Floyd Mayweather has little doubt that he is the greatest fighter of all time. Three-weight world champion James Toney recently weighed in on the debate.
‘Money’ Mayweather famously retired with a perfect 50-0 record, winning belts in five divisions and becoming the sport’s biggest pay-per-view star while doing so.
With slick defence and an unwavering confidence, Mayweather beat the likes of Manny Pacquiao, Oscar De La Hoya, Arturo Gatti and Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez. He was well known for his effective shoulder roll technique – the defensive ability to catch, block and roll with shots from even the biggest punchers.
Despite the accolades, Toney – who claimed that Mayweather learnt that very style from him but could not do it as well – told the Wise Nuts podcast he was absolutely not the greatest of all time.
‘Lights Out’ then criticised Mayweather’s record, claiming that he strategically avoided some big names.
“Have him fight in my era. He didn’t fight the fighters that were around in the ’90s. He waited till they retired and got out the game. He didn’t fight Chavez. He wouldn’t fight Chavez. He wouldn’t beat Chavez. Hatton was s**t. Garbage. He beat ‘Canelo,’ I’ll give him that.”
Mayweather hung up the gloves in 2017 after a crossover bout with Conor McGregor. He was named ‘Fighter of the Decade’ in the 2010s by the Boxing Writers Association of America.
He has since popped up on the exhibition scene, putting on shows across the globe to mixed responses, facing popular figures like Logan Paul, Deji Olatunji and Tenshin Nasukawa.
