It has been over a month since Floyd Mayweather had a great performance against Manny Pacquiao. The general consensus amongst boxing fans was 117-111, in a favour of Mayweather. Floyd showed a high boxing IQ, and amazing ring generalship to get the win. After the fight, there have been discussions online, and in the general boxing community, of where Mayweather stands in the all-time pound-for-pound rankings.
Since, these types of rankings are nearly impossible to put together, we will narrow the topic down. If one is not familiar with the fabulous four, let this article introduce you to these great fighters, and how prime Floyd Mayweather would do against them, in their respective primes. These fighters are: Marvelous Marvin Hagler, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran and, of course, Sugar Ray Leonard.
Let us start with Marvin Hagler. He is one of the all-time great middleweights, and one of the greatest fighters of the 1980’s. Hagler holds a knockout win in a super-fight against Hearns, in the third round, which is now classified as an all-time classic. Hagler also beat Duran, in a close fight, by UD, and lost a controversial split- decision to Sugar Ray Leonard. A fight between Hagler and Mayweather, could end up being similar to Hagler’s fight with Leonard. Assuming it would be 12 rounds, expect a controversial decision, with Floyd winning a very close fight. Mayweather has a great right hand that he lands with amazing precision, and Hagler was a southpaw. It would generally come down to Mayweather’s precision against the activity of Hagler. Let’s be realistic; in these days there are catchweights, and if they fought, it would probably be somewhere at 155 lbs. Yet controversial, the official prediction is Mayweather by SD against the bigger and stronger Hagler. At middleweight it may be a different story, but my official prediction stands
The next fighter that we will discuss is Sugar Ray Leonard. He is regarded by many as one of the best boxers that has ever lived. Leonard fought into the late 80’s and later had two unsuccessful comebacks fights. Leonard beat Thomas Hearns once by 14th round KO, in a fight he was trailing in. The rematch was a 12 round fight that ended in a very controversial draw. Leonard had three fights against Duran; the first ending with Duran by controversial UD; the second with Duran’s infamous “no mas” while quitting in the eighth round; the third with an easy UD for Leonard, and winning him the rubber match. Leonard also holds a win against Marvin Hagler. In a perfect world Floyd Mayeather against Sugar Ray Leonard would be two Olympic gold medalists facing off. However, Mayweather being “robbed” of the Olympic gold would prevent this. Nonetheless, Leonard was stronger, and just as fast as Mayweather. In a 12 round fight, Leonard edges Mayweather by SD, and if it was over 15 rounds, would win by UD. Leonard by decision.
Next up is Roberto Duran. As previously mentioned, Duran lost 2 to 1 in matches against Leonard, almost beat Hagler, and also lost to Hearns by KO in the second round. “Hands of Stone” is a living legend, that had a fan friendly style. He was a relentless brawler, that also had exceptional boxing skill. Although he fought way past his prime, he is currently in good health and often appears as a commentator on Latino boxing shows. A prime Duran vs a prime Mayweather would be intriguing, however Mayweather’s reach, size, and ring intelligence would lead him to a close unanimous decision. Duran however, would have a great chance to do a “Jose Luis Castillo” on Mayweather. Mayweather on points.
The final fighter of the fabulous four is Thomas “The Hitman “Hearns. Hearns had two spectacular performances against Leonard, only coming up short once and having a draw the next time. Tommy knockout Duran but suffered a brutal knockout loss against Hagler. Hearns was an amazing specimen, as he was 6’1 and had a 78 inch reach, and that would be an overwhelming advantage against a the 5’8, 72 inch reach of Floyd Mayweather. Hearns had one of the best jabs in history, and a very good right hand. His only achilles heel was with fighters that would over power him; for example; Iran Barkley, Marvin Hagler, and Sugar Ray Leonard. Mayweather has underrated power, however he would not be able to do the same damage as the previously named fighters did. Hearn’s jab and activity would’ve earn him a close but decisive decision against current pound-for-pound king Mayweather. If there ever was a modern time fighter who would beat Mayweather decisively, it would be Thomas Hearns. Hearns on points.
Finally, although it can be said Sugar Ray Leonard was the best out of the fabulous four, it would be Thomas Hearns who would have the best victory over Mayweather. If Mayweather would fight the four fighters mentioned in this article, it is predicted he would be 2-2 against them. All five; Mayweather, Leonard, Hearns, Duran and Hagler are regarded as some of the best in boxing history.
