George Foreman vs. Leon Spinks.

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by VG_Addict, Jan 14, 2018.



  1. JohnThomas1

    JohnThomas1 VIP Member Full Member

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  2. zadfrak

    zadfrak Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Any manager at that time wanted their guy in with Leon, once he got the title. But that Ali braintrust were hardly stupid & would have had the rematch all but signed for Spinks to even get the title shot. And Arum is going to put the fight together or DKP swoops in & he was certainly on the sidelines waiting. Arum also had Tate under contract and was starting to get involved with the like of Coetzee and Knoetze.

    But what are the Spinks chances against a prime Larry Holmes? The Norton fight had already been refused & anyone really think Leon outdoes that guy? Shavers might have got him out of there faster than Coetzee did.

    Maybe a Ledoux rematch? but not a whole lot of money in that. Try selling a Bobick fight? Weaver? Don King was certainly able to put together matches back then and I'm sure he made hard attempts at getting one of his guys a shot.


    That would make for an interesting book, come to think of it. The Leon Spinks braintrust and all the options they had, including the superdome fight. How much $$$ do you think was spread around? Promises made? Those weren't shark infested waters, but piranha infested for Leon Spinks to be forced into at that time.
     
  3. 70sFan

    70sFan Member Full Member

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    Spinks may still be in orbit after being hit by George.
     
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  4. FastHands(beeb)

    FastHands(beeb) Well-Known Member Full Member

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    I think Norton would have obliterated Spinks in '78, let alone Foreman.

    At a stretch you could try to construct a case where Leon somehow gets through the early rounds and Foreman's stamina becomes a factor and Leon outlasts him, but as we know Slim is out of town. There is virtually no way on Earth that Leon could avoid George's punishment enough early in the fight to enable stamina to become a factor in this fight.
     
  5. zadfrak

    zadfrak Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    George shoves his shoulders and Leon backs up, then re-sets himself, and then wades back in. Trying to press the action and actually trying to back Foreman up. And there's George waiting with devastating power with both uppercuts. How does the defense of Leon Spinks avoid walking into a left uppercut or a right uppercut?
     
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  6. InMemoryofJakeLamotta

    InMemoryofJakeLamotta I have defeated the great Seamus Full Member

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    Slim always seems to be out of town!! Is Slim ever in town?? Or is he like Santa where he only appears once a year???
     
  7. InMemoryofJakeLamotta

    InMemoryofJakeLamotta I have defeated the great Seamus Full Member

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    He doesn't. And there in lies his problem.
     
  8. Dubblechin

    Dubblechin Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    That's just it. They were stupid. Because there was no rematch clause.

    Before Ali and Spinks fought, they both agreed the winner would fight Norton.

    CBS wanted to air an Ali fight for "SWEEPS Week" ... which is when they aired a lot of specials to boost ratings before they came up with their advertising rates. Ali agreed but didn't want to fight anyone difficult. Norton was the mandatory contender, but they weren't going to air Ali-Norton IV on CBS. That was going to be a closed circuit fight.

    In Floyd Patterson's bio, it says Ali's team actually called Floyd and offered him a title shot on CBS. Floyd had been retired for more than five years. His last fight had been his loss to Ali in 1972. If he won, Floyd would've been the oldest man to win the title (which would've been how they sold it). But Floyd declined.

    Then they decided the winner of the Leon Spinks-Alfio Righetti fight would get a top 10 WBA or WBC rating (can't recall) and a shot at Ali.

    Righetti had once been considered way back when Alfredo Evangelista had gotten a shot. Spinks was well known from the 1976 Olympics. But he'd only been a pro for 10 MONTHS. Then Spinks won and got the shot.

    CBS tried to promote it as two former light heavyweight gold medalists fighting for the heavyweight title. But Ali was embarrassed fighting Spinks, because he'd just turned pro. Regardless, Leon's purse fit CBS's budget. Ali didn't trash talk Spinks or really hype the fight at all. He was just going to pick up a check from CBS like he'd done when he fought Jean Pierre Coopman.

    And then the fight turned into a war and the Fight of the Year for 1978 and one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.

    And when Leon won, there was no rematch clause, so Norton appeared to be in the best position. Spinks had agreed to fight him if he won.

    Then Foreman was quoted in several papers as saying he wanted to come back and fight Leon. Then Joe Frazier decided to make a comeback because Joe wanted to fight Leon. Joe even scheduled a fight in South Africa against Gerrie Coetzee, but Joe and Gerrie didn't get permission from the South Africa Sports Minister (who had to approve any fight between a black fighter and a white fighter) so it was called off. Then Frazier agreed to fight Kallie Knoetze in Las Vegas, because Knoetze had just beaten Duane Bobick (who Frazier promoted). Then Frazier came down with hepatitis and that was off.

    And Ali's team freaked out, because it looked like Norton, Foreman and Frazier were going to get Leon first. So Ali's team ended up offering Spinks the most money for a title fight. And the WBC stripped Leon for not fighting Norton.
     
    Last edited: Sep 19, 2018
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  9. InMemoryofJakeLamotta

    InMemoryofJakeLamotta I have defeated the great Seamus Full Member

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    I think Norton would have beaten L. Spinks like a drum and Foreman would have just outright destroyed him . Maybe it doesn't last long enough for Leon Spinks to be beaten like a drum.
     
  10. Dubblechin

    Dubblechin Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    I go back and forth.

    Seems obvious Norton and Foreman "should" win (knowing what we know now about George's later comeback). But it seemed like Ali "should" win, too. And he didn't.

    In 1978, Foreman hadn't fought since his loss to Jimmy Young. He'd totally quit boxing. Hadn't even gotten in the ring to train. Who knows where his head would've been at. He was preaching hard at the time. This is what George looked like about a month after Spinks won the title (April 1978). He still hadn't ballooned in weight like he would later.

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    And Ken Norton didn't really fight guys who attacked him. In a way, Norton's team really matched him carefully in terms of styles that he fought. Sometimes he HAD to fight a guy like Foreman (because he had the title) or Shavers (because it was an eliminator), but he tended to stay away from fighters like that. Norton preferred to fight boxers. He could jab with them. Set up shots. And he could tee off on guys like Bobick, who laid back.

    If a fit Leon had attacked Ken Norton round after round, who knows how it would've ended.

    I don't know.

    I'd have been interested in seeing Frazier get a shot. After Ali lost to Leon, Ali went to England and did a bunch of tours and TV shows. Frazier showed up at one, and Joe was in really good shape (because Joe thought he was going to be fighting Coetzee).

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    Joe Frazier vs. Leon Spinks in 1978 would've been a fireworks display.

    Joe was pushing hard to come back. That was the year his Lite Beer commercial came out, too. I still know all the words to that song they played it so many times.

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    Would've been great to see Leon fight more of them. Leon probably would've been the underdog against all of them. Then again, maybe he'd have beaten a couple of them, too.

    I'll always have a soft spot for Leon.

    I was watching the night he beat Ali. That was incredible. Just a great fight, too. One of the best 15th rounds ever.
     
    Last edited: Sep 19, 2018
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  11. cross_trainer

    cross_trainer Liston was good, but no "Tire Iron" Jones Full Member

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    It would be a weird but funny twist if Leon managed to get (shot) Frazier, (retired) Foreman, and (equally shot) Ali as wins in his record. Talk about coming along at the right time...
     
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  12. Dubblechin

    Dubblechin Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    Larry Holmes tried it. (LOL)
     
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  13. redrooster

    redrooster Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    Little Leon Spinks, the cruiserweight? He's better off fighting Larry Holmes.

    speaking of Larry Holmes, I remember when that match was made and the editors of KO, World Boxing, were taking Leon to win back the crown?

    the reason? Supposedly there was improvement they saw that the rest of us didnt
     
  14. Glass City Cobra

    Glass City Cobra H2H Burger King Full Member

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    That would have been freaking hilarious if he got those guys at just the right time and then rode off into the sunset a millionaire and undefeated. Hed be in a similar position to guys like Joe Calzaghe where his best wins are against way past their prime ex champs but hes undefeated so no one really knows how to rate him.

    Im sure the forums would tear him apart any chance they got in this bizzare alternate universe youve imagined. But the image of a grinning, front teeth missing Leon Spinx entering the hall of fame and having streets named after him having beaten the 3 biggest names of the 70's at the worst moments of their careers cracks me up--and it almost happened!
     
  15. cross_trainer

    cross_trainer Liston was good, but no "Tire Iron" Jones Full Member

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    In every thread where Spinks or the Big 3 came up against modern fighters, some freaking casual would pipe up that Spinks beat Ali, Foreman, and Frazier, so how good could they have been?
     
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