...how great are they? On paper they look absolutely singular. A fighter having such a comprehensive victory streak over the arguably nr. 2 guy of the division ever. But we all know that Moore bloomed late. Did the losses all occur before his prime?
Great wins, definitely. Moore was the number 2 man in the division at the time and arguably number 2 all-time as well. Whether he was at his peak or not is disputable but he was still very, very good and did not take Charles lightly. The fights were all fairly close but surprisingly it was Charles's punching, not Moore's, that made the big difference. Ezzard was able to hurt and drop Moore, and in their final bout finished him off after being in some trouble himself, although he was arguably playing possum. Moore's fight with Oakland Billy Smith in between the first and second Ezzard Charles fights: [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCCWofkTYD8[/ame] I'd compare the series to Moore's rivalry with Harold Johnson, except Moore was better. But Charles may have been enjoying a stylistical advantage over Moore. I've always been interested in how a heavyweight fight between Moore and Charles could have went in the 1950's. Perhaps Moore could have evened up the score a little?
