Hookie, this thread seems to be overlooked for some reason..I'll contribute to it by saying that I think Griffith would have won this fight over the 15 round route by establishing himself as always as the master mechanic that he was, and figuring out Johnson after about 9 rounds. Johnson would have troubled Griffith at first with his southpaw jab and quickness, but Griff would have made the necessary adjustments to this dilemna by rounds 9 and 10 by countering the jab with his own highly effective straight right hand counter and by attacking the body in close. Emile's edge in strength would have surfaced here as well in a relatively dull fight, as were most of Griffith's fights tended to be. He would have hurt Johnson in the 13th and 14th, but as usual, would have made no real effort to go for a ko. It would have been effective strategic brawn winning out over the southpaw awkwardness of Johnson. There was nothing in Johnson's repetoire that he woould have presented that Griffith hadn't already seen before and dealt with..as in Gypsy Joe Harris' unorthodox trickery, Joey Archer's jab and move boxing mastery or Dave Charnley's own southpaw style (though different in all other aspects from Reggie Johnson)..point being that Griffith only lost to the best, and that as the master mechanic that he was, he would have, in his own post-Paret rather detached and passionless style, would have adapted himself effectively to doping out Reggie Johnson and over his familar terrain of the old 15 round limit, would have posted a less than memorable but workmanlike close, but not too close 15 round decision.
Good post, thanks for replying! I also think Griffith wins by decision. I really liked Johnson but he comes up a little short in this one, as he did a few times in his career.
Yeah, it's not a gimme for Griffith, but I think the fact that Johnson tended to be a bit economical with his punches from time to time (that hurt him against Toney) would cost him here. Griffith UD
Griffith was the smarter, cagier fighter, plus being stronger and more versatile..he's an underrated guy as far as I'm concerned because he tended to be boring, but he was again, the consumate "mechanic", or technician if you prefer..he had so much success against so many fighters, great and near great, and never disgraced himself in defeat. If rematched against Rubin Carter a few years later, at middleweight, I believe he would have decisioned the Hurricane. The same shots that Carter used to ko him before would have been of little consequence, because either Griffith would have avoided them or he would have gotten up if decked and shrugged it off and gone on to a points win.