe jump out as two who were awesome but lacked the intangibles to maintain.

Nah, Im with Sharkey.

A decline is a decline. Career longevity is a criteria for greatness, imo and is earned through attrition. It's an important divider between the men and the boys.

I suppose I do come to the defense of Tyson sometimes, but he definitely is a sentimental favorite, and I know claiming that his peak he could take anyone is stupid because great fighters are supposed to be able to take anyone AFTER their peak, and Tyson lost to greats and bums alike in the post prime era, whereas guys like Lennox avenged their few defeats and went out on a solid streak of wins.

 

[Yourstepdad]

Roy Jones JR

Edit: oops i thought the Pazienza fight was at light heavyweight but it wasnt. My bad

 

[b-hop]

1-Ali
2-Liston
3-Foreman
4-Tyson
5- Im not sure.

 

[nac386]

Roy Jones JR

Edit: oops i thought the Pazienza fight was at light heavyweight but it wasnt. My bad

You were going to say that RJJ is the best heavyweight ever because he beat Paz at light heavyweight?

 

[Hagler]

Ali, Louis, Lewis, Foreman, Holmes.

 

[ssx]

Ali, Lewis, Tyson
Those 3 would beat all the others at their all time peaks IMO. They could also beat each other on any given day.

 

[Yourstepdad]

You were going to say that RJJ is the best heavyweight ever because he beat Paz at light heavyweight?

This thread is not about best heavyweight ever.

 

[nac386]

This thread is not about best heavyweight ever.

Your top 5 heavyweight peaks. Meaning, which heavyweights had the highest peaks.

You said RJJ when he beat Paz.

 

[Yourstepdad]

Your top 5 heavyweight peaks. Meaning, which heavyweights had the highest peaks.

You said RJJ when he beat Paz.

I interpreted it as boxers who had best peak performance(s). The way RJJ beat Paz was world class

Definitely an honorable mention. --->Had the fight been at heavy weight

 

[Buddy Revell]

Asides from the top two I think the peak year qualifier favors the super heavies as a good big man generally beats a good little man (Ali and Tyson were physical and technical marvels. One offs.)

1. Tyson
2. Ali
3. Lennox Lewis
4. Foreman
5. Vitali
Honorable mention: Larry Holmes

 

[proncley]

1) Holmes
2) Ali
3) Louis
4) Tyson
5) Foreman