IBRO All Time RAtings

Sugar Ray Robinson has once again been named the greatest boxer of all time, pound for pound, by the International Boxing Research Organization just as he was 15 years ago. Robinson has all of the qualifications to be titled as the greatest of them all. The Sugar man possessed every asset of a great boxing master; grace, speed, balance, fantastic skill, pulverizing punching power, an indestructible chin, and an indomitable will. Further his competition is among the best of any fighter in any weight class. Robinson also had longevity to go along with a great ring record.

There are a number of ways to rate fighters in an all-time sense, but it boils down to two important considerations. One is to judge the ability of a fighter. That is to ask who brings the most attributes to the ring. Rating fighters on talent is one method. The other is to rate fighters strictly on their ring record by weighing their accomplishments and quality of opposition. In either case Robinson is difficult to compare.

By Monte Cox  (Revised 2/26/2020)