Which is the more important factor in the heavyweight class, more height and reach or more mass

You need all of those. Lennox Lewis had it all.

 

For heavyweights, of the two I would say height because once you get past a certain weight for the high majority of fighters weight becomes a negative. All of that being said skill, overrides both of those.

 

Height is more important then weight because you can't change it. Being taller gives a fighter a wider menu of viable weights to choose from. Being light comes with greater speed and isn't strictly a downside.

Reach can be the most important or least important depending on the situation. Having a slightly longer reach really doesn't matter. But having a super short reach is a worse problem than being super short.

If a fighter is used to having a large reach advantage taking that away is going to matter because they are used to that advantage.

 

everything is a trade off. too much of anything starts to become a negative because of what you lost. on one side of the spectrum you have strength, power, and reach, on the other side you have speed, stamina and agility. finding the right balance is the key maximizing your potential. thats why i always said the 220 lb mark is close to that balance and why the giants that ruled for a decade would fall to a guy the size of ali. and they did, and they keep falling.