graziano vs duran...

Duran@ 147 154 and 160.

 

Duran, for all his greatness, would get battered badly. Once again, it's a case of a small man going up in weight and tangling with a bigger, stronger man. Duran will undoubtedly show spirit and get in some good shots, but Graziano's power and attack will be too much for him.

 

graziano wasn't that big, only a light middle.i'd give duran a shout

 

From mid 42 until late-ish 43 he was more of a WW weighing in under 150.
I know that very early in his career but he still had about 10-12 fights in the timespan.

 

The Duran of the Moore and Hagler fights would chop Rocky up and stop him late ...

 

The well trained Duran of 1983 who was in there with "Cuevas, Moore & Hagler" would be too skilled for the 155 pound Graziano and prolly decision him widely or stop him very late in a 15 rounder....

DURAN!

MR.BILL:hat

 

Graziano would need all his youth and fury from his younger days to compete here because he could never out-think Duran. He would only pose a physical threat to Duran and Duran handled bigger opponents fine. It would still be tough for him, but I'd pick Duran to teach Graziano a lesson.

 

I love the Paul Newman film of '56 based on Rocky Barbella / Graziano, but by no means was Rocky a truly great fighter... Based on the film that supposedly was blessed by Rocky himself, he never really trained as hard or really understood the ins and outs of the game as well as he should have learned... Its my belief he only boxed cuz it was a way to earn money so he could climb out from the slums of New York... Therefore his heart and soul was never truly in boxing, and a man like that will eventually get exposed and wash out, as he did by his early 30s... Yes, Rocky was lucky enough to win the title at 160, but he only held the belt briefly... Was Rocky Graziano a great fighter and champion? No... But he was a great personality....

On the other hand, Roberto Duran was a savage beast between 135 to 147 pounds, and still very capable between 154 to 160 prior to age 38... Duran is truly a ring great and legend... 'Nuff said....


MR.BILLhat

 

Graziano loses. He doesn't have anything Duran hasn't seen or dealt with before.

And Graziano wasn't a big middle- 155 or so like another couple posters pointed out.

 

Burt,,,what do you say on this one??

 

I think Duran would be hurt during this one, but would be too clever and resourceful for Rocky and would capture a decision.

 

too slick for Graziano.

Any power that Graziano possesses will not be enough to stop Duran

 

Durability is a key factor here, and El Cholo holds the clear advantage. Also, the aging Zale's body punching took a toll on Rocky. Duran may have been an even superior downstairs attacker. Graziano needed a final round knockout to beat lightish WW Freddie Cochran the first time, and later had to do likewise with WW Fusari, before WW southpaw Davey retired him. WW Harold Green beat him back to back in 1944. Good welterweights could outbox and beat Rocky, and Montreal alone stamped Duran as a great one. As a middleweight, he wasn't too shabby against Hagler and Barkley either. Graziano's not pulling this one out with a final round stoppage, assuming he himself lasts that long. (With Duran, he should get to the final bell, but I wouldn't put money on that, although some would.)

 

As I see it it is a very bad matchup for Graziano. He was way to easy to hit, and the much faster Duran would punish him very badly. Duran by stoppage.

Woller