Interesting article from Sports Illustrated about the four men that baffled Sonny Liston

Good summation here:

There was, for example, Eddie Machen, who went 12 rounds to a decision, taunting Liston all the way. Bert Whitehurst twice lasted 10 rounds to decisions. Mike DeJohn staggered Liston, and later, when the fight was stopped, DeJohn had to be restrained from going after Liston once again. Zora Folley had Liston cowering and covering from a volley of combinations. Cleveland Williams all but knocked Liston out. Lumbering Howard King went eight rounds with Liston, standing toe to toe, swapping punches all the way. Marty Marshall broke Liston's jaw and beat him. In a rematch Marshall knocked Liston down. In a third tight Marshall hurt Liston, by Sonny's own admission, and went 10 rounds before losing the decision. Rotund Willi Besmanoff slipped Liston's jab and lasted seven rounds. Jimmy McCarter, who beat Liston in an AAU championship bout, later stood up to him defiantly in training camp.

 

This article is a bunch of bollocks, and laughably slanted.

 

Terrible article. It's lapped around here multiple times.

One poster is rumored to have printed it out and put it on his bedside table, in place of the bible.

https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/the-four-who-baffled-liston-feb-1964-article.569003/

https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/the-four-fighters-who-baffled-liston-pre-clay-ali.627259/

https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/writer-debunks-the-four-who-baffled-liston-article.645968/

 

To be fair, they're JUST rumors

 

I sure ain't betting against them

 

I do know that Sonny Liston was baffled by Marty Marshall in 1954, he broke Liston's jaw, going on to decision Sonny, who stated that he was laughing at Marshall, when the fracture occurred. Cleveland Big Cat Williams did baffle Liston in 1959, breaking the nose of The Big Ugly Bear, Liston went on to kayo Williams. Sonny was baffled by Muhammad Ali in Feb 1964 and May 1965

 

Baffled? That's a very choice word. They were four men who were an inconvenience at most for Liston.

 

Since when did anyone give 1 iota of credence to sports illustrated regarding boxing?

 

Yes its quite ridiculous ,and omits details such as Liston was very green when his jaw was broken against Marshall that he beat the **** out of Marshall in 2 rematches.
That he knocked Whitehurst clean out of the ring in their last fight and Whitehurst was only saved from a ko by the final bell tolling as he was trying to get back into the ring.Liston beat Machen pretty comfortably Machen spent most of the night back pedalling.Folley went out in 2 rds how much could he have baffled Sonny?lol McCarter was never the head spar mate for Liston that was Foneda Cox.

 

Liston was having his 8th fight when he faced 27fight Marshall,Liston floored Marshall in the 1 st rd sustained a broken jaw and lost a split decover 8 rds .Was he baffled?
Liston beat the **** out of Marshall in their 2nd fight flooring him7 times for 9 counts in the 6 rds the fight lasted
Was he baffled?
"referee: Ruby Goldstein | Fred Connell | Howard Hess
Marshall was down 4 times; for a 9-count at the end of round 5, and three times in round six."
Third fight 10rds 1st rd was even Liston won the next 9.Was he baffled?
"Marshall, a last minute substitute for Harold Johnson, lost all but the first round and it was even. Johnson hurt his shoulder while training for the bout. (UP) From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette- "Liston apparently planned to coast through the bout, and (Referee) McTiernan warned him twice to get in there and fight." Liston had Marshall on the verge of a knockout on several occasions, but the safety-minded Detroit fighter found a way to survive."

NB in three fights Marshall NEVER floored Liston.
Folley lasted into the 3rd rd being floored twice for 9 counts in the 2ndand saved by the bell.Was Liston baffled?

"Folley knocked down twice in 2nd round; 9 count and saved by the bell at 9 count."
Besmanoff?
"Besmanoff absorbed a barrage of punches in the sixth and was bleeding from several bad gashes over his eyes. The referee stopped the bout between rounds at corner's request and it was scored a seventh round knockout." (Associated Pess)
Ohio State Commission rules bouts stopped after bell ruled stoppages in following round" .
Did he baffle Liston?
DeJohn?
"Heavyweight contender Sonny Liston, with 16 straight victories under his belt, apologized today for uppercutting Big Mike DeJohn while he was "down," and yelled for a fight with a higher ranking contender. "I want Eddie Machen, Zora Folley or Nino Valdes for my next fight," declared Liston of Philadelphia, who floored DeJohn of Syracuse, N.Y., twice Wednesday night with solar-plexus punches for a technical knockout in the sixth round of their TV fight. After referee Jimmy Peerless had stopped the bout at 2:43 of the sixth round before 3,858 at the Miami Beach Exhibition Hall, the fight was almost resumed in DeJohn's corner. When the victorious Philadelphian danced across the ring to shake hands with vanquished Mike, DeJohn refused to shake and angrily accused Sonny of uppercutting him when down on one knee the second time. Mike called Sonny a name. Liston swung at him and missed. Then their handlers separated them. Liston, weighing 209¼ pounds and standing 6-feet-1, admitted later, "Yes, I uppercutted him all right, but I didn't know he had a knee on the floor. I thought he was just squattin' like he did a couple of times earlier. I'm sorry about it but he's so tall, I didn't realize he had a knee down." Sonny was favorite at 12-5."
Baffled?
Whitehurst?
"Whitehurst was knocked through the ropes, and was attempting to climb back into the ring as the final bell rang at the count of seven."
Baffled?
Williams?
"Two tall, hard-hitting heavyweights who had trouble finding opponents met each other in the ring here Wednesday night and Charles (Sonny) Liston of Philadelphia came off the winner by a TKO in 2:04 of the third round. Liston floored his opponent, Cleveland Williams of Houston, Texas, twice before referee Jimmy Peerless stopped it. The fight had been billed for 10 rounds, but odds were 3 to 1 it wouldn't go that far. Liston started slowly and Williams, who had lost only two out of 46 ring appearances, mixed in left jabs with right crosses and left hooks to pile up a lead and bloody the Philadelphian's nose. "We weren't concerned about the blood on Liston's nose." said his manager, Pep Barone. "It would take more than that to beat this fighter." Liston's handlers said they told him to wait Williams out and he did, but only until the second round. Sonny opened up then and peppered his foe with rights and lefts to the head. A barrage to Williams' head late in the round rocked the Texan and paved the way for the fatal third. In that round, Liston poured on more rights and lefts to the head and Williams went down. He took the eight count but when he came up, Liston was waiting with more of the same. Williams went down flat on his back, rolled over and staggered to his feet as Peerless stepped in to stop it."
Baffled?

Williams 2

In the less than 2 rds the fight lasted
"Williams was down twice before the referee stepped between them to stop it with Williams groggy in the corner."
Does it sound like Liston was,"all but knocked out?" Watch the fight and decide for yourself.

Machen? Here are the score cards and bear in mind Liston lost 2 pts for low blows

• Referee: Whitey Domstad 119-112
• Judge: Ely Caston 118-114
• Judge: Sam Heller 118-116
• Baffled?
• 
  
• Howard King 1st fight

"Sonny Liston of Philadelphia punched his way to the biggest purse of his career to date when he scored an 8th round TKO over Howard King of Reno, Nev., in a scheduled 10 round main event at the Miami Beach Auditorium. Liston ran up against a tough customer in King, but the Philadelphian's darting, crunching left hand gradually weakened his opponent. However, it was a right to the midsection just as the bell sounded ending the 7th round that floored King. King was examined by a physician between rounds and ruled unfit to continue." -Associated Press.Baffled?
King 2nd fight.
"Sonny Liston of Philadelphia, who scored his 25th straight victory Wednesday night on a repeat knockout over Howard King, plans to challenge for the heavyweight crown next week. Liston will challenge the winner of Monday night's Floyd Patterson-Ingemar Johansson title fight and will file the challenge with the NBA, manager Joseph (Pep) Barone said today. Sonny floored King for a count of eight in the 2nd round and for the full count in the 3rd round of their 10-rounder at the Miami Beach Auditorium." - United Press International
Baffled?

 

Dude, I haven't got a dog in the fight. I am just posting the paragraph where the author gets to his point.

 

I haven't got a dog in the fight either, I just know that article is a load of bollocks.And it has been suitably addressed on here several times.Nothing personal Mate!

 

Its “baffling” that there is no footage of his Folley, DeJohn fights, would love to see them.

 

The writer of this article actually got a short gig on The Highlander manning a food stand.

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