Primo Carnera's ability

Good day all.

I see there is a lot of controversy on these boards over Primo Carnera's actual ability level, just as there was in his day. I am going to give you what I have read about it, mostly form old copies of KO and RING magazine back in the day. I accept any corrections, additions, arguments, etc. But let's keep this one civil. People have been debating this for 80 years now, so yes, there are differing opinions. Let us break it down into his boxing ability, power, and punch resistance.


BOXING ABILITY
It is true that when he was first brought in as as a sort of attraction, he had no ability whatsoever, and it is generally accepted that a lot of his initial fights were outright fixed by the mob, either through pay-offs or intimidation. I remember even reading that when one fighter (it MIGHT have been Godfrey--been a long time) refused to roll over, they got to one of his handlers and had pepper juice rubbed in his eyes. At this phase, he truly was a "circus act" or "circus strong man," as some posters have said. HOWEVER...

Carnera himself realized that he was being used, and as a good athlete (he was an excellent wrestler, later taken into the fake pros because he could legitimately shoot and beat most of the guys on the roster) and a man of pride, he worked very hard to develop some legit boxing skill, employing a style that used his great size to keep his opponents at bay with his reach and wear them down with his weight. No, Ali it wasn't, but guys like Loughran and Uzcuden were legitimately beaten.

POWER
As noted by many, he was not and never developed into a true one-punch knockout artist who used hand speed, technique and timing to end things. But as a huge powerhouse of a man, if he got you trapped in the corner, he could inefficiently club you to death with sheer strength. And that is really all there is to it. In boxing, a heavy hand does not always go with a heavy frame, and we all know that, but a guy who was 6'6" and about as wide across the shoulders is going to do something when he hits you.

PUNCH RESISTANCE
A lot of people call him china-chinned, and yes, it is generally accepted that even light-hitters like Loughran could wobble him if they could get through to his chin. HOWEVER, this was partially compensated by the fact that his rock-hard, muscular body could take punches all night long. So no, his overall punch-resistance was not dreadful. He just had to protect the chin as best he could.

In the end, a lot of the man's best wins, like Loughran, Unzcuden, and Sharkey, appeared to be legit. Sharkey claimed until the day he died that Carnera just knocked him out. He would have nothing to gain by lying. Contrast that to Jack Johnson who claimed until the day he died that he took a dive to Willard, even though he lay there on the canvas for like 20 minutes afterwards.

So there you have it. A complex issue. Perhaps one of the most unorthodox heavyweights ever, but in the end, yes, a good one nonetheless, deserving respect.

 

Hmmm. Dropping in to tell me that you are not commenting.

OK