By Veersen Bhoolai Yes. I put the great Joe Louis that far down. And to the chegrin of many Jack Johnson didn't even make my list. Sounds crazy, doesn't it? Now let's analyze why. Pound for pound there is no doubt in my mind that Louis and Johnson should be rated higher. Johnson was a ring genius. However, we are talking about these fighters ONLY as Heavyweights. You have two kinds of Heavys here. The small ones and the big ones. Floyd Patterson fought during the era of the Super Heavyweights: Liston, Knorton, Ali etc. Floyd was a gifted boxer with fast hands. Perhaps even faster than Ali's. However, forced to spot his opponents 25 to 35 pounds, Patterson was always at disadvantage. Patterson's dillema is a classic example as to why Louis and Johnson would have suffered against some of the bigger and more gifted fighters of the division's history. Could you imagine Johnson coming in at 185 and spotting 50 odd pounds to a prime 235-240 lbs. Lennox Lewis. Do you seriously think he would win!!? It is therefore, no coincidence that Louis, and Walcott (small Heavyweights by today's standards) bring up the rear. Now let's look at the top 10. Muhumad Ali was absolutely phenonemal. His grace, reflexes and over all ability set him apart from his contemporaries. Ali had all the tools: lateral movement, combination punching, and unbelievable head and shoulder movement. His unorthodox style made it more difficult to read him as an opponent. His chin was tested against some of the greatest punchers in the division. Consider this: we saw Ali as a young man and we saw him after his five year ban from boxing (for refusing the Vietnam Draft). However, we never saw him in his prime. Larry Holmes was an incredibly underrated fighter. He had all the tools you could want from a Heavyeweight Champion: amazing jab, with a follow up right, good legs, good chin and a ton of heart. Larry never had the opposition that Ali had. Perhaps this is one of the reasons that he was so unappreciated. However, his dominance of the division for seven odd years cannot go ignored. Lennox Lewis, looks mechanical but he has the power and ring smarts to worry the best. As Champion - BOTH Tyson and Riddick Bowe paid him step aside money rather than fight him. His only losses have come due to carelessness and he wiped the slate clean in the rematch. Disliked by many simply because he's British and not flashy. However, he's powerful, talented and GETS THE JOB DONE. Also his size would have been murder for the smaller guys like Dempsey and Ezzard Charles. I really wanted to put George Foreman after Frazier. BUT how can you ignore what he did to Frazier!? NOBODY ever handled Smoking Joe like that. I believe that Frazier would have done better against Holmes, Lewis and of course he did better vs. Ali. However, with Foreman, Joe's style just didn't work. Also I believe that from 73 onwards, Fraizer wasn't the same fighter. However, Joe Frazier had very underrated head and shoulder movement as he worked his way on the inside. A small Heavyweight, 205-210, he used his lack of size to his advantage. Fighting in a crouch he would bob and weave getting extra leverage and power in his punches. Mike Tyson prior to 1989 was damn good. Wonderful head and shoulder movement, great combinations. Like Fraizer he used his lack of height to his advantage; bobbing and weaving and getting extra power in his shots as he came up from his crouch. Started to play around in 1989 and after jail wasn't the same guy. Sonny Liston was in his prime as a contender. He had an extremely powerful jab, bruising power in both hands, good all round skills and a wonderful chin. He was fit and tough. However, Cus Damato, the trainer and manager of the then World Champ, Floyd Patterson refused to let Patterson fight the bigger Liston. Liston was ducked for two years. Finally when Patterson could tolerated the shame no longer, he left Damato and gave Liston a crack at the title. Patterson was flattened in one round. In the rematch he was flattened in one round again.However, when Liston finally became Champ, he was an old man.The Liston of 1958 was AWESOME. I believe he may have even beaten Foreman and Frazier, perhaps even Tyson. Kenny Norton was unforutanate enough to fight in the greatest era of the division. He had to put up with the likes of Ali, Frazier, Jerry Quarry, Foreman, Ron Lyle, Jimmy Young and a lot of other TOUGH Heavyweights you may not have heard of. Norton fighting around 215 lbs. was tough, with good power and a great trainer in Eddie Futch. In three fights with Ali, he won the first one and in the third for the Heavyweight Championship, he was robbed over 15 rounds. Norton simply sat in the ring and cried. In the first defense of his title, lost a tough 15 round fight to a hungry and talented Larry Holmes. A first round knock out to George Foreman hurt his marketablity in the history books. However, the world recognizes him for what he was: A gallant warrior during the division's most competitive era. And now Mr. Joe Louis. He was an extremely talented fighter: bruising power in either hand. Moved only as much as he needed to, always within reach of his opponent, but just outhside of theirs. Because of his short punches, a lot of people don't realize how fast his hands were. However, by today's standards he was a small Heavyweight. In his prime he fought around 200 odd pounds. He never fought a truly outstanding heavy. He was man handled by Schmelling the first time they met. In the rematch two years later, he beat a 33 yr old. Schmelling in one round. Joe Louis dominated never wasses and bums., thus the term, the "Bum of the month club." whilst he fought. A good fighter who never really had the proper opposition, as Ali did. In my opinion he was just too small. Jersey Joe Walcott, was a bloated Light Heavyweight. He was never given the proper oppotunitties because of his lack of connections, so he moved up in weight. An EXTREMELY talented fighter. He was doing the shuffle and rope a dope when Ali was still in diappers. In his first title fight with Joe Louis, he made him look like a fool, but got robbed. Louis promptly apologised and gave him a rematch. He was leading in the second fight but tried to trade with Louis in the 11th and got KOd. A great fighter, he could have been a legend at Lt. Hvy if only he had been given a title shot. Jack Johnson pound for pound was perhaps better than most if not all the fighters placed before him. But this was a small Heavy, fighting under 200 pounds. I belive, Ali, Lewis, Holmes etc would have had handled him. Remember, what truly talented big men, did he or Louis beat. Yes, they did beat some big men. However, NONE of those individuals, eg. Louis vs. Buddy Baer, were in the class of the afore mentioned. Ezzard Charles, Walcott and Floyd Patterson could have all had a greater place as well in Heavyweight history were it not for their lack of size. Rocky Mariciano was as tough as they came. But you've got to be nuts if you think this little guy fighting at 188 odd pounds would have had a chance vs. the great Super Heavys of history. Some will point out that he did beat Jersey Joe, but Marciano was struggling with a fighter 40 odd years of age and had to come from behind to knock him out in the 15th and last round. This is the same Marciano who had tough fights with bloated Light Heavys, Charles and Archie Moore. Moore knocked him down and he was in his forties for goodness sake!! Jack Dempsey was in a similiar dilemma as Marciano. What makes it worse is that he fought no black contender, once he became Champion. Harry Wills (an African American) considered by many to be the best Heavyweight of his time, never had a chance to find out. Dempsey simply wouldn't fight him. Could you imagine Tommy Morrison as the Heavyweight Champ, ducking the best black fighters. There's an old adage in boxing: "A good big man will always beat a good little man." This is usually true. However, if you follow boxing long enough, you will realise that sometimes a good little man can beat a good big man. Evander Holyfield is an example of this. However, he was beaten by a young and motivated Riddick Bowe in their first fight and twice beaten by Lennox Lewis, although the first fight was unfairly called a Draw. I don't see Evander beating Norton. However, because of the similiarity in size (Evander's fighting prime at Heavy was approx. 210 lbs) he would have had a decent chance against Louis. Bear in mind that when Holyfield beat Tyson, that was a post '88 Mike Tyson. In closing let me reiterate that pound for pound, Johnson, Louis, Marciano and Holyfield would rate much higher. However, in a real time fight against the bigger Heavyeweights of history, they would be at a decided disadvantage. . |
Caribbean & International boxing |
By Veersen Bhoolai Yes. I put the great Joe Louis that far down. And to the chegrin of many Jack Johnson didn't even make my list. Sounds crazy, doesn't it? Now let's analyze why. Pound for pound there is no doubt in my mind that Louis and Johnson should be rated higher. Johnson was a ring genius. However, we are talking about these fighters ONLY as Heavyweights. You have two kinds of Heavys here. The small ones and the big ones. Floyd Patterson fought during the era of the Super Heavyweights: Liston, Knorton, Ali etc. Floyd was a gifted boxer with fast hands. Perhaps even faster than Ali's. However, forced to spot his opponents 25 to 35 pounds, Patterson was always at disadvantage. Patterson's dillema is a classic example as to why Louis and Johnson would have suffered against some of the bigger and more gifted fighters of the division's history. Could you imagine Johnson coming in at 185 and spotting 50 odd pounds to a prime 235-240 lbs. Lennox Lewis. Do you seriously think he would win!!? It is therefore, no coincidence that Louis, and Walcott (small Heavyweights by today's standards) bring up the rear. Now let's look at the top 10. Muhumad Ali was absolutely phenonemal. His grace, reflexes and over all ability set him apart from his contemporaries. Ali had all the tools: lateral movement, combination punching, and unbelievable head and shoulder movement. His unorthodox style made it more difficult to read him as an opponent. His chin was tested against some of the greatest punchers in the division. Consider this: we saw Ali as a young man and we saw him after his five year ban from boxing (for refusing the Vietnam Draft). However, we never saw him in his prime. Larry Holmes was an incredibly underrated fighter. He had all the tools you could want from a Heavyeweight Champion: amazing jab, with a follow up right, good legs, good chin and a ton of heart. Larry never had the opposition that Ali had. Perhaps this is one of the reasons that he was so unappreciated. However, his dominance of the division for seven odd years cannot go ignored. Lennox Lewis, looks mechanical but he has the power and ring smarts to worry the best. As Champion - BOTH Tyson and Riddick Bowe paid him step aside money rather than fight him. His only losses have come due to carelessness and he wiped the slate clean in the rematch. Disliked by many simply because he's British and not flashy. However, he's powerful, talented and GETS THE JOB DONE. Also his size would have been murder for the smaller guys like Dempsey and Ezzard Charles. I really wanted to put George Foreman after Frazier. BUT how can you ignore what he did to Frazier!? NOBODY ever handled Smoking Joe like that. I believe that Frazier would have done better against Holmes, Lewis and of course he did better vs. Ali. However, with Foreman, Joe's style just didn't work. Also I believe that from 73 onwards, Fraizer wasn't the same fighter. However, Joe Frazier had very underrated head and shoulder movement as he worked his way on the inside. A small Heavyweight, 205-210, he used his lack of size to his advantage. Fighting in a crouch he would bob and weave getting extra leverage and power in his punches. Mike Tyson prior to 1989 was damn good. Wonderful head and shoulder movement, great combinations. Like Fraizer he used his lack of height to his advantage; bobbing and weaving and getting extra power in his shots as he came up from his crouch. Started to play around in 1989 and after jail wasn't the same guy. Sonny Liston was in his prime as a contender. He had an extremely powerful jab, bruising power in both hands, good all round skills and a wonderful chin. He was fit and tough. However, Cus Damato, the trainer and manager of the then World Champ, Floyd Patterson refused to let Patterson fight the bigger Liston. Liston was ducked for two years. Finally when Patterson could tolerated the shame no longer, he left Damato and gave Liston a crack at the title. Patterson was flattened in one round. In the rematch he was flattened in one round again.However, when Liston finally became Champ, he was an old man.The Liston of 1958 was AWESOME. I believe he may have even beaten Foreman and Frazier, perhaps even Tyson. Kenny Norton was unforutanate enough to fight in the greatest era of the division. He had to put up with the likes of Ali, Frazier, Jerry Quarry, Foreman, Ron Lyle, Jimmy Young and a lot of other TOUGH Heavyweights you may not have heard of. Norton fighting around 215 lbs. was tough, with good power and a great trainer in Eddie Futch. In three fights with Ali, he won the first one and in the third for the Heavyweight Championship, he was robbed over 15 rounds. Norton simply sat in the ring and cried. In the first defense of his title, lost a tough 15 round fight to a hungry and talented Larry Holmes. A first round knock out to George Foreman hurt his marketablity in the history books. However, the world recognizes him for what he was: A gallant warrior during the division's most competitive era. And now Mr. Joe Louis. He was an extremely talented fighter: bruising power in either hand. Moved only as much as he needed to, always within reach of his opponent, but just outhside of theirs. Because of his short punches, a lot of people don't realize how fast his hands were. However, by today's standards he was a small Heavyweight. In his prime he fought around 200 odd pounds. He never fought a truly outstanding heavy. He was man handled by Schmelling the first time they met. In the rematch two years later, he beat a 33 yr old. Schmelling in one round. Joe Louis dominated never wasses and bums., thus the term, the "Bum of the month club." whilst he fought. A good fighter who never really had the proper opposition, as Ali did. In my opinion he was just too small. Jersey Joe Walcott, was a bloated Light Heavyweight. He was never given the proper oppotunitties because of his lack of connections, so he moved up in weight. An EXTREMELY talented fighter. He was doing the shuffle and rope a dope when Ali was still in diappers. In his first title fight with Joe Louis, he made him look like a fool, but got robbed. Louis promptly apologised and gave him a rematch. He was leading in the second fight but tried to trade with Louis in the 11th and got KOd. A great fighter, he could have been a legend at Lt. Hvy if only he had been given a title shot. Jack Johnson pound for pound was perhaps better than most if not all the fighters placed before him. But this was a small Heavy, fighting under 200 pounds. I belive, Ali, Lewis, Holmes etc would have had handled him. Remember, what truly talented big men, did he or Louis beat. Yes, they did beat some big men. However, NONE of those individuals, eg. Louis vs. Buddy Baer, were in the class of the afore mentioned. Ezzard Charles, Walcott and Floyd Patterson could have all had a greater place as well in Heavyweight history were it not for their lack of size. Rocky Mariciano was as tough as they came. But you've got to be nuts if you think this little guy fighting at 188 odd pounds would have had a chance vs. the great Super Heavys of history. Some will point out that he did beat Jersey Joe, but Marciano was struggling with a fighter 40 odd years of age and had to come from behind to knock him out in the 15th and last round. This is the same Marciano who had tough fights with bloated Light Heavys, Charles and Archie Moore. Moore knocked him down and he was in his forties for goodness sake!! Jack Dempsey was in a similiar dilemma as Marciano. What makes it worse is that he fought no black contender, once he became Champion. Harry Wills (an African American) considered by many to be the best Heavyweight of his time, never had a chance to find out. Dempsey simply wouldn't fight him. Could you imagine Tommy Morrison as the Heavyweight Champ, ducking the best black fighters. There's an old adage in boxing: "A good big man will always beat a good little man." This is usually true. However, if you follow boxing long enough, you will realise that sometimes a good little man can beat a good big man. Evander Holyfield is an example of this. However, he was beaten by a young and motivated Riddick Bowe in their first fight and twice beaten by Lennox Lewis, although the first fight was unfairly called a Draw. I don't see Evander beating Norton. However, because of the similiarity in size (Evander's fighting prime at Heavy was approx. 210 lbs) he would have had a decent chance against Louis. Bear in mind that when Holyfield beat Tyson, that was a post '88 Mike Tyson. In closing let me reiterate that pound for pound, Johnson, Louis, Marciano and Holyfield would rate much higher. However, in a real time fight against the bigger Heavyeweights of history, they would be at a decided disadvantage. . |
TAMING TYSON: Lennox Lewis (l) man handles Mike Tyson. |
FIRST OF A KIND: Jack Johnson, above, was the first black Heavyweight Champion of the world. He enraged white Amercia with his antics, domination of white opponents and his relationhips with white women. |
The ten greatest Heavyweights of all time |
ALI |
