Jeffries vs. Zhang

I think there is a distinct possibility that Zhang could match Jeffries for boxing technique.

 

Excellent!

 

One or two body blows didn't end it for 39 years old Fitz or 36 years old Corbett.

Is it possible 241lbs 6'3" Kabayel's body punches are as hard as Jeffries?

Is it possible they would have had the same effect on Corbett,Fitz and Ruhlin as Jeffries shots did?

Is it possible they might have even gotten the job done sooner than Jeffries blows did?

 

Jeffries relied on durability,the ability to take what his opponents could give and keep coming, to eventually wear them down.Is that a fair assessment?

Jeffries power and chin are graded on his fights against men significantly
smaller than himself, [Ruhlin accepted,]and in many cases significantly older.
Is that also fair to say?
What he does against a man who dwarfs him, and whose power is at least comparable to his own we can only guess.
There is a lot of talk here about Jeffries ability to go 20/25 rounds,yet the OP never mentioned the distance this fight would be fought at.

Also to be taken into consideration is the fact that those longer fights were fought at a much slower pace,and that fighting a man 25/45 lbs smaller over those distances,would necessarily take a bigger toll over the smaller lighter man.
Jeffries is described as leaning heavily on183lbs [27lb s the lighter man,] 5'8" Sharkey in their second fight ,making his size,strength, and weight tell on the smaller man.I suggest he would not have that advantage against Zhang,in fact the situation could be reversed .
If it was to be over the longer distances, couldn't Zhang train accordingly to accustom himself to them?

Conversely if the fight was over 12rds Jeffries would have start his attack a lot earlier which given Zhang's history of fading would mean Jeffries would be putting himself in harms way against a fresh Zhang.
Jeffries couldn't take out Sharkey in45 rds,little old Fitz did it,twice.
Lots of imponderables to consider here,and imo, a case to be made for either man.

Jeffries may be the historically greater fighter,but that has never guaranteed victory in boxing.

 

Zhang had an amateur record of 38-18; only 5 KO wins and 2 KO losses, could it be he lost to much lesser skilled and capable fighters than Jeffries? He certainly did as a pro. While his wins over Wilder and Joyce were good, it's common knowledge neither one of them were ever great and were quite one-dimensional. Wilder was damaged goods.

 

It could certainly be true,but I don't see how that is relevant to my post?
As far as being one dimensional is concerned,was Jeffries ever more than that himself? Some of those Zhang lost to as an amateur include,Joshua,Cammarelle,Pulev,Dykcho,Jalolov,Solis,but he also beat Dykcho twice,and he beat Parker.I don't profess to be up to speed with the amateur scene ,but even I know these names are/were respected amateurs,and most of them a lot more experienced than Zhang.

 

No way this fight ever happens. Jeffries said many times he would not cross the color line to fight a Chinaman.

 

Zhang too big and too strong for Jeffries to offer any resistance, Zhang crushes him in a one-sided beating...

 

I dunno. I think the CAD might get to Zhang before Jeffries does.

 

Zhang would’ve been great cast as a villain in the old Kung Fu series - a worthy adversary for Kwai Chang Caine to methodically take apart.

He would’ve also been a terrific super sized Chinese Odd Job in the old the Bond series - the bowler hat would have def. suited him.

 

Zhang and it would take mere seconds.

 

In Jeffries days nobody cracked his chin and it took prime Johnson 15 rounds to stop a washed up shell of Jeffries.Fact.

In the Chicoms days a upcoming German prospect folded him with a handful of bodyshots.Fact

Jeffries was known to walk thru brutal punishment and had by all accounts a granite chin.

The Chicom has by all accounts a glass body and the stamina of a late stage Asthma patient.

 

Jeffries never felt the power of a modern heavyweight of any class . Johnson carried Jeffries to inflict as much punishment as he wanted to.Bob Fitzsimmons ringside said Johnson could have ended it whenever he wanted to.
That upcoming German prospect is6'3" with an 80" reach weighs nearly 240lbs is 26-0-0 and ranked no5, so a bit more than a prospect.
He has stopped Sanchez who was unbeaten in24 fights and who is6 '4" and nearly 240lbs,Kabayel has also stopped Makmudhov who was18-0-0,is 6 '5 1/2"and 262 lbs.He has also beaten a Dereck Chisora who was8 years younger than the current version.
FACT!

 

Johnson didn't carry Jeffries. The only fighter he ever carried was Ketchel for that exhibition. Johnson was afraid to get caught with a big haymaker and just like most of his other fights he chose to play it safe and wear him down. He knew Jeffries would not have the stamina to go into deep waters. Fought him the same way he did Burns, McVey, Jeannette, Battling Jim, Willard, et al.

 

I think what it boils down to is if Jeff's chin holds up, or if Zhang's gas tank gets to "e" first. The match would probably be decided within the first 5 rounds.

Under modern rules, 12 rounds with modern gloves and a fairly strict ref who doesn't want to see guys get hurt too bad, I'd favor Zhang. He wouldn't even necessarily need to KO Jeff, he'd simply need to rock him numerous times and do enough telling damage per round that either the ref or the corner halts the contest. So if for the sake of argument Jeff's chin could handle modern SHW power, that still wouldn't change the fact he didn't have particularly good defense and wasn't very fast or elusive. Zhang would probably be catching him with bombs as early as round 2.

On the other hand, if Jeff gets to work cracking the body often enough from the start and Zhang can't endure or block enough of them, he could very well gas out or get dropped before Zhang's power does it's job. Imo this is the less likely outcome because Jeff would be unaccustomed to the bigger gloves and might also have a harder time landing with pinpoint accuracy on such a large man who might be pushing him back, framing, or hammering away with a jab and clinching to maintain his preferred range. Overall, I'd favor Zhang to win 70-75% of the time by TKO within 6-7 rounds in a modern ring, but Zhang would be breathing heavily out his mouth while getting his arm raised with a very bruised belly.

If transported to the Jeff era, that changes a hell of a lot, especially if it's outdoors. Jeff could not only get away with eating tons of shots even while clearly hurt or bleeding, he could also get away with a lot more grappling, wrestling, and the occasional stray elbow or punch after the bell (not saying Jeff was dirty, just that in those wild days the ref might look the other way). Jeff could afford to pace himself for 20-25 rounds and this would make things even worse for Zhang as he simply doesn't have the gas tank to keep up with this pace.

That being said, Zhang still is a huge man with devastating power and has better fundamentals than Jeff. If he times his shots well and lands enough of them, he still might manage to explode with something big and take Jeff out. I mean, Joyce was almost like a modern day Jeff but dumb as a box of rocks relying on blocking with his face and firing a high volume of shots and Zhang brutally KOd him so anything is possible. I'd still say Zhang could win, but I'd only favor him by about 55-60% in Jeff's era, it would be a little closer because the rules would be dangerous for a guy with Zhang's limited stamina.