Billy Conn v Bob Foster

These mythological/hypothetical matches are supposed to be between both men at their very best, right? If that's the case, you have to factor in that Conn didn't "get stupid" in the majority of his fights, He did become a champion and won his best fights by fighting smart and not succumbing to making bad decisions.

 

Foster beats Conn but does nowhere near as well as Conn against Louis, at whose hands he suffers a brutal mid-rounds KO.

 

How did he get "Irish dumb" against Louis? His fight plan worked pretty well, until it didn't. It's not like he ran from Louis all night until the final round; he ambushed Louis and slugged it out more than people remember. But the danger when you're in with a monster puncher is that you eventually get caught with something you can't handle.

And that doesn't really explain the knockout in the second fight either.

 

Conn by decision.

 

Foster

 

Foster 13 rd ko he can run but he cant hide.

 

Damn good thread

 

Conn got "Irish dumb" when he decided to ditch outspeeding and outboxing Louis, and to try knocking him out instead. You know that...the bravado and fearlessness of Conn took over...he allowed it to. Conn had more swagger than say, Gene Tunney or a Tommy Loughran,....both of them, especially the more conservative Tunney, would have "stuck to the plan", had they been similarly as successful vs Louis as Conn was. No trying for a knockout for those two. Caution would have been the rule...with just 3 rounds to go. But when Conn first tasted blood in the 12th, he had delusions of grandeur, and thought that he would ko Louis. Now, I'm sure that Billy fought other guys a lot smarter, else he wouldn't have been a champion, but he let his Irish get in the way vs Louis. This is what I meant by "Irish dumb",...and Billy admitted to that himself after the fight. Sure, he could possibly been caught by Louis anyway, even if he played it cool in the 13th, but there's also that chance that he could have nicked the decision and made boxing history some 44 years before Michael Spinks turned the trick vs Larry Holmes.

 

The rematch was a dud for Billy, who was affected more adversely even than Louis by having missed 4 years due to WW2.

 

And that's why I feel Bob would coldcock him, that swagger.

 

Conn should win this.
He has the chin, the skills, the movement, and tough.

 

If we are talking both men at their best you have to go with Foster. If Conn moves and boxes long range the Foster jab dominates leading to an eventual KO blow. Cons best alternative is to stay in close and use short quick combinations to allow him to hit and avoid the Foster offense.

 

Conn was totally washed up for the 2nd fight.If He had stayed away from Louis in their first encounter he may have won a decision but he went in to engage and paid the price.

 

Possibly, but movers troubled Foster,Fourie for example,and Ray Anderson , neither could move or box like Conn.

 

I think that the sheer momentum of the heavyweight title...the Joe Louis in front of him that he was doing so good against..is what caused Conn to make such a bad decision to try to ko JL. I don't think that was the way that he conducted himself vs his opponents in the lightheavy division. He boxed smartly vs Tony Zale, even though he had a weight and size advantage,...same way vs Gus Lesnivich and Melio Bettina. Conn didn't get where he was in the 175 lb class by being stupid and careless. I think his career shows that he only fought out of character vs Louis. Conn was a fast, smart boxer who was, as I've said before, a much better fighter than Pierre Fourie, who had the chin and the boxing smarts to go 15 twice with Foster without ever hitting the deck. Conn was capable of doing that too, but with the difference of being able to beat the great Foster.