Larry Holmes vs Joe Fraizer

I think Holmes wins this by easy decision.

 

I'm going with Frazier to pull out a super close decision on his best night. I think Larry would control him with his lead hand for the most part. But Frazier defense and slip game is underrated, especially in his prime years. His bobbing and weaving was something else. I think Frazier comes on late, especially in a 15 rounder. The problem i see for Holmes here is. he was easy to hit real clean and he wasn't too big and powerful, or a huge enough banger to keep Joe from coming into the danger zone. I can see Frazier knocking him down at some stage too.

 

If he was easy to hit real clean he must have a chin made of diamond because he fought some huge punchers. At about 6'4, 211 in his prime, he was plenty big and powerful. He often outmuscled guys bigger than him.

I think Holmes would win a close decision in a war.

His jab was very punishing and would give Frazier a harder time getting in than Ali's jab did, and he had very good uppercuts with a lot of power that would do damage to Joe. Left hooks were never an issue for Larry and while Frazier's was no ordinary left hook, I think Larry would still be able to minimize it's effectiveness against him and avoid most of the big shots.

Frazier, as always, would have the most success when Holmes is on the ropes, but it'd still be a war there, just as it would be center ring, because Holmes was one of the best at slugging it out punch for punch, especially if he got shaken up.

I'd expect Larry to win a 9-6 type decision.

 

this is what I see. I think Larry was underrated and Frazier a little overrated because of the first Ali win. Larry would be quick and his right hand would be landing I think easily. I could ever seen a possible late round TKO for Larry.

 

Well he WAS easy to hit to clean, anyone that has watched him will see that. But you're right he also had a good chin and recuperative powers.

After years of being underrated. Holmes is now almost the complete opposite and people are in danger of compensating for the years he was underappreciated.

He struggled bad against Ken Norton, Carl Williams, Tim Witherspoon, Renaldo Snipes and Earnie shavers hurt him badly. Mike Weaver gave him fits also. Holmes was rather like JM Marquez today. A very good boxer but for some reason he got hit cleanly. Mainly because like Marquez he didn't have the most natural defensive reflexes.

Frazier for me lost his prime in the first Ali fight. But i think on his best night Holmes would've found it very difficult to beat him. I know Holmes is everyone's darling these days, but I have to go for the historical upset in this one.

 

This is an interesting match-up....Frazier often gets sold short as a slow starter, which I find to be commonly repeated yet still untrue....Holmes in a similar vein did not blister out of the gate and often narrowly won those feeling out rounds to begin the fight.

I think Frazier's workrate allows him to take the first few rounds or to have a slim lead @ the first 5 rounds....I think Larry's jab will cause him some trouble just as Ali's did at a variety of points in the trilogy. Although I don't think joe was as easy to hit flush as many make it out to be, Larry would be able to cause him some trouble with this...Holmes was decent at tying up, but IMHO not in the class of Ali ala the 2nd frazier fight...(I don't want to hedge my bets but some varibles could come into play depending upon who refs this fight and how much holding they allow...this could totally affect the outcome...but I will pretend that does not exist at the minute.).

I think by the 10th Larry would have evened up the fight and/or possibly have a slight lead....But I think Fraziers superior workrate and IMHO conditioning would allow him to take the majority of the final rounds...5-5 after 10, with Frazier coming on strong and taking 4 of the final 5 for a 9-6 type of decision.

I think 2 varibles are 1. who and how the fights is reffed...and 2. who can win those first 3 feeling out type of rounds.

 

Two fighters that are for me great champions and two of my favourites I think this would turn into a three fight series with it probably be one each going into into the last fight . I can't pick a winner

 

There used to be a magazine called Big Book of Boxing that had a fantasy match every month.....it was pretty cool, they'd do blow-by blow in a round by round format and call the winner of each round. This matchup was the subject one month.....

They had Holmes winning the first five rounds, then Frazier takes the six, with the next couple rounds even, then they had Frazier tagging Holmes with a huge hook in round nine flooring and almost stopping him.

From then on though, it was all Holmes, as he teed off more and more on a swollen Frazier, even briefly flooring him with a short right in the 15th. Frazier sees the final bell, and loses a lopsided decision.

 

FOTC Frazier beats any Holmes

 

Go watch him against Norton, Weaver, Shavers, Witherspoon, Snipes, Williams. And tell me what you think.

 

He'd be punching down at Frazier, but he also was very good at drilling bobbing, elusive targets with his punches. His jab would be busting Joe up, making it harder and harder for him to see and thus making it easier for Holmes to land his jab, right hand, and uppercuts.

All of those men had difficulty hitting Holmes clean, especially Shavers, Snipes, and Williams. Shavers and Snipes caught a dominant Holmes being careless, but proceeded to lose every round before and after the punch. In Snipes's case, he even lost the rest of the round he dropped him in, too. Williams had success with his jab, but that was about it. Larry was nearly 36 against Williams and he was being outjabbed, but Holmes was getting to Williams with a good body attack and thudding right hands.

Norton didn't really get Holmes clean consistently until the later rounds, but that was also when he and Holmes started to focus more on slugging it out and less on defence. Holmes was hitting Norton with clean shots more often at that point aswell.

Weaver just all around was a very poor performance from Larry who both underestimated Weaver and was sick at the time of the fight.

Even in his 40s Holmes was rarely tagged clean. Mercer got him with a stiff jab in the first round, which was his one and only shining moment in that fight. Holyfield got Holmes with a big overhand right, but Holmes rolled with it well. McCall was loading up and trying to get Holmes like he did Lewis, but he was unable to do so. He did unload on Holmes on the ropes at one point and landed some hard shots, but that was about it as far big, clean punches landed.

 

I think Ali had a hell of a lot more grit and toughness than Holmes. Sorry, not a knock on Holmes but a praise on Ali. Frazier by decision. The jab would be punishing but Frazier would get through. Holmes had a solid uppercut too, but I think he lacks the intangibles Ali possessed. He's not really necessarily a more mobile mover than Ali so I think he'll be "there."

 

Frazier was good with guys like Holmes he was made to beat or be competitive with boxers, i remember them talking about a sparring match that Joe and Larry had when Joe was old and pretty much almost retired and Holmes was still young and an up and comer, and it an old Joe broke one of Larry ribs, so i see a FOTC Frazier winning this

 

If you want you can go look at the other times this has been posted i think this is the 3rd time this one had come up