A Comparison Usyk 1st 16 Fights v Marciano's

I don't think this really means much. It says more about how they were managed than anything else.

Jeffries's first 20 is also much more impressive than Rocky's.

Plus Rocky had 20 pro fights at a similar age to Usyk when he turned pro.

 

Quinn was meant to beat him, and so was Ross.

He was put in those fights, with the purpose of giving them another win.

It was only after he beat them, that his handlers decided that it might be worth pushing him as a going concern.

 

It's fairly typical for today's boxers (well - those being groomed for the top-flight), to be accelerated through the available levels and, at the same time, be less active, in terms of fights per year. So, on paper, it would look like fighters are dropped in at the deep-end much earlier on.

In this case, I think one could also lean towards Usyk as having done/shown more in his first 16 bouts than Rocky did in his, quite confidently. However, as to whether this perspective challenges/negates the opinion that Marciano, in his pomp, would be a bridge too far for Usyk, at this early stage in his career - I am not convinced.

I am not sure that Usyk's wins over Huck, Breidis, Gassiev and Bellew get me there.

 

The claim is made by Sam Silverman, quoted in "Unbeaten, Rocky Marciano's quest for perfection in a crooked world" by Mike Stanton.