Bob Fitzsimmons vs. Dick Tiger

Prime Ryan and that Dempsey are not one and the same, and they are rather different in my estimation anyway, but, in terms of how they would fight Fitz, you have to believe that Dempsey is a really good foil. And he got absolutley destroyed, i mean he wasn't in it. A one-sided thrashing. That doesn't translate all the way across, but I wonder, given how firmly Fitz out-boxed and out-generaled him with the added power gap...it doesn't add up particularly well for Ryan in my estimation.

Furthermore, I was reading this morning about West-Ryan 3 (you posted in that thread in fact). What success West had seemed to be in forcing an eager Ryan to lead and taking what he had to give and countering - sounds familiar? It should, because it surmises the way Fitz fought aggressive fighters rather nicely. What spelt several rounds of domiantion for West might spell a sharp end for Ryan versus Fitz. But Ryan was superb and you never know. Just that my money would be on Fitz.

I certainly didn't mean to apply that he was that, just that he traded on pressure and violence. The style advantage is firmly with Fitz here, as well as the physical advantages.

 

I like that too, based upon the HW run.

If he didn't get KO'd he'd have a chance at a decision, I think. When we have one fighter generally dominating aggression (Assuming Griffith doesn't want to work that much on the inside or mix it up) AND there's only one fighter winning by KO though, I know where my money is going.

 

Fitz hit as hard as Foster in my estimation. Foster nearly killed Tiger. But then, this is a smaller version of Fitz who hadn't established himself as anything like the puncher he would become, so yeah, i'll accept your maybe. At the very least we agree that Tiger had an absolutley extraordinary chin.

 

...

 

I disagree with this. My impression of Fitz is that if anything he re-gressed as a technical fighter but sharpened a specific set of tools that worked for him up at the higher weights to become an overall more refined specialised machine.

Yeah, it's a really weird one this because Griffith might be the better in-fighter...really rare in this type of cross-era match up. Either way, I wouldn't bet on it. Anyway, here, he doesn't want to be inside, for sure.

 

Demspey was actually pissed. Literally.

No, I don't know it, but one thing that is interesting to me is that Ryan was instrumental in preparing Jeffries for Fitz, perhaps he had his number in some way? Although of course, Jeffries has an extra 70lbs to execute the strategy.

 

Oh i don't doubt that this is true, I didn't mean to imply he was more physical at higher weights, the opposite in fact. Fitz wasn't big enough to fight these guys in the ways he learned coming up, becuase he was in consistantly with bigger men. Fighting at MW saw him enjoy certain advantages that became exclusively disadvantages when he moved up for the HW's. Fitz had to narrow his range. I'm sure that he became technically better than he was previously at the things he did, but in the same way Tyson was better technically than Liston - within a very narrow remit that he had to use to win fights due to physical limitations. Liston is a better technician because of his bigger breadth.

Similar conundrum with Fitz. He's just one big enigma, really.

The whole match up is baffling, actually.