''Tony Zale Was A Greater Fighter Than Sanchez, Spinks, Jones Jr, Harada, Pryor.....

I know your new here but Bert Sugar doesn't have much pull here. Basically, everyone thinks he's ****. I like Zale, but I can't agree with Bert here. I don't think you will find many that will..

 

Senile.

 

I have a ton of respect for Zale. He was old-school and beyond tough, fought in the war, came back to the fight game to make a buck and went out on his shield.

But Bert Sugar is, as always, a ****ing moron.

 

I dont know how great Zale relly could have been, whats often forgotting is WWII took most of Zale's prime years.


Could he had been up there with Robinson or Hagler?? Perhaps, could no WWII insure that Zale has a shorter rein?? Could be. We never know.

After the War, Zale got in his series to Rocky, than loseing the title in a pretty one sided beat down.

 

You can say, as with Ali and his 3 year exile...how would Zale have been if he hadn't been in the service during WW2?

 

Good point. I do think Zale is underrated and doesn't get mentioned as often as he probably deserves.

 

Listen, I like Bert Sugar. I think he is one of the great personalities of the sport...that said, this is even silly for Bert, who obviously has a reputation around here for saying silly things. Still like the guy though. Unlit cigar, telling Chuck Wepner as he sits next to him on ESPN Classic something like "As I remember you Chuck, your best shot was a left jaw to the right fist."

 

Zale was easily outboxed by Bolden and Soose. I doubt he ever coudda improved beyond that form, war or no war.

 

Soose was a underated fighter, A real good boxer.

Not on Billy Conn's level, but a level below that.

Mostly forgotting.

 

Soose had three landlords, Overlin, Burley and Georgie Freedom Abrams.

 

Zale is worthy of mention with all those names. He has a terrific resume at middleweight.

Pryor's the least impressive of the bunch.

 

Zale may b on par or even greater than Jones , Spinks , Harada , Benitez and Gomez . He is greater than Hopkins and especially Pryor , but less great than Sanchez . regarding his oldschoolness , didn't he duck some BMRs ?

 

The Tony Zale before the war was a hell of a fighter who had to swim in a deep pool of middleweights such as Al Hostak,Billy Soois, Fred Apostoli, Georgie Abrams, Ossie Bulldog Harris [ko 1st rd],Billy Conn, etc. Zale at the beginning of WW2 was 29 years old and in his prime. As tough as rawhide and boxing's best searing bodypuncher...
After 4 years in the service, the 33 year old slower Zale past his peak and rusty Man of Steel came back , kod Graziano 2 out of 3 fights and eventually was kod by Marcel Cerdan in 1948, when the old and shot Zale was kod by Marcel Cerdan when he was
thirty five years old...But at his best, Tony Zale was as tough a middleweight as ever lived...He was not called " the man of steel" for naught ...

 

The funny thing Burt is that LaMotta was quoted in the recent Robinson book as saying how that entire group ducked the far better black middleweights of that era ... LaMotta said they all ducked them other than him and that they were smart to do so as they would have been beaten ... Jake's observation, not mine ...