Great match up IMO Schmeling ranks higher on my all time list. BUT unless Max catches him with a big right hand, i think the much quicker handed Patterson will be able to outbox him. Max was a great counter puncher but he didn't have a right hand with the power of a Marciano or a Johannson. I don't consider Max a particularly hard puncher, he definitely had above average power and was extremely good at counter punching but he wasn't a Baer/Marciano/Johanson type right handed hitter. Unless Floyd gets careless, his much greater speed should win him a decision, albeit a competitive one. Max will have his moments but Floyd will be able to outspeed him. Patterson UD 15, 9-6.
Now this I have to question. He probably didn't have the power of a Baer/Marciano/Johansen, but he seemed to have a penchant for stopping durable fighters, who nobody else stopped. He was basically the only man to stop Johny Risko, who had one of the best chins in the business. Yes I know that Risko was stopped in his last fight by Tony Musto, but that was twelve years later when he was completely washed up. He was the only person to stop Young Stribling in 200+ fights. He was the only person to stop Steve Hamas, putting a career ending beating on him, and leaving him with the left side of his body paralyzed for three years. Schmeling didn't typically put opponents away quickly, but you didn't just sleep off a Schmeling beating.
Schmeling was a far smarter ring strategist than crude ingo. He found ways to set you up with his right hand. I like patterson here very slightly because of his amazing combination punching ability, but if highly overrated stooge ingo can take him out, Schmeling can to. Schmeling beat a prime joe Louis, fresh off his best filmed performances, and Louis filmed performances post Schmeling were just as dynamite. Floyd Patterson wouldn’t stand a chance in hell vs joe Louis. Patterson got intimidated vs great fighters, while Schmeling rose to the occasion.
All you had to say was he knocked out a prime joe Louis. That does it for me. Really. Louis best performances on film are Baer, Levinskey, Uzcuden (no film but NO ONE ever did that to paolino), Carnera, Ettore, Sharkey. Schmeling beat Louis smack in the middle of that peak.
Hi Suzieq. Good to see you after so long. I remember this forum when i was a kid and we'd get into interesting discussions about boxing. I don't disagree actually. Patterson was too fragile to beat any version of Louis. Schmeling was more durable than Patterson. I agree that Louis had amazing filmed performances before Schmeling 1. Louis was certainly in his physical prime. But he had one flaw (dropping his left hand after jabbing) . Max, to his credit, saw this weakness and took advantage of it. While many of Louis's best performances happened before Schmeling 1, I think peak Louis was from 1938-42. He was still young and had those quick hands. But he was smarter and more experienced. I favour Floyd to beat Max but i think it would be competitive. I do agree that even the 1936 Louis crushes Floyd and rather easily.
I think he was an amazing counter puncher. The punches that seem to stop guys are the ones they don't see coming. A punch that is an 8/10 on a power scale can do much more damage than a punch that is 9/10 if the 8/10 punch sneaks in unexpected. If a fighter sees he is about to get hit by a 9/10 punch and he braces himself or leans back to minimize impact, he can survive it a lot better than a 8/10 punch that he doesn't see coming. I think Schmeling had good power but exceptional counter punching skills. Truly a dream counter puncher. This is why he stopped so many durable fighters like you mentioned.
Patterson via points,to knock down Louis, Schmeling had to throw that sniper right hand a ton of times until the 11th round,but a man with a defense like Floyd...would never ate those.
Schmeling’s timing too good he catches Floyd eventually leaping in and stuns him then finishes him. Max probably trailing in the fight but by round 7 I can see him bouncing Floyd off the canvas.
The MSM told us that Schmeling was a white Nazi, that Louis was the colour of bronze, like our Lord and saviour, Jehoozafat, and that Floyd S. Patterson was black as the dark of night. But when I watched the REAL tapes, I found that Schmeling and Louis were almost identical shades of very, very pale gray, and Patterson just very dark gray., with a super cool haircut. So, whose truth are we basing any of this off of? Mine? Yours? "The man's?"...That is my kweschin.
