It was the decade of the most ICONIC heavyweight fights because of the most iconic heavyweight in history. Ali was the catalyst of what is in my opinion the greatest heavyweight era in history. Is the era overrated? Maybe in some minds, but boxing is supposed to be entertaining and competitive. The era had the most entertaining fighter in the history of the sport , plus a number of fighters who were great and entertaining in their own right. Though the 90's had some excellent fights, were they as anticipated before and talked about long after as the fights of the 70's? Bowe vs Holyfield x 3 are just as entertaining as Ali vs Frazier x3 but to casual fans they may not know they even fought. The world seem to stop when heavyweights fought in the 70's. I never felt that way in the 90's. about any fight.
And two of those fought in the 90s and didn't do too badly. Might want to bear that in mind @White Bomber when you make your habitual blinkered case for the 90s. I like the 90s' heavies but that's a big one in favour of the 70s. Imagine taking any of the 90s heavies - whilst in their 40s - and plonking them into the 70s with all the fighters at heavyweight in their primes. 40something Lewis versus prime Holmes, 40 something Holyfield v prime Foreman? If you think the 70s is overrated, what are the 90s? What prime match ups did we get? Bowe v Holy and that's it. The 70s was full of top fighters in their primes fighting each other.
It was arguably the best era in heavyweight history so if it’s overrated then every era is probably overrated. But it’s more about it having hit a saturation point in terms of discussion. Not sure what is new to say about it. Not having lived through it, it’s hard for me to say definitively but I lived through the 90s heavies and that era is definitely overrated in my book.
a lot of the really good guys were from the previous decade in both cases, like Ali and Frazier in the 60's, Tyson in the 80's, pre Evan Fields Holyfield
Tyson—Ruddock x2(close enough) Mercer—Morrison Tua—Ibeabuchi Golota—Lewis Tua—Rahman Grant—Golota Mercer—Lewis Akinwande—Lewis Holyfield was still decent in the mid 2000s. Vitali was elite in his 40s after 2010. Wlad almost beat Joshua while in his 40s. Povetkin starched Whyte while way past his prime. I don’t see it as some amazing proof that an entire era was the greatest ever because Foreman knocked out Michael Moorer (while losing) and he and Holmes have Holyfield a decent fight each.
I think they are overrated but as a new boxing fan, to lend my perspective, the 70s of Heavyweights is what began my obsession. Over time, I've learned to appreciate other divisions but it took awhile to look at the HW era and give credit to the guys who followed after. The 80s is a strong division, the 90s is a strong division. And rightfully between these three decades and eras of heavyweights, all of them could be argued to be the strongest. I had to learn to love the 80s and 90s and take off my rose tinted glasses that made me laud the 70s to death. Some of my favorites, Witherspoon, Page, Bowe, Tubbs, Weaver, Ruddock, Pinklon. Yes these are the most popular names, but the alphabet belt holders from these eras were damn impressive and exciting fighters.
IMO, not overrated at all and I’m still young enough (LOL) not to have been fully cognisant of the whole era as it went down - so I’m not necessarily trapped in a nostalgic bubble. The 70s have more ATGs figuring in most top 10 lists and most at the top end. The 70s also have more fights figuring in most top 10 lists - not just based on their competitiveness but the quality therein also. The 70s also had two of its ATGs straying outside their own era, into the 90s with excellent degrees of success, one ATG winning the title again 20 years after the original fact. As already stated, in the 70s most everyone fought one another - so there wasn’t so much OTT hypothesising/extrapolating as to who might beat who - and a fertile, interactive bed bears the most outstanding crop of contenders and champions….
Only Ali, Frazier and Foreman are about right. The others will be just good contenders in other eras.
