Povetkin is a better boxer. If he can avoid Coetzee's right hand, he should outwork Gerrie and win either a late stoppage or a decision.
Coetzee was a big and pretty good boxer with a good sense of timing but I think I like Povetkin in this one. Sasha is busier and has a larger selection of punches. Gerrie could be outworked. Coetzee's best hope is to land one of his big rights early and to finish the fight there and then.
Povetkin the better all round fighter imo. Yes, Gerrie s got the bionic hand, that's a danger and pov s got to be careful but I see a stoppage against the south African. Povetkin wrsc 9
Povetkin should take this. Gerrie could let entire minutes of a round go by without throwing much of anything. You don't want to fight at a slow methodical pace against a well rounded guy like Povetkin who gets in your face and stays busy all night. Gerry's upright stiff stance could leave him open to body shots and hooks: two things Povetkin is good at. Gerry's sizzling right hand and height/reach advantage are his biggest x factors. If he consistently ties his man up and fights to his strengths at mid range making it an ugly lethargic fight, he could pull off a decision or even a late stoppage since Povetkin isn't the most durable guy and will have to bring the fight to him. I Would still favor Povetkin due to the clash of styles. He wins 6/10 for me, 2 out of 10 by TKO.
great post, fully agreed. Coetzee had a lot of good attributes and I feel that he should have had a better career than he ultimately did. However, you are right, he was inactive at times. That's why I don't believe he could have beaten Holmes even though he had the size and sizzling right hand that Larry was vulnerable to. Still, Larry-Coetzee would be a good fight, entertaining, and IMO it would be more entertaining than Holmes-Cooney.
Completely agree. Cooney was 1 dimensional and fragile. He only lasted as long as he did feasting on has-been fighters from the 70's relying on his height and devasting left hook. Gerrie had a better chin, better amateur background, was more well rounded, had better stamina, and was a champion. Gerrie vs Larry has a nice ring to it and would have made for a great unification bout. I still don't get why Larry didn't just fight some of those guys if he was always complaining about not getting his just dues.
I think Larry was past it by 1983. He was already 33 which is quite old for a fighter who relies quite a bit on agility and less so on power. If Larry had beaten Coetzee, Thomas, and Witherspoon in a rematch, i might rank him #2 on my ATG list.
Yes those would have have been solid cherries to put on top of an otherwise great career. If i had a time machine id tell him to follow that schedule you laid out, and IF he's gonna fight Spinks, be in 100% good shape and fight like he slapped your wife. Then get the hell out of the division before Tyson gains momentum and people start asking too many questions lol. If he did that, there would be no logical argument for him being outside the top 3.
