Eddie Futch's favorites.

He is a big reason Pep could be ahead if SRR lb for lb.

Rocky Graziano is rarely discussed anymore so that part may be true.

 

I think Graziano was popular because he was a fun fighter, rough-and-tumble and could bang, but I don’t know of any point where he was rated highly by boxing people — so I don’t get ‘overrated’ with him.

I don’t think Ward and Gatti were great but their fights sure were entertaining, that sort of admiration.

As for Pep, Sandy Saddler beat the man up so bad he made him a quitter. Maybe that’s what Eddie meant: he was smart enough to quit rather than take more of an absolute thrashing than he did.

 

Pep came back and beat him, and he was well past his prime. His comeback performance is one of the greatest things he every accomplished. They were rough , fun, foul filled fights. But , Pep took his title back rom Saddler.

He fought Saddler again, but separated his shoulder during the fight and had to retire , so Saddler won even though Pep was ahead on the cards.

Pep was coming back from a horrific injuries in a plane crash as well. Saddler was a great fighter, but Pep was even better.

 

Pep was not well past his prime. He had won a bunch of fights in a row since the plane crash and was a world champion and a 3-1 favorite and as soon as he got beaten up there became this narrative that he was already a broken-down fighter.

Just not the case. Look at the results. Or better yet go find me one account before Sandy knocked him out saying how badly he had slipped.

In a span of 59 fights after the crash, Sandy Saddler was the only man to beat Pep. If he was a cripple how did he win all those other fights, including title fights?

In the fight where Pep retired with a shoulder injury he had already been knocked down for a 9-count. Sandy was gonna knock him out again so he quit.

Just like he did in their fourth fight.

Saddler knocked him out clean, lost a decision because he made the mistake of trying to box one of the best pure boxers (maybe the best) in the sport’s history, adjusted in the next two fights and destroyed Pep again.

Go find me all the other results around this time by lesser men than Saddler beating Pep up, knocking him out, making him quit and show me how much he’d slipped.

Yes there was a plane crash but it did not sever his spine. He recovered and kept boxing at a high, successful level. If Sandy Saddler had never been born we wouldn’t have ever heard how the plane crash had supposedly ruined him.

Saddler wrecked him.

 

Nice to see him mention KO Morgan.

 

Arguello most ability and Frazier bravest. I love reading those 2 compliments coming from Eddie Futch

 

No mention of Toney?

 

Stating AA with the most ability surprises me .

 

Honestly, I can see him thinking that. AA was as natural of a fighter as I have seen. The guy was so smooth and clinical. A complete fighter if there has ever been one.

 

Yes----absolutely clinical but natural? . Could not fight backing up. Kinda stiff--upper body. Defense solid but not spectacular..... But jesus could he fight . His straight right hand----a thing of beauty. One of my all time favorite boxers .

 

The right hand he hit Rooney with was as a good as it gets. Perfectly set up.

 

I liked the one against Pryor in the 13th or 14th. I thought Pryor's head would end up in the front row....That cocaine certainly helped his recovery.

 

Right! especially with guys like Willie Pep and Ray Robinson mentioned