If we are talking fighters from any era, the following come to mind for me:
1. Ezzard Charles: Think fans of later years tend to underrate him because they think solo about his time at heavyweight, and don’t realize that was towards the ends his career and not his best weight. If you look at his time at 175, he is in the discussion for greatest light heavy ever- knocked out a prime Archie Moore! People forget that he was never the same after killing a man in the ring, and that prior to that he was a dominant/ferocious fighter.
2. Fernando Vargas: People focus on the losses, especially to Tito and Oscar. Look at Fernando’s wins prior to Tito: Yori Boy Campas was a decent win, but his win vs a prime Winky Wright and dominance over Ike Quartey were very impressive. He was too brave for his own good vs Tito, and that may have ruined him.
3. Reggie Johnson: Very skilled southpaw who lost a disputed decision to a prime James Toney ( after knocking him down). Most remember him as a light heavy and losing to Roy (Roy has a ridiculous one-two that knocks Reggie down in that fight), but that wasn’t his ideal weight and the guy was VERY good at 160.