lets start out by listing a few of them:
in no particular order, here are at least 10:
1. Rocky Marciano
2. Mohammad Ali
3. Floyd Patterson
4. Mike Tyson
5. Joe Lewis
6. Joe Frazier
7. Lennox Lewis
8. George Foreman
9. Sonny Liston
10. Max Baer
excellent list. I forgot about those 2 brothers.
especially the older one. he is a warrior of the highest order.
they are both incredible.
1) Lennox Lewis
2) Muhammed Ali
3) Rocky Marciano
4) Larry Holmes
5) Joe Louis
6) George Foreman
7) Vitali Klitschko
8.) Mike Tyson
9) Max Baer
10) Sonny Liston
11) Jack Dempsey
12) Vladimir Klitscho
1) Lennox Lewis
2) Muhammed Ali
3) Rocky Marciano
4) Larry Holmes
5) Joe Louis
6) George Foreman
7) Vitali Klitschko
8.) Mike Tyson
9) Max Baer
10) Sonny Liston
11) Jack Dempsey
12) Vladimir Klitscho
Greatest or best? Interesting list.
Ali is the greatest hands-down if we are talking about relativity to his era and the long term mark he left on the sport. He also transcended boxing into public life like no other.
On the other hand, I do understand the way you've put Lewis at Number One. If you put them both in the same ring, my money would be Lewis. Depends how you apply a "greatness" criteria. My own would be relativity against your own era vs somebody else's relativity to their era. + a nod to your impact on the sport in general. Ali tops it for me using that criteria. I'd also have Jack Johnson in my Top 12. Louis and Marciano would obviously feature highly.