People are funny.Moore was rushed and in the end paid for it-he was badly managed.Hearns,Leonard never fought for a world title in under 10 bouts. And while Durans performance was impressive against Moore lets not forget 2 things:Moore should have NEVER been in the ring that night due to medical reasons and Duran THUMBED the **** out of Moore which had a huge impact on the fight.
The fight was lost for Davey Moore a) When Roberto Duran's name was mentioned by Michael Buffer at Madison Square Garden. b) The 20,000 fans (pro-Duran crowd) erupted. c) Davey Moore from The Bronx, New York - was milldy boo'd by the fans, with only scattered cheers. d) You could see the wind go out of Davey Moore's sails right there.
Davey Moore's win over Charlie Weir was a great performance for him. Anybody who thinks the "great" Tony Ayala would have walked through Moore, Weir basically did everything Ayala ever did in his career except better and Moore bounced him around like a basketball. He went to the opponent's hometown in difficult conditions and blew him out.
The Great A Agree 100%. Charlie 'The Silver Assassin' Weir, was better than Tony Ayala Jr. Common Opponents Charlie Weir * 11/6/78......W Disq. 6 ..... Mike Baker 30-11-1 * 3/7/81........TKO 3 ......... Steve Gregory 24-1-2 * 9/5/81........ KO 3 .......... Jerry Cheatham 31-6-2 * 11/14/81..... KO 2 ......... Nicanor Camacho 7-1-1 Tony Ayala * 11/1/80......W Dec 8 ....... Mike Baker 35-14-1 * 6/25/81.......TKO 6 ......... Jerry Cheatham 31-5-2 * 8/23/81.......W Dec 10 .... Nicanor Camacho 7-0-1 * 5/2/82.........TKO 3 ........ Steve Gregory 26-2-2 Jerry Cheatham, said there was no comparison, Charlie Weir hit much harder, and was 'twice as fast'.
I never thought much of Czyz myself. Whenever he fought a higher level fighter he lost. His defense was too porous. He always talked like he was the best fighter and then he would lose and have an excuse. I remember how he said before the first Williams fight, which was on the undercard of Hearns/Roldan that he would never quit like Roldan on the stool. And he did exactly that. He lost some credibility there from many people.
I was on the dole at the time & lumped on my 2 week social security cheque at 4/1 & never slept a wink, shitting myself what i'd tell the missis if it all went tits up:yep
This should b d end of all discussion on this subject . D essence of it , d cause 4 it , d beginning and d end of it .
Davey was rushed to fast, never got a chance to develop his considerable ability, and the major loss he suffered, that he should have recovered from, he didn't, and it ruined him.
Agree 100% Weir was a terrific puncher and had beaten good African fighters black and White. Is that fight available?
His stoppage of Benitez isn't as impressive as it initially appears. Benitez suffered a freakish broken ankle on the knockdown and proceeded to just stand in the corner and slip punches for a while before the referee stopped it.
Davey Moore was fast . Had they managed him better and gotten him 10 more fights he would have been a very very good fighter. Winning that title with so few fights in the long run was not good. Duran at 154 was a still a good fighter. The reason he lost to Benitez and Hearns at that weight was those guys were top notch fighters, and Moore was not that level.
Yeah, but surely you'll remember whether or not people still had No Mas and Kirkland Laing in their minds eye? Past his best and naturally smaller (let's not go over this again) and probably going to get in a tear up with a young fast bigger guy with a decent whack?? It's feasible matchmaking in any era. Are the guys that are 25-0 with loads more padding than Davey Moore had any more well prepared? What other opponents would you suggest Moore have to season himself further? He'd beaten a solid banger and a (admittedly weight drained) top class boxer, which opponents, without taking a step down just to get more fights under the belt, would you suggest Moore face before taking on a guy that's ranked lower than him anyway? The only way was up for Moore. Again, stepping him up against Weir and Kalule was not a bad idea. So if Duran wasn't the next step, who was?
Reading the thread title, PT, wasn't sure which Davey Moore you were referring to -- the one that fought Duran or the great 126-pound champion. (He was a sweet fighter) But I see it's the Jr middle champion who flashed on the horizon to win the title after just a few fights. Tragic how his life was cut short in a freak accident. He was a helluva fighter, who's biggest bouts might have been ahead of him. My clearest memories of him were not as a pro, but as an amateur when he nailed every opponent to the canvas with his sweeping left hook to win several N.Y Golden Gloves titles.
You will never admit that Duran was past prime and those 2 fighters were bigger than he was, will you? You will never admit that Kirkland Laing would have gotten crushed by the Duran that hammered Moore, will you?