When I first got into boxing my old man raved about Tunney and Rocky, his two favourites. Over 15, how do we see this one going?
Very tough fight. I’d favor Marciano to eventually get him in the end. A past prime Dempsey who wasn’t very active going in against Tunney fight him to two close fights and also had him down.
Hi Buddy. Loath as I am to correct a poster whom I admire and agree with most of the time, but your being a tad disingenuous when you profur the fights were close, in the fact the reverse is true, Tunney won both via UDs, it is generally agreed that Dempsey was thoroughly outpointed and given quite a beating, in particular the 2nd, granted he knocked Tunney down in the 7th, but he had lost the previous 6, and he himself was on the canvas in the 8th, at the climax his face was bruised and swollen, and only his fighting spirit and stoicism was the factors that kept the fight interesting, to this fact his wife Estelle was taken aback when she saw Jacks face, and he offered the lame excuse " I forgot to duck " The above is meant to give young and not so educated posters a steer, and not a slight on your boxing knowledge, which we all know is immense. stay safe amigo, chat soon.
Tunney to me is a very underrated fighter. I think he wins a decision here. Rocky fought one man close to Tunney in style. Lastaraza. Lastraza and might have won the first the first fight via decision, and was behind in the second fight until a clear foul punch turned the tides. Anyway Tunney is faster, tougher, and smarter than LaStarza and there is no way he tires out in 15 rounds for Marciano to catch up to him. This would be a lesson in boxing, the smart tough fighter with quicker feet usually beat the shorter slower man with far less reach. Tunney was tough a marine, and as only down one time in his career and than was from Dempsey's best filmed combination!
I don't rule out Tunney here,my guess is Rocky catches him at some point,but Tunney was very elusive when he wanted to be, a sharp puncher with a lazer left hand and a right cross you couldn't just walk through.It would be an excellent fight imo,with Rocky winning by late tko or dec. N.B.A correction to another's postTunney was knocked down twice in his career,famously by Dempsey for the long count and also by Leo Houck in the 9th round in1920.
Interesting, they match weight and height, Tunney has big reach advantage. Maybe Tunney gives him a very hard fight, probably Marciano gets full anger in the later rounds and beats the hell out of him, as only he can and usually does.
Good points, at the time Tunney was seen as more of a fancy dan boxer, much the same way Corbett was viewed up against Sullivan, but not unlike Jim, Tunney was made of stern stuff indeed, how many fighters would be at the commission's' office the next day posting a bond to have a rematch, when the rematch was against Greb, the same Greb who the night before had pummelled you to a pulp, Tunney did ! As you say, Gene had a educated left jab, his right cross, when directed at the opponent's chin, was hard, hurtful, and precise, it was no less effective when thrown as a uppercut to the body, so far as to say this punch paved the way to victory over the Windmill, time and again Greb was stopped in his tracks with this thudding punch to his heart, it was at the behest of another great champ Benny Leonard that Gene employed this tactic, and it paid dividends. stay safe guys.