Better All-Around Fighter: Primo Carnera or Riddick Bowe?

Smaller gloves favour who lands first and more often. It is true a heavier bigger man has a physical advantage and can do more damage per blow but it's all about the ratio of punches landed. Two light punches are equal to one solid blow.

A giant could be cut to ribbons before he gets one in. That is of course unless the giant knows what he is doing.

With bigger gloves a giant has more to sheild his opponents offence with and the "fighting chance" of a smaller man is that much more reduced. For all his speed the smaller man is hitting more gloves.

 

How do you work this out? Both men would be wearing smaller gloves which should give the bigger ,heavier man an advantage!

You said Carnera was a great fighter.This is an extract from Schmeling's opinion,provided by you!
" It's true he was not a great champion".Don't give me anymore ammunition I really don't need it!LOL

 

This is a link to an unauthorised page...

 

Spin ,spin, spin.

 

It's a verified quote.

 

The quote does not say "primo doesn't know how to punch hard"

you said that.

What Gains is reported to have said was "primo is strong but he does not know how to land a good punch"

that's not the same as saying he doesn't know how to punch hard, that's saying he can't land his best punch.

When he gets around to writing his book Gains writes in print that Primo was

"a damaging puncher just the same"

even though, like many fighters who also knocked men out, he does not punch his weight. He did not have to!

 

We still have Gains, Schmeling, joe Louis and Max Bear all classing Primo as a formidable, legitimate fighter worthy of the title.

Versus the Hollywood interpretation of fraudulent careers.

 

And even their most generous quotes don't put him in the same conversation as Riddick Bowe. Unless I missed something, Baer mostly just seems to give him credit for showing courage while taking a one-sided beat down (from Baer, who was himself a crude latecomer to the sport) and Gains seems to note that Carnera came to boxing too late to develop high level skills. So can you guys please give up this farce of an argument that he was as able a fighter as Riddick Bowe?? It's one thing to argue that Carnera wasn't just a complete hoax and a bum--equating him to Riddick Bowe is far more implausible (credibility-shattering even).

 

I had Gains book," The Impossible Dream,"I lent it to a "friend" ,it was never returned,You're trying to put the best possible spin on this that you can.I understand that, but it isn't credible, sorry. Anyone is a damaging puncher if they hit you often enough.Joey Maxim whose ko % is 19% stopped Freddie Mills!

 

This was also before Baer faced Louis himself! Baer made quite a few disparaging remarks about Louis,before he faced him!

 

I've gained a greater appreciation of Carnera with all the old films of him been posted here but honestly apart from showing a greater intense tendency to train hard and get in great physical shape and been as physically strong as he looks, I can't see there any other categories boxing wise where I can say that he can be said to be greater than Bowe.

 

Excellent post that is both reasonable and objective. Bowe could have been as good as Lewis if he had shown the same self discipline and we all know what happened when Lennox twice got complacent.He had good power ,was a good boxer, had a fine jab ,and was the best inside fighting big man I ever saw.
What did Primo have, a pawing jab?

The squawkers are screaming that those who don't rate Carnera highly are calling him a fake,hoax,cheat etc.where did any of us say that?

 

No we don't. Schmeling said he wasn't a great fighter Louis said he had nothing. Baer didn't say he was formidable ,he noted he kept getting up, no one has questioned Carnera's courage. If Max had cut out the clowning and got down to work earlier I think Carnera would have been out of there before the halfway stage. Gains never said Carnera was formidable you're spinning fairy tales again!

Tommy Loughran talking about his Carnera fight.
"I'm entitled to a shot at the title.Now they wouldn't have given it to me,hadn't it been for the fact that Father O' Leary over in Pennsylvania,got ahold of Billy Duffy,said"Bill,you always said if I wanted you to do anything for me ---Ok give Tommy Loughran a shot at Carnera." So he said ,"we can't,he'll make a sucker out of the big guy". Father O' Leary said,"give him a shot anyhow". On that basis he give it to me." "Carnera had a glass chin". Taken from a taped interview in April1972.

 

Sparked out Foreman? Hearns sparked Schuler and Duran. Jackson sparked Graham.

 

John, what's your rationale for voting for Primo in this poll? Just curious.