Best? What does that even mean? I understand why people ask it , 'Best Song', 'Best Novel' , 'Best Actor', 'Best sports team' etc but it is almost impossible to answer.
It is easier for those British boxers often mentioned at the top of these lists from earlier eras because they got there first, and made history before anyone else got a chance to. So naturally you usually and rightfully have Fitzsimmons. Broughton, Mace, Kid Lewis, Wilde etc who broke new ground and became the first to win certain titles, fight in new countries and often across divisions, many of them against the odds and with massive , high KO records.
In the modern era it is much harder and you have to accept that it is much more of a subjective choice. Even seemingly very different fighters have a lot more in common. Calzaghe share the same 32 KO stoppages as Lennox Lewis which puts a bit more perspective on him being called slappy. Both of those great fighters look a bit powder puff compared to Jimmy Wilde knocking out 99 opponents when not even weighing * stone himself
Back to the modern era though. Hamed as natural a fighter and entertainer as he was, even he could never lay claim to capturing the British publics imagination as much as Hatton. People loved ' Our Henry' and 'Big Frank' but people turned out in their thousands for Hatton and traveled the word supporting him. There was always an element of hype there, but it was built around a true entertainer who was very rarely going to give you a dull fight, win or lose. It was intoxicating stuff and Hatton truly had to work at it to get where he did, that heart for me makes up for what was missing in his boxing arsenal. Top Notch and in throwing himself in there with Floyd and Pacman he is a bit harshly dismissed because of the manner of their victories.
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