Rockys ability to knock people out of any size and shape seems to be on par with Louis. Louis was able to knock giants out. Rocky, therefor, should also be able to do the same. Again, Marciano isn't half the size of Tony Tucker. 7 inches is insignificant compared to the difference in their punching.
Those claiming Louis was world class for his fight with Marciano, and that proves that the Rock could handle big world clas heavyweights, are really stretching the definition of the term "world class" and even the definition of "big" in terms of the heavyweight division. Firstly, next day accounts of Louis performance against Bivens clearly show that he couldn't pull the trigger on his right hand. The once fierce combination puncher, the best the division has ever seen, had been reduced to a plodding jabber looking for openings he would never find. Secondly, if Louis were still "world class" walking into the ring to meet Marciano, he would have continued fighting afterward. He still had huge tax bills to pay and would resort to wrestling in an attempt to shake them. Were he world class he could have made a lot more money trying for another title shot. Lastly, stop pretending 213 was Louis' best or prime fighting weight. He looked every bit the flabby old man he was. I am sitting beneath a fight poster for his 1950 Charles fight. People are always commenting how horrible Louis looks, old and out of shape. His prime was about 10 pounds, and more importantly, 10 years before.
How do you work this out ? Rocky never faced anyone the size and shape of Carnera, the Baer brothers, Abe Simon, to mention the most obvious ones.
He would probably have won against 5 of the top 10 contenders of that time. That makes him world class. People wanted Louis to retire. He took their advice. Maybe he thought wrestling would be less dangerous. The Charles fight was a different fight. He hadn't trained long enough and was about 5 pounds heavier. Against Marciano he was more muscular. When are you going to stop pretending Tony Tubbs was ever a legit 230 pounder ? In non-flabby shape Tubbs is probably barely 200 pounds.
Maybe "in the same class" is more specific. Louis and Rocky both knocked Walcott out. Marciano's knockout was more devastating. Louis had more of a handicap against him, but still. I think most people have Marciano in their top 10 punchers list.
[url]http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1165016.1348266542!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/gallery_1200/rocky-marciano-joe-louis-1951.jpg[/url] [url]http://cdn.ebaumsworld.com/mediaFiles/picture/551391/80666154.jpg[/url]
Avoiding prolonged health risks doesn't mean he wasn't world class. Do you really think that thought from your imagination holds up against the reality of his big win streak against ranked boxers in real life? You gotta be more balanced
Balance this... "Louis has lost his old punch. He has been belting second and third-raters. So the raw facts are that Louis must locate a punch he lost three or four years ago... It's been a dull story every since Joe Louis lost his punch, his hand speed and his reflex actions in the ring.." 10/21/54 Grantland Rice Or do you claim to be better informed than one the better commentators of the day.
The start of your post is both a logical fallacy and factually incorrect. What are some examples of Marciano knocking out world-class 225-240-lb men? Takes more than power to knock out giants, especially skilled giants who jab and move. Prime Tucker is a much bigger man than Marciano. I am sorry (and astonished) that you cannot see that.
Bad Karma dude. I'm sure plenty of us had similar conversations but you're the first to publicly out him.
The same Grantland Rice in July 1951, wrote this article : [url]https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1955&dat=19510728&id=kVItAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ENoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=6500,3136898&hl=en[/url] He's pretty clear there that Joe Louis still belongs in the world class despite his obvious decline.