Joe Louis vs Larry Holmes 15 Rounds

Holmes UD or late stoppage

 

Holmes wins a decision ... But Louis gives him hell

 

Joe Louis by TKO. I don't post that lightly. Larry Holmes was a great champion but he could be a sucker for a right hand. Joe had the quickest, most deadly right hand this side of Roberto Duran. The Brown Bomber would set Mr. Holmes up.
Louis TKO 10th

 

Holmes UD

 

That's about it. At some point the best puncher in history lands that right hand over a hanging left and then shows us why he is also perhaps the best finisher of the heavyweights.

 

Louis by late stoppage after losing on points in close fight.

 

This is a hard call, Larry has the tools to win Joe but I'll guarantee Joe Louis is going to land a couple of hook combos that get Larry wobbling. 50/50 fight for me

 

I think Larry probably wins on points. Very real chance Joe gets to him though.

Holmes definitely isn't stopping him.

 

More or less this.

Holmes has the technical tools to pick Louis apart but Louis has the firepower to make Larry take a seat. Holmes will have to fight cleverly and carefully to get through this one.

 

Holmes isn't stopping a peak Louis. Absolutely no way. Its not like Holmes has a history of stopping durable fighters.

IMO Louis would likely win a decision. Holmes may outbox him early but Holmes wasn't a speed demon like Ali and Larry often had a tendency to fight flat footed, even in his prime.

Fighting flat footed vs Louis is a BAD idea unless you have Liston/Foreman/Lewis type power, which Larry did not.

Over 12 rounds, i may pick Larry to win a close decision, but over 15 rounds, i pick Louis to win a decision or a possible tko in rounds 13-15

 

Larry by tough unanimous decision.

 

Louis by points

 

Also a good post and this "Larry often had a tendency to fight flat footed" highlights where Louis would have his best chance. While Louis wasn't light on his feet, exactly, anybody that stood in front of him risked getting savaged by his combination punching. Holmes' jab is a good reset to deter Louis from getting his offense going but - is it going to work everytime and all night? I wonder about that. This would be a great fight to watch imho.

 

Agreed. The issue was that Holmes even at his peak was very hittable.

Ali was different than Holmes. The young pre-Liston Ali could get careless and get nailed. But the peak Ali 1964-67 was hard to hit.

In contrast, the peak Holmes (78-82) was very hittable because he often fought flatfooted. Weaver, Shavers and a number of other limited fighters landed a lot of clean hits on him. Larry had excellent footwork but his footspeed was not extraordinary (very good but not exceptional) and even at his peak, he got hit a little too much for my liking. That's why a Holmes-Louis match up is different than a Ali-Louis one.