10 Reasons Why Emile Griffith Was One of the Best to Lace Up the Gloves

Would like to have seen him add Cokes to his fights when he was still down in the welters...and that great collection of WW fighters existed.

 

Fought all the best, in their primes, and then fought them again. Fought all over the world, other guys hometowns, didn't matter to him. A real ATG

 

Another great one Red!! Happy 4th! Turned 65 Sunday but I can still pack a counterpunch wallop A couple of other things to consider about, perhaps, our 2nd favorite fighter "wink-wink".
Doesn't Emile have the record for most Championship Rounds fought; something like 370 or so? Willie P. may have been close.
With all the PC b******t out there jumping on Hurricane as if he was some sort of 'god', many forget at the weigh in with Emile he called him: "sissy", "******" among other things taking Emile's mind from boxer to "I want to kill this guy". Which is what Rueben wanted, read the '16th Round'.
All hail Emile. When dad took me to the barbershop in the early 60's I always talked to the old guys about Floyd and Emile.
Blessings Red!

 

I've got another insight into Emile's greatness.
Only stopped twice?
He came out 'ready to kill' Carter after Rueben's classless weigh in comments. Was outweighed by Carter. If he'd kept to his game play he may well have won that one.
King Carlos? Red, my late bud loved Carlos as much as you. He saw his first fight before I did. Carlos started ripping away and Emile started crouching...lower and lower...the ref stepped in (rightfully so) and stopped the proceedings. Before seeing the fight I asked my bud what Emile did after the stoppage: "He just raised up and went to his corner, beaten".
My point is: only two stops in a career that included a plethora of ATG's??
Carter got under his skin and Monzon got him out in a strange kind of way, to say the least.
I checked his KO% before Paret and after. Much, much lower. If I'd killed a man in the ring I may well have used my skills, throwing my 'attack punching prowess' to the wind, a bit myself.
In looking at his career he's certainly on the short list of fighters who were, TRUELY, a credit to the sport!! One of my short list heroes

 

The salt mines have a man loose, we have a cobra loose and actually posting!

 

Man, multiple 60 year old guys in this thread articulately lamenting about a golden past age and the greatness of a fighter they were each lucky enough to be able to watch and appreciate live.

Here I am 30 and I feel lucky I got to watch Pacquiao/Marquez IV. Sigh. I'm going to go have my fourth vodka of the afternoon.

 

Came down in weight to fight Jose Napoles for the WW Championship (L), then went back in weight to fight MW's (plus Tiger plus weighed 167lbs) in a string of wins to get his first shot at Monzon.

1971-05-03 : Emile Griffith 154 lbs beat Ernie Lopez 152 lbs by MD in round 10 of 10

• Location: Nevada Sports Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
• Judge: Art Lurie 47-45
• Judge: Mike Petrovich 46-46
• Judge: Ralph Mosa 47-45

"Emile Griffith has put himself in line for a crack at the winner of Saturday's Carlos Monzon - Nino Benvenuti 160 lb. championship bout. Griffith scored a 10 round decision over Ernie "Indian Red" Lopez of Los Angeles here Monday night. The 32 year old Griffith appeared to shake his 25 year old opponent in the 1st, 4th and 8th but said he didn't believe he hurt Lopez in those rounds. "He was off-balance," he noted." -United Press International

• Attendance - 2,100
• Gate - $15,500
• Newly licensed promoter Harry Bloomfield lost $10,000 on this card.
• This bout had to be interrupted during rounds six and eight because the ring ropes collapsed.
• Because Lopez was a natural welterweight, Griffith had to agree to weigh 155 or less.

Post fight comments

• "I'm a lot stronger at 158 or 159. I could feel his strength through the first six rounds. He was smothering me up to then. But I got to him with some good body shots in the 7th and I thought I had the best of it after that." -Emile Griffith

• "I was too heavy at 152 but I'd like to try him again at 148. I think I could beat him at that weight." -Ernie Lopez

 

Thanks so much Russell! I live in the past, the Gillette Friday nite fights, WWofSports in the 60's Saturday afternoon where, more often than not, you saw a Championship Fight or two top flight contenders in a 'box off'.
Blessings! Not to mention a poster I recently saw at my wife's fav new age store: "I may be old but I got to see all the GREAT bands live in the late 60's early 70's."