Bradley's all time Bantamweight tournament

Part one:

I have taken the 16 best bantamweights of all time and put together a random draw.
People often try and compare fighters of different eras by discussing who is the greatest. One way to do this is to rank fighters by who achieved the most in their careers. However perhaps a more entertaining way is creating fantasy fights to work out the greatest ever. I have taken the 16 best bantamweights (any fighter can only be ranked in one division) of all time and put together a random draw. Some of the fighters are admittedly not technically bantamweights but I had to find a way to get them in a tournament. Who will be the winner? Let’s watch the tournament unfold!

THE DRAW

Panama Al Brown vs. Pete Herman Orlando Canizares vs. Khaosai Galaxy Carlos Zarate vs. Sixto Escobar Fighting Harada vs. Rafael Marquez Pete Sanstol vs. Manuel Ortiz Rubén Olivares vs. Joe Lynch

The bantamweight who is generally considered the greatest of all time by boxing commentators faces the most unique bantamweight of all time…

Kid Williams vs. Jiro Watanabe Bud Taylor vs. Eder Jofre

PRE-TOURNAMENT ODDS
Eder Jofre 3.2 Carlos Zarate 4.2 Manuel Ortiz 5 Panama Al Brown 7 Fighting Harada 7.8 Rubén Olivares 12 Pete Herman 16 Bud Taylor 20

THE BOXERS

Bud Taylor—This tough American turned pro at 17. Ranked as the fifth best flyweight of all time by Nat Fleischer, he was an incredibly active fighter. He averaged a fight every three weeks over a period of 11 years. At only 20 he had two losses to Memphis Pal Moore, a win over Moore, as well as losses to Frankie Genaro and Pancho Villa. As he became more experienced he would begin to win these big fights. He would overcome Pancho Villa, Abe Goldstein (2), Jimmy McLarnin (3) and Tony Canzoneri. The Canzoneri fight would win him the bantamweight world title which he only lost when moving up in weight. He was nicknamed the Blond Terror of Terre Haute and had an extremely pleasing style with hard right hand and left hooks which he kept throwing due to his incredible stamina. He eventually retired with a record of 118-33-14 and a record filled with major names.

Carlos Zarate—Carlos Zarate is one of the most highly celebrated Mexicans of all time. Associated Press ranked him the number one bantamweight of the 20th century. His early career saw 51 of his 52 foes stopped prior to the bell. He would proceed to stop Rodolfo Martinez in eight rounds to become a bantamweight world champion. He made three defenses of the belt before a unification bout with Alfonso Zamora. In a controversial bout, Zarate would use his better boxing and stop Zamora in four. He dominated his division before stepping up to fight Wilfredo Gomez. He was knocked down four times and stopped in the fifth. After his foray into the super bantamweight division he would return down and defend his bantamweight title before losing a controversial decision to Lupe Pintor and announcing his retirement. He returned after a fiveyear hiatus and lost title bouts to Daniel Zaragoza and Jeff Fenech. His record was 66-4. He was a tall bantamweight, 5’8 and rangy. He was known as a knockout artist, but he did not actually hit that hard. He was a technical stalker who showed an ability to use his boxing skills and fight off his back foot against Zamora. His body attack was particularly fierce with a stiff jab and booming right hand.

Eder Jofre—Eder Jofre is one of the best Brazilian boxers ever and is ranked the number one bantamweight of all time by IBRO. He would suffer a loss in the early rounds of the 1956 Olympics before turning professional. His early years would be successful with the exception of three draws in his first two years. He also suffered the only knockdown of his career against Jose Smecca. He would continue piling up the wins, becoming WBA champion by defeating Eloy Sanchez in six rounds. The Golden Bantam defended his title 11 times before running into Fighting Harada. He would lose a controversial decision in Japan before losing a wider decision in
the rematch. He was another fighter who would retire before returning in the featherweight division. He would beat Jose Legra for the title and stop Vincente Salvidar in a Mexican superfight in four rounds. His record would end 72-2-4 with his only losses coming to Harada. Jofre was an incredible boxer who could adapt to situations. He was a skilled boxer who would time his power shots well. He could think his way through a bout and use his incredible speed to overwhelm an opponent. He was also resilient and had an iron chin.

Fighting Harada—The incredible Japanese fighter made his debut at 16, winning his opening 24 bouts. He would become WBA flyweight champion stopping Pone Kingpetch in 11. He would be outpointed in the rematch which was his first bout outside of Japan. Following this he would move up to bantamweight and rebuild his career with wins. He would get a shot at Eder Jofre and win a decision over the great Brazilian. The rematch saw another win for Harada by a wider margin. Harada would be the only man to defeat Eder Jofre, achieving it twice. He would continue piling up the wins before losing at 34 to Lionel Rose. His final record would be 55-7. Fighting Harada was an aggressive whirlwind. He was an all action fighter who was tough and scrappy. Despite his small stature he would use head movement and a solid jab to work his way in. Once inside he would unleash a devastating body attack.

Jiro Watanabe—Another Japanese fighter but one who campaigned at super flyweight. He was difficult to leave out of the tournament despite this. The awkward southpaw would only fight 28 bouts in his career but would spend a large amount as champion. His 11th bout was a controversial hometown loss to Chul Ho Kim for a world title. He would rebuild with wins before a dominant defeat of Rafael Pedroza to win a title. He would continue racking up wins, including wins over Shoji Oguma and Payao Poontarat twice. His last bout would be a defeat against Gilberto Roman, ending with a record with 26-2. He was a sharp offensive beast on his day who was well schooled. He had masterful combinations and used his excellent footwork really well. He would occasionally struggle in fights due to a tendency to get lazy.

Joe Lynch—Joe Lynch ranked as the fourth best flyweight of all time by Nat Fleischer. He was born in the 19th century and was part of a historic era for the division and had some great battles. He was a two-time world champion beating Kid Herman and Johnny Buff. Against Kid Herman he went 2-3 with a loss to Jimmy Wilde and three wins over Memphis Pal Moore. He was another tall fighter, given as 5’7 which often meant he looked frail and gaunt. Despite this appearance he was never knocked out in 160 bouts, a real tough guy. He was durable and aggressive, always up for a fight. He would try to take the fight to an opponent with a stiff jab and punishing right. He eventually finished with a record of 99-36-19.

Khaosai Galaxy—The Thai would first experience success in Muay Thai but would eventually shift over to boxing. He would win his first six bouts before a loss in his seventh bout, for the Thai championship. He would engage in another winning streak before being avoided by the champion Jiro Watanabe. He would eventually win the title by defeating Eusebio Espinal. He would have 19 defenses of the title, winning them all, with 16 knockout victories. He would end with a record of 49-1. Known as the Thai Tyson he was a tough southpaw with a huge left hand. Originally he did not have many tools but developed combinations to compliment the left hand. His best punch was the left to the body. He also had underrated quick feet and could close the distance well.

Kid Williams—Kid is the oldest boxer in the tournament, also being born in the 19th century. He was born in Denmark and travelled to Baltimore with his parents. Ranked the 3rd best Bantamweight by Nat Fleischer he retired with a record of 156-26-16. He had an early loss to George Chaney but was world champion at 21 after
stopping Johnny Coulon in the third round. He would fight numerous legends of the division including Kid Herman, Joe Lynch, Pancho Villa, Johnny Kilbane and Frankie Genaro. He measured only 5’1 and was an aggressive powerhouse. He was very quick and a willing fighter. He also had a devastating body attack and was known as the Baltimore Tiger.

Manuel Ortiz—The Californian was one of the better bantamweights of all time. He saw nine losses in the first two years of his career and ended it with a 9-9 record. His record would finally end at 99-28-3. He would become a world champion by defeating Lou Salica and defend it an incredible 19 times. He defeated Enrique Bolanos and lost to Willie Pep while fighting at a higher weight. He would eventually lose it to Victor Toweel. He was 5’5 and was a smart, adaptable boxer. He could box and punch, was clever and quick. His style was that of a swarming boxer puncher who positioned himself brilliantly for his inside work and backed this up with a cast iron chin

Orlando Canizales—Orlando was the fighting pride of Texas. He fought in time period where the division was not particularly strong. His first defeat came early in his career when he fought Olympic gold medalist Paul Gonzalez. He would right this and just two fights later would win a world title with a knockout victory of Kelvin Seabrooks. He would defend his title a grand total of 16 times before moving up to take on world champion Wilfredo Vazquez. He would lose on a split decision. He was an aggressive boxer puncher, who had the ability to aggressively counter. He would use that to breach range and put together good combinations with his slight hand defenses.

 

Part 2 the draw continued.

Panama Al Brown—One of the best Panamanian boxers of all time, he was the first Hispanic boxing world champion. He would eventually move to New York and not long after turning professional was ranked top 10 in both bantamweight and flyweight. He would move to France, a hugely successful move, touring Europe and becoming wildly successful. He would finally win the world championship in 1929 with a unanimous decision against Gregorio Vidal. He would make nine defenses of the titles holding it until Sangchili Hervas beat him in 1935. His record was an incredible 123-18-10. His main advantage came from being 6-foot-tall with a 76-inch reach, remarkable for a bantamweight. He was a fine boxer with stiff punches. He was quite quick and slippery making him hard to pin down.

Pete Herman—Pete was rated as the second greatest bantamweight of all time by Nate Fleischer. Despite this incredible rating it was still a story of what could have been. He lost a close decision to Kid Williams aged 17 and would beat him for the world championship aged just 19. He would lose it to Joe Lynch before going on an impressive run beating Jimmy Wilde and retaining the belt with victory over Lynch. He would eventually lose it to Johnny Buff and retired age 26 with blindness in one eye. A great fighter who saw his career struck down when he could have had many years at the top ended with a record of 101-29-13. He was a scrappy boxer who was tough and like to get on the inside of fighters. From there he could use his hard shots and fierce body attack to overwhelm opponents.

Pete Sanstol—The Norwegian was a star who traveled all over Europe around the end of the 1920s and beginnings of the 1930s. He would win the world title in 1931 and make two successful defenses. He would have a split decision to Panama Al Brown and would also eventually lose another title bout to Sixto Escobar. He did return to beat Panama Al Brown leaving their series at 1-1. The Norwegian would finish with a record of 99-6-8. He was a hugely aggressive fighter, despite lacking the one-punch knockout power of some of his foes.
He had unrelenting stamina with good defense and speed. Over the course of his career he also learned to pace himself and become very good at ducking and weaving.

Rafael Marquez—The most modern fighter of the tournament is the Mexican Rafael Marquez. He would lose his debut to a future world champion Victor Rabanales by eighth round stoppage. He would rebuild his career and really announce himself with two surprise victories over Mark Johnson, the first a split decision and the second an eighth round knockout. He would continue upsetting favored fighters by defeating Tim Austin to win the IBF championship, a title he would defend seven times. He would move up to super bantamweight and play a huge role in one of the trilogies of the 21st century. He would share knockouts with Israel Vasquez before losing the third on a split decision. The warriors would battle a fourth time with Marquez taking the win although neither man looked the same. He would end his career with losses to Lopez, Mijares and Nishioka finishing 41-9. Rafael was a fighter with blazing speed. He had accurate, slashing shots which would hurt and often cut his opponents. He looked to exploit every angle and would like fighting at range.

Rubén Olivares—Another Mexican legend Rubén Olivares is one of the most fearsome punchers the division has ever seen. He would make his debut at 17 and would go on consecutive knockout streaks of 22 and 21 early in his career. His wins would include Salvatore Burrini and Takao Sakurai. He would win a world title with a fifth round stoppage of Lionel Rose and emerge a 2-1 winner in a trilogy of his own with Chucho Castillo. Following this he would move up to featherweight. He would stop Bobby Chacon before a losing stoppage to Alexis Arguello. He would then defeat Bobby Chacon again to win the world title which he subsequently lost to David Kotei. He was a very popular boxer with explosive power. He could be a slick boxer using slips and traps to set up counters. His inside fighting and body attack was second to none with an underrated defense.

Sixto Escobar—Sixto Escobar was the first Puerto Rican world champion in boxing, despite growing up in a Puerto Rico where boxing was illegal. He would eventually win 21 of 23 amateur bouts. After struggling in his early days as a professional, including moves to Venezuela, he went to America for his 29th fight. Here he put enough wins together to challenge Baby Casanova whom he stopped in nine. His winning ways continued beating Pete Sanstol and Tony Marino which made him the undisputed world boxing champion at 23. He would split fights with Harry Jeffra and eventually his decline came following him being drafted to national service. His record was 43-22-3. He was a rugged fighter with a good chin, he was never knocked down. He combined rapid hitting with an effective inside game. His right hand was his best punch.

 

ROUND OF 16 ( 8 matches )

Panama Al Brown vs. Pete Herman The tie of the first round. Both are legends of the division. Game plan for both boxers is probably quite clear. Pete Herman has to work his way onto the inside and do his dirty work. Panama will be trying to avoid these exchanges using his slick boxing and long limbs to avoid Herman. Panama was knocked down only once so Herman would struggle to wear him down with his shots. Panama is long enough that he can slow down Herman at distance and pick him off.

Result: Panama Al Brown defeats Pete Herman by Unanimous Decision (147-138, 145-140, 145-140)

Orlando Canizales vs. Khaosai Galaxy This is a bout that perhaps doesn’t have the perceived greatness of the first but will likely to be a fun affair. Both are aggressive boxers but still have differences. Canizales is more of a counterpuncher using little tricks to unleash his power shots. Khaosai is a little less subtle although his combinations did improve. He has raw power and will look to use his footwork to get there. Both men are likely to be happy to engage which will make for a fascinating affair. Neither has a lot of great wins in their day and it is tough to call. Galaxy has colossal power but Canizales has a great chin and although Galaxy will surely get to him at some point, Canizales can survive. Canizales hits hard enough to drop Galaxy and ultimately secure a tough decision.

Result: Orlando Canizales defeats Khaosai Galaxy by Unanimous Decision (144-139, 142-141, 143-140)

Carlos Zarate vs. Sixto Escobar This would be a classic Mexico vs. Puerto Rico fight. Carlos Zarate stopped almost all of his 66 wins but Sixto Escobar was only knocked down once. The bigger man, Zarate would relentlessly target Escobar, peppering him with big shots. Escobar never really manages to get anything going. He does take a huge amount of punishment but will not go down. His body cannot match his heart and his face is horrendously cut and heading into the 9th the doctor brings it to a stop.

Result: Carlos Zarate defeats Sixto Escobar by 9th round doctor stoppage

Fighting Harada vs. Rafael Marquez. A bit of a horror draw for Marquez. Israel Vazquez his fierce nemesis, would best him by using his aggressiveness to get close. Harada would no doubt be able to exploit this. He attacked like a whirlwind and just would not leave Marquez alone. Marquez would be hoping to get some time in order to find his range. Harada may struggle with Marquez firing off at angles but he keeps on Marquez enough and has the head movement to make sure the he is not being peppered with clean shots. The power of Harada eventually begins to tell and he stops the fight late on, being heavily up on the scorecards.

Result: Fighting Harada defeats Rafael Marquez by 10th round knockout

Pete Sanstol vs. Manuel Ortiz. This is an interesting matchup. Despite Ortiz usually playing the role of aggressor, Sanstol would be likely to be the one moving forward early. Ortiz has the ability to really change things up here, looking to box and move but also willing to stand and trade with Sanstol, using his ability to attack the body. With Sanstol not being powerful and Ortiz displaying an iron chin, there would be no worries of Sanstol stopping Ortiz. Although I can see Sanstol taking rounds on aggressiveness, Ortiz has enough to eventually take over and control the fight.

Result: Manuel Ortiz defeats Pete Sanstol by Unanimous Decision (145-140, 144-142, 146-139)

Rubén Olivares vs. Joe Lynch. Another intriguing bout. One of the most powerful bantamweights against the one which arguably the best chin. This compares to Rubén Olivares for whom his chin was a major downfall costing him numerous fights. Unlike many of his opponents, Olivares was only an inch shorter than Lynch. This took away an advantage that Lynch was used to away from him. Lynch would come out early behind his strong jab. Olivares would get to
grips with the jab and use his slips to make Lynch miss whilst remaining inside. He would punish Lynch but with an iron chin, Lynch would not be knocked down.

Result: Rubén Olivares defeats Joe Lynch by Unanimous Decision (147-138, 145-140, 144-141)

Kid Williams vs. Jiro Watanabe. Kid would no doubt be the aggressor in the bout marching forward at the southpaw who would be looking to use fast feet and his combination punching to keep Williams off him. A big factor in this fight would be the punishing body attack of Williams which would come into play late in the fight as Jiro was used to twelve round fights. The judges would be having a hard time calling it split between the aggressive style of Williams who was landing the bigger shots or Jiro who was using his movement and combinations to land more accurately. Ultimately it would not matter and Kid Williams would finally get to his man late in the 13th round with a big body shot.

Result: Kid Williams defeats Jiro Watanabe by 13th round knockout

Bud Taylor vs. Eder Jofre. Neither of these boxers would have relished this draw. Taylor was relentless on the front foot with an incredible ability to continue throwing punches for a whole round. Jofre would find success with his ability to roll and punish Taylor. The later this goes on the more the punishing power of Jofre will begin to take its toll on Taylor. Taylor does have an advantage in the amount of big names he fought showing an ability to step up under the bright lights whereas Jofre lost both of his biggest fights and his wins are nowhere near as impressive. Unfortunately for him the quality of Jofre begins to tell over fifteen and he does enough to take a close decision

Result: Eder Jofre defeats Bud Taylor by Unanimous Decision (144-143, 145-143, 145-142)


My comments, I agree with all results and think Galaxy is luck to get in the dance. The round of 8 will be posted later on this week.

 

Agreed, their only chance for advancement is if they face each other. Do you agree with the picks so far?

 

QUARTER FINALS

Panama Al Brown vs. Orlando Canizales Panama Al Brown was a huge bantamweight and would have a five-inch height advantage and a seven-inch reach advantage over Canizales. He would have a speed advantage and while Canizales would attempt to come forward and close down Panama. He was simply too quick and his footwork too good to move and pivot away from the oncoming Canizales. Panama would not have enough in his punches to stop Canizales but would take a wide decision.

Result: Panama Al Brown defeats Orlando Canizales by Unanimous Decision (149-136, 149-136, 147-138)


Carlos Zarate vs. Fighting Harada One of the highlights of the quarter finals would be seeing these two warriors come up against each other. Zarate was one of the fiercest punchers of all time while Harada fought with such an aggressive style. Harada would likely be the fighter who manages to get on the front foot and pursue Zarate. Zarate would originally start out trying to box Harada but he is too relentless for this to work. Zarate was a clever fighter, capable of adapting to a high degree. He would become more willing to trade big shots with Harada as the fight went on. Harada was not known for his chin, being wobbled on numerous occasions. Zarate would finally get through in the eighth round, knocking down Harada. Harada would show his warrior spirit by not just trying to survive but coming out fighting. He would walk himself right into a Zarate left uppercut to the body that left Harada doubled over in the corner and unable to get up.

Result: Carlos Zarate defeats Fighting Harada by 8th round knockout


Manuel Ortiz vs. Rubén Olivares Ortiz is the more well rounded of the pair. Olivares has more power and the styles make for a war. The Mexicans both liked to work on the inside and this is how the fight would likely be fought. Ortiz could probably win a fight from the outside. On the inside though, Olivares has enough to stay on top of Ortiz. He will be able to avoid Ortiz with his body and head movement and punish him. It is a great fight and one where a rematch and different tactics can see a different result.

Result: Rubén Olivares defeats Manuel Ortiz by Unanimous Decision


Kid Williams vs. Eder Jofre Kid would look to take the fight to Jofre with his aggressive style. Early on he would be effective as he could often overwhelm opponents. Once Jofre got a handle on his style and movement he could avoid Kid better. His speed would begin to really tell and he would use his lateral movement and punish Kid. Jofre was no soft puncher and as the fight wore on his shots would begin to really wear Kid down. This would only slow him down which helped Jofre dominate be last few rounds and take a big decision win.

Result: Eder Jofre defeats Kid Williams by Unanimous Decision (147-138, 147-138, 146-139)



My comments: Once again I agree with all four picks, however I think Harda makes it past the 8th round with Zarte.

While I agree that Olivares would beat Ortiz, I think a split decision is more likely. The Semi-finals will be next week, I think with the four aces going at it.