Top five losing efforts against Joe Louis

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by janitor, Jan 2, 2022.


Page 1 of 3
  1. janitor

    janitor VIP Member

    71,677
    27,394
    Feb 15, 2006
    You are assessing the performance of the opponent, not Louis's performance, but you need to take into account how good you think Louis was at the time.

    Try to focus on the performance itself, not how god you think the opponent was.

    Any performance where the opponent beat Louis, is excluded form consideration, but you can comment on those if you want.

    I will go first:

    1. Billy Conn 1 (An absolute masterclass against a very dangerous version of Louis)
    2. Arturo Godoy 1 (I never liked this one, but you have to respect Godoy holding Louis to a SD)
    3. Jersey Joe Walcott 1 (Only the fact that Louis was past his best, prevents this one being higher)
    4. Abe Simon 1 (Described by Louis as the worst beating he ever took)
    5. Tommy Farr (Only Louis's hand injury prevents this one being higher)

    I will be interested to see if anybody has it very different.
     
    janitor, Jan 2, 2022
    janitor, Jan 2, 2022
    #1
    Sangria, Toney F*** U, BitPlayerVesti and 2 others like this.
  2. McGrain

    McGrain Diamond Dog Staff Member

    113,414
    48,831
    Mar 21, 2007
    Yes, that looks right, I'd maybe swap Walcott and Godoy given that the majority of ringsiders though Walcott deserved that, but nothing wrong with that list. Maybe Bob Pastor at six?
     
    McGrain, Jan 2, 2022
    McGrain, Jan 2, 2022
    #2
    Toney F*** U, BitPlayerVesti, mr. magoo and 3 others like this.
  3. djanders

    djanders Boxing Addict Full Member

    5,065
    6,935
    Feb 21, 2009
    Good list! I would consider the Louis-Walcott 2nd meeting a candidate for #5, in spite of Walcott being stopped in the 11th round. It was a very competive fight, still, and it gave Louis enough pause that he temporarily retired after that fight.
     
    djanders, Jan 2, 2022
    djanders, Jan 2, 2022
    #3
    Sangria and janitor like this.
  4. salsanchezfan

    salsanchezfan Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

    15,803
    11,441
    Aug 22, 2004
    Given that you couldn't put him anywhere near the Conns or Walcotts of the world in terms of skill or legacy, one would seem almost forced to put Godoy in there. His plan of crowding Louis and smothering his efforts from a crouch was excellent, and he truly made the most of himself that night.
     
    salsanchezfan, Jan 2, 2022
    salsanchezfan, Jan 2, 2022
    #4
    Sangria, Bokaj and janitor like this.
  5. Journeyman92

    Journeyman92 Mauling Mormon’s banned Full Member

    19,748
    21,715
    Sep 22, 2021
    Well- really the Walcott fight wasn’t a LOSING effort by nearly every account. But as far as I understand the question you’ve pretty much hit it on the mark.
     
    Journeyman92, Jan 2, 2022
    Journeyman92, Jan 2, 2022
    #5
  6. McGrain

    McGrain Diamond Dog Staff Member

    113,414
    48,831
    Mar 21, 2007
    Oh my goodness no, not remotely.

    This isn't Bradley-Pacquiao I.
     
    McGrain, Jan 2, 2022
    McGrain, Jan 2, 2022
    #6
  7. mr. magoo

    mr. magoo VIP Member Full Member

    51,494
    26,022
    Jan 3, 2007
    Pastor and Galento gave good efforts but I don’t known if they crack his top five
     
    mr. magoo, Jan 2, 2022
    mr. magoo, Jan 2, 2022
    #7
  8. 70sFan865

    70sFan865 Boxing Junkie Full Member

    8,547
    9,582
    May 30, 2019
    I'd have Farr higher than Simon. Other than that, sounds fair.
     
    70sFan865, Jan 2, 2022
    70sFan865, Jan 2, 2022
    #8
  9. Ali Holmes

    Ali Holmes Active Member banned Full Member

    582
    521
    Dec 23, 2021
    If Bruno could have fought Prime Joe Louis, I think it would have been a gallant losing effort
     
    Ali Holmes, Jan 2, 2022
    Ali Holmes, Jan 2, 2022
    #9
  10. janitor

    janitor VIP Member

    71,677
    27,394
    Feb 15, 2006
    What would have damned Bruno, is that he would not have made it into the later rounds.

    Geeks like me, would have noted that Louis said that every punch that Bruno hit him with, shook him to his core, and made him reset.

    Nobody else would have cared.

    Bruno would have been confined to the dustbin of history, just another bum of the month!
     
    janitor, Jan 2, 2022
    janitor, Jan 2, 2022
    #10
    Bokaj, George Crowcroft and Ali Holmes like this.
  11. George Crowcroft

    George Crowcroft He Who Saw The Deep Full Member

    27,191
    45,098
    Mar 3, 2019
    I think Louis is actually the worst possible match up for Bruno. Bruno never learnt how to take a punch properly; he never learnt to tuck his chin, not panic and lower his centre of gravity and keep his legs under him. Bruno panicked, uncoiled and opened himself up and Louis would exploit that with the first combination he threw. I think he'd counter Bruno's jab, and then from there it'd only be a matter of time.

    Early KO for Louis IMO. Jan is right though, Louis would likely have a lot to say about Bruno's power after the fight.
     
    George Crowcroft, Jan 2, 2022
    George Crowcroft, Jan 2, 2022
    #11
    BCS8, 70sFan865 and Ali Holmes like this.
  12. Journeyman92

    Journeyman92 Mauling Mormon’s banned Full Member

    19,748
    21,715
    Sep 22, 2021
    Never seen Bradley vs Pac to be honest.
     
    Journeyman92, Jan 2, 2022
    Journeyman92, Jan 2, 2022
    #12
  13. Ali Holmes

    Ali Holmes Active Member banned Full Member

    582
    521
    Dec 23, 2021
    I'm watching Witherspoon vs Bruno and he really tested Tim. At times it looked like Witherspoon was ready to go.
     
    Ali Holmes, Jan 2, 2022
    Ali Holmes, Jan 2, 2022
    #13
    Sangria likes this.
  14. McGrain

    McGrain Diamond Dog Staff Member

    113,414
    48,831
    Mar 21, 2007
    It's just an example where "nearly every account" really was for the losing fighter (Hauser was a notable exception).

    Around 30-35% of people who saw Louis-Walcott had it for Louis. That included the NY Times and RING (And 2 judges...).
     
    McGrain, Jan 2, 2022
    McGrain, Jan 2, 2022
    #14
    BitPlayerVesti and George Crowcroft like this.
  15. Journeyman92

    Journeyman92 Mauling Mormon’s banned Full Member

    19,748
    21,715
    Sep 22, 2021
    I’m going to have to agree with Louis, the Ref and the majority (70-65%) on this one.
     
    Journeyman92, Jan 2, 2022
    Journeyman92, Jan 2, 2022
    #15
Page 1 of 3