Should The Records Of Past Heavies Be Scrutinized & Reassessed Using The Modern Cruiser Standard?

Yes this was inspired by the Kellerman/Usyk thread.

I figured I'd float an idea, which of course will never be implemented. But regardless, it's something to take into consideration when assessing the greatness level of ATG Heavyweights. The Cruiserweight Division officially came into being on March 31st 1980. There's a reason why 175 is called Light Heavyweight after all. So the vast majority of Heavyweights pre-1980, not only had their fare share of what would be considered Cruiserweights on their records, but also plenty that were only a few pounds in excess of Light Heavyweight.

Alright, so my question is this... should the records of Heavyweight boxers be retroactively reassessed, when taking into consideration the at times, shockingly high number of opponents they've faced that are just under or just over the Cruiserweight limit? After all, if 200 is the cut off now, why can't it be applied to their records then, at the very least unofficially? Because granted, it's hard to make an accurate assessment. Which is why I set my cutoff at 215 for the old timers. Most Cruiserweights on average rehydrate up 10 to 15 pounds and are functionally Heavyweights in the ring on fight night. Still, the vast majority that are under, weigh in the 185 to 210 range.

Take a look at the records of some ATG's, which I tried to limit mostly to pre-1980's here. It not only highlights how drastically different their records should probably be viewed by today's standards, but also how frightfully overweight and how out of shape many modern Heavyweights truly are.

Ken Norton in his 49 matches.
Fought 33 opponents that weighed less than 215.
5 opponents that weighed less than 220.
Which leaves 11 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.

Joe Frazier in his 37 matches.
Fought 27 opponents that weighed less than 215.
3 opponents that weighed less than 220.
Which leaves 7 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.

George Foreman * in his 81 matches.
Fought 44 opponents that weighed less than 215.
10 opponents that weighed less than 220.
Which leaves 27 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.

Muhammad Ali in his 61 matches.
Fought 48 opponents that weighed less than 215.
7 opponents that weighed less than 220.
Which leaves 6 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.

Larry Holmes * in his 75 matches.
Fought 38 opponents that weighed less than 215.
5 opponents that weighed less than 220.
Which leaves 37 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.

Evander Holyfield * in his 56 matches.
Fought 25 opponents that weighed less than 215.
4 opponents that weighed less than 220.
Which leaves 27 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.

Rocky Marciano in his 49 matches.
Fought 46 opponents that weighed less than 215. Most under 200.
Which leaves 3 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.

Joe Louis in his 69 matches.
Fought 63 opponents that weighed less than 215. Most under 200.
Which leaves 6 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.

Sonny Liston in his 54 matches.
Fought 52 opponents that weighed less than 215. Most under 200.
Which leaves 2 opponents that weighed 221 pounds or more.


* - fought a portion or all of their career post-1980.

Quite Frankly, Liston, Marciano and Louis were straight up Cruiserweights. They fought more Cruisers than Usyk did.

 

Well do that too then. I have no problem with that. If it'll help people view modern day records from the proper perspective.

 

Not only that, but a few of his Cruiserweight opponents have competed at HW and picked up wins or should have. Briedis, Hunter, Huck and Gassiev. With Glowacki and Mchunu beating HW's that dropped down. I'll leave off Bellew, beating a one legged Haye hobbling around like a buzzard twice is nothing to brag about.

 

Huck getting robbed against Povetkin still pisses me off 13 years later. I'm one of the few Marco Huck fans in the world.