Cooney could win this early,but the percentage call is Weaver mid to late. Cooney did ok against Holmes but apart from that i never get what people see in him...beat an ageing Jimmy Young on cuts and blasted Norton in first round..a Norton that was best his sell by and disinterested..that (and the colour of his skin)hyped Cooney...got beat by Holmes..did zero afterwards.
Oh Gerrie! His early resume feasted on old-time greats but...he did have the size and the power. I saw a Holmes win going in (bet $500 on Larry) but Cooney fought a good fight IMO. What did he do afterwards? Not fight for two years!! Managed by tweedledom and tweedledumber for pete's sake. He should have jumped back into the ring six months later against, perhaps, Weaver. IMO he would have nailed Mike early and taken him out but we'll never know. He may have been more seasoned and primed for a Larry rematch by the summer of 83. Simply another example of "so little done with so much potential". Joe Bugner yet another example of great talent wasted. (another thread) My $0.02
I would feeljustified in favouring Weaver. If Cooney were to beat Weaver, then it would change his standing considerably. Weaver is underrated for the record.
Thanks for all the opinions. I agree with a lot of you, I think Cooney has a good chance of taking out Weaver anywhere from the 1st to 5th round. But if the fight goes much passed that point I favor Weaver to win by late stoppage. Cooney just doesn't strike me as a guy who could go 15th rounds and win. If I had to bet I would bet on Cooney to get the early round stoppage though as Weaver wasn't the best defenses fighter and Cooney hit about as hard as anyone. I feel Cooney would be able to get to him early and take him out in devastating fashion. It would've been very interesting to see how the rest of Cooney's career would've played out had he been able to capture the WBA championship.
It's a fascinating potential matchup and a good thread topic. Weaver demonstrated incredible stamina, heart, and recuperative powers in the Coetzee fight that make you think Cooney better get it done quickly, but Weaver also was a slow and deliberate starter that would be vulnerable to a Cooney first round blitz.
Don't leave out rematching Eddie "The Animal" Lopez over 10. That was another no brainer screwed up by the wacko twins.
Weaver has the power to dent Gerry's chin, and vice versa. I think whoever lands first wins this fight. Since Cooney is a fast starter and Weaver is a slow starter, I would bet on Gerry to win.
Mike Weaver knocked Gerrie Coetzee on Oct 25 1980 in round 13, after taking Gerrie's bombs. Weaver did keep his guard up high, and was being out boxed by John Tate heading into round 15 on March 31 1980, when he crashed home a hard right hand that put Tate to sleep, Weaver won the WBA Heavyweight Title. Gerry Cooney stopped a past his prime Ken Norton and was completely dominated by WBC World Heavyweight Champion Larry Holmes, before being stopped in round 13, on June 11 1982. Cooney though tall is very awkward in style, always going for the home run punch which does not mean it's going to work every time especially against a prime Weaver. Mike withstands Cooney's bombs, to gas him out to score a stoppage in round 10.