These 50's Heavies Today? Baker ,Henry,Valdes,Layne

Valdes and Baker, size wise would fit in with today's Oafs. I don't think anyone around now can box so well as Baker, and the bigger gloves might suit Bakers hand problems. They can compete with fewer adjustments. Why not? They should do at least as well as in their own time, perhaps not champions but we've had weaker belt holders like Shannon Briggs and chagaev haven't we?

Layne and Henry would miss the smaller gloves because they would have to land extra punches to make the same impression. Layne had quite a big frame so I can see him filling out, I think he could hold his own today. Henry was an exciting guy but maybe he would prefer Cruiserweight. He could be a Steve Cuningham or Tomasz Adamek. Why not?

 

Henry and Layne are too small. Bob Baker had no power and was inconsistent. Valdez might have been a fringe guy.

 

I think that pretty much any decent contender from the past could be ranked today.

There are just so many options for bringing a contender along.

In order to think that they could not be in the top ten today, you basically have to think that they could not beat the people that Deontay Wilder had beaten, when he first broke the rankings.

This sounds a bit far fetched, even if you don't think much of the era.

 

Sure, though they would find some weight class/sanctioning body, that worked for them.

 

Well many guys would cut down to cruiser today which is closer to their natural weight. As for Deontay Wilder, he's a special case, I think America's economic interest in the sport helped his ratings because he is marketable. Most contenders from other countries would not have received his ranking fighting that level of comp.

 

I could give other examples!

Audley Harrison broke the top 10, before he started fighting legit British level fighters!

 

The rules, equipment, pace, championship distance and training really suits giants today. Until the present era there has never been a time in heavyweight history where things favour a veteran giant quite so much.

Age is less of a factor because the Super heavyweight pace suits older fighters. Size is favoured over skill. Body building, interval training, explosive bursts followed by stalling and holding. This suits the naturally giant fighter fighting smaller built up guys. They're slower. The giants are no longer chasing anyone. It is rare that a reach advantage can be overcome.

It used to be the other way around. A reach advantage was often overcome in the division. Skill was favoured over size. A big guy was just a big target. they used to say the bigger they are the harder they fall. It wasn't even a cliche. They trained for longer rounds.

I think it has less to do with giants being better athletes today and more to do with more things suiting an Oaf today.

Occasionally in the past you got a giant who could really take punishment and win a fight once the smaller guy was punched out. Back in the day it was Mostly the faster guy landed more punches and made more impression with older more lethal 6oz gloves.

Today it is harder to land a sharp punch because the gloves are also much bigger. It suits the giant. And the giant dosnt have to ration his round by round workrate to last 15 either.

 

My take is that Henry and Layne would probably fight at cruiser as both could make 200 lbs. Why would either want to fight giants?

How would they do? I think each would be as much a contender as in their own era, with a possible paper title at cruiser.

Baker I think is caught in a bad position. I doubt he makes 200, but I don't see him as big enough or a strong enough puncher to prosper in the modern heavyweight division.

Valdes, quite a bit taller, might take to modern drug training better. How he does is another question.

In their own day, Valdes and Baker lost badly to Satterfield, who was knocked out by Layne and Henry.

*I listened to a tape recently of the 1958 NFL championship game and in the introduction the heights and weights of the players were given. It is interesting how few of the players were probably big enough to play in the modern NFL. Nobody much cares, though, concerning football. It is enough that they were the best in their own era. Only boxing types much care about such an abstract question. Who knows if Wlad would be big enough to be champion in 2075?

 

He had hand problems. Perhaps the much bigger and more shock absorbent gloves would help him sit down on his punch?

 

They had a bit more experience than the guys today I think they would adapt and do well, there are few stand outs these days and that would be their obstacle but other than Vlad they fit in

 

Wilder cracked the top 10 with a first round KO of Malik Scott. Not sure if the much smaller Clearance Henry, Rex Layne or light hitting Bob Baker can do that.. Scott was a decent sized heavy at 6'4", 225 lbs and could move around the ring pretty fluidly.. He'd certainly be no cake walk for a lot of heavys.

 

Yes, they'd be ranked today.

This is RING magazine's top 10,
(dated Feb.19th 2015) :

1. Povetkin
2. Wilder
3. Fury
4. Pulev
5. Jennings
6. Stiverne
7. Glazkov
8. Perez
9. Arreola
10. Chagaev

 

Valdes to me looked like a poor man's Rid**** Bowe. I felt he wasn't aggressive enough. Nino lost and was stopped a bit too much to be ranked today, but then again fighters are managed differently today.

Valdes could take a Tyson Fury or D. Wilder path into the top ten. I don't think Valdes would stay in the top ten or long, but I do think he could get there.

The others are too small.