His strength is very well documented from primary sources. I realize that strength alone does not make a great fighter, but this one aspect where Jeffries is very proven.
I am old enough to remember when Jeffries 100 yard time was 11 seconds. Like all other sprinters, the older he gets, the faster he was. So, 11 seconds in the 100 yd dash is about 12.1 in the 100 meter dash. There are 16 year old girls in the US going sub-11 seconds in the 100 meters. There are quite a few going sub-12. And regarding starting blocks, they are not as effective as you make out. Ask Alan Wells who didn't use them until he was required to. Anyways, we'll give Jeffries .2 for starting blocks, and immediately take away .26 seconds for the hand time versus FAT.
I'm sure he was a decent athlete by any standards... but the standards of his day are why he was considered amazing. I doubt he was a strong as Chuvalo.... or even Waldo.
He must have been in the same category as Foreman and Rahman. He could throw a 300lb sandbag round like it was nothing.
10.5 as a reported time. " He could run 100 yards (91 m) in just over ten seconds, and could high jump over 6 feet " [url]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_J._Jeffries[/url] " Despite his size, Jeffries, who was not a trained runner, could run a 100 yards in a little more than ten seconds, not far off the world-record pace for that era. " [url]https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/James_J._Jeffries[/url] The time with staring blocks you say is .2 better. What about oder track shoes better and racing on a modern track surface? Probably .5 better? And remember he was not a trained runner. Hand times are usually slow to start. It could add .26 Which 14 year old girl could clear a 6 foot high bar? That would be impressive! McGrain got dibs on her.
Its funny but Muldoon who was a huge presence from Sullivan through his death was far from a fan of Jeffries and wrote in his autobiography that he was very over rated .. just one man .. I always got the feeling Jeffries was respected but no huge star in his day and only became huge going into the Johnson fight as the savior ..
11 second 100 yard dash per the NYT.... So, yes, 12.1 or so for the 100 meters. And yes, hand-times are FASTER, NOT SLOWER than full automatic times (FAT). The typical conversion is .26 seconds. And again, plenty of sprinters ran amazing times without blocks. Alan Wells was an Oly Champ in 1980 and only switched to blocks because they were required. [url]https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/04/sports/othersports/04boxing.html[/url]
Documented by whom? What does "like it was nothing" mean? Chuvalo was benching 400 pounds at over 70 years old. I don't think Jeffries was as strong as Chuvalo to be honest.
Very possibly, but when did he exhibit it in the ring against a man his own size who was in his prime?
He did this in his training camp, in front of the press, and there are surviving pictures of him holding it on his shoulder. This is as well documented as anything from that era can get. He also lifted a 500lb. steer onto a wagon, again in front of a lot of journalists. I have been the first to argue that Jeffries is a bit of an unknown quantity, but his feats of strength, are very well documented. I don't even bring up his alleged track accomplishments, because I have not seen similar evidence of them. I admit, I am not an expert on Chuvalo's feats of strength.
We don't know hw he compares with later guys .. it's one thing to throw around 170 pound Fitz .. another pushing Foreman ..
Obviously he never got the chance. It does however suggest, that he might have had success against bigger men.
I know its known to you that's why your comment surprised me.You know a promoter offered a good guaranteed purse for Jeffries to defend against McVey ,and you also know he ignored it and instead fought Munroe.
