Now this is a mix-up Shakur Stevenson wouldn’t have wished for. The lightweight champion is all set to face Floyd Schofield. Ahead of the duel on ‘The Last Crescendo,’ the Newark native seems to have found himself in a quandary. Perhaps this is what happens when one plunges deep into the ‘Battle of The Tysons.’

The Ring Magazine shared a short clip. It featured Shakur Stevenson ranking some of the greatest fighters of all time in a top-10 order. To set the context straight, Stevenson did not pick a name and then place it accordingly. Rather, a name popped up, and the champion had to put it in the order he deemed best suited. So far, so good. But the problem ensued when he decided the fate of the two ‘Tysons’ – Mike Tyson and Tyson Fury. Needless to say, the attempt drew some scathing critique from fans and followers.

Shakur Stevenson: The top ten you’ve been waiting for!

“Shakur Stevenson’s blind rankings of boxing’s top-10 greatest fighters,” read the Ring Magazine tweet. The very first name that cropped up was that of Tyson Fury. “Six,” said Shakur Stevenson. ‘The Gypsy King’s conqueror, Oleksandr Usyk, received the fifth position.

Julio Cesar Chavez‘s name appeared. To Stevenson, the Mexican legend deserved the tenth slot. While ‘Sugar’ Ray Leonard occupied the third rank, Manny Pacquiao took over the eighth place. Now the top two, fourth, seventh, and ninth positions were empty.

At the 7th place, a level below Fury, Mike Tyson joined. For the first rank, Stevenson picked Floyd Mayweather Jr. The great ‘Brown Bomber’ Joe Louis was conferred the fourth, while ‘Sugar’ Ray Robinson and Muhammad Ali were the second and ninth greatest fighters of all time.

Aside from the few concerns over Ali and Pacquiao’s rank, many found Tyson Fury’s position hard to swallow. Let’s check what a few of the users had to say.

That said, let’s untangle the ‘Tyson’ confusion

But for Tyson Fury, this fan had no problem whatsoever with Stevenson’s listing. They said, “Perfect top 2.👌🏾Solid top 3. 🙌🏾 Remove Fury from the list, and not bad overall as well. 🤷🏾‍♂️.” The discourse over Fury’s legacy has been going on for some time. Especially the two consecutive defeats seem to have marred what was otherwise an outstanding boxing career.

Another one echoed similar sentiments. “Fury isn’t on any top 10 anything list,” said this fan. One thing is clear. The sport doesn’t favor anyone. You might be a champion with an unbeaten run. But one defeat and questions over your legacy will start cropping up.

If one goes by the next user’s views, then ‘The Gypsy King’ won’t appear even in the top 20 list. This is what they said: “Fury isn’t even in the top 20. Laughable.” But jokes apart, did the Usyk defeat change the landscape to such an extent that Fury’s contribution can be overlooked with ease?

This follower was clearly irked. They said, “Fury over Tyson? Man’s a f**kin’ idiot.” Now the peeve might be justified. Given what Mike Tyson has done for the sport, to be usurped by a fighter who was named after him isn’t the best of acknowledgments, is it? another user echoed the same sentiment. “N—a had Tyson fury above Mike Tyson? The disrespect,” said the user.

But a voice of reason echoed. “People act like he know who’s coming next to list lol bro just saying off the dome not really ranking them correctly so yall relax Jesus Christ lol 😂,” said this fan. Shakur Stevenson just reacted as the names appeared.

In the end, it’s just a personal view; hence, it shouldn’t be taken seriously, as one of the users suggested.

Rankings change every now and then. In the mix that included the likes of Ali, Ray Robinson, and Ray Leonard, you now have Usyk and Fury. Stevenson nevertheless has more important things to worry about. The fight on February 22.

What about you? Who are your ten greatest boxers of all time?