Can Liston Dismantle Wlad?

If Wlad used his style from his time with Manny Steward he could cause Sonny to have one of those prison flashbacks. The one-two followed by falling onto Liston like a Grizzly Bear that just got shot in the a$$ with a sedative dart.
Sonny may call out WARDEN I WANT MY OWN CELL!!!

On a serious note. A good possibility Wlad loses this one at the prefight press conference and or weigh in. He might tinkle down his bridges leg.

 

Remember the Pulev jab stunning Wlad , imagine him getting hit with Listons jab

Glassy chinner who panics when hit and can't fight inside is probably not going to fare well against Liston

 

Wladimir Klitschko is the most underrated HW champion in the last 60 years. He'd definitely have a chance against Liston, although it's not an easy win either way.

 

I don't believe any heavyweight in history who losses to 2nd and 3rd rate fighters like Brewster, Purity and Sanders in the PRIME of his career would have much of a chance against prime Sonny Liston, who was top ten-twenty in ability of all ranked heavyweights in history.
Liston would take the fight out of Wlad with his stare alone.

 

He was extremely talented but deep down he was a control freak coward, I don’t think he would have the mindset to beat Liston, he would spook him.

 

This is accurate.

I will add... Liston by murder within five rounds. Police used to break night sticks over Listons head and never knocked him out. Wlad has been knocked out by the same power that Liston had in his jab.

There’s a great clip where George Foreman, who was Liston’s sparring partner back in the day, said how Liston was the only man on the planet who made him back up consistently. Described his jab as a telephone pole being piston rammed into his head.

 

That's assuming boxrec is correct.

 

Um what? Who did Wlad beat who was on Liston's level? Liston beat a consensus top 20 ATG Debatable top 10, twice in brutal and dominant fashion. Where are Wlad's comparable wins?

Yes because Wlad and Ali were so similar and had the same level of talent.

 

I don't think NOI accepted him until he beat Liston the first time.

The second fight was a farce but he legitimately defeated Liston in the first bout. Liston was the champ and I don't think he would have beaten Ali even if he was younger and trained harder with motivation. It was a bad matchup for him. Let's not forget that he even tried to blind Ali with some kind of astringent.

I don't see how it's relevant either way since Wlad fights nothing like Ali. They are two different talents with different styles.

Liston is underrated and is a bad matchup for many. 84 inch reach (supposedly) with KO power in both hands. Massive fists and monstrous power. And he knew how to box. He literally could knockout with the jab and was immensely feared.

 

At BEST Liston was in his mid 30s, very possible he was in his 40s, he'd seen 3 rounds in 3 years, and had a recorded shoulder injury going into the bout with Ali and attempted to get it postponed. He'd also been diagnosed with bursitis.

 

Did Liston know he was with the NOI during the time of the first match? I'm reading Ali didn't make it public that he was with them until the second fight.

If Liston did feel uneasy or threatened, then what about his mob ties? Wouldn't they play a role in this? Wouldn't the mob have his backing? The mafia was even more dangerous than the NOI. The mafia had a hand in the assassination of the president of the United States, John Kennedy. They were a level above the NOI.

And wouldn't the mob ties put fear into Ali?

Also why did Liston try and blind Ali if he was not fully committed to winning?

There are too many questions and variables. But at the end of the day, Ali's movement would give trouble to any version of Liston. I'm giving Ali the nod for a legitimate victory over Liston in the first fight.

I rate Liston highly overall as a head to head boxer. I rate Wlad highly as well as a head to head boxer, but I don't see him beating Liston.

 

Here's a hint

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I’ve got Liston eating a few big shot but he has Vlad exhausted and stumbling around the ring by the 9th. Liston TKO 9.

 

Interesting

Michael Franzese, former capo of the Colombo family, said that the mafia was absolutely involved in the assassination of JFK. I agree it's another topic but there was a lot going on in behind the scenes in the Clay/Ali vs Liston bouts. Both men had connections to dangerous and violent organizations that didn't hesitate to kill if they had too.

La Cosa Nostra wielded a lot of power in those days, but would they get involved with battling the NOI over a heavyweight boxing match? They are said to have killed Liston for allegedly disobeying them.

If you can prove that Liston was threatened during the first fight by the NOI then that would really be huge. The second fight I agree he took a dive.