Over the course of the Following weeks our "Expert Panel" will be voting on the greatest fighters of all time in a division by division anaylsis. All 10 Panel members will rate their Top Ten best fighters in each division. A first place vote being worth 10 points, a second place vote worth 9 points, and so on to 1 point for a 10th place vote. A perfect or unanimous score would be 100 points. The final list will be an "Expert Consensus" as to the best fighters of all time. All 8 major divisions, plus three of the older Junior divisions (Jr. Lightweight 130 lbs., Jr. Welterweight 140 lbs., and Jr. Middlweight 154 lbs. will be rated.). The Last will be an all time Pound 4 Pound List.
Webster's defines "Expert" as "scientific witness". A "boxing expert" then as defined for our panel is one who is a witness or student of boxing, and boxing history. One who studies film, studies historical accounts, biographies, and old newspaper and magazine reports, or has some other area of expertise in analyzing fighters. In order to qualify for my panel one had to meet the following criteria: 1) Have a thorough knowledge of boxing history. 2) The "Expert" Poll will only include those who have published articles, or letters in a known boxing magazine, or who run their own boxing web-site, or have articles posted on a web-site, or are involved in the business in some way. This at least, shows some knowledge and dedication to the sport. 3) All Poll members agreed to research their lists and have them ready on time. All panelists have been asked to follow a set of guidelines that exluded London Prize Ring rules and bare-knuckle fighters.
(In Alphabetical Order)
Dennis Beebe: Has a background as an amateur and professional boxer, and is a serious boxing history buff. Dennis is the owner of BoxTalk a popular boxing bulletin board and chat site. He lives in Canada.
Tracy Callis: Is a veteran boxing historian. He is a member of Ralph Citro's "International Boxing Research Organization" (IBRO). Tracy is the resident boxing historian and a staff writer for CyberBoxingZone. Tracy is from Virginia.
Monte Cox: Is the author of this site! He has had letters published in World and International Boxing, Big Book of Boxing, KO magazine, Ring, and Boxing Scene. I also have published articles on heavyweight history in Boxing Scene. I live in Indiana.
Alex Hall (DutchSam): Due to various criticisms I wanted to include one person on my panel who qualifies only as a "typical modern boxing fan". Though hardly typical I have found Alex to be enthusiastic and willing to do his research. His list will make an interesting comparison to the other members of the panel.
Eric Jorgensen: Is a Los Angeles based boxing historian. He wrote the section on Jack Dempsey for "Great Fighters of the Past."
Pete Lugo: Is the boxing co-ordinator for the Azusa Boxing Club, Azusa, Ca. This club has produced several top amateur boxing champions that have gone onto successful professional careers including Zack Padilla, Paul Banke, and Sugar Shane Mosley.
Donald Miller (Dmille): Has been a boxing fan since Frazier-Ali 1. He boxed as an amateur as a kid. Dmille has had letters published in Boxing Illustrated, The Ring, and Boxing Scene. Don is known for his long ratings list.
Furry Murry: Is the owner of Furry Murry: The Canine with a Nose for Boxing an internet boxing newsletter. He is from California and Nevada. He writes for California Sports and Forum Boxing.
Heath Reed: Is a boxing history enthusiast. He writes for "Bob's Feint's", a boxing newsletter out of Virginia. He also wrote the biographies for the Internet Boxing Archives
Tom Stewart (TkoTom): Is a former Ring magazine correspondent (under then editor Steve Farhood). He has had letters published in several boxing magazines including World and International Boxing, the Ring, and KO. His first letter in 1983 and his most recent in 1997. Tom recently attended the IBHOF ceremony where he met and spoke with the likes of Bert Sugar, Emmanuel Steward, Alexis Arguello, and Jimmy Bivins. He currently resides in Maine.
The panel is well represented by a cross-section of various boxing enthusiasts ranging from those who have deep knoweledge of early boxing history (like Tracy Callis), to trainers like Pete Lugo, and many other serious boxing history fans.
The Results of our Consensus Panel should be fairly accurate in analyzing the top fighters in each weight class. Enjoy!