15 rounds. Who you got in this one? Ross was almost as crafty as they came and took a great shot. Griffith had the speed edge, was a bit undergunned but game to the core.
Great, great fight. What a great fight that would have been. Ross has the right style to overcome the size advantage here, he can dip in and out beautifully, but is he too open for the Griffith jab. Griffith will be stalking and trying to dominate here, will he be able to find his way into range with this punch? Might be key. Fifteen rounds you say...I think Griffith might just catch him enough in the late rounds to edge a decision.
By all accounts Ross was a beautiful boxer, Griffith beat Rodriguez in close fights,Luis was very skillful.Neither Ross or Griffith were big punchers. I never saw a stronger welter than Griffith ,maybe Ross is the greater fighter but this is a toss up, imo.
Griffith was stronger, and before he transitioned into a true ring mechanic as a middleweight, he was a "sometimes" swarmer, being rather aggresive at times, at least before the Paret tragedy...He and Barney would probably have fought a 3 bout series..with Griffith winning 2 out of 3. His strength, not his power, would have been the difference here.
Thanks for the input. I am really terribly bored with heavyweight discussions. I really like Ross on film... and think he would take a trilogy 2 out of 3. He was crafty as all get out. And I don't think Griffith can knock him down.
At 147 pounds Ross vs Griffith would be a great 15 round fight with no knockdowns or kos. I saw Emile fight in the Golden gloves and pro ranks, but I will never forget the time a week or so before he kod Benny Paret at MSG when I met him at the Concord Hotel in Sullivan County NY. He was training there for the Paret tragic fight, and he showed up at a ****tail party and told a few of us that " I will keel Paret, he called me a marano [***] . I keel him " How prophetic his statement turned out to be, sadly... Emile would be stronger than Barney Ross but the courageous Ross twice handled the very rugged Ceferino Garcia, beating Garcia once with a BROKEN hand.
Griffith in an extremely close decision, helped by his size and strength. Technical war between two iron men of boxing.
