If Joe Louis soldiered on

If Joe had continued after losing to Marciano, he picks up more losses. He would still be able compete at a high class very likely imo, but champ? No.
He wouldn't beat Rocky and Rocky was the champ.
Once the Rock has retired, Patterson beats a past his best 40 plus Joe any time from 56 onwards. Joe wasn't shot against Rocky but he was past his best certainly and he would have deteriorated even more in the meantime.

 

If he fought continuously without regard to his declining skills, I honestly think he would either have died from brain damage or else been in a coma. I think he was already damaged when he retired. Obviously, he was a lot smarter than that so we never had to find out.

 

Joe Louis had very little left in the tank at the time he was stopped by Rocky Marciano. He probably knew it.

Louis was a major force in the heavyweight division during a period from 1935 to 1951. That is astounding. As a result, the fact that Louis was a shell of his former self by 1951 is very understandable.

- Chuck Johnston

 

I think he could have still beaten the journeyman at the time and perhaps even an occasional fringe contender but his world class days were over.. and fighting Patterson in the 50’s. Would have ended brutally for him

 

Could have been but I’m going off of Marciano’s habit of turning good fighters into retired or no longer good like he did with Louis, Charles, Savold, and Walcott for example.

 

After losing his title bid to Ezzard Charles on September 29, 1950, Joe Louis resumed his career on November 29, 1950 and had eight fights in 11 months up until his final fight against Rocky Marciano on October 26, 1951. Had he continued to fight at the same rate up until Patterson became champion on December 9, 1956, he would have had about 41 more fights. Tests on his reflexes showed that even at the time of the Walcott fights, his reflexes on one side of his body already had slowed considerably (I can't remember which side). He was substantially slower by the time he fought Marciano, and I think (yes, it is just my opinion) that he already had suffered significant brain damage by the end of his career. If he kept stepping into the ring against serious contenders like he had been doing, I don't see how he could have survived 41 more fights. Actually, the premise of this thread that he could have continued to fight for another five plus years is so farfetched that it makes the conclusion which I am reaching all the more likely.

 

.I doubt it

 

Patterson kills him

 

Prime Patterson would destroy 1951 Louis so imagine a 1956 version

 

He had some decent wins going into the Marciano fight. Bivins is a good win, albeit past his best. Brion was a pretty good gatekeeper and seemed to give him all he could handle

Archie Moore would of picked Louis apart and outworked him. Walcott would be too much for him at this stage. You wonder if he a shot against the likes of Layne, Baker, Henry and Valdes. Maybe they'd all be too much for him at this stage. A young Patterson lights him up and blasts him out of there

 

I doubt it man. Patterson is very underrated, he would be a test even against Prime Marciano. Prime Louis stops Patterson but his 51 version was shot and he is not beating a peak Patterson,Louis was only a man not superman.