Henry Cooper

Cooper had more problems than just his vulnerability to cuts. Cooper was chinny, and I doubt that he could have stood up to the bigger, stronger, hard-punching heavyweights of the '70s onwards.

It's noteworthy that the British boxing authorities would not allow Cooper to fight Jimmy Ellis for the latter's heavyweight belt in the late '60s. The British authorities didn't think Cooper was good enough to give Ellis much of a fight.

Cooper himself admits that his manager kept him away from Jerry Quarry because of well founded fears that Henry would be kayoed by Quarry's powerful counter right hands.

Cooper was good, but by today's standards he was just a cruiserweight.

As for Cooper being better than Joe Bugner, I totally disagree. A prime Cooper would have been cleanly outboxed by a prime Bugner in a boring fight. Bugner was simply too big, too technically proficient, and too quick fisted for Cooper to have contended with.

Regarding Cooper's 1971 fight with Bugner, it is a myth that Cooper deserved the decision. In truth, the decision could legitimately have gone either way. Interesting also is that in 1971, Bugner was just a neophyte, a mere shadow of the fighter he would later become.

 

I thought it was because the British Boxing Board of Control did not recognize the WBA's version of the world title.

 

Cooper was more selectively managed than Hatton and Calzaghe ever were.

 

That is interesting, and you may be correct, because it's been many years since I read about this incident. Cooper addresses it some extent in his biography.

But, as best as my memory serves me, the BBBC didn't want to stage the fight because it feared an outcome similar to Cooper's two round kayo loss to Zora Folley. The BBBC envisioned Cooper being knocked out easily by Ellis, which would amount to an embarrassment for the BBBC.

I was surprised when I read this years ago, because I thought that Cooper was at least competent enough to deserve a fight against Ellis, even if he was likely to lose big.

 

one of cooper's better punches was the one he hit oliver reed with on a film set.
reed was getting a bit boisterous and cooper tapped him on the chin which instantly quieted him down

 

The BBB of C refused to recognize the fight as a title match ,that's why it was dead in the water,not for any fears of Cooper being mismatched, though personally I think Ellis would have stopped Cooper at that stage of Henry's career,and maybe at any stage.

 

Best HW British champ, imo, who never won the HW World title. I still think he won against Joe Bugner, in what was to be his last fight, but thats boxing. Cooper', though, will always be remembered for knocking down Muhammad Ali. I believe in a pub somewhere in England, his gloves hang below a plaque that reads: "These gloves did not split!"

One of my all time favorite boxers, but he will be quick to tell you he avoided guys like Sonny Liston, and other heavyweights.

 

yeah buchannan left the country to fight for it

 

there's no doubt he was steered around liston and chuvalo among others,george chuvalo was the #1 contender for his british empire title for years and never received a match.

 

Chuvalo came to the UK,he beat Joe Bygraves over 10 rds in 65 or 66,,he fought Eduardo Corletti here too and lost handsomely on points,Corletti came back a year later to beat Bygraves.I imagine the concern from the Cooper camp was because of Cooper's vunerabilty to cut eyes and Chuvalos very "physical style",Cooper would have beaten Corletti imo.

 

yess he would have beaten Corletti,chuvalo should have ko'd corletti as well.but i think chuvalo stops cooper in a 12 rounder during that time.

 

Corletti took the **** out of Chuvalo and boxed rings around him by accounts i've read, culminating in George securing a shot at Ali's crown. :yep

 

The truth is Terrell was pencilled in for that defence but the Boxing Authorites didnt like the associates of Bernie Glickman, Terrell's manager and they dropped the fight.Chuvalo was the substitute.

 

yes corletti did out box chuvalo by a good margin but in the final rounds chuvalo had caught up to him and had him busted up pretty well as i remember, but ran out of time

 

i remember the fight well,march 29,1966 maple leaf gardens in toronto