Rocky Marciano Film Study

Damn....I want that poster!

Well one thing for sure....Rocky didn't avoid black fighters. He fought anyone that was around. Can anyone make a case that Marciano ducked any particular boxer?

 

Good points on the video, especially how Rocky makes the other guy uncomfortable by fighting on his back foot. Pushing him backward then throwing an on balance body shot, or sneaky headshot.

A few things to add if I may.

Up close, Rocky puts his head in a good defensive position. He had strong legs, getting leverage on his opponent while at the same time tiring him out. With 15+ round stamina, Rocky could afford to do this. In many cases his opponents didn't have close to his conditioning/ability to go 15 rounds, and by doing his, Rocky tires him out, setting himself up for the later rounds.

Rocky had a way of using his short arms to his advantage. Because his arms were so short, he has a quicker recoil and re-load than his opponents do up close, and he seems to have a balance control, even when firing them wildly up close.

On the way in Rocky had a way of coming in low, with a duck and rise type of punch. Some critics may say Marciano can look a bit clumsy at times, but boxing isn't scored like figure skating. It worked for him.

 

Sure, but he was suddenly going the distance fight after fight against small ordinary men he most likely would have knocked out early, and he had an increasingly hard time getting off his right. That has to count for something.

 

Works for me.

 

They were no more ordinary or small compared to vast bulk of challengers Joe Louis and Ezzard Charles were defending their titles against. Savold, Bivins and Cesar Brion. Sure he’s taking more the distance. Not all of them though. Savold was knocked spark out. Valdes knocked spark out. Valentino knocked spark out. Bivins was a great deal better than most of Louis or Charles’ challengers. Brion was tough. Was he really worse than Johnny Paycheck, Jack Roper, Tony Musto that Louis fought or Beshore and Gus Lesnevich that Charles fought?

 

Yes Marciano looked clumsy but it worked for him.

I found this from a poster some time ago.

“Marciano was small. Most of the fighters he beat were bigger than him. Marciano made an advantage out of his size. He was the hw that mastered fighting small to perfection. He made himself even smaller than he was to avoid the punches of his opponents, to make them punch down and thus taking away some of their snap and precision, making their punches longer and easier to see. I don´t see how this could lower his standing amongst the atgs. It should enhance it. When people talk about Fitz, Greb, Armstrong and so on they are astonished about their feat of beating bigger guys. When they talk about Rocky, they say he was too small to compete against bigger guys. Compare that to Lewis who was bigger than nearly all of his opponents. This is used to enhance his standing amongst the great hws. But beating up smaller fighters should actually lower it. When people talk about Monzon and Hopkins they critizise them for fighting smaller fighters. But with Lewis it enhances his status. Double standards.”

 

Louis' challengers were indeed as a rule unimpressive but he was knocking those guys out. Paycheck, Roper, and Musto didn't see the final bell (hell, Paycheck and Roper barely lasted two whole rounds combined). Agramonte did (twice). Andy Walker almost did. His once extraordinary ko percentage dropped to 30% over the course of his final 10 fights.

And Valentino was semi-retired, blind in one eye, and apparently unaware that Louis intended to go all out during their exhbition. Why even mention him? Or any of the other rumored exhibitions, for that matter?

 

Post of the year! AND this is coming from a huge marciano fan

 

Stop just stop making up false statements.


Louis never fought Valdes Valentino or ray in professional bouts

 

You have some points. There are double standards. I think Rocky could compete against guy 30 pounds heavier, but if you saying he never faced a Lennox Lewis or Wladmir Klitshcko ( very skilled big men who can punch and box ), the same goes for Ali, Holmes, Louis and the rest of them.

You could say the closer Rocky got to his man, the better his results were and he knew how to execute those maneuvers.

Maricnao is the bane for fighters who don't like to be crowded, have stamina relates issues in the later rounds, don't have top chins, don't take good body shots, and have lower work rates, regardless of their size from 180-275.

Rocky can suck a man's will, even if they are doing the scoring, and he never quits. A man who never quits with power is tough to beat. Rocky's got a puncher's chance vs. just about anyone

Where I would draw the line is vs. a much faster-footed fighter who's not easy to catch up to or clinch, or a much bigger fighter with a long jab and power who knows how to clamp down and put his weight on a smaller guy in a clinch. Either type would give Rocky trouble.

 

Thank you...i have never seen a fighter in history fight as small as rocky did. He made every use of his lack of reach and was incredible at utlilizing leverage

 

Did he knock them out?

 

Using a shadow of a mummy of a dilapidated Joe Louis as evidence is hardly compelling unless you are in the demographic that is exceedingly willing to be compelled.

 

You won’t get me to say Louis was his absolute best because he wasn’t. Thing is Walcott was among the best he fought and he took him the distance. Farr, Pastor And Godoy all took Louis the distance when he was at his dazzling best. Sure Louis could beat those guys on his comeback quicker but how far away from Godoy, Tommy Farr and Bob Pastor were Cesar Brion, Agramante And Bivins?

Valentino was coming off a world title fight wasn’t he? He looked ripped and in one albeit highlight version of that match Valentino seems to be fiercely firing back at Louis in an exchange he instigated.

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why mention Valentino? I mentioned him because Pat was knocked out.

 

I think it is patently obvious who us is in that demo that wishes to be compelled on these matters.