Ever wondered where Earnie Shavers power came from?

Shavers was a favorite of mine as a kid. While every talks about Shavers head shots, he had thudding body shots too. Great video.

 

What good was Norton's impressive physique if it couldn't help him resist the right hand to the body that Earnie initially sent him toppling to the deck with?

Tiger Williams must have been pissing blood for a year after absorbing all those massive rights to the body for ten full rounds.

 

Shavers had a brutal looping right to the body.

Here's a classic brawl between two punchers, an older Earnie Shavers and a young Jeff Sims:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPnj0Qe9uBo[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFFT0w_N-LA[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvLrgKjgryg[/ame]


The unbelievable finish to Shavers vs Roy "Tiger" Williams:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WOHXHyEH5vw[/ame]


Shavers and Lyle go to war for 6 rounds:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LyKEX21Qxg8[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fOg-s8whtI[/ame]

 

HOW THE **** DID HOLMES GET UP??????

I've never ever quite come to grips with how he got up from that bomb he took square on the jaw. How did he do it? That punch would put the average man in hospital for weeks but Holmes got up and won the fight?

In my opinion, no one can ever accuse Holmes of lacking heart - just from watching that knockdown.

 

I've always felt that punchers are born punchers, and I feel it is the same with Earnie Shavers. Obviously as he progressed he hit harder, but much of it was just natural power. Having strong leg, shoulder, and back muscles also play a part in how hard Earnie hit aswell.

 

Just a follow-up on my previous post...

I am convinced that genetics and upbringing are just as important as technique when it comes to developing power of any kind. I'd be willing to bet that, if a survey was done, we would find out that almost every devastating puncher/striker (in history) was not only genetically blessed, but also worked very hard as children.
Translation? Yes, technique matters but people with the right combination of nature and nurture will automatically be able to do more with their training than another random person with inferior genes who also spent his childhood playing video games or lounging about.

 

korekted

 

Very complicated, Seamus. It's a combination of things as you say. Some great physical specimens like Weaver could bang, but healso had great snap to his punches. Others, like Bruce Seldon had the physique without the power.
I think it's leverage and timing that gives a punch it's power, more than muscle.

 

What's interesting is from 1968 to 1970, in the U.S., the National AAU Heavyweight Boxing Champions were, in order: George Foreman ('68), Earnie Shavers ('69) and Ron Lyle ('70).

None of those guys stuck around amateur boxing long enough to fight each other in the unpaid ranks. But that's a helluva run of power punchers.

Can you imagine of Foreman, Shavers and Lyle all remained amateurs until the 1972 Olympic Trials?

 

FAST TWITCH MUSCLE FIBERS.Check his sprint performance out in THE SUPERSTARS
contest! It was impressive for a boxing fighter.I think Weaver can/could run well also.

 

Lots of great points made... I always liked how he really turned his right hand over... Pushed hard of that right foot, wide shoulders and came almost all the way across his body with his shot. You could even make the point that while Foreman kind of pushed his power shots. Shavers turned into his shots and with speed and snap... If he only had a chin and stamina !

 

Great post as always PP

 

My theory was the Larry Holmes Died upon Impace with that iconic power shot.

But the overhand right carried so much force that, like a scale coming around to 0 again when you weigh something over 300 lbs., hitting the canvas somehow jarred him back to life because that overhand right also acted like the electric paddles of life, such was the blow.

Larry Holmes #2 had an excellent career!

 

Another thing with Shavers was that he over-committed on most of his punches. If he landed, lights out. When he didn't, he was wide open or soon exhausted and out of the contest. His was not a winning way at the elite level. There were few aspects that could be added to his game without subtracting the one upon which he gamble so much.

 

True.

He also telegraphed. Big time. And those telegraphers just don't get the big wins at the top very often, do they?

Earnie dipped to throw. Almost everyone else rises up to throw their big shot and get their leverage. Just being different like that is going to be effective because opponents aren't quite prepared for it & who is a guy getting for sparring to prepare for that kind of thing going into a fight.

But you are correct--he fell in after throwing and was pretty much a John Mugabi power hitter from the outside--it wasn't like he had the balance to throw an immediate left hook follow up. Imagine if Earnie had that kind of balance?