Former Olympic gold medallist and multi-weight world champion Oscar De La Hoya has two men tied in the age-old debate over who is the greatest boxer of all time.
‘The Golden Boy’ is now best known as the face of Golden Boy Promotions, but in his prime he was a potent mix of speed, athleticism and power that made him one of boxing’s biggest stars — and one of its biggest earners.
While De La Hoya may not place himself in that conversation, he is adamant that one man most certainly belongs there, as he told ES News.
“Sugar Ray Robinson’s the greatest of all time. That’s basically it. All the weight divisions, hardest puncher, best footwork. He would fight multiple times a month. Took on the very best, took on the toughest challenges.”
Robinson boxed 201 times over a 25-year career, winning world titles at welterweight and middleweight. His victories over Jake LaMotta (in their sixth meeting), Rocky Graziano, Henry Armstrong and Sammy Angott were just some of the highlights in an illustrious career that saw ‘Sugar’ stand head and shoulders above his peers.
For the top spot, De La Hoya placed Robinson alongside another American who called himself ‘The Greatest’.
“He’s [Robinson] literally the G.O.A.T in boxing obviously next to Muhammad Ali. I’d put both together.”
Ali is arguably the biggest name in the history of boxing, having become a three-time world heavyweight champion and competed in some of the biggest fights of all time, including the ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ against George Foreman, and the ‘Thrilla in Manila’ against Joe Frazier.
