Ezzard Charles vs. Gene Tunney @ LHW.

Seriously.

This is a tough one. Tunney would be in with a fast hard hitting slicker than Tunney fighter. Tunney would try to step back, set traps, and look to counter. Tunney may look good for stretches but once the exchanges start to become more frequent Charles' punches will be having the telling effect.

Razor close because Tunney will have plenty of moments. He is the more intelligent fight, though not by much but, once it becomes a real fight, Charles will start to land the complete array of punches he has in his catalog.

Charles on point. Great match-up!

 

Going against the tide I vote for Tunney.

 

Tunney would study and know the great fighter he would be up against , up on his toes Gene keeps Ezzard just at the end of his left jab for a razor close decision of two highly skilled boxers.

 

This is a tough battle if it a technical affair but Ezzard proved more at heavyweight and his resume is thicker and deeper at this weight. Tunney had 2 good wins over a rusty Dempsey but (Long Count) tarnish a bit. Ezzard had better 2-fisted power and advanced offense, Tunney had the better legs and had power in his right hand but Charles did beat Walcott who was up there in the leg department and hit harder and craftier than Tunney who had more pep ....close decision by Charles but i can also see Tunney edging it.

 

Dont think Walcott ever covered a ring as quickly as Tunney.

 

It's always been a very interesting fight .. to me Tunney appeared a bit faster of hand and foot , exceptionally conditioned, had three inches in reach, a better chin, better defense and equal power .. Charles has far more to go on as far as over all game and quality of opposition .. With this one who knows ?

 

i'll have Charles and before the sam baroudi tragedy Charles could have been the one to stop tunney.

 

That sounds good to me too.

 

the late 40's was one of the best eras ever for me, up to light heavy, except for the mafias influence.
Charles could have swept the board he was that good and his contemporaries were also superb, Moore, Burley, Williams and Lloyd Marshall who was beautiful to watch

 

i laugh when I hear these things, why Don King did not have a mafia presence and play corrupt ? King was one of the grimiest ever!! Arum was an ex prosecutor....very few in this business were honest and the mafia may have been the most fair of the bunch

 

Can't make a choice here. Maybe it's one of those trilogies that see saws thru the series.

 

If the battle ground of choice is light heavyweight, then my vote goes to Ezzard Charles. He is rightfully the number one man in that division and by far the most tested participant of that class.

 

you're right, those 2 would have been ba22ards in any era, you've only got to look at what king did to tim witherspoon but he did at least get a title shot.
king laughingly played the race card and got ali on his side but he came up short with lennox lewis just as ray robinson managed to avoid jim Norris till the mid-50s.

 

The forties was probably my favourite era of boxing prior to my birth.