Contemporary Evaluations of Marciano

After Rocky's fight with Archie Moore in September 1955.....
Red Smith said it was Marciano:"finest fight!. He pounded Moore with a relentless attack unparalleled in heavyweight annals!"
Hugh Brown:"This was the most impressive performance of Marciano's spectacular career!!!"
Arthur Daley:"The supreme performance !"
Joe Nichols of the New York Times on the 6th round:"It will be referred to by this generation as comparable to any single round in heavyweight history!!!"
Budd Schulberg:"The "experts still fault him for his lack of finesse....we have another immortal slugger in our midst. Are we too close to his shortcomings to recognize his incomparable virtues?" The name of the article?:"A Champion Proves His Greatness!"
Marciano vs Ezzard Charles I-1954
Bud Schulberg:"It was a beautiful spectacle of pain & skill & endurance!"
Hugh Brown:"Marciano is probably the finest conditioned athlete in the world!"
Matt Ring:"Marciano has almost superhuman strength!"
Arthur Daley:"Rocky Marciano is a great champion,folks! It's about time he began to receive the recognition he so richly deserves!!!"

 

I think Rocky Marciano would KO Joshua, Fury and Wilder, all in the same night, at the same time, in the same round, with the same punch.

 

I give him a shot against wilder idk about the rest

 

I think Tyson has a pretty good case as one of the best technicians in the HW division. Chuvalo named Frazier as the one with the best defence among his opponents and that makes sense to me.

I agree that Rocky isn't as crude as sometimes claimed and that there definitely was a method to what he was doing, but that's a different thing than him being a great technician. I don't think he was.

 

Rocky had a rare skillset:

An Indomitable Will
Rare 15 round stamina that required no breaks during the action.
A high pain threshold

Finding a fighters who could match the above would be rare in any weight class. IMO, these three skills in his game, complemented his style, hitting power, and ability to take it. The price for victory for Marciano was often high, but he was willing to pay for it.

As they say, a man who never gives up is tough to beat.

 

Fight Advantages
Hand Speed-Holyfield, KO Power-Marciano, Chin-Holyfield, Size-Holyfield, Defense-No Advantage, Endurance-No Advantage, Adaptability-Holyfield, Foot speed-Holyfield, Strength-Marciano, Jab-Holyfield, Cuts-Holyfield, Reach-Holyfield, Body Attack-Marciano:
Total: Holyfield 8-3-2

Paul Gallender, Writer and Boxing Historian:
Holyfield has every possible advantage in this bout. He's a much better boxer than Marciano, he's 30 pounds heavier, he hits harder, and he's fought much better competition. Matches like this simply shouldn't ever be made because the smaller man would find himself in a hopeless situation. Natural light heavyweights, as Rocky was, might have a chance against a solid heavyweight but only if they were excellent boxers, which Marciano wasn't. He could only fight one way, and that is by boring in to his opponent. He would take a lot of punishment and his punches would not have the same effect against a big man like Evander as they would against a light heavyweight. Rocky was a brave man but I'm afraid he would either be knocked out no later than the fifth round or the fight would be stopped by the referee because of all the punishment he would have taken.

Moontan, Heavyweight Action Boxing Expert:
Two of the greatest fighters ever to enter the ring if you measured hearts. Both became boxing legends because they were never out of any fight and both fought with tremendous confidence. Holyfield would have about a 25 pound weight advantage and usually fought against much larger heavyweights than himself. Marciano would be at a great disadvantage in every aspect of the fight. Holyfield was a perfect fighting machine and would just be too much with superior hand speed and size and reach. Marciano would prove to be a very difficult target to hit but within 10 rounds I see the fight being stopped on cuts. Marciano had major problems with cuts and would not be able to endure the punishment deliver by Holyfield.
Predicted expert opinions.
Moontan Holyfield 10 -T KO


Paul Galender Holyfield 5- KO

Objective views on how Marciano would fair with a more modern opponent. The underlined in particular should be read by those, who believe to this day Marciano would "find a way" even when hopelessly outmatched against the more modern heavys with whom The Rock (great as he in his time) simply has little chance of even being competitive with.