Do these Sparring stories hold any weight on how a fight would go ?

Wasn’t it Lloyd Marshall that got the better of Sugar Ray Robinson in sparring ?

 

Yep. Like the famous Spadafora-Mayweather encounter that people get so worked up over.

 

Just remembered the George Benton - Liston sparring session:
https://www.boxingforum24.com/threads/sonny-liston-vs-george-benton-sparring.603115/page-2

 

Valero battering a weight-drained de la Hoya in sparring sessions leading up to the Pac fight turned out to be revealing though.

 

Saw Bramble beat up a lightheavy in sparring.
The lightheavy wasn't world class but still impressive because Bramble was sooo strong on the inside with someone much bigger.

 

He was like a freaking tank. An immovable object.

 

Like most, I find them interesting to read, but take the vast majority with a grain of salt.

 

Lets call a spade a spade - half of them are absolute bull****. There are so many sparring sessions that have completely contrasting stories depending on who one listens too. Camacho - Whitaker would be one of dozens. I think? someone went a long way to proving Cuevas and Ayala weren't even in the same area when their supposed spar occurred. At least we can see Greg Page sit Tyson down but that's the outlier unfortunately.

 

Makes sense.

 

Howard Eastman sparked out Steve Collins in sparing apparently . Leading to Collins retiring .

 

No, getting the better of him sparring isn't fighting and Page had soooo many problems he'd never hold up over distance.

 

Walcott was said to hell for Louis in sparring, being kicked out of camp because of it, and we do know that he was a difficult opponent when they met.

Usyk is said to have made Wlad look bad in sparring and Spence the same to Floyd. But we will never know how they'd match up for real.

A Whitaker hardly out of the amateurs is said to have infuriated Camacho in sparring by owning him and I think he would beat him in the pros as well.

On the other hand a very old Ellis knocked Ali out in sparring in '77 but was easy work for him in '71. Things happen.

Aren't there stories about Dempsey and Greb? There was another LHW around that time that spoke about embarassing Dempsey in sparring. Only his version, though.

 

Don’t look to much into sparring stories. Guys can have good days and bad in there against the same people. Sparring could deeply involve someone trying something new so maybe they’re not at their best. Or working on a strategy.