Was Harry Wills a greater HEAVYWEIGHT than Sam Langford ?

Wills would have a chance against people Langford would not. Namely Fulton but this would apply to guys like Dempsey and bigger ATGs in general. While Langford could knockout Wills he could only do it by ruining his BMI and couldn't do it consistantly.

Langford is in the total boxing GOAT conversation while Wills is not though. Any way you slice it Langford has the most impressive SOS of any HW fighter by a very wide margin. He has over 100 fights against notables.

 

Your family sits around talking about old boxers? Big props, Sonya!

Personally when I think of Langford he seems like a myth, a figure out of the distant past. Will is more of a known figure, merely a good boxer who because of the times never got his title shot.

Langford and Greb are boxing gods.

 

Langford looks great in Joe Jeanette X filmed (by British Pathe) in Paris when he was 27 and weighed 186 pounds. This 1913 match was a crucial bout in Sam's canon, because it completely shredded the image of Langford as a ten round fighter.

Before Sam turned 30, he one punched Wills twice with his left hook, very much on display in Jeanette X, where he moves in close and repeatedly belabors Joe with it in a situation where it's obvious Jeanette wants to keep it at long range, firing out his jab and then trying to flinch away from deadly counters. Jeanette already had plenty of experience being on the receiving end of that fire and clearly wants no part of it.

Wills wouldn't win stoppages over Langford until Sam was 32. Harry did not optimize his height and reach. The Langford of Jeanette X might've ripped him apart on the inside.

Peak for peak, Langford wins the series over Wills, and did go 2-2-1 against Harry before he turned 30, with both wins via knockout.

In fact, the first well documented stoppage loss on Sam's record after his teens was to Fred Fulton when he was 31, and simply couldn't break through Fulton's 6'6" height and 84.5 inch reach. Langford was a full foot shorter and outreached by ten inches. And unlike Wills, Fulton optimized his jab and reach.

As heavyweights, I do rate Langford slightly over Wills. P4P it's no contest of course. Sam's in the conversation as the all time GOAT. (Langford himself gave that designation to Joe Gans.)

Harry would've been taken fairly easily by Dempsey. Jess Willard is the Champion he should've challenged however. Willard vs Wills is a fantasy match which rarely gets discussed.

 

I'm with your brother, assuming the discussion is strictly at HW:

13. Wills
14. Dempsey
15. Holyfield
16. Charles
17. Langford

P4P it's obviously Langford by a substantial margin.

 

I'd murkily favor Langford in ATG heavyweight standings.