The Most Skilled Heavyweight Title Fight Ever

[prime]

Originally Posted by McGrain

You think Marciano was more skilled than Charles?

Laughable on the face of it, perhaps.

But Marciano perfected his style. You could call him a highly-skilled slugger: the duck-and-weave; the leverage. Certainly his undefeated record against the best of his time belies the myth that he was just an unskilled brute.

Everybody thought Rocky would be a cakewalk...until they got in the ring with him.

Charles' polished skills--certainly all-time great--were best at lower weights.

[Pachilles]

Louis vs Conn

[Seamus]

Botha-Shultz

[Bokaj]

The two that stand out for me instinctively are FOTC and Holy-Bowe I. Of those I've seen anyway.

[MRBILL]

Originally Posted by heerko koois

Holmes- Whitherspoon maybe ? both were in their primes

^^^^^^...... As well as Holmes' 1985 defense against an undefeated Carl "The Lie" Williams and a sleeper pick that is also one of my top-5 all-time heavyweight title fights is, "Foreman-Moorer." A lotta' underrated and over-looked skills were displayed in that 1994 classic....


MR.BILL

[carlosg815]

Tyson vs Holyfield I is one of the best HW fights I have ever seen. It was the last great heavyweight fight that has taken place.

[Seamus]

Originally Posted by carlosg815

Tyson vs Holyfield I is one of the best HW fights I have ever seen. It was the last great heavyweight fight that has taken place.

Brewster Likhiavich was pretty damned good.

[Swarmer]

Originally Posted by Pachilles

Louis vs Conn

kinda cant believe im reading this

anyway i thought the schmeling-sharkey series was pretty great in terms of skill, deserves a mention for sure.

[Boggle]

Originally Posted by Boxed Ears

SNV VS BECK

Oooh, that's a good shout. I'm gonna have to disagree though. It's gotta be SNV vs. Holyfield. That was the last great performance by Holyfield, the last great version of him, for sures. Haters are gonna say that this was some shot-to-shit version of Holyfield, but then they'll also say that Holy deserved the win. That would've made him five time world heavyweight champion. So which is it, haters? You can't have it both ways. Simple fact of the matter is that Niko schooled Evander because he's greatest fighter who ever lived. End of

[MRBILL]

Originally Posted by Seamus

Brewster Likhiavich was pretty damned good.

A great fight.... It ruined both Lamon and Sergei......

[johnmaff36]

Originally Posted by Bokaj

The two that stand out for me instinctively are FOTC and Holy-Bowe I. Of those I've seen anyway.

It took 19 posts before the FOTC got mentioned

For me,its the outstanding candidate

[Boilermaker]

Originally Posted by Pachilles

Louis vs Conn

This is a very good candidate.

Fitzsimmons v Corbett has t be given some consideration due to the reputation of the two, although interestingly they were both very skilled in different ways.

Ezzard Charles v Jersey Joe Walcott would have to be a right up there in terms of reputation of the fighters for skill. Although Charles Maxim might be another one where there was two highly skilled fighters, if not necessarilly the highest ever classed fighters.

Ali v Frazier is an obvious one, I think, no matter which way you look at it.

Schmelling Louis would have been a great chance but obviously Louis' performance meant schmelling didnt really get a chance to show his skills.

Tunney Dempsey is another, despite Jack's ring rust costing him dearly, there was still great skills being shown.

[Saintpat]

Looking at what they brought to the ring (and not the result itself):

Tyson vs. Spinks

Holmes vs. Norton

Charles vs. Walcott

FOTC

[The Kurgan]

Originally Posted by Kalasinn

So because of Bowe's defense, you consider Byrd-Holyfield to be more skillful a fight than Bowe-Holyfield?!

Holyfield fucking sucked against Byrd, he was shot-to-shit, 40 years old, & had a badly torn rotator cuff in his left shoulder.

I didn't say Byrd-Holyfield was a BETTER fight, but that there was more skill involved. Hence holding Bowe's lack of defensive skill against Bowe-Holyfield.

[The Kurgan]

Originally Posted by carlosg815

Tyson vs Holyfield I is one of the best HW fights I have ever seen. It was the last great heavyweight fight that has taken place.

But was it a particularly skilled fight?