How good of a pro would Teofilo Stevenson been?

They all had to progress thru that tho, given the same upbringing and turning pro at the right time Stevenson would have been a good fighter without doubt. Just how good is the question.

 

Amateur boxing back then was a lot like pro boxing. There was no head gear. The matches were mostly hard fought, and sometimes politcally charged. To win a tournament requires a man to fight, keep win, and stay healthy for roughly two weeks vs 4 different opponents.

Stevenson dominated the division for three consecutive Olympics with a very professional style of boxing. I think Stevenson would have made a fine pro.

 

Stevenson got his ass kicked twice by Igor Vysotsky, and Jimmy Clark gave him hell in all three of their fights, plus Angel Milian floored him twice, and I'm pretty sure Page would've have exposed him if they fought, but truthfully, maybe Stevenson would have been at best a good fighter, nothing great.

 

I had forgotten about Jimmy Clark.

Nick Wells, Duane Bobick, Greg Page, Mike Dokes vs the Ruskies & Cubans.

Sat./Sunday afternoons were great back in the old days on ABC WW of Sports,
NBC Sportsworld, and CBS Sports Spectacular.

 

Not quite on the subject, but I forgot about Nic Wells. I saw him in the '72 national golden gloves ko easily three in a row, but then he met Bobick who just power punched him out.

 

IF Stevenson was gonna turn pro, it would have to have been right after the 72 Olympics.

The pattern for post Olympic success has been set by the heavyweight division.

Patterson
52: Gold
56: Title

Ali
60: Gold
64: Title

Frazier
64: Gold
68: Title

Foreman
68: Gold
73: Title

Lewis
88: Gold
93: Title

Wlad
96: Gold
00: Title

The commie era fighters not turning pro and the boycotts of the 80s always leave the question of what might have been. Following the pattern, Teo turns pro in late 72/early 73. Within four years, he works his way up to number one (or he gets exposed). By 76, Ali was ready to be taken. The missing element was the young hungry unbeaten. Holmes had been slowed by injuries and Leon was pushed too soon.

 

There was a time in the 1970's where Ali and Frazer were past it, Foreman was on the slide, and Holmes was a young fighter on the way up.

I think Stevenson could have beaten at least two of the above four names in the mid 1970's.

Stevenson was big, skilled, and had a crushing right hand. Hardly stopped as an amateur, the main questions for Stevenson is could be be a 15 round fighter.

 

Stevenson would have sucked as a pro! All he did was paw with his jab & then throw the right hand & try to land it on the chin. He never moved or threw combinations. If he ever did anything different, I never saw it. That is also what Howard Davis Jr said about him in an interview with Pedro Fernandez recently.:tired:tired:tired

 

Well, if Leon Spinks was briefly a half-decent pro, then I'm sure Stevenson would've done okay.

 

Not at all, he at the very least would have been very decent. He would have rounded his game out some, and regardless there have been dozens of great one winged warriors. 10 rounds would be a long time to evade the devastating Stevenson right hand. Like a Thomas Hearns right hand at Heavyweight. Devastating shot.

 

Stevenson had devastating right hand power,but his jab was just a range finder,similar to Ingo's he threw one punch at a time,was inconsistant at times and I dont think there was too much fire in his belly when things got warm.I think people may be overestimating the impact he would have made as a pro.

 

Yes, and especially for guys like Stevenson (from Cuba, Soviet Union, etc.) it was really pro boxing in the sense it was their job. That is why I think his achievements have to be put into perspective. Technically he was amateur, but how can you call "amateur" someone like him?

That is why I find it difficult to give him full credit for his wins - half of which was against real amateurs, often teenagers with not much experience.

 

There's always been a dramatic difference between amateur and pro boxing, even before the bizarre Lotto type scoring was instituted in the amateur game. Look how rough around the edges Leonard was as an amatuer and look what he became. I think Stevenson had the ability to make those adjustments. If he turned Pro after the '72 Olympics I think it's very possible that he could have beaten Holmes to the title shot. Stevenson had the attributes that could've given Norton problems. I'm not willing to make the leap to say he would've beaten a Norton and certainly not Holmes but I think he could have been a top contender and maybe grabbed an alphabet title.

 

Stevenson could have been the next Muhammad Ali, then again he could have been another Tyrell Biggs. The amateurs don't always give us a bird's eye view of what a fighter is to become.