Don your rose-tinted glasses... or your blinders if necessary... and have at it, folks. 15 rounds. Modern rules. A ring of any size you choose.
Lol jk. I don't think Tunney has the ability to deal with Klitschko's size. He might put up a good fight showing all the tricks of the trade but imo Wlad wins by UD. Maybe tko late worse case senario.
I think a prime version of Wlad would have to be favored in this...but of four men that beat Wlad...how did they do it? Purrity outlasted and caught up to him...Sanders used power and speed and KO'd him...Brewster walked through hell and beat him. Could Tunney in his prime, have a chance against those? I think Tunney at his best beats them....Could Tunney outpoint a David Haye?..Again yes. Could Tunney have the guile and ability to implement a similar game plan as Tyson Fury imposed? Making the patient counter puncher awkwardly lead, and have to reset constantly on a very fit, very well schooled, and mobile opponent. Fury of coarse was a much larger man than Tunney...but Tunney seems quicker, and sharper than Fury...and for what it's worth Tunney managed distance very well. Could he determine if Wlad didn't like to lead? I don't really have a horse in this debate...but could this be closer than you think?
I favor Wlad by UD I feel like this is definitely not the fight for Gene. But who knows. Would be interesting to see. On one hand Wlad has a combination of size and craftiness that might mess with Tunneys rhythm. But perhaps he could outpoint him with speed.
I'm not sure about this one. Tunney had the skill and speed, klitschko the strength, skill and size. Tunney gives klitschko the runaround for a good portion of the fight but eventually wlads sheer size advantage and weight advantage takes its toll on gene. Klitschko punches start landing more and more till round about the tenth wlad drops him heavily. Ton of heart he tried to rise but he's to hurt.
Lol Klitschko dominant victory. The only way Tunney goes the distance is if Wlad doesn't push the pace.
Could be 15 rounds or 50, won't matter because Tunney won't see the bell. Klitschko stays behind his jab picking his moments to send freight train straight right hands in Gene's direction. Eventually Tunney catches one of these trains and if he is late he can always have the left hook. No more than 8 rounds when all the clinching, leaning and barge-pole jabs slow him down enough that he gets caught and goes for a nap. Klitschko KO
Wlad by decision if Tunney sprints all night,he doesn't have the top end power to make Wlad cautious , Wlad has very good footwork coming forward and he sure won't be retreating from Tunney.I give Dempsey a much better chance against Wlad .
The smartest guy that prime Wlad fought was Sultan Ibragimov. Sultan was both smart and tough, and through he lost the decision to Wlad, he went the distance without being decked or really hurt at all for that matter. Tunney would have at least accomplished that feat....and no one can tell me otherwise. Tunney had a great chin and was reknown for being one of the smartest of the heavies.....and he was a much better fighter than Iggy. As much as I esteem Sultan, and I do think he was the best of the Russian heavyweights, it's almost unnecessary to say that Tunney was better. I think Wlad would have been served very well by his size and strength advantages, as well as his jab and clutch strategy. He would have imposed his strength and weight on Tunney and thus smothered much of the Marine's offensive output. Tunney however, would have had the smarts and the chin to survive and make it a fight. His great discipline and technical abilities would have asserted themselves against Wlad enough to remind the bigger man that he had a real, quality opponent to deal with. It would have been size advantages alone, IMO...amplifying Wlad's offensive skills that would have made him the winner over Tunney.
Tunney's chin is based largely on his record at lower weights the only puncher he faced at heavyweight ,a faded Dempsey dropped him and might have finished him off if he had gone to a neutral corner when instructed to do so
Wlad defeated 31 heavyweights, real, modern heavyweights with two losses or less. How many heavyweights, real sized heavies, did Tunney beat? What were their records?
Why is Tunney so clearly better than Ibragimov? 6'2 and 220 pounds would have seen Ibragimov seen as a beast from the east in the days of Tunney. Don't get me wrong, I do think Tunney is a better, but I don't think this default "of course he's better" attitude is fair.