Why Couldn't Patterson Get Beyond Round One With Liston?

Sometimes fear makes one falsely brave. I've worked in law enforcement for 26yrs now and have seen it many times ( Mainly from other LEO'S)
Some because of their fears makes them try to prove THEY ARE NOT afraid and usually it turns out disastrous for them. Usually exposing what was already knawing in their subconscious and that is, they are scared.
Fear is a FANTASTIC tool if used correctly. It sharpens the senses, and the reflexes, also that extra adrenaline can make one stronger and faster for a short period of time.
It's the major difference between a Ali and a Patterson. Ali knew how to control his fear when he faced Liston, it made him sharper and faster, and he stuck to his game plan. Even though he was blinded for several rds, because he controlled his fear, he was able to handle a totally unexpected event in the heat of battle, go on and force The" Bully " to deal with his own fears, something he couldn't do, and he quit, coming up with the bogus shoulder injury.
Patterson on the other hand decided to do something dumb and show Liston he wasn't afraid of him by standing his ground, and trying to fight fire with fire, got knocked out twice because of it.
He did not control his fear, he actually feed it by trying to show he wasn't afraid by standing his ground against Liston. A totally wrong way to fight him.
Ultimately what Patterson tried to hide was fully exposed by his actions, his false bravado back fired on him.
Thus he was K'oed twice back to back in the 1st rd by the same fighter. The only 1st rd losses of his career.

 

Excellent post!

 

I take on board all of the legitimate points that posters have made on here, but basically Floyd was too small.

 

Sometimes you are just the deer in the head lights, as Spinks was ... nothing more really to add. I mean Patterson was a great enough boxer to make the adjustments after seeing Liston in the first fight ... right ? He already knew what was coming ...Hell he didn't want to be there ..... " the only one who was more intimidating than me was Sonny Liston " ... Mike Tyson

 

Patterson got that excuse from Wilder 58 years into the future!

 

He tried that in the rematch.

 

I think it was the D'Amato defense.

Liston had a great lefthook off a jab. Without that, Liston has to win a different way. But Sonny threw that hook where Floyd was moving to---not where he was. That D'Amato defense is dip left or usually dip left and right and then rise up to punch.

If you throw at those quick movements of Patterson while he's doing that, the opponent misses. But he sticks that head up and rises up when he comes out of that crouch. Every time. Sonny had a left hook arriving to that exact location and Floyd got hit clean.

Kind of like football where a quarteback throws at a target and another quarterback throws to where the receiver is moving to.

 

Sometimes you’re the bug.

Sometimes you’re the windshield.

Sonny was the windshield.

 

As I've stated, if he weren't paralyzed with fear, he would've done better. He lost the bout before he even got in the ring.

 

Certain match ups bring out worst case nightmares for fighters ... Foreman did to Frazier. Gatti was horrified vs De La Hoya and then Mayweather .. Watch Barkley against Toney and try not to cringe .. Liston with his size, underrated speed and power did it to Patterson .. this is not only about Floyd who came back vs Ingo, who fought even with Quarry, who beat Bonavena ... all tough guys .. this is also about just how powerful and skilled Liston was ..

 

...im guessing Floyd just was overwhelmed Liston just had his number...he couldn't hurt him...or outspeed him....liston felt it was free practice......Joe frazier tried everything to hang in there in the rematch with George but it still ended the same way....Floyd did recover from the rademacher fight to improve things....a 3rd Liston battle I dont know if it'd make any difference as brave as Floyd was.

 

Very truthful post, it would have been interesting to see a third Liston vs Patterson fight in 1967 or 1968 as part of the WBA Tournament.

 

Welcome back my friend.

 

Floyd Patterson was psychologically beaten by Sonny Liston before the first round bell rang on Sept 25 1962. I am sure he watched some of Sonny's fights on television and envisioned himself in the ring with him. Patterson was invited to the White House by then President John F. Kennedy in 1962, and he was told to beat Liston if they meet because if Liston should win, he would be a negative example to the youth of America. This is because of Sonny's ties to Organized Crime. In the ring, Floyd was physically and mentally inferior to Liston. Patterson saw a man with 14 inch fist and massive shoulders that were stuffed with towels underneath the terry clothed robe. Also Sonny had the mean stare and his body language spoke of a fighter that had been depraved of a title shot, that was willing to inflict a violent beating on his adversary to remove him from the title. No wonder that Cus D Amato did not want his fighter in the same ring with Sonny. Floyd was manhandled like a rag doll by the larger Liston until the end came. Patterson was not fighting Roy Harris or Ingemar Johansson this time, he was fighting Charles Sonny Liston, who used to break bones of the debtors when collecting debts for the underworld. The same result happened in the rematch on July 22 1963 in Las Vegas, Nevada.