Though 'Smokin Joe' absorbed punches, nobody ever put him down for the '10-Count'. And nobody under 205 lbs. ever hurt him. No doubt that 'Jack' would hit him, but could he hurt 'Smokin Joe' and keep him down.
Dempsey was good at knocking out very unskilled slow big lumbering oafs...It's really not that impressive..The big men Frazier fought had far more SKILL, which is why they were able to survive the early rounds... Willard, Fulton, Morris, firpo wouldn't crack the top 10 during Joe Frazier's era
Joe Frazier is my favorite fighter ever to lace up a pair of boxing gloves. He was a great fighter. But the problem here is that Joe likes to come forward and is very hittable especially early in a fight. He doesnt get his motor cranked up 100% till about round 3 or 4. On the other hand Mr Dempsey was one of the most explosive punchers in the history of the game. He KOd guys that had 50 lbs on him. Their both tough. Dempsey is the more exposvie hitter and the faster starter. Jack Dempsey by KO.:verysad
I think Frazier liked to start slow but if pressed he was capable of going balls to the wall from the opening bell as he did against Quarry and Ramos.
What the endless stream of Dempsey-doubters continually forget is that he had deadly one punch power and was extremely fast and sneaky in the way he delivered this power. When up against the wall, he was capable of lashing out with lethal force..as Sharkey would have attested to and as Tunney would have agreed on. I'm not yet sure of what my call is on this bout, but I guess I'm sick of this underestimation of Dempsey that goes on all the time. For his size, he was an extremely strong man..as Archie Moore made pains to emphasize once in an interview..these revisionists, ESB style, are getting on my nerves with this Dempsey bashing and underestimation of him.
Go back and look at some of the people who cracked the top 10 back then, and then you will see why the mind should be faster than the mouth.
It seems like a lot of people are picking Dempsey because he's a fast starter = Foreman knocking Frazier out early. Lots are underrating Joe's toughness I think. :huh
He fought Johnson in 1916. Dempsey was about 20 years old at the time. The Newspapers called it a "good fast fight". I think most gave Johnson the edge. Ive read that he broke Dempsey`s ribs but that Jack fought well.
:deal Jack Dempsey was a powerhouse. A simple fact. I dont think he was the greatest but Jack Dempsey could fight.
This is where the wheels begin to fall apart. He hanged in against the GOAT at HW. A light hitter that happened to stop Bonavena, Foreman, Liston, etc. Frazier not only withstood Ali, but won the FOTC. And he withstood 41 rounds against him. Tunney dropped Dempsey... what exactly would you call Tunney if Ali is a light puncher? While you call the durability even. I think Frazier was more sturdy. It's wrong to make an assessment by looking at them but I think the film & record shows this too. I don't have the film of Dempsey being dropped 7 times against Sudenberg in round 1 but it happened. Flynn caught him cold, Firpo dropped him, as did Tunney. Hungry and impoverished or not. Dempsey's durability doesn't stand up well when examing his entire record. It looks slightly brighter when only viewing his championship run when analyzing his sturdiness... Let's be honest, Foreman and Dempsey are in different leagues of power, too.