Better resume - Greb or Robinson?

Greb has the edge in depth and particularly in terms of quality at the higher end of the weight spectrum he fought at.

Grebs sheet at light heavyweight alone might just be the best ever.

 

5 Middleweight champs beaten.
4 Middleweight title claimants beaten
7 Lt. Heavyweight world champions beaten.
1 Future HW champ beaten, a top 15 lock for the division.

No contest.

 

Greb beat Bill Brennan, Tommy Gibbons, and Gene Tunney over the championship distance. He thrashed Jack Dillon in March 1918 and Rosenbloom in July 1925. In between, Loughran (over the championship distance), McTigue and Levinski were other World LHW Titleholders he trashed. Miske, in September 1918, before Billy became deathly ill.

There was a ceiling on what Greb would test himself against. He never tried behemoths like Wills, Fulton and Firpo, or the lethal Langford. But Brennan and Gibbons were plenty dangerous in the power department. In November 1921, he decked Weinert and beat him up over the championship distance, ending a 13 fight winning streak. Norfolk was no picnic stroll.

What's crazier than taking on the caliber of opponents Harry did was the fact that he was so damned successful at it. According to many professional eyewitness reports, his true record against Tunney should be 3-2. Numerous accounts also hold that his record against Flowers should be 3-0, and that he should have retired as MW Champion.

It's a stark contrast to, "I'm too pretty to fight Charley Burley." For many years, LaMotta was the only significant heavier contender of consequence he'd test himself against. Maxim was a great LHW and competent HW, but he wasn't the lethal hitter Charles and Moore could be. Robinson laughed it off when Curt Gowdy asked him if he'd challenge for the HW Title had he succeeded at dethroning Maxim. Satterfield was one of the hitters he specifically mentioned he'd want nothing to do with. I strongly suspect Harry might have gone right after Satterfield.

 

Greb actually wanted to fight Firpo but they wouldnt have let Firpo near him. Greb would have tied him into knots IMO. There was never even any discussion of fighting Langford. I doubt Greb would have shied away from that match as Langford was fading fast when Greb was entering his prime. To say that he set a ceiling at Langford is a distortion. I dont think the opportunity was ever presented to him to accept or turn down. There is a big difference. It has also often been said that he refused to fight Fulton. This is a bit of a distortion. He was offered a fight against Fulton for charity where he would be paid nothing. He declined on the grounds that a fight between he and Fulton would be a big money bout in one of the metro centers out east and wasnt about to fight a marquee fight like that for nothing.

 

Greb more names and at different weights.

 

I think he would have taken it if the price was right. Its not like he was pricing himself out of the fight, he would have literally gotten NOTHING. Imagine SRR fighting as a welterweight contender, while he was considered the top dog and before he got his title shot, fighting a LHW Ezzard Charles for nothing. Nobody would do that. There was little to gain. It would have been a ND bout so you know its going to be spun ten different ways, there was no money in it, and it would have admittedly been a very difficult fight just based on the massive size difference. I think anyone would have walked away under those circumstances. Now put that fight on in the Garden, to a decision, with a respectable purse and I bet Greb takes it.

 

'It's not that I'm afraid of Fulton, or
that I don't think I can beat him,' Greb told me, 'but he's tall and has a
fine jab and might bust me up pretty good before I could get to him. I
have too many main events left in me to take the chance.

-Harry Keck on Greb's not fighting Fulton

Also, its quite funny that Firpo, he's willing to get rough with a tiger in Jack Dempsey and will not get it on with a 160lb MW with nowhere near the frightening power of the HW champ...

 

D, We know that Ray Robinson avoided tough members of "murderers row ".
All of them. We know that Robinson never challenged bigger men like Ezzard Charles, Archie Moore, Harold Johnson, Lloyd Marshall etc. Robinson could have made a ton of money fighting any one of these 175 pounders but
Robinson KNEW BETTER. They were too big and strong for Ray!
Harry Greb was a fearless ******* in contrast. This "seven year itch", as he was called, went after, and LICKED, such bigger and taller men like Gene Tunney, Tommy Gibbons, Tommy Loughran, Jack Dillon, Billy Miske, Battling
Levinsky, Maxie Rosenbloom, Kid Norfolk, Big Bill Brennan [5 times]etc.He was fearless and pugnacious,knowing that his tremendous unorthodox speed
of hand and foot,roughness, and unmatched stamina,aided by an iron chin
would overcome any weight disadvantage. And as history shows, he was CORRECT.! Greb also whipped badly, Gunboat Smith, a great right hand puncher, who beat Jess Willard, Battling Levinsky, Carl Morris, Arthur Pelkey,
Sam Langford etc. Robinson in contrast would not tackle Bob Satterfield,as
Ray Robinson certainly knew his limitations. I loved Ray Robinson, best
fighter I ever saw, but Robinson never could have licked any of Greb's
heavier opponents. Never. But I am certain that Greb would have whipped everyone of Robinson's RESUME. What better criteria is there ?:good

 

Greb fought the bigger better names more often. He has a ridiculously deep resume, stacked full of big quality names, many of whom he fought 4, 5, 6+ times each.
BUT many of those fights were "NO DECISIONS".

Robinson has more good WINS, and knocked dozens of good men out too.

 

I.ll bet you can't cite that quote from any contemporary greb articles. it originates a good 20 yrs after grebs death. if greb actually said everything he was quoted as saying he would have quite literally been going in several different directions at once.but dempsey was the prize, goal, wasn't he? I mean, you don't fight stumbling blocks because you want to cash in. in order to cash in you have to win a title and to do that you have to beat dempsey, and frankly just fighting and losing to dempsey got firpo his biggest purse. so, yeah, if you are a PRIZEFIGHTER you are much more likely to avoid a guy who was a high risk, low reward fight like greb and opt instead to go after cash cows like dempsey furthermore, firpo was being moved by rickard like a chess piece strictly for the purpose of being slaughtered by dempsey. he wasn't going to sit back and watch greb slaughter another of his hoped for bonanzas as greb had done with the gibbons fight previously. that was another sure fire rickard stepping stone to a big gate demp-gibbons showdown and greb deflated that over 45 minutes. they were goung to cash in on firpo and his image as beastly caveman. can't do that when he's getting slapped around by a light hitting mw...

 

U. Harry Greb, Benny Leonard etc, cannot be penalized for fighting in the"No DECISION " era. That they were better than their N.D. opponents there can be no doubt, when at their peaks. If decisions were rendered at that time,they
would still be considered superior to their opponents. We must remember that even Robinson won a slew of "controversial" decisions also,ala Servo, Abrams,Docusen, Gavilan,etc. In a 300 bout career, traveling weekly from town to town,on hot trains,no A/C, banged up, Ol Harry, was not always at his absolute best. But he still licked just about everyone,in a very tough age,
weekly, against many guys much heavier than Greb,the ND era should not
diminish his greatness, one iota, I believe...Cheers U.