The Gene Tunney challenge.

[DudeGuyMan]

Prime Tyson could do it, maybe. If none of them chose to spoil and kill time. Foreman has the firepower to put any one of them down in short order, but I dunno about all of them in a row.

Dempsey, nah, Rocky probably kicks his ass.

Vitali, no. He's solid, but doesn't have the explosive aggression to keep it under ten rounds total. I could see one of those clever little guys making a tired VK look really bad late in the proceedings.

Wladimir doesn't have a big enough gas tank or a sturdy enough chin. The first couple fights tire him out, and the third guy kicks his ass for an exhaustion TKO.

I'll say prime Tyson or nobody. At his best he's a bigger and more polished Dempsey. But I don't really rate his chances of doing it all in ten rounds or less.

[Bioyhh]

Has there ever been a retired fighter who didn't say that the stalwarts of his day would have destroyed every contemporary fighter in a walk? Tunney was a very intelligent and articulate man, but he's just blowing smoke here. It was a roundabout way for Gene to say that he would have destroyed Charles, Walcott, Matthews, and the Rock in one night; after all, Gene beat Dempsey, so if Jack could tear through these guys what does that say about Tunney?

Originally Posted by Bioyhh

Has there ever been a retired fighter who didn't say that the stalwarts of his day would have destroyed every contemporary fighter in a walk? Tunney was a very intelligent and articulate man, but he's just blowing smoke here. It was a roundabout way for Gene to say that he would have destroyed Charles, Walcott, Matthews, and the Rock in one night; after all, Gene beat Dempsey, so if Jack could tear through these guys what does that say about Tunney?

yeah i agree...although i would have loved for whoever was interviewing tunney to have said "well ok, so on the night that dempsey beat willard..how would the best version of tunney have done" lol..in truth i think tunney does lose the dempsey that beat willard..but i wonder what gene would have said.

Originally Posted by DudeGuyMan

Prime Tyson could do it, maybe. If none of them chose to spoil and kill time. Foreman has the firepower to put any one of them down in short order, but I dunno about all of them in a row.

Dempsey, nah, Rocky probably kicks his ass.

Vitali, no. He's solid, but doesn't have the explosive aggression to keep it under ten rounds total. I could see one of those clever little guys making a tired VK look really bad late in the proceedings.

Wladimir doesn't have a big enough gas tank or a sturdy enough chin. The first couple fights tire him out, and the third guy kicks his ass for an exhaustion TKO.

I'll say prime Tyson or nobody. At his best he's a bigger and more polished Dempsey. But I don't really rate his chances of doing it all in ten rounds or less.

you could be right..though wlads energy has looked good in recent fights...and he would have a huge size advantage over all those guys that might be too much..but he would have to fight more aggressively then has in recent years to get knockouts as fast as gene was saying....as for rocky dempsey..i think dempsey beats him..i think he is too fast and too skilled..but i will agree that one round is a bit much..but really..one round might be too much for anyone...

[Bill Butcher]

Originally Posted by Dempsey1238

Gene Tunney in 1952 interview re. Dempsey:

“Jack Dempsey, I’m convinced, was our greatest heavyweight champion. In his prime, when he knocked out Jess Willard to win the title in 1919, he would have taken the four leading heavyweights of today – Jersey Joe Walcott, Rocky Marciano, Harry (Kid) Matthews and Ezzard Charles – and flattened them all in one night.
“These four men are honest, earnest, capable professionals. If they are not touched with ring genius, neither are they stumblebums. So I do not mean to deprecate them when I say Dempsey would have levelled them all in the same evening as follows: Matthews, two rounds. Charles, two rounds. Walcott, five rounds. Marciano, one round.
“A total of ten rounds. Even then, I don’t consider I’m giving Dempsey any the best of it. He might have demolished each of the four in less than one round. He was eminently equipped to do it. He had many championship gifts, including a great fighting heart and the ability to absorb a tremendous punch and recuperate astonishingly fast.
“He learned his trade the hard way against fighters of all sizes, shape and brands from mining camp, deadfall and dance hall to huge arena and stadium.

Tunney Claims that Dempsey would have flatten Harry Kid Matthews, Joe Walcott, Ezzard Charles and Rocky Marciano all in one night, one right after the other, and in less than ten rounds total.

So I pose this question.

What Heavyweight Champion, from Sullivan to the Kilt Brothers would have the best chance in over coming this task?? No breaks between fights, The movement Harry Kid Matthews is beating, Joe Walcott jumps in the ring.

1. No HW in history is capable of doing this, even at their peak.
2. Dempsey would be lucky to make a top 10 HW list, Tunney is high as fuck, didnt know crack was available 80 yrs ago

[Bill Butcher]

Gene is trying to make himself look even better than he is because he beat Jack Dempsey twice, this much is obvious.

Originally Posted by Bill Butcher

1. No HW in history is capable of doing this, even at their peak.
2. Dempsey would be lucky to make a top 10 HW list, Tunney is high as fuck, didnt know crack was available 80 yrs ago

make sure you work on your grade school level math before you take your ged test....that was a quote from one guy who fought about 80 years ago..talking about Dempsey, who fought about 80 years ago....talking about him fighting fighters who fought about FIFTY years ago....so clearly the quote would not have been made 80 years ago....

lol i am actually just being a prick...but i think dempsey is top 10...

[mcvey]

Originally Posted by GregDempsey

MrBill...the only time dempsey had ever looked wild or crude to me is when he had already hurt willard..and knew that willard had no chance to hurt him..hence he was throwing very strong punches known as "swings" dempsey's defense was very good...watch the first mintue 1:40 of willard dempsey..his movement around the ring..his walking away from jabs..his slips..his fast punches...his dempsey roll that drops willard...marciano may have one....and i think its crazy to say that dempsey takes him out in one...but i think dempsey beats the Rock...straight up..and dempsey was definitly more polished.

I quite agree with this assessment.

i think dempsey might just rip the rock apart though....slower pressure fighting going againt a faster pressure fighter who also knows how to pivot step can be bad for the slower pressure fighter..just ask Ricky and Manny

Originally Posted by mcvey

I quite agree with this assessment.

and having said what i said..i think rocky had better defense then many give him credit for...

[dublynflya]

Originally Posted by boxerca

We're basically looking for punchers, here.

I think Foreman or Tyson could've done it. I see them being able to knock out Matthews, Charles and Walcott. The question for them is how long it would take.

The big problem is Marciano, though. He's got a solid chin and, even though I could see Foreman or Tyson being able to knock him out, he would probably take a while longer to knock out than the other three.

But if anyone's gonna get it done, I would side with either of those two.

Imo those two would have had the best chance, but I do not believe that anyone, not even those two could have achieved such a task.

[dublynflya]

Originally Posted by Bill Butcher

Gene is trying to make himself look even better than he is because he beat Jack Dempsey twice, this much is obvious.

Upon reading it, I to came to that conclusion! "This guy was so great etc, but I beat him twice, so how great was I?". well the answer is Gene you were great, most fans appreciate that so you really did not need to trivialise the other guys for us to acquire an appreciation of how good you were. And of course, Imo I do not believe that Dempsey would have defeated Marciano (What a great fight that would have been!!!!!).

[dublynflya]

Originally Posted by GregDempsey

i think dempsey might just rip the rock apart though....slower pressure fighting going againt a faster pressure fighter who also knows how to pivot step can be bad for the slower pressure fighter..just ask Ricky and Manny

I appreciate the Dempsey-Manny comparison. But I cannot consider Hatton as a fair model of Rocky! So I guess we'll have to choose another fight. Hatton now has a china chin and Rocky has one-punch ko power, something that Ricky has never shown at world level. In my opinion (and it is only that), I believe Dempsey-vs-Marciano would have been one of the greatest fights of all time, but i'm picking Rocky to take it via a very late tko or a decision. But, no matter who wins this, no-one is having an early night!

[Bummy Davis]

Originally Posted by Dempsey1238

Gene Tunney in 1952 interview re. Dempsey:

“Jack Dempsey, I’m convinced, was our greatest heavyweight champion. In his prime, when he knocked out Jess Willard to win the title in 1919, he would have taken the four leading heavyweights of today – Jersey Joe Walcott, Rocky Marciano, Harry (Kid) Matthews and Ezzard Charles – and flattened them all in one night.
“These four men are honest, earnest, capable professionals. If they are not touched with ring genius, neither are they stumblebums. So I do not mean to deprecate them when I say Dempsey would have levelled them all in the same evening as follows: Matthews, two rounds. Charles, two rounds. Walcott, five rounds. Marciano, one round.
“A total of ten rounds. Even then, I don’t consider I’m giving Dempsey any the best of it. He might have demolished each of the four in less than one round. He was eminently equipped to do it. He had many championship gifts, including a great fighting heart and the ability to absorb a tremendous punch and recuperate astonishingly fast.
“He learned his trade the hard way against fighters of all sizes, shape and brands from mining camp, deadfall and dance hall to huge arena and stadium.

Tunney Claims that Dempsey would have flatten Harry Kid Matthews, Joe Walcott, Ezzard Charles and Rocky Marciano all in one night, one right after the other, and in less than ten rounds total.

So I pose this question.

What Heavyweight Champion, from Sullivan to the Kilt Brothers would have the best chance in over coming this task?? No breaks between fights, The movement Harry Kid Matthews is beating, Joe Walcott jumps in the ring.

Tunney also felt George Foreman was an amatuer and that Dempsey would have beaten Ali

[junior-soprano]

well i hold dempsey verry highly (i personally think he's better then marciano)but......
this reading i most come to the conclusion that tunney is A a stupid and dumb person or B had to manny punches on the head.