Could Montreal Duran beat Wilfred Benitez?

If Durán fought at Robinson’s schedule & scale he’d have twice the losses he does.

 

It isn’t exactly out of character for Benitez to half ass it.

 

Maybe.
But it's just as possible certain styles and attributes gave Robinson
more problems than others.
Just like all fighters in history.

 

A lot of Durán’s reputation has to do with the age he fought in. Switch him & Barney Ross in time periods, & we would see everyone talking the same way about Ross, & just as few people talking today about Durán as Ross gets.

 

Fairs.

I do think most of the issues that Robbi had with Jake were due to size and strength. Jake would've carried 168 lbs easy and at the time they first fought, Robbi was very firmly a WW. Robbi got his W back in the rematch and demonstrated ability to keep a bigger man at the end of his jab and lethal straight punches.

Robbi can be beaten agreed, but he didn't suffer his first loss to a WW and as good as Duran was, he was no Jake in terms of size or strength. Jake was no Roberto in terms of skill, but he certainly wasn't a bum fighter.

Robbi on his best WW night versus Roberto on his best WW night, for all the chips (the only way that I look at hypotheticals), my money is firmly on Robbi. He just has too many ways to emphasise his natural advantages.

 

Durán’s power abandoned him moving up to Welter. He would really need it against Robinson.

 

I think the reason Duran is on such a pedestal is that he was just such a primal warrior and people gravitate to that.

 

People gravitate toward it on condition it occurred in the colour tv era & either they or someone close to them saw him. Make no mistake, Durán would be rarely discussed today if he fought in Ross’ time, the same as happens with Ross & many of his contemporaries & forerunners.

 

I kind of think both Ross and Duran are ATGs.

 

Duran is in the top 4 at lightweight imo ,won multiple versions of titles all the way up to middleweight that's the reason.

 

Everyone will of course agree with that, but are they talked about or familiar with on even remotely similar levels? Certainly not.

 

How many could detail someone like Henry Armstrong’s or Mickey Walker’s career off-hand as well as they could Durán? A huge, huge minority, that’s who.

 

That's also your opinion.
But according to most of his opponents , including Ray Leonard,
and Carlos Palomino
Duran's power at welterweight is severely underestimated by some.
His opponents , even at welterweight and above wouldn't share
your opinion of Duran's power "abandoned him".
If fighters like LaMotta , Bell and others could seriously hurt
Robinson at welter, it's not a big stretch of the imagination Duran
could do the same.

 

Agreed

 

If it’s under-rated, that would be on the strength of results, which are simply not there at 147 like they are at 135.