Don't know if I'm getting involved here (I don't have a horse in this race, guys) but I'll take a stab at his best wins. Primo Carnera Max Schmeling Bud Gorman Martin Burke Phil Scott Jack Renault Don McCorkindale Jack London Obie Walker Maurice Strickland A quick check of the ratings at the time shows that Carnera, Gorman, Burke (at light heavy) and Scott were all top 10 at the time Gains beat them. Schmeling was a bit of a novice and the Godfrey win was only a DQ (didn't count him). Anyways, just thought I'd throw that out there.
Well it proves the critics of Carnera having a glass chin are pushing the envelope .. Gains hit Primo with dozens of the same overhand rights that flattened Scott and while they connected and often rattled Primo they did not flatten or deter him ..
Gains looks decent in his youth on film. You can see the visible physical decline in his bout against Farr. He looks pudgy and his reflexes aren’t up to the task of the aggressive and quick Farr. But Gains looks great against Phil Scott. His best win in name value is Schmeling. But Max was only 19 years old at the time and still had less than 20 pro fight. Schmeling is on the record as saying that had he not been “robbed” against Sharkey I believe he was lining up Gains as his next defense of the title. Gains was Canadian champ, the final colored champ, and British Empire champ. He had a good career. His best win has to be Primo who was rated number 3 when he lost to Gains. I will say of the limited footage we have the fight - Gains is quicker and tags Primo but Primo is not outclassed he does well in the clinch and punches back. Perhaps the remainder of the fight tells a different story but it looks like a competitive fight to me.
Gains' autobiography,"The Impossible Dream, " is a good read,unfortunately I lent my copy to someone and never saw it again.Gains was a very gracious man ,I met him briefly at a boxing show, he was happy to talk about Godfrey, whom he said was a monster,but he just smiled when I mentioned Carnera and would not be drawn on the subject.He did say he thought he could have beaten Sharkey.
Or perhaps it just proves that Scott's chin and desire were even worse than previously thought? Whatever the shortcomings Carnera possessed, lack of courage was not among them.
It would have been nice if he meet Joe Louis and he meet some of Louis opponents and some even Louis did not. Example Obie Walker who was never KO'd and Big Seal Harris . Interesting! For Gains I'd say his win over Schmeling or Carnera is the best.
I still have that copy. You are mistaken about what Larry thought about Carnera. "He was a good man and one whom the game treated very badly. I have watched the film of his fight with Max Baer and heard men laugh, as they saw the big Italian hit the canvas over and oVer again. They should have cheered instead. Baer was a terrific puncher and only a very brave man could have taken that sort of punishment and kept coming back the way Carnera did that night.” “against Carnera you did hsve to be careful. For such a big man, he was deceptively fast. He didn't really punch his weight, but he was a very damaging puncher just the same" - Larry Gains autobiography. Page 108 Perhaps Larry was smiling for another reason when you met him?
And Louis hit him flush several times, Carrera chin wasn't good, but it wasn't glass either. Was he ever floored by a non-puncher type?
