Where do you draw the line at Heavyweight vs Super Heavyweight ?

If you watch most of the big pre 1980 heavyweight giants on film...they stink. Poor athleticism, awful balance, lack good defense, lack talent, lack combination punching ability..

Big men have gotten far more athletic in the past 30-40 years

 

Yes. A guy like Fury would have shut out any sub 200lb heavyweight over 12 rounds..way too much height reach range and talent...and I hate fury

Same with Klitschko, Joshua, Wilder, Lewis, Bowe...way too much size and talent for any 185lb man.

Giants of the past like B Baer, Willard, Carnera, Hoff, Fulton, Dunkhorst...they would have been destroyed by the likes of a Anthony Joshua or Klitschko

 

I don't entirely agree to be honest.

Willard for all his failings, arguably had the best balance of power, durability, and stamina, of any super heavyweight.

Carnera for all his failings, was actually very good from a technical standpoint.

Obviously there is no film of Fulton, but he got Godfreyesque reviews from his peers.

Even Buddy Baer is still up there in terms of most first round knockouts.

My point is not that these men were great fighters, or that they were as good as the modern super heavyweights.

I don't think that they were.

My point is that they were too good to dismiss the results obtained against them!

 

I’ve seen film from all of them...carnera willard B baer wouldn’t win one round against the likes of a Fury or W Klitschko

 

That I am prepared to question.

If those fights were lined up, I would have a very open mind about what was going to happen!

 

In the ring Tyson was 216 or so so. Today that’s what cruisers are when they get in the ring. This is what the 24 hour weigh in amounts to. It means fighters have 24 hours to rehydrate to their optimum fighting weight.

A year or so ago I spoke to Billy Graham. He was Ricky Hattons trainer. He told me Rickys best weight was 154lb. So He had a 154lb fighter and it was his job to get the best out of a 154lb fighter. The 24 hour limit allowed him to “make” 140. But Ricky was never a 140 fighter. Billy said that’s how it is now. If he was in the he 1980s Ricky would be in another division. He says that’s what everyone does with their fighters. It is just how it is.

And that is from the horses mouth.

 

How do you think Rocky would go against Lewis, 2 x Klit, Bowe, Furey and Joshua?

Yes there are heaps of average big guys. There are also sooooooo many more of them now as well.

The thing is we had ZERO Lennox Lewis's back in the day where as the last couple of decades we've had a handful of top level big guys. We also have to remember that the lesser big guys under the top dogs have to try and beat said top dogs to get to the title.

 

Simply don't watch heavyweight boxing.

Someone will explode onto the scene at some point in the future and turn things somewhat on their head. I'm not talking a 200 pounder tho.

Maybe Wilder can be that guy. He "only" weighs 214 yet may end up the most dangerous fighter today. I have my doubts but he certainly has the power and offense to be a chance of emrging from the pack. Many people are quick to discount his weight by citing his height but plenty of these guys also believed there would never be a sub 220 pound champ again too so now he's thrust into the super heavy bracket to cover previous errs.

 

I think that almost anybody could have made the current cruiser weight limit, if their career advancement depended upon it!

Nicolai Valuev might have struggled!

 

Yeah I get what you’re saying. Lewis easily kept Tua a bay (though built like a tank) he was short and squatty with short arms similar to Marciano, Tua was obviously much heavier then the Rock but I think as far as the height and reach comparisons go this may be the closest opponent Lewis faced that would provide a similar looking picture to Lewis-Rocky. Tua didn’t land a significant punch in the 12 round contest. And though Marciano could take an inhuman amount of punishment he was decked buy Moore and Walcott so we have to assume Lewis could hurt him. But let me ask you this if Lewis decided to get in a fire fight like he did vs Mercer could the Rock hurt him or do you think Lewis’s offensive attack would spell early lights out for Rocky? Or Would he just be too big, too strong and too good and just blow Marciano away.

 

I dispute the analogy between Marciano and tua.

Tua was much easier to get into survival mode than Marciano, and even Chris Byrd got his respect.

This is not the best style to fight Lewis with, but much better could have been done!