Swap around Liston and Foreman's title opponents

So we have -


Sonny Liston 1962 v Joe Frazier 1973
Sonny Liston 1963 v Joe Roman 1973
Sonny Liston 1964 v Ken Norton 1974
Sonny Liston 1965 v Muhammad Ali 1974

George Foreman 1973 v Floyd Patterson 1962
George Foreman 1973 v Floyd Patterson 1963
George Foreman 1974 v Cassius Clay 1964
George Foreman 1974 v Muhammad Ali 1965

 

Results stay the same for me.

 

Could see Frazier maybe beating Liston, coming back from early KDs

 

Yeah I agree the Frazier of the foreman fight was not the same by that point even futch thought Frazier was not properly prepared for foreman .

 

this ain't fair.
imo liston was past prime at least after 1963.
it would be fairer if we would take the liston of a few years earlier

 

That wouldn't apply to this thread though. This is about title reigns.

 

For me too.

 

The results would likley stay the same.

 

bolded

 

I dont think Frazier could beat Liston

 

The '73 version would n't,imo. The FOTC one ? Maybe.

 

Foreman wouldn´t quit against Ali and wouldn´t be stopped in the first round (for whatever reason) in the rematch.
I don´t think Frazier would get annihilated against Liston....he would be stopped in the mid-rounds or making a great fight and losing because of some KDs....

 

Yeah i wouldn't see it happening like with Foreman

 

Interesting thought....

Liston/Frazier- I would likely pick Liston over Frazier even in a prime match-up (something I don't frequently do!)....But 73, Liston stops him 2-5 rounds.

Liston/Ali- I would still pick/favor Ali....but I can see him have a better shot against a 74 version than the one he faced....Don't get me wron he is a clear underdog...but a live dog nonetheless.

Liston goes 3-1 w/ an outside, very slim chance of 4-0...

Foreman shod duplicate Liston/Patterson.

64 Ali should also be able to beat Foreman, although I struggle to see Ali implementing the rope-a-dope at this stage of his career, so how this plays out could be very interesting...i still think Ali beats him.

65 Ali- I always wondered if George might do better in a rematch against Ali having learned from the first....But I think he falls short against 65 Ali.

Foreman 2-2

So all said I think it plays out the same way, w/ a slim shot of Liston upseting 74 Ali to mess the whole thing up.

 

With the hypothetical rematch between Ali and Foreman in '65,we must also remember that the 23 year old Ali would still be improving.