Footage of Floyd Patterson versus Eddie Machen

Thank you very much McGrain. i enjoyed this. Patterson and Machen both interest me because of their their complexity. Excellent article and I'm about to watch the fight...I've wanted to for years.

 

Patterson looked excellent in this fight IMO. Wonderful upper body movement as he ducked and dodged Machens punches. I think Floyd would have similarly beaten the other guy he was accused of avoiding "whilst" champion, Zora Folley.

 

I wish that whoever has footage of Greb and Rosenbloom felt the same way.

 

I have more regard for machen than Folley, despite going 0-1 with Zora. I think he had a better chin and bigger balls..referring to his stand vs Liston in 1960. That was no mean feat. Not a failure of any kind on Machen's part, rather, with his limited size, he still laid the blueprint for Ali.

 

Thanks for posting M.:good

 

IMO, this fight was similar to the recent Berto-Guerrero fight - not a thrilling, fast-paced battle, but a hard, grueling (albeit somewhat sloppy) struggle. I felt Patterson controlled most of the highlighted action with his heavier punching. As usual, Machen's lack of world class power was a fatal shortcoming in his big fights.

 

Re: Patterson vs. Folley - I believe Folley had more power than Machen and would've posed a greater threat to Patterson.

 

After giving this fight another, more thorough look, I would also add that Machen shows a lot of heart here. He took a lot of big punches but never stopped coming forward and trying for the KO himself - and possibly came close to getting it toward the end.

Ironically, this fight may have been more exciting than a fight between them back in their primes would've been. Both of them basically forgo their boxing skills - Machen fights flatfooted almost the entire time, while Patterson just walks forward without barely crouching or weaving. Both of them seem set on getting the KO more than anything else, as if they both have something to prove.

 

:good