BRITISH FORUM ANALYSES: Bob Fitzsimmons vs Joe Calzaghe@168lbs

Right, no lazy analysis here; this is the first of a number of hypothetical match-ups I will try and go into with some detail. I will go through all the weight classes we currently have in Boxing, and every fight will feature at least one British fighter. Please try and hold back from 'rofl at Fitz my grandma would spark him because she's been born more recently' unless you really feel the need to:good

First: the rules.15 rounds, no excessive clinching, which would suit Fiz fine, he himself prided himself on being a clean fighter. To avoid too much guessing (as if there wasn't enough with these kind of threads) each fighter will wear their chosen equipment. I.e Fitz is trained as he used to and wears his gloves, which allow for less punches to be thrown but undoubtedly provide a different kind of hurt to the gloves we know today. Calzaghe trains as he did, he weighs in the day before (Fitz weighs in on the day) and we take into account any weight advantages Calzaghe may have on fight night, although, that's not too much of a problem here as Calzaghe wouldn't be much bigger than what Fitz was used to fighting/wrestling: he had been outweighed before, and in with some dangerous punchers (Jeffries was 220lbs and a past prime Fitz competed very well with him before being stopped late. Peter Maher was the concensous hardest hitter in boxing and 180lbs, Fitz smashed him in one and took the mythical title himself)

I was originally going to have Fitz vs Carl Froch, but I felt even 'haters' of old school fighters would have no trouble picking Fitz, Froch would be begging to be K.O'd early with his style.

So, why 168lbs? Most sources indicate Fitz was somewhere around this mark (and probably a shader under it) when he faced 'Gentleman' Jim Corbett for the World Heavyweight title on March 17th, 1987. As this is the only footage from where we can really discern Fitz's style.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVwNVzqQeeg[/ame]

A few things; Fitz held his hands low. The gloves that were worn in this era were not forgiving, and punches to the body were perceived as being more dangerous than those to the head. A low guard facilitated the parrying of shots, and Fitz was an expert and drawing opponents onto his powerful blows. The second part of the surviving footage shows why Jim Corbett would've done well to avoid such punches.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zU_sT_FvyWU&feature=related[/ame]

Adam Pollock of Cyber Boxing Zone writes 'gloves were only five ounces and the eight ounce glove was considered a big pillow only to be used in friendly exhibitions'. These men were tough, but relied on timing, accuracy and more thoughtful explosions, as hand damage (and the chance of being countered with a painful blow) was a big risk. Fitz knew he was in with someone who was perceived as a master of the sweet science for those times, a man who outweighed him by over a stone, and who was tricky and durable, having fought to a 60 round draw with Peter Jackson, who Fitz had studied Boxing under and whom Fitz considered 'the best scientist pound for pound in the World'. Fitz was less gung ho than he usually was, although do not be mistaken into thinking Fitz was sloppy. Reports from the time noted his shiftiness, his timing and his mastery of ring generalship (and of course, his massive power)

So, what I'm getting at is the above fight is perhaps not the greatest indication of Fitz's actual style. He was usualyl more aggressive, but here wanted to outlast Corbett, the bigger man who was coming off a lay off and had supposedly over-trained. Fitz wanted to wear him out as he knew he would be dangerous whilst still fresh, and clearly was, dropping Fitz with the Cornishman barely beating the count (in controversial circumstances, this was by all means the first famous 'long count') and stopping Corbett in the 14th round. Fitz said 'He gave me a hard fight and I got considerable punishment. I waited for the time and finally, as I could not get at his head, played for his body and finished him....same blow that I used on Sharkey-a left hand swing on the body, under the heart'


And so, Joe Calzaghe is the man in the opposite corner, a fighter who polarizes opinion amongst even British fans, yet is widely revered as possibly the greatest super middleweight from our shores. It's surreal to be pitting Calzaghe against the former Heavyweight champion of the World!

The question is, does Calzaghe have anything to stop Fitz from just walking him down? Can he make Fitz cautious as he was against Corbett, and try and outwork him over the 12?

I think he can, but one thing has to be taken into account. Against Mitchell, B-Hop and Jones Calzaghe was down early. I've included Mitchell to show it wasn't just something that happened on light heavy? Is there a chance that Fitz catches Calzaghe cold with something fierce in the first round? Or did Calzaghe prove his durability and chin in enough other fights that we can dismiss these as rarities? Can Calzaghe stand up to a whack from one of the hardest punchers P4P of all time? I doubt it.

Calzaghe has to use his awkwardness (and he'd even be awkward to a fighter from Fitz's era) and speed to get in-and-out and dislodge whatever was in Fitz's brain that allowed him to time his shots so well. He has to try and keep Fitz off balance. I would also suggest he should try and keep his hands up at all times against a dangerman of this calibre.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mo17mo4UB3o&feature=related[/ame]


Calzaghe is going to get hit in this fight, but the only way he can win is to stop it happening too often, and use his World class stamina and obvious toughness to grit his teeth through the rough moments.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pX0_b_M9ulk[/ame]


What I always here is 'these old timers are jokers. They have nowhere near the training methods we have now and would get smashed up in a round by any modern fighter'. So, how will Calzaghes more modern conditioning techniques help him? Enzo Calzaghe really didn't use a lot of 'modern' techniques, he preferred his lads to have a good grounding in general fitness, and Joe himself was good outlasting opponents down the stretch (in most cases anyway) and keeping up a high volume of punches (usually anyway) He isn't an ultra refined 'modern' athletic fighter is he? He has a natural athleticism coupled with a high work eithic and natural toughness. There's nothing to say that Fitz cannot compete with him by being prehistoric, he actually employed a lot of similar training techniques to Calzaghe and despite his skinny legs, was durable and fought bigger guys and was never outmuscled.

And so, onto the danger that Calzaghe can possess for Fitz; I honestly don't think a Prime Joe, who's hands were not completely eroded, can really trouble Fitz with his shots. It's become a cliche, but Joes 'slaps' are actually beneficial to him here, getting off fast flurries and getting back out again. Regardless of what your perception of old school technique was, Fitz had been clobbered by bigger men than Calzaghe that were known for their power; I think its safe to say homosapiens haven't come on that much in a hundred odd years that their bones and toughness completely outstrip that of men from those days that ate fairly well.

I think the fight will be a chess match. Both men were rhythm breakers, so I think it's safe to say each man will pick his spots carefully. Will Fitz taste some of Joes shots and think 'I'm having him' and open up? Or will Calzaghe always be a step ahead after the first few rounds, making a few key adjustments to swing the fight in his favour?

So, how does it go down chaps? I'm going to reserve judgement on this until others have had their say:good

 

It's all a bit of fun. If he doesn't impress you in the footage, that's fine. You can still judge how you think Calzaghe would fare against him :good

 

Looks like this thread will bomb and be the only one then

 

Very good post Greg, exactly what this thread needs.

Anyone else?

 

I assume that is a joke post.

What modern refinements did Calzaghe have exactly? How can Fitz take punches with smaller gloves from bigger men but nearly a hundred years later he finds himself unable to take shots against a guy about the same size as him not known for being a puncher?

How come 30 years later the greatest puncher of all time was around....and he hasn't been surpassed since? Why did The Walker Law suddenly make human beings tough?

 

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CeiBX4aU_I[/ame]

This is Fitz, in his LATE 40's, facing heavyweight contender Bill Lang (for the Australian heavyweight championship) admittedly the only surviving footage is of him being stopped, but take a few things into account; bigger man, 12th round, past prime, smaller gloves: how is Calzaghe gonna' stop prime Fitz within a round?

 

You cannot compare the evolution of boxing to football :rofl

A punch is a punch, regardless of time.

Also, which modern techniques did Calzaghe use? In training, coniditioning or punching?