Who was better, Sugar Ray Leonard or Roy Jones Jr?

[VG_Addict]

Sugar Ray Leonard and Roy Jones Jr were some of the most naturally talented fighters to ever lace up a pair of gloves. Both were noted for their speed, and both had success at multiple weights. But, who was the better fighter pound for pound?

[Master]

Really hard one because Ray Leonard was a true great at welterweight he had no right to beat another great in Tommy Hearns but did it with skill, talent, courage, heart, will and chin.

Roy was super fast with a punch but not tested to the level Leonard was so had it easier.

I would say p4p Leonard. Ray would time Roy and knock him out.

[mikeeod]

I tend to look at this one a little differently. If we are talking accomplishments and historical impact, then I say Ray is an easy winner. If we are talking a mythical match up where size is made equal and all other attributes adapt accordingly, I feel this is a 50/50 fight.

Ray had better fundamentals and was VERY close to Roy in terms of athletic ability, but I feel Roy's slight edge in athleticism combined with his unorthodox/creative style would have presented significant problems to Leonard. I think Ray was very good at adjusting during fights and he was able to vary his weapons/strategy once he figured out the other guy's weaknesses. Roy was so damn unorthodox and unpredictable in his prime that I see Ray requiring numerous rounds to start to feel comfortable and spot the openings. This would be a fantastic fight.

[Master]

I tend to look at this one a little differently. If we are talking accomplishments and historical impact, then I say Ray is an easy winner. If we are talking a mythical match up where size is made equal and all other attributes adapt accordingly, I feel this is a 50/50 fight.

Ray had better fundamentals and was VERY close to Roy in terms of athletic ability, but I feel Roy's slight edge in athleticism combined with his unorthodox/creative style would have presented significant problems to Leonard. I think Ray was very good at adjusting during fights and he was able to vary his weapons/strategy once he figured out the other guy's weaknesses. Roy was so damn unorthodox and unpredictable in his prime that I see Ray requiring numerous rounds to start to feel comfortable and spot the openings. This would be a fantastic fight.

Ray adjusted to all types of styles particularly greats such as Hearns, Duran and Benitez. As unorthodox as Roy was Leonard would not have a problem with him. Ray would time Roy and beat him silly. P4P Roy brings athleticism and punch power which is not enough to beat Ray.

[ykdadamaja]

Sugar Ray Leonard and Roy Jones Jr were some of the most naturally talented fighters to ever lace up a pair of gloves. Both were noted for their speed, and both had success at multiple weights. But, who was the better fighter pound for pound?

RJJ was UNBEATABLE up to the Ruiz fight. No one in the world could match him. NO ONE!

[TitoFan]

I tend to look at this one a little differently. If we are talking accomplishments and historical impact, then I say Ray is an easy winner. If we are talking a mythical match up where size is made equal and all other attributes adapt accordingly, I feel this is a 50/50 fight.

Ray had better fundamentals and was VERY close to Roy in terms of athletic ability, but I feel Roy's slight edge in athleticism combined with his unorthodox/creative style would have presented significant problems to Leonard. I think Ray was very good at adjusting during fights and he was able to vary his weapons/strategy once he figured out the other guy's weaknesses. Roy was so damn unorthodox and unpredictable in his prime that I see Ray requiring numerous rounds to start to feel comfortable and spot the openings. This would be a fantastic fight.

As good as this analysis is, I side with @Master on this one. For me SRL is top 2 or 3 all-time P4P, if not the best ever. His list of opponents, of different styles, sizes, and power... can stand up to anyone else's list. Roy was more purely athletic, but could get a bit sloppy relying on that athleticism. I agree though... it would be a fantastic fight.

[Primo Carnera]

Mythical match up p4p at their peak, I would favour SRL. But at his peak, RJJ was an amazing phenomenal fighter.

[mikeeod]

I don't disagree with you guys on Ray proving his greatness and beating ridiculous competition, and I give him a great chance to beat Roy. I just think guys like Roy and Hamed were freakish enough to cause problems for anyone who ever fought. Ray had the mental toughness to will himself through hard times to victory, but Roy was very good at capitalizing on openings. Combined with Roy's punch (I feel he had more power), I see Ray struggling a bit. I could be wrong though, Ray was the definition of ATG and a special fighter.

[Master]

I don't disagree with you guys on Ray proving his greatness and beating ridiculous competition, and I give him a great chance to beat Roy. I just think guys like Roy and Hamed were freakish enough to cause problems for anyone who ever fought. Ray had the mental toughness to will himself through hard times to victory, but Roy was very good at capitalizing on openings. Combined with Roy's punch (I feel he had more power), I see Ray struggling a bit. I could be wrong though, Ray was the definition of ATG and a special fighter.

Roy was just below.

[Primo Carnera]

I don't disagree with you guys on Ray proving his greatness and beating ridiculous competition, and I give him a great chance to beat Roy. I just think guys like Roy and Hamed were freakish enough to cause problems for anyone who ever fought. Ray had the mental toughness to will himself through hard times to victory, but Roy was very good at capitalizing on openings. Combined with Roy's punch (I feel he had more power), I see Ray struggling a bit. I could be wrong though, Ray was the definition of ATG and a special fighter.

Now RJJ was a great , but Hamed is nowhere near that level. And as for causing problems for anyone ever, he didn't cause Barrera many problems, and as much as I love Barrera, he isn't at the level of the guys we're talking about.

[mikeeod]

I don't disagree with you guys on Ray proving his greatness and beating ridiculous competition, and I give him a great chance to beat Roy. I just think guys like Roy and Hamed were freakish enough to cause problems for anyone who ever fought. Ray had the mental toughness to will himself through hard times to victory, but Roy was very good at capitalizing on openings. Combined with Roy's punch (I feel he had more power), I see Ray struggling a bit. I could be wrong though, Ray was the definition of ATG and a special fighter.

Now RJJ was a great , but Hamed is nowhere near that level. And as for causing problems for anyone ever, he didn't cause Barrera many problems, and as much as I love Barrera, he isn't at the level of the guys we're talking about.

You make a very valid point on Hamed, but my question would be if you feel that the version of Hamed that MAB fought was the best, or if he had started to slip and get lazy. I tend. to view Naz as losing his edge around the Kelley fight, so that is why I see him giving great comp tough fights. I would also classify MAB as an ATG, although not at the level of Ray.

[ruthless rocco]

Hamed started to slip when started fighting real competition, not because he became lazy.

[Master]

Hamed started to slip when started fighting real competition, not because he became lazy.

Naz unified the division with ease and when he was with Ingle he was the bomb. That version would have given MAB a much harder time.

[Ron Swanson]

Roy is the most talented fighter I have ever seen and it’s really not close.

But Ray had it all. It’s possible Roy had it all in his prime and we just didn’t get to see it but....we didn’t get to see it. So we can’t assume he had the heart of SRL, the dog that SRL had in him, the ability to keep his wits when things aren’t going your way. We’ve seen a million talented fighters come apart when things start to go wrong.

We can only credit fighters for what we know they are capable of. SRL showed ya more. But we can always remember Roy as the most talented fighter we ever saw, that’s not such a bad thing to be.

[sanatogen]

Hamed started to slip when started fighting real competition, not because he became lazy.

I disagree. Hamed was on borrowed time after the kelly fight. Foundation of his success was slipping away even then.