Here's a clash of forum favourites if ever there was one. Leonard proved the vast superior of Sammy Angott; Williams showed near superiority over no less a figure than Lou Ambers. Benny Leonard (seeded 2) makes a mockery of the notion that boxers from the 1920s were outmoded by evolution in pugilism. He moved like a ballerino, gliding away, floating in, his balance all but absolute. Leonard was not an Ali or a Sugar Ray, his moves were functional as well as effortless and beautiful, but the terrible threat of his punches were the reason for his mobility as he sought the proper position from which to punch. He sought to punch Rocky Kansas from all angles when they met for the fourth and final time in 1922. Kansas hadn’t been stopped for eleven years and a hundred fights, but Leonard left him sagging after a savage assault the likes of which would arguably go unequalled until Ray Robinson hit his stride twenty years later. Leonard was that good; he stands that comparison. Hard to hit and granite of jaw, champion Freddie Welsh seemed impossible to beat in any no-decision bout, as proved to be the case when Welsh got the better of him in 1916 over ten, with the title on the line. No championship for Leonard, though the newspapermen in attendance naming him the better of the two but, unable to score the knockout, the reigning champion left the ring with the title. You can almost see Welsh smirking down the century when, just under a year later, he granted Leonard a rematch, once again over ten rounds. But Leonard was all business. “I am after the knockout,” he said. “I intend to win that title tonight or get well licked trying. This may be the last time I get a crack at Welsh.” Leonard was aggressive, direct, and brilliant. In the ninth, he pinned Welsh to the ropes behind a wall of leather and as the Brit slipped, ducked, rolled, and caught his abuser’s punches on his gloves and arms, Leonard moved his attack downstairs. Welsh fought more than 150 fights and he was only stopped once – May 28th, 1917, in New York, New York when stopping him was the only way Leonard could win the title. That is the difference between the great ones and the true immortals: the immortals find a way. Leonard made himself immortal over the following seven years. No lightweight could beat him. Lew Tendler probably came the closest, pushing him hard in a no-decision bout in 1922, so in 1923 Leonard granted him a decision bout over fifteen, boxed his ears off, sent him scurrying for welterweight. Leonard retired the undefeated lightweight champion of the world. I credit him with seven title defenses (though he is 9-0 in title fights if we allow his Newspaper Decision win over Welsh in their first title fight), ignoring the one he staged against Jimmy Duffy at 140lbs. During this time he was, perhaps, a lightweight unbeatable. This content is protected Ike Williams, seeded 7, posted an impressive record in world-title fights, going 6-1 in lineal world title fights and that“1” was suffered in 1951 with the poundage almost past him and the battle to make it as tough as the one Jimmy Carter waged against him. Before that, Williams was close to invincible. He grabbed a strap in 1945, destroying the excellent Juan Zurita in two having established himself four months before in a similarly brutal dispatch of Dave Castilloux in five; in 1947 he became undisputed and lineal based upon perhaps his greatest lightweight performance, a six round obliteration of Bob Montgomery who found himself helpless on the ropes against the most devastating technical puncher of the lightweight era. Five defenses followed in a period during which only a welterweight Kid Gavilan could best him, despite the fact that Williams operated almost exclusively against ranked men. By the time Carter got to him in 1951, his ability to make the limit was all but a thing of the past. This content is protected Who will win under the following rules? 15 round fight. 1935 referee. 8oz boxing gloves. 10 points must. Cast your vote and explain yourself in a post below! You have 3 days.
Yeah, I'm thinking Leonard too. Ike couldn't quite figure Joyce out, and I'd say that Leonard is unequivocally better than Joyce.
I think Leonard scores the decision after some scary early moments. Ike's best chance is to stay up close and throw those vicious compact hooks, but getting prime Leonard to stay close, at your own terms, was almost impossible. Benny gets the rhythm in the middle rounds and outboxes him.
Saw both these guys fight on HBO BAD back in the day. They fought that trilogy and Williams won 2 of 3 officially. I think three of three personally on my card. They were great fights at 140 and they even made a movie about Leonard and his older brother Eklund something that didn't have the fights in them for some reason.
I wasn't aware of this HBO show, I'm assuming these were computer matchups? Its hard to put much stock into such.
In a highly entertaining fight I think Leonard edges it by mixing it up with Williams and boxing him. Trading punches with Ike was dangerous but Leonard was aggressive, durable, and good defensively enough to pull it off. Williams would need to corner his man in order to do serious damage and Leonard was so mobile that even a stalker on Williams' level would have a hard time pinning him down. I pick Leonard by decision, but an upset isn't out of the question and I think that if they fought a series, Ike would definitely pick up a win.
Mmm...I don't watch a lot of boxing. I guess it coulda been squegee-eyed with a computer or something but it looked real and dope as funk. The HBO crew was sure acting like it was real. They said it was super old school.
If you come at Ike you probably lose. He's like Arguello with a more consistent jab. Leonard doesn't need to do that. He is one of those athletic freaks who can dance all night. But he's also one of those master technicians who can keep himself safe all night. If you mix Jones Jr and Hopkins together you get someone who's very hard to beat. Especially when you have the style of Ike that needs someone to engage with you. Leonard UD.
Benny Leoanrd scored a wide decision over Ike Williams to progress to the tournament semi-finals. It even seemed that Leonard might stop Williams in the fifteenth and final round as he finally assumed absolute control, leading repeatedly with the right hand to the head before beating Williams onto a series of baffling left-hooks. It was the spirit of the fight summarised in three minutes, Williams never less than keen but always one stepped behind Leonard who was in front after six and never looked back. The two arguably split the first four rounds in what had the appearance of becoming a keenly contested match, but by the twelfth, Williams was throwing hail-Mary pot-shots in an effort to catch up to his blistering rival. Williams had sporadic successes but arguably nothing that was enough to win him a round after the seventh.
