Holmes had benefited from that 'tradition' (which doesn't really exist or at least shouldn't) against Witherspoon and Williams previously...maybe it ended with Norton vs Holmes anyway. :good
Yeah, and rightly so. When I judge fights I don't give close rounds to someone because they are the champion. Thats not fair judging. All fights should be judged as if a title is vacant. You could also say Holmes never done enough to keep his title. Plodding forward behind the jab and for the most part being ineffective with your aggression aint no way to go about keeping your title. Champions should realise being lazy and fighting in 3rd gear doesn't mean you'll get the benefit of the doubt from the judges. Ive never understood this nonsense Hagler and Holmes came out with "He never hurt me, I fought my heart out, he fought like a girl" To win a fight, a challenger doesn't need to change his gameplan and become all-out aggressive. If a challenger throws the champion a rubik cube or a jigsaw, he should solve it. If he doesn't, tough luck.
But Spinks wasn't doing much either. Out of 2 people doing not a whole lot, Holmes was landing the more telling blows, and IMO that means you win the round. With some exceptions of course.
Larry vs Witherspoon wasn't as close as you make it out. Larry controlled the early and middle rounds pretty solidly, its just the end that made it closer, same with Holmes-Williams. Holmes-Norton Larry made it a point to show that he wanted, and deserved the title. By fighting back, instead of clinching during rough times. And he won almost all of the early and middle rounds. I had it 10-5 Holmes.
Spinks was landing punches in bunches, something Holmes hardly done over the entire fight. Holmes was walking forward being the aggressor, but he wasn't effective. His left jab was the main weapon during the entire fight, and even that was not landing on a regular basis. Holmes was too static, and his reflexes and sharpness to move in and out, not the same. He used one hand, and thats what cost him, on top of his inability to make Spinks miss. I can mind a preview of the first fight was shown just before the second fight was aired live, HBO showed brief highlights. And Ledderman, who you probably know was a judge for the first fight said "look at Larry here, getting outhussled by Spinks, and couldn't put two together". I agree, Holmes seldom landed combinations. He was basically stuck in mud throughout the fight, was getting caught easily, was one handed, and ineffective with his aggression thorughout most of the fight.
Damn straight! Dick was a Middleweight and had the added handicap of being what 56 by fight time? Although kudos for mentioning the first black Queensberry Rules British champion.
Your scorecards seem pretty extreme. Rounds 1, 4, 8-12 in DLH-Trinidad were all close rounds. I had it 115-114 for DLH, giving him rounds 2-3, 5-7, and 9. Round 1 even, and the others to Trinidad. I had Quartey winning 114-113 over Oscar, or 7-5 for Ike. I can see it 115-112 (8-4) for Ike, but 9 rounds seems extreme.
The worst decisions I can think of are: Everett-Escalera: I had it 10-4-1 for Everett. Lewis-Holy I: I had it 9-3 Lewis. Fenech-Nelson I: I think I had it 9-3 Fenech. Maybe 8-4. Either way, the judges ****ed Jeff.
I don't score fights like that. That's a myth. The rules say you should judge it as it as with the 4 categories, not "close rounds go to the champ". The first decision was fair. I had it 9-6 Spinks. The rematch was a robbery. I had it the same score, this time for Larry.
I'm pretty sure the general consensus for Lewis-Holyfield I is a 6 point margin win for Lennox. 117-111 is by far the most common scorecard for that fight. And if you were to do an average winning margin people had for that fight, even including the Lennox haters, you'd still probably have a 4 point gap. Plain as day robbery. There's no conceivable way Holyfield won 6 rounds.
Agreed. I was going with 50/50 as its very split. However, I do go along with Leonard getting the nod with the majority.
Seriously? I'm not bitching, but if there was a majority, I'd be willing to bet it was a VERY slim one.