Ward takes over the P4P #1 spot

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

yeah I mean GGG as #1 just boggles my mind. What shocks me most is looking at who got #1 votes and Ward didn't get 1. I mean that's shocking, just shocking. The guy he beat got a vote ahead of him. Loma is probably too high but he's undoubtedly one of the most talented fighters out there and he's consistently targeting and beating very good competition and looking good doing it.

Yeah I saw that votes list. LMAO what a joke, Valdez, Wilder, ESJ and Swift have no place on there. I'm really not sure what they even pay the guys at ESPN for, we could make a better list. Pure shit.

I'm just as shocked as you are. GGG is a Top 10 P4P talent but not the best fighter in the world, and that's very clear now. Yeah, Loma at #3 is definitely too high at this point. He's only had 8 pro fights and needs to accomplish more yet. I posted the updated ESPN list just for comparison. Fortunately, in this case, the "authoritative" P4P rankings aren't ESPN's.

 

[aries]

Boys, we have movement! A bowel movement it seems. Here are ESPN's updated P4P rankings.

Pound-for-pound rankings: Gennady Golovkin is the new No. 1

And no, I do not agree with GGG being voted #1, nor do I agree with the order of their current list. I was hoping their list would be better because Fat Dan is only 1/9 voting members on their panel. I'm just reporting their updated rankings that changed today.

How Our Writers Voted
POS. ATLAS TREJOS CORTEZ NAVA PILATTI PARKINSON RAFAEL RASKIN RODRIGUEZ
1 V. Lomachenko R. Gonzalez G. Golovkin S. Kovalev G. Golovkin G. Golovkin G. Golovkin V. Lomachenko G. Golovkin
2 T. Crawford A. Ward C. Alvarez G. Golovkin T. Crawford A. Ward A. Ward G. Golovkin R. Gonzalez
3 K. Thurman T. Crawford R. Gonzalez A. Ward R. Gonzalez V. Lomachenko S. Kovalev S. Kovalev A. Ward
4 A. Ward G. Golovkin M.Pacquiao T. Crawford V. Lomachenko R. Gonzalez V. Lomachenko A. Ward S. Kovalev
5 S. Kovalev G. Rigondeaux V. Lomachenko V. Lomachenko K. Thurman S. Kovalev R. Gonzalez T. Crawford M. Pacquiao
6 G. Rigondeaux S. Kovalev C. Crawford C. Alvarez A. Ward M. Pacquiao M. Pacquiao M. Pacquiao C. Alvarez
7 C. Alvarez C. Alvarez D. Wilder R. Gonzalez S. Kovalev T. Crawford T. Crawford R. Gonzalez V. Lomachenko
8 M. Pacquiao V. Lomachenko A. Ward S. Yamanaka M. Pacquiao C. Alvarez C. Alvarez C. Alvarez K. Thurman
9 E. Spence Jr. N. Inoue S. Kovalev K. Thurman O. Valdez L. Santa Cruz K. Thurman G. Rigondeaux T. Crawford
10 D. Garcia K. Thurman K. Thurman G. Rigondeaux D. Wilder K. Thurman L. Santa Cruz M. Garcia G. Rigondeaux

Whoever had Wilder at no.7 should be sacked immediately. No wonder they are listed anonymously.

 

[quincy k]

I'll agree with you that ranking GGG at 10 is too low but Golovkin's best wins are against Lemieux, a big Welterweight in Brook and a big Middleweight in Jacobs (his best win) in a very close fight. Golovkin doesn't hold the WBO world title, Saunders still has it and Canelo is still the lineal champion even if you don't consider him to be. If GGG can get Saunders in the ring with him (been waiting) then he can become the undisputed MW champ. Most don't believe Gonzalez should've lost, but he did, which got Ward the top spot by default. Kovalev was already trailing directly behind Ward after their fight, though the majority thought Kovalev beat him, but officially he lost, so naturally he'll be in the Top 3.

After the Top 3 (Ward, Gonzalez & Kovalev) the others can fit in more loosely with a much higher rate of subjectivity. It depends on what you're ranking and how you weigh it; purely on accomplishments, accomplishments mixed with ability or perceived ability, judging mostly on ability, who has the most upside (still in their prime and rising), how quickly did they accomplish the feats, how consistent have their performances been against top competition, longevity, etc.

Any of the fighters in the Top 5 or fringe Top 5 can essentially be your #1 at this point. Let's take the sting off, please everybody, and label them as 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e, 1f, 1g, 1h, 1i & 1j. Everyone wins. Unless you have a better list? I mainly just look at the Top 5, around there.

no one ever crticized bernard hopkins run in the mid 90s up until the trinidad fight

although glen johnson went on to being a great fighter he was completely untested at the time that he fought hopkins

is antwun echols any better than david lemiuex? keith holmes better than jacobs? robert allen better than martin murray?

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

Whoever had Wilder at no.7 should be sacked immediately. No wonder they are listed anonymously.

It shows but the table isn't easy to read. I'll make it easier next time. Here's the guy that needs sacked, the honorable Joe Cortez (known for his reffing). He voted Wilder at P4P #7 for w/e reason.

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

no one ever crticized bernard hopkins run in the mid 90s up until the trinidad fight

although glen johnson went on to being a great fighter he was completely untested at the time that he fought hopkins

is antwun echols any better than david lemiuex? keith holmes better than jacobs? robert allen better than martin murray?

I'm a GGG fan but he isn't the best P4P. Hopkins also moved up so it wasn't just what he did at MW. We could critique his MW run but I don't see what point there'd be to doing that. To answer your question though, no to all of those.

 

[quincy k]

I'm a GGG fan but he isn't the best P4P. Hopkins also moved up so it wasn't just what he did at MW.

golovkin doesnt deserve number 1 but he deserves to be in the top 10

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

golovkin doesnt deserve number 1 but he deserves to be in the top 10

That's good then because I feel the same way.

 

[WklySportsMemes]

ward officially won but everyone knows kovalev proved he was the better boxer
OJ officially was acquitted but everyone knows he did that shit

Oh I see. You have no idea what the word everyone means.

This is an awful list. You have two guys who taken two years of their prime off in the top 7 and an undefeated guy who has all the belts at his weight class and just beat a talented, much larger fighter at 10.

You know what you kind of made some points to make me cool with Ward being # 1 unintentionally . Lol
I think of his accomplishments before the break. How long ago he reigned and PROVED himself far superior to a group of great Super Middleweights that actually fought each other. His longevity and the fact he was doing it before any of these guys were on the radar kind of negates the break. Then he takes 2 years off moves up to beat a p4p killer like Kovalev. I would take all those things in consideration before the infamous size difference of GGG vs a middleweight opponent he was favored against.

 

[aries]

It shows but the table isn't easy to read. I'll make it easier next time. Here's the guy that needs sacked, the honorable Joe Cortez (known for his reffing). He voted Wilder at P4P #7 for w/e reason.

LOL Joe Cortez, that explains a lot! I can't stand that guy, ever since his shockingly biased reffing of the Hatton - Mayweather fight.

 

[WklySportsMemes]

Hopkins also moved up so it wasn't just what he did at MW.

Excellent point. Moving up seems like it should hold major value and advantage on the P4P list.

I also dont think any heavier guys should be on there unless they have cleaned out their division or at least are a consensus #1 with actual warm bodieS on their resume.

Hype and size seem like the exact reasons p4p was invented. To counter all that stuff. Sad to see it creep into so many p4p rankings.

 

[aries]

I have a point I'd like to bring up as regards P4P ratings. Surely P4P should be based not only on the result of a fight but on how the fighters performed in that fight against their opposition? In fact I'd say that how they performed against their opponent is even more important. Ward being rated no.1 is based on him getting a contentious decision against another P4P lister that many say that he didn't beat. Surely that means less than Gonzalez losing against his opponent but looking like he won clearly? Point is I don't think Ward deserves to be above Gonzalez and I'd personally rate him below Kovalev since I think that the Crusher did enough to beat him.

My own P4P would look like this:

#1 Roman Gonzalez
#2 Kovalev
#3 GGG
#4 Ward
#5 Crawford
#6 Garcia
#7 Lomachenko
#8 Manny Pacquiao
#9 Canelo
#10 Yamanaka

 

[Kovalev's "Man Bag"]

Excellent point. Moving up seems like it should hold major value and advantage on the P4P list.

I also dont think any heavier guys should be on there unless they have cleaned out their division or at least are a consensus #1 with actual warm bodieS on their resume.

Hype and size seem like the exact reasons p4p was invented. To counter all that stuff. Sad to see it creep into so many p4p rankings.

IMO, moving up should definitely be rewarded because you're taking more of a risk by fighting larger, stronger, more powerful fighters. However, I wouldn't say that it should ever be a requirement and traditionally it's never been a requirement. I mean, you could be in an insanely stacked division with other P4P talents to fight and legitimately work your way up to the top spot quickly that way if you're fortunate enough to be in such a division with a large amount of depth. But I do favor guys that move up at least a division or two and have a lot of success, excluding Heavyweights of course since they don't have the luxury of moving up.

The Pound-for-Pound term was coined a very long time ago. Some say it dates back to Sugar Ray Robinson while others believe it goes back further to Benny Leonard. The HW champs at those respective times were getting all of this recognition but weren't as skilled and observers noted it. Joe Louis was the HW king but Sugar Ray was the most skilled as most saw it. In Benny Leonard's case, Jack Dempsey was HW king but most recognized Leonard as the most skilled fighter. So, you're right that size and looking to compare great Heavyweight champs specifically to smaller (more skilled) fighters of those early eras is why P4P even exists. The Ring came along in 1990 and started publishing the official P4P rankings.

 

[burningspear]

Canelo is the best boxer in the world.
Fuck it, I said it

He aint fit to sniff the steam off Loma's shit.