(1973) — Joe Frazier vs Kenny Norton

That one armed fighter beat the greatest heavyweight of all time

 

Still think Frazier had enough to win a decision against Norton in 73. Would be a tough fight for him though...

 

Very tough fight. Frazier knew and said so as well.

Toss a coin really, though in 1973 Norton might edge it out.

 

Joe was faded by 73 which is the only reason it is a discussion but I still like Frazier .. too tough ...

 

Watching this makes me appreciate Joe even more. He was terrific.

 

I'd still take 73 Frazier. Norton wouldn't be able to take the pressure

 

The sparring story reflects in the fight, Norton frustrates Joe in the first few rounds which then he realizes he’s behind and kicks it into high gear with a stoppage victory.

The question is does Joe or Kenny get Eddie Futch as their trainer/coach? Yank Durham was still alive during this time but Futch did end up going with Joe when given the choice.

 

Let me ask you something. Besides a shot Quarry and an overweight Ali. Who did Norton beat?

 

So true.
This short,,one armed guy with bad eye sight actually beat the Greatest heavyweight champion ever.

Some people just can't get it.

 

It can go either way.
Norton has all the advantages on his side except chin and toughness. In this footage you can see how good Nortons fundamental skills were. I guess he tried to prepare Frazier for Ali or similar type of fighter. So he didnt used his own style. Regardless his defence was pretty solid, he was pretty agile on his feet and his punches came really fast and sharp. I think Frazier delivered about 80-85% intensity, but so did Norton. It was probably just an exercise to adjust to Ali's style...cutting the ring, closing the distance etc. But anyway; Even if Norton can handle this style we have no sure indicator how he would handle the real unrestricted pressure of Smoking Joe! So Frazier has a good punchers chance. I favor Norton in a 10 round fight, and Frazier when it is for 12,15 rounds.

 

At the outset, it is important to note that the Jose Frazier of 1971 would have beaten Ken Norton. Joe Frazier was stronger than Ken Norton and hit harder than Ken Norton. Therefore, even if both fighters walked into each other, Joe Frazier would have prevailed. Joe Frazier also had faster hands than Ken Norton and a much better left hook. However, the question pertains to the 1973 Joe Frazier who was clearly not the same fighter that dominated Ali in 1971. The Ali fight had taken Frazier's youth and prime from him and he was never the same fighter after that iconic night in Madison Square Garden. He was slower with far less motivation. In fact, he showed up to the foreman fight overweight and slow and while an in-shape Frazier still would have been knocked out by George Foreman, his lack of training certainly didn't help his cause. However, Frazier still had a lot left in the tank as evidenced by his stalworth performance against Ali in Manilla. Therefore, if Frazier had properly trained for this fight in 1973, watched his diet, and took a serious approach for this fight, I believe that he still had enough left to defeat ken Norton. Remember, Ken Norton's career was based predominantly on his performances against Ali and while he was not the same class of fighter as Ali, he posed stylistic problems for Ali much like George Foreman is not the same class of fighter as Joe Frazier but still easily defeated Frazier due to stylistic issues and Frazier's stylistic limitations. Norton lost to Larry Holmes and was decimated by George Foreman in his prime. Frazier on the other hand had beaten a much younger and faster Ali in 1971 and other rugged fighters such as Oscar Bonavena. Therefore, if Frazier trained properly, I believe that in 1973, he was still the better, stronger, and faster fighter and would have prevailed against Ken Norton.

 

Norton for me.

 

I think you're right. Frazier, like all small pressure fighters had to have more desire and be in better condition than his opponent to win the fight. After the first Ali fight he lost a lot of desire and conditioning, and wasn't the same fighter that he had been from the Chuvalo fight through Ali 1. JF didn't look good against Daniels and Stander and he was over weight and under trained against Foreman. It's good that JF didn't fight Norton in 73, it would have been a bigger, hungrier fighter vs. a small, pressure fighter who didn't have the desire that he once did. That doesn't usually end well for the smaller pressure fighter.

 

he edged a terrific Young , gave a prime Holmes his tightest fight, he should have been 2-0-1 against Ali. Ken just didn’t match well against talented big punchers .

 

So he has a win over Jimmy Young? So does Ossie Occasio and Micheal Dokes he’s no “great” at all and the Young fight is suspect and that’s been the talk for a long time.