Firpo or Sanders: Who do you rank higher at heavy?

Dempsey was knocked out of the ring and in every account I have ever read by him was badly hurt. I would not use Sanders as any reference to dedicated training.

 

This is the point. At this time, neither was at the top of the world. People had thought Wlad was. And he did have a great win, in a decent (not top class) Chris Byrd and a couple of good ones. But, this was no fluke loss. Wlad's next loss going to be to Lamont Brewster. ON the night that Wlad lost to Sanders, Brewster had already fought his last fight before he would knock out Klitchsko. On this night, Brewster must be considered a better (or at a better stage of development, as Jeffries used to describe JOhnson) fighter than Klitchsko. Now looking at Brewsters record, that is interesting. Brewsters best win was probably Everett Martin. He had already failed twice trying to step up against Charles Shufford or Clifford ettiene, neither of who are world class. Why doesnt Brewster get the same credit for beating Wlad as Sanders does? Sure he ended up losing the second time, but it is doubtful Brewster was as good as the first time around and there is no doubt that Wlad was far better the second time around. I find it strange that some people get credit for one good win while others dont.

 

Good point about Sanders. Firpo didn't like to train, but Sanders wasn't exactly a spartan. Dempsey was hurt as a result of landing on typewriters and other hard surfaces. Notice that he was not reeling or staggering when he re-entered the ring. My late uncle, born in 1897, had been an avid fight fan. He always believed that Firpo pushed Dempsey out of the ring. Many śporting events become mythical as time goes by. It does make for a better legend to believe that a punch, not a push, sent Dempsey hurtling through the ropes.

 

It was definitely not a pure punch, more of a punch-then-push. It's clear as day on film. Firpo lands a series of punches, then the final punch then pushes and leans Dempsey out of the ropes. It's one of those things. Like Ketchel knocking down Johnson, the film shows that Johnson slipped or faked it, he was on his way down before anything even glanced him. Of course, it makes it even more dramatic for Dempsey and Johnson to be hit with pure power punches, blasted through the ropes or across the ring with clean blows, before rising and vanquishing the opponent.
Whatever way you look at it, Dempsey-Firpo was dramatic in the extreme.