The Who
Who is the third best pound for pound boxer of all time, Joe Louis or Henry Armstrong?
On all of the best pound for pound boxer of all time websites that are written by boxing experts that know a heck of a lot about boxing, 90% of the time Sugar Ray Robinson is number one, Muhammad Ali is always number two, but Joe Louis and Henry Armstrong are always switching places. Does anyone know if Louis should be in third place of should Armstrong be in third place?
That Robinson is ranked number one is almost unanimous. I rarely see him below #1, and, in the rare occasion, it’s usually his ranking among middleweights. I don’t think you will find many disputes against Robinson’s P4P ranking.
In Pound for Pound, a phrase that was created in reference to Robinson, there are SO many categories to consider or ways to rank champions in these categories.
I STRONGLY support my ratings from an “IN THE RING” perspective. However, when it comes to P4P, I agree that the “Historical Impact” ranking is a bit more significant.
Joe Louis is everybody’s hero. It’s hard to not admire his accomplishments and, more over, what he symbolized. One would have to agree that, at least part of, his ranking, is enhanced by his standing and was aided by timing.
Would Joe Louis have been an American hero 20 years earlier? Would he be a hero in the early 60s. Joe Louis was a hero to Black Americans before he became an American symbol. He was the pioneer for change in the way America viewed Black people in general.
One can argue that Jack Johnson predated Louis. That’s obvious. However, Johnson was very self serving and, in more ways, a detriment to Black America. It’s because of his bold, but selfish behavior that other top Black heavyweights were denied a shot at the title.
Louis changed a lot of the negative view America held towards Blacks. For much of his “out of the ring” significance, Louis will always be held in high standards.
IN THE RING, I’d have to rank Henry Armstrong just ahead of Joe Louis. While Louis might be held in higher “significance”, being a heavyweight, just for starters, his IN THE RING accomplishments take a back seat to Armstrong’s.
True, Henry aged quickly. Any fighter of that aggressive, “bore in” style, where a fighter must take enormous punishment, in order to give, would cause a fighter to burn out early. However, the fact that Armstrong held THREE titles, SIMULTANEOUSLY, at a time when there was only ONE champion per division and NO jr. titles, can not be over looked.
In addition to his accomplishments, Armstrong was wrongly denied a 4th title when he clearly out pointed Ceferino Garcia for the middleweight title, but was not given the decision. For a better perspective, imagine Salvador Sanchez winning the featherweight title, then taking the welterweight title, from Sugar Ray Leonard, then the lightweight title from Alex Arguello and then going the distance and appearing, by most ringsiders, to take the middleweight title …………..from Marvin Hagler.
Ok, my imagination is running wild. these champions are a step above the champions Armstrong beat. Still, they were THE champions of their divisions, at a time when “Champion” meant “The One” (not the few, like today).
Joe Louis is indeed great, among the greatest of champions. But Henry Armstrong was just a little bit greater.
Oh, regarding Robinson, If EVER anyone ranks Robinson lower than three on ANY list, RUN!. Run as far away from that person as possible. Because THAT kind of insanity just might be contagious.
Baba O’Riley