Why were "small" men able to dominate the HW division?

I don't think anyone has answered the question. there were big freaks like the K bros back then - so why didn't they dominate?

 

there were big men like the Ks, but the fact is that size alone wasn't good enough to get to the top back then, whereas nowadays you can do well with just size and a narrow skill set.

 

UGH. Buddy Bear. He's not even close to Bowe, Lewis, and Klitschko. Let's not act like Joe Louis beat skilled super heavies.

I believe people have their best fighting weights. Agreed. Louis would not be as good if he was 30 pounds heavier. By similar fashion adding 30+ pounds to a smaller man is not going to help him much at heavyweight. Look at Ali. He was much slower in his 220's.

Hand speed can be found among larger heavies. Wlad has very fast hands. Tommy Brooks said as fast as Larry Holmes.

I strongly suggest you watch a much bigger fighter with skills vs a smaller fighter with skills. If the bigger guy knows how to use his jab and size, it's often a mis-match

Even Sonny Liston who wasn't very fast used his superior reach to take smaller boxers out of their game who had more speed than he did.

 

there were big men around during those era's but they had trouble making it to the top for the most part. They used to say the bigger they are the harder they fall" these days of the amateur Super Heavyweight division big guys are trained well and fight other big men coming up, while the natural 180-200 lbers are either muscled out of that weight class or try and gain weight to fight bigger men.

I think at this point in time we should make a Super-heavyweight division and a Heavyweight division-scratch the Cruiser-weights...weight training is now a part of boxing so adjustments may have to be made in the divisions

 

of course the biggest drawback of being huge in bouts that lasted nearly an hour is the cardio problem..

that being, bigger men lose out in cardio versus smaller men, since a corresponding increase in heart size in bigger men actually reduces the efficiency of the heart. In a cardio sport, you are seriously handicapped by this fact the bigger you are.

But as rounds in fights have become reduced, this has become a smaller issue.

 

Not yet on the super heavyweights! The champions would not have many to fight. I think moving to the divisions amatuer boxing would be a bit better.

 

The whole thread is full of answers. Just take the time to read them.

 

nope, they don't explain it.


I'm not chasing ghosts, but you are welcome to.

 

this seems the best explanation, since its based on fact not opinion, but its my own post and I don't want to blow my own trumpet.

 

The general population wasn't as big as it is now. Jim Jeffries was referred to as a "man mountain" and Jack Johnson the "Galveston Giant" at a time when men their size were considered big. They would be average or small sized by todays HW standard. Plus times were "leaner" back then (as well as tougher). There wasn't a McDonalds, Burger King, KFC or Domino's Pizza on every corner like there is today. Nor were there any huge grocery stores like Stop N Shop. Kids growing up today can gorge themselves on high fat, hormone laced food products day in and day out. The few big men way back were the exception not the norm. Most of the HW's back then were 180-200lbs. Plus Boxing back then favored the smaller, faster fighter due to the rules of the times. Boxing today favors big men which there are a lot more of today.

 

Don't know what kind of explanation you're looking for but here was mine.

 

I think a gain of 30lb would be way too much for Louis. I see him more of a 210-215 lb fighter today. I agree with you and other posters that there would be differences in size, now. Louis, in particular, seems a bit underweight in several of his fights, and that might be due to over training/ more aerobic type work and of course the fact that most fighters didn't lift weights.

I also think the "smaller" guys should be careful not to gain too much weight as it can negate their work rate and speed advantages. I suppose some fighters can handle the extra weight better than others, too.

 

Because size isn't everything. You lose stamina, gain some power, but sacrifice speed. This effects the speed of your defence and offence, so considering most of the 'small' men that 'dominated' the division where those that could sustain a good offence and keep up a good work rate giving themselves a chance to land big punches from start to finish. Boxing in its simplist form is hit and don't get hit, so presenting a much bigger target isn't neccessarily and good thing.

 

Either you haven't studied Floyd, or your ignorant (not stupid, just ignorant ) tongue is firmly in your cheek V.

 

i think every thing written in this thread adds up to be quite a significant difference in the makeup of the heavyweight division over time, no one factor is the right answer.