Joe Frazier Versus The Klitschkos

Badly.

 

I think Wlad would just be able to outbox him for most of the fight but would be interesting

Vitali is interesting because he doesnt have that much power or inside game but it would be a battle of attrition and Vitali is a lot more durable

 

I love Joe Frazier but unfortunately I don’t think he has the physical set of tools needed to beat either Klitschko brother. He might put up a small fight against Wladimir due to the fact that Joe was a master at slipping the jab which was Wlad’s best weapon. That and Wlad had a soft spot for getting tagged and hurt with left hooks and there was no better left hooker than Joe Frazier. But through time and an accumulation of punches and the physical exhaustion of facing a much larger man, I think Frazier eventually gets broken down and stopped.

 

Depends on how the fight is refereed.

With fair refs, i would give Frazier a 30% chance of pulling a Brewster and stopping Wlad.

But Frazier's issue is always going to be the difficulty in getting inside without getting tagged. Wlad had a monstorous right hand, a massive left hook and a strong jab. Frazier can slip the jab but then he walks into huge right hands and possibly big left hooks.

Additionally, Frazier's right hand did not have enough in it to bother Wlad. Which means Steward can program Wlad to avoid the only major weapon in Frazier's repertoire (his left hook) and hammer him with big right hands coming in.

Its not all doom and gloom though. Wlad did not like throwing frequent uppercuts which was Frazier's kryponite. If Joe can get in and land something big with his left, he can win. But the other issue with Frazier is the slow starting. By the time he gets inside, he would have taken far too much damage and he likely gets stopped.

Wlad 70% chance of tko win. Frazier 30% chance of pulling a Brewster.

 

Frazier was very good at fighting small, getting low, bobbing and weaving. For a tall fighter, that can be problematic because they are hard to hit. You don't want to punch down because that shortens your reach and gives him chances to punch over the top on you. Frazier wants to come to them, maybe get them to punch down at him so he can counter over that. Or get them to pull their arms in and cove up which will let him get close and get to work. Or to extend their arms to try and hold him off which will open up avenues to the body.
But there are some things that will work against him. The first is his lack of a noteworthy right hand, and let's couple that with his lack of concussive power. Frazier could hit but, in this case, I don't think he will get enough opportunities over the top for his attrition style to take a toll. Second, there is such a size disparity that it is likely that either K brother could wear him down just by pressing on Frazier. For example, you throw a jab and he slips it but you lay that arm on his shoulder and press down. It slows him down coming in and you can kind of steer him with it. Third, at some point Frazier is going to have to stand up. He isn't hitting guys that tall on the chin with his hook otherwise, unless he can somehow get them leaning in with him. And Frazier needed room for that punch. Standing up to reach with that punch would really cost him.

 

Smokin' Joe gets smoked

 

Frazier gets stopped by Wlad, decisoned by Vitali

 

I’d favor Frazier over Vitali, but see him doing badly against Wlad.

 

I give Joe a chance, especially against Wlad, and for reasons that mostly already have been mentioned, but also just stamina. Yes Joe could slip a jab...yes Joe could make his short height an advantage.,,but also he would just make it hotter for Wlad than Wlad liked. Maybe another Brewster "poisoning."

 

Should be an easy win for both brothers way too big for Frazier to handle

 

I agree...

It is not the size of the dog in the fight. It is the HUGE size of the Ukrainian bears stomping poor doggie.

 

If it was that easy, Vitali would not have been competitive vs Byrd who was naturally smaller than Frazier. Yet Vitali didn't exactly have an easy time vs Byrd.

 

Byrd was a southpaw and had a tricky style Frazier is none of those things. Every smaller forward pushing pressure fighter Vitali ate up without any real issues.