1st Round - 140 Pound Tourney - Packey McFarland vs. Julio Cesar Chavez

It's been a while since I've seen footage of McFarland, but from what I ccan recall and what I gather of him as a fighter and stylist, this would've been a matchup between a pressure fighter and a pure boxer. I generally favor the more modern stylists when bringing these types of matchups involving opponents from different eras, though only when comparing pre-30'-40's fighters with modern ones. Therefore, I'll go with Chavez. May as well count that one as a half a point.:good

 

People will,as i am,have trouble with not seeing Packey,look at the resume though and read up and this is hard. And for me JCC is not at his best over the body of his work at this weight. What Chavez did have here was an indonitable will to emerge victorious,in the main. I think this fight will surprise Julio with how tough it is, but he grits his teeth, makes a warof it, and pounds out a decision over the stretch, once he learns his chin serves him well he starts to attack more and more.

Chavez, but i must say this is the most uneducated of my picks.

 

I'll take Chavez. McFarland could box, and with the lack of footage it's hard to judge. But I would find it hard to believe he could survive 15 rounds of Chavez at best. His pressure and power pays off. Stoppage in 10.

 

I'll pick Chavez although its a tough one due the fact I'm judging Packey McFarland purely on what I've read and not seen. Chavez UD.

 

McFarland has never met a body puncher like this. Not his fault, the styles didn't vary as much back in the day. Chavez KO 5.

Scartissue

 

I'd pick only a couple fighters in history to beat Chavez at 130/135. But he wasn't as good at 140 when matched with very good (Taylor, Randall) or great (Whitaker) fighters. Packey McFarland was a great fighter. McFarland was a great boxer and ring general and was 102-1. He could punch some too. I think enough to keep Chavez from walking straight through him. I don't think this is a landslide in Chavez's favor.

winner: McFarland SD

 

McFarland won't be afraid of Chavez at all and will most probably carry the fight to Chavez, rather than move around and box at long range. It'll go punch for punch, but McFarland was considerably more clever and skillful than Chavez, he was a complete package, and was no less tough than Taylor. McFarland by clear decision.

 

Never saw footage of McFarland so I won´t pick a winner but just say that I want Chavez to be promoted.

 

I never watched McFarland fights either but, based on what I have read here on the classic section, he was just as good as Chavez was and probably even slightly better on some points like boxing skills.
Therefore, if I am basing on the Chavez of the first Randall fight, I think McFarland would edge it later on by boxing his way through after a competitive fight.

McFarland SD

 

I may be a bit biased, being a huge Chavez fan, but still:
McFarland must have been an exceptionally skilled fighter and I can see Chavez having quite a bit of trouble with him in the beginning. Still, Chavez always found a way to get to his opponent and I don´t think this would be an exception. He´d lose the rounds but leave his marks on McFarland. Especially over 15 rounds McFarland would slow down and wouldn´t be able to elude Chavez´s punishment, even more so considering McFarland might have a hard time getting Chavez with his granite chin in trouble.
So, I think Chavez would knock McFarland out somewhere after the 10th.

 

Both fighters are very skilled, which would have it close early. Then Chavez' body attack should pay dividends. McFarland begins to slow & Chavez steps up the pressure even more. Chavez TKO 12.

 

Do most people here get an opinion about McFarland based on Tracy Callis' article? Unfortunately, it is based mostly on secondary sources and therefore contains some mistakes. For example:

Reading next-day reports of above fight will reveal a very different picture than what Salak and Van Court are trying to paint. One reporter remarked that "The fight was not fast enough to suit the crowd." It got somewhat livelier afterwards, but no reporter claimed it was one of the fastest. McFarland had the better in most rounds of the fight, and he forced the fight in most rounds. Welsh showed somewhat more clever footwork in early rounds than McFarland too, contrary to infighting/distance note above.

I could point out more flaws in the article, but the point is McFarland was forcing the fight in a lot of fights, and not just early in his career, he liked to work the body in close and didn't mind to wrestle if necessary. People get a wrong view of him as a fighter, I'm afraid.