You're an idiot thats why. Dempsey had everything. HE had the footspeed to catch Ali (which is why I think Louis could never beat Ali as everything starts with footwork) could bang with either hand, had a rock solid chin, his head movement was the best in heavyweight history and was all natural (unlike Tysons robotic head movement). He also had that Nigel Benn quality that few heavys posess- he was twice as dangerous when he was hurt. People also forget that he revolutionized the sport more than any other fighter. No one threw punches as fast and as powerful in combination before Dempsey changed the game. He was the Don Bradman or the Usain Bolt of boxing. Also some of the guys he defeated are also criminally underated by the keyboard warriors on here.
I assume your trolling -Dempsey didn't have fast enough footwork to catch Ali i think you should watch his fights instead of reading wild stories and it followed a very similiar pattern, any boxer with half a clue could pick up on it as Tunney did -He did have good power but it get's greatley exaggerated considering he wore such little gloves, had no mouthguards and for the most part of his career was allowed to hit his opponent the second they got up from a KD, he had to KD glass chin Firpo 7 or soemthing times before finishing him -He was KO'd by 37 year old nobody who was not known as a puncher, decked by a Tunney right(he rarely sat on his punches as well) and basically lost to Firpo who is the shittest contender i've ever seen -His head movement was pretty good but as with the first point followed a pattern and could be timed Jungle Jess Willard despite being slow as molasses and having been knockdown a bajillion times actually managed to land on Dempsey's head after the 1st round quite a few times. The only point i'd agree with you is that he did revolutionize boxing at that stage but then again so did Ali, what's your point?
I agree. Dempsey was all that. His inactivity while champion is his achilles heel though. Joe Louis defended the championship more times in a six month period than Dempsey managed in six years.
You assume wrong. He was shot when he fought Tunney so that's understandable. Kevin Mc****ingBride could time Mike Tyson also, it dont count. he did have the footwork to catch Ali. Also smaller gloves dont allow you to hit harder, it makes you faster and someones face will swell up and cut easier but it doesn't increase someones power. You wouldnt notice the difference in a fight when the adrenalines pumping.
Yes perhaps that is why Tunney beat him, cause his skills eroded. Still its everything else that makes him numero uno.
My two pennies Dempsey had ridiculously fast feet coming forward for a heavyweight. Throw out the Tunney fights, his footspeed had left him then. Ali wasn't impossible to catch up with, he got pressed to the ropes or had to clinch even in his prime. Against men who were slower than Dempsey. I'm not saying that would cost him the fight but let's not pretend Ali was some untouchable mirage. The first point about small gloves and no mouthguards adding to his power kind of minimizes the impact of the "shame" in him getting KO'd and decked. I don't think Firpo had a glass chin OR was the shittest contender ever. But that's just an opinion. All bob-and-weave type head movement can be cracked. All aggressive fighters get tagged. I think Shazza was right to suggest Dempsey's weaving has LESS of a pattern than Tyson's. I don't know if that made it any better or any worse though. Both of them were hittable, but when they DID make the opponent miss they also made them PAY. That's the beauty of that style.
Yes spot on, you gotta make someone pay when you make them miss. I forgot that point. Dempsey's movement wasn't predictable like Tysons which makes him more elusive. Also Tyson couldnt fight off the backfoot like Dempsey, he is the modern prototype perfect fighter. Firpo had an iron chin and he was actually world class, a lot isnt known of him cause he came from South America.
I agree, Tyson's head movement was programmed, left-right, left-right. Dempsey's was very different. I think their styles a very different, they just did that same thing with slipping or feinting and they exploding like a spring with big punches. The differences are quite numerous - like you say, Dempsey fought off the backfoot sometimes. He was also on his toes a lot. He wasn't a short-armed swarmer like Marciano or Tyson. He was relatively tall, with long arms. But was an incredible infighter. :good
I don't doubt that Dempsey could catch up with Ali it's just that despite his footwork he didn't do anything with it most of time he used it with his bobbing and weaving to circle around an opponent. He rarely did anything with his footwork offensivley such as moving in and countering the oncoming shots. It's true about most swarmers getting hit and timed and Tyson did have a very predictable pattern etc. Don't think that i hate Dempsey i don't he did revolutionize boxing and was a genuine badass who came up from nothing. Except let's get real he was a pretty one dimensional slugger he never looked to set you up, time you, counter you, feint, use a jab his whole modus operandi was bobing and weaving around you then coming in starting with the left hook, damn near every time it was with a left hook. Like i said before a boxer with half a clue could pick up on this and use it to great effect. He also didn't fight smartly he just rushed in and looked to KO you like he did against Firpo who basically beat him if it wasn't for a guy on a type writer, and Firpo was horrid name me a contender who looked worse than him. Top this off with 6 title defenses in 7 years, not fighting the best opponents avaliable at the time and gettig completely shut out by the best fighter you came across doesn't seem to me like a guy i'd rank 1#.
tell me one thing Con who was easier to hit clean in their Prime? 1986-1988 Mike Tyson 1919-1923 Jack Dempsey
I think Dempsey was a bit more versatile and adaptable than you give him credit for. He had a few more tools than you say too - he used jabs, feints, parries, combinations, counters and feints, and various tricks. Of course just about every heavyweight champion has used those tools, and Dempsey was no different. He went gung-ho against Firpo, it's true. He didn't respect Firpo enough. I don't believe all the myths about he would have lost if he hadn't been pushed back in. Looking at the film that seems an exaggeration. Also, it looks like Firpo landed a punch and then pushed him anyway. The whole thing was a crazy brawl, true enough. And a sloppy performance maybe. Firpo looks dangerous to me. Ugly style no doubt. But I think he'd murder a Brian London or a Chuck Wepner, for starters.