Who was the greatest undefeated fighter of all time?

[warriorpoet]

Hardly an original answer here but in my opinion I'll say Rocky Marciano(49-0 with 43 ko's).Quite frankly I can't name too many undefeated fighters.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

If he maintains it I'd say Floyd by a pretty significant margin.

[DaveyMac]

marciano

[warriorpoet]

I always thought Gene Tunney was undefeated but I see he had one loss.

[gilgamesh]

I always thought Gene Tunney was undefeated but I see he had one loss.

Yeah he retired as Heavyweight Champion though.

[gilgamesh]

If he maintains it I'd say Floyd by a pretty significant margin.

Yep. If he doesn't, probably Ricardo Lopez.

I'm sure there are fighters I'm not thinking of though.

[Othro]

No love for Ottke?

[SaadOffTheDeck]

I'd rate Calzaghe and marciano over Lopez.

[evrenb]

If we are talking retired undefeated then ; Marciano, Calzaghe, R Lopez and Papp..

[Crease]

Marciano has a very strong case.

Calzaghe and Ricardo Lopez are definitely both up there.

Ottke isn't even in the running, nor is Terry Marsh or Edwin Valero.

[stevedoc]

No love for Ottke?

or terry marsh

[misterpunch]

papp is right up there - great shout

[warriorpoet]

I always thought Gene Tunney was undefeated but I see he had one loss.

Yeah he retired as Heavyweight Champion though.

Oh,yes he did and the 1 loss does not make him any less great!Especially when his only loss was to the great Harry Greb,a loss that he did avenge!

[evrenb]

papp is right up there - great shout

I was recently in Budapest and visited the sports stadium in his name. He died in Budapest in 2003.
What a fantastic city by the way, amazing architecture, fantastic scenery and brilliant people.

Papp, quite possibly the greatest amateur that ever lived...although his pro career was abridged due to communist flak he did manage to defeat a few decent pro's in Peter Mueller, Ralph Tiger Jones, Hippolyte Annex, Randy Sandy and Mick Leahy among others....

Long live Laci !!

[Othro]

Marciano has a very strong case.

Calzaghe and Ricardo Lopez are definitely both up there.

Ottke isn't even in the running, nor is Terry Marsh or Edwin Valero.

Ottke was head, gloves and shoulders above Calzaghe . He also holds the title of fewest punches thrown by any world champion . Ricardo Lopez's competition was worse than Ottke's.

[coreygardner]

Rocky Marciano, 49 - 0 (43 KO's). Floyd Mayweather is a better boxer, but he lacks to finish as often. I think Mayweather probably will beat his record.

Marciano vs. Rex Layne - he knocks his mouthpiece out with his teeth still in it, 6 - Round KO.

I think guys like Smokin' Joe Frazier and the others of the 70's would have beat him though, along with Mike Tyson.

[Tuan_Jim]

Marciano tops them all, by a significant margin.

Modern fighters with safety first match making can be cast aside. There's no speculation with The Rock, he was the boss.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Floyd has faced a multitude of better fighters than Marciano. He eclipsed him years ago.

[HomicideHenry]

The first champion of significant note who retired undefeated was Jim Jeffries.

Had he not come back after six years, losing 110 pounds, to face Jack Johnson I would argue that Jeffries may very well of been the best undefeated heavyweight of all time. However, that's not the case, so we must move on from the topic of Jeffries.

Calzaghe, is obviously the best Super Middleweight champion in history. But is he the best fighter who was undefeated ever? No. Ricardo Lopez, who was well over 50-0, I think is either extremely over-rated or he's vastly under-rated. In alot of ways I look at him in the same respect as I do Marciano; both men are seldom ever given their exact just due as fighters--- they are either blown up, or burried.

Laszlo Papp, was a 3x Olympic medalist, and was arguably the greatest European Middleweight of all time; however, communist politics prevented him from competing further as a pro. So, we never saw him at his best. So it's hard to gauge him overall.

Ottke has been mentioned a few times on the thread, and as some have pointed out, he had faced better competition than Lopez--- but he's another one, who is either over-rated or under-rated, depending on what side of the fence you are on.

Mayweather, may have the best case of them all, but it seems (potentially) that he's on the bell curve of his career and who knows how long his undefeated streak will last. Having been a champion in so many weight classes, and only looked vulnerable twice in his career (Castillo and Maidana) he's made an awful lot of men look like amateurs, when they themselves are HOF worthy fighters. However, there's always a catch, it seems, when it comes to virtually every man's career--- he has yet to face the one man, that the general public believes to be his equal or greatest rival. If he is able to maintain his streak, and fought Pacquiao and beat him convincingly, then he probably has every right in the world to say he was the best undefeated fighter in history.

[Crease]

Floyd has faced a multitude of better fighters than Marciano. He eclipsed him years ago.

I;'m not too sure about that Saad. Marciano fought the best competition available to him. I'm not sure the same can be said of Floyd.

[Tuan_Jim]

Floyd has faced a multitude of better fighters than Marciano. He eclipsed him years ago.

You surely have to name them now Saad. I know you of all people won't fall back on passing men off as top flight opponents because they carried an ABC trinket into the ring.

Marciano mopped up his best opp. We're still waiting for Mayweather to fight Pac, while hearing the same old lines from so many about how Floyd is obviously superior to Pac - while going life & death with Maidana.

[BoxBuzz]

Sven

[Crease]

Ottke was head, gloves and shoulders above Calzaghe . He also holds the title of fewest punches thrown by any world champion

That is rank madness!

Ricardo Lopez's competition was worse than Ottke's.

I'd disagree with this too. Lopez is recognised as the greatest ever fighter of his weight class. Ottke definitely is not.

[Othro]

Ottke was head, gloves and shoulders above Calzaghe . He also holds the title of fewest punches thrown by any world champion

That is rank madness!

Ricardo Lopez's competition was worse than Ottke's.

I'd disagree with this too. Lopez is recognised as the greatest ever fighter of his weight class. Ottke definitely is not.

It's true Lopez is regarded as the greatest in his weight class . That's quite an achievement seeing how deep the talent pool is there .

Name 5 supermiddleweights who could beat Ottke.

[SaadOffTheDeck]

Floyd has faced a multitude of better fighters than Marciano. He eclipsed him years ago.

I;'m not too sure about that Saad. Marciano fought the best competition available to him. I'm not sure the same can be said of Floyd.

So? Floyd has still fought a much higher level of opposition.