Gerry Cooney vs Bonecrusher Smith

On paper, Smith has the better record, but based on the eye test, Cooney showed me more in his performances against Young (his career best performance) and Holmes, than Bonecrusher ever did in his career. Bonecrusher did far worse against a noticeably declining Holmes.

 

Gerry Cooney at age 69 has a good life. He lives in a beautiful house in Scotch Plains, a tranquil town in central New Jersey. He has talked about belonging to Shackamaxon, a rich man's private golf country club. He also has talked about his great love for his wife. He's been sober and clean for many years. I'd say life has treated Gerry very well, thanks largely to the big payday he got fighting Holmes. I think his managers were a pain in the ass for promoters but they did well by Cooney.

 

The debate really isn’t that complicated. Eddie Lopez was a club fighter. The ST Gordon fight speaks for itself — Gordon was an eight-fight cruiserweight who tired quickly. Norton was selected because historically he struggled with punchers, and he didn’t have a meaningful win against one. And the comparison to a young Norton against a light-punching Ali doesn’t really apply here. Norton was 38 when he faced Cooney, and the style dynamics were entirely different. Lyle before him was around forty. Those were the types of opponents he was matched with.

The facts are straightforward: Cooney was promoted more as a marketable attraction than developed as a complete fighter. He logged less than four minutes of ring time in the twenty-four months leading into the Holmes fight. That lack of activity is simply part of the record.

Regarding his management, they certainly accomplished their goal if it was to maximize his earnings while minimizing risk. But that approach didn’t necessarily serve his long-term development in the ring. They were focused on protecting a valuable asset, and naturally, they benefited financially from that strategy. The downside is that Cooney entered the Holmes fight without the activity, seasoning, or range of opponents he needed. His career was shaped around opportunity rather than progression, and it showed when he finally stepped in with an all-time great.

As for the claims about drugs or alcohol, most of that is pure speculation. The more documented issues surfaced after the Holmes loss, when he fell into a period of depression and struggled with substance abuse. There’s very little verified evidence that those problems were affecting him during the buildup to the Holmes fight.

 

I don't even understand your point. What are you trying to say , in a sentence ..

 

I’ve always felt that if Cooney had truly been injured—and not just “conveniently” pulled from tune-ups—and if his management had been genuinely focused on developing him into the best fighter possible, they would have matched him more competitively in the lead-up to Holmes.

Even with the cancellations, he still fought twice in those 24 months, but the opponents were hand-picked pushovers. That supports the idea that his team chose the most risk-averse path they could. The result was a very talented fighter with a fragile psyche being thrown into a massive, global event without the proper foundation. He took a loss in front of the world and never psychologically recovered.

 

Dude this is boring. I’m dealing in facts, not alternate scenarios. If you want to keep debating hypotheticals, that’s on you, but it doesn’t change what actually happened. I’ve already laid out the verified points clearly. You want to keep going to keep going in circles, knock yourself out.

 

Agree. And Smith lost quite a few fights in his prime to guys I’d favor Cooney against, Marvis Frazier, Adilson Rodriguez, and possibly even Tony Tubbs. I’ve heard claims that the Rodrigues fight might have been a hometown robbery but I don’t know.

 

Bonecrusher put away Weaver and Witherspoon early, and Bruno late. He went the distance with Tyson.

Cooney never even went the distance in a championship fight nor won a notable fight late.

This ends with Cooney in a heap and his handlers would go nowhere near signing up for it.

 

Weaver - shot and always a slow starter
Witherspoon - threw the fight
Tyson - Smith clinched
Bruno - was kicking his ass before being caught against the ropes late

 

I wouldn't say Weaver was shot.

Weaver was coming off a KO win over Carl Williams.

Weaver also went the distance with Razor Ruddock straight after the Bonecrusher loss. And Weaver actually wobbled Ruddock quite badly and only lost a split decision.

Witherspoon didn't throw the fight he came in unprepared and Bonecrusher did what he had to do and swarmed all over his opponent. Witherspoon did get his tooth knocked out so I don't believe he threw the fight.

Yes Bonecrusher was losing to Bruno but he proved he could take punishment from a hard puncher and comeback.

Cooney is not battled tested like Bonecrusher so I wouldn't favour him over a big durable puncher.

 

Who knows, Cooney was a talented guy but they threw him in there with Holmes before he had a chance to hit past the “gifted, inexperienced prospect” phase and he was never the same.

Smith was visibly a worse fighter but he was a grizzly old vet who fought against some of the highest-level HWs you’ll ever find and even pulled the win in unlikely situations a few times.

I think Cooney would be winning this until Smith suddenly catches him out of nowhere and bombs him out.