Anyone Think That Norton Could Have Beaten Marciano?

Thought provoking one,Fergy. Common opinion would say that it would be yet another instance when Ken comes unstuck against a puncher who will force him onto the backfoot and keep him there and that would be a feasible outcome here. But it's when we think of the size difference that different scenarios come to mind. Rocky was a solid small heavyweight of 5ft 10ins and weighed in the region of 185lbs,I think. Ken was a 6ft 3ins Adonis whose prime weight was between 205-212lbs and every pound of it was solid muscle,and 20 - 27lbs heavier than Marciano. If Ken's jab and strength can hold Rocky's forward march off more often than not over a period of rounds then he would stand an excellent chance at beating Marciano and by stoppage later on. However if he can only stop Rocky's ominous charge sporadically then it's a Marciano stoppage anytime after the fifth or sixth.

 

lol...Not in any universe. Chinny Kenny gets bombed out in 1-2 rounds.

 

No.

 

We should give this a formal vote. Because if Rocky beats Norton, shouldn't that silence a lot of his naysayers?

 

No the haters will hate Marciano regardless. Plus beating Norton isn't exactly that hard if you have a punch.

 

Hi Stevie.
At first glance is easy to come up with a win for Marciano, the thought of Rocky being beaten by Norton is not one that is easily digested, and posters after you have suggested that in no uncertain terms, but I like your prognosis of Norton posting a win over Marciano, I dont think its that absurd, you make good and valid points in your breakdown, and in my eyes shouldn't be dismissed out of hand, good that you have taken the time to outlay a possible outcome that doesn't fit the narrative, not for the first time you swam upstream, and I for one am grateful for that, as Barry White said " I like you just the way you are " .
stay safe buddy, chat soon.
Mike.

 

Well, I favour Rocky, but of course nobody knows.
I think even more interesting would be Patterson vs. Norton (maybe Norton but it's very open).

 

Absolutely he could. The chinny bit gets overplayed. The knockout losses outside of Foreman and Garcia happened at an age when he no longer had any business fighting; Rocky had long since exited at 36, 37 years old.

Whether he would or not is a different matter. But you can't ignore that difference in size. Rocky never faced a top quality prime heavyweight that big. He struggled with past prime light heavy Ezzard Charles.

Rocky is by far the smaller, less athletic man. To discount that and say Ken has no chance is to be whimsically unrealistic.

 

I would bet the mortgage that the best version of Norton tears apart the best version of Marciano.

 

Norton does bring some x factors that could keep him in the fight: a long jab, high stamina, strong cross guard, cracking body shots, and a tall athletic frame Rocky never encountered even once.

Norton's power was no joke either. He wasn't a devastating 1-punch hitter, but he hit plenty hard enough to force Rocky to respect him. Since both guys were awkward and couldn't fight backing up, they'd immediately meet ring center and go to war. The question would be: can Norton offset Rocky's bullish wear-you-down style and awkward crouching with his crab defense and better technique? Or does Rocky simply, inevitably wear down the Jacksonville Jawbreaker with his relentless high volume style? The biggest question mark for me is how Rocky responds to the body shots (even his legendary stamina would deplete if he took too many) and potentially getting pushed backwards by Norton.

Gun to my head, I would pick Rocky. I wouldn't be confident in Norton making it to the final bell, let alone winning, but it's not one of those fights where Rocky can afford to go into cruise control or take the opponent lightly for even 5 seconds. It would be an interesting clash regardless.

 

I would pick Marciano but it isn't out of the question. Norton was 1-4 against greats, but the fights were close enough that he could have been 4-1, or at least 3-2. He wasn't good against punchers but had a significant size advantage, whereas he did not against Foreman, Cooney, Shavers, he didn't.

I am pretty confident in the Rock, but not mad at anyone who thinks Ken had a shot.

 

This Norton slandering hate is getting out of ****ing control, in what world does Norton not beat Marciano?? Jesus

 

Cheers,Mike. Stay safe too.