Harold Johnson vs Bob Foster. Primes.

Hell of a matchup. I'd personally favor Foster's power and accuracy. He was a very crafty puncher as well as being a very powerful one, and I feel he'd slip in a big bomb against the much shorter Johnson at some point during the matchup. As good as Johnson was as a technician, I think he could be caught and/or hurt by the right kind of puncher, as proven against another crafty power puncher in Archie Moore, and I personally feel Foster was every bit as dangerous as Moore at LHW, especially given the height and reach advantages he'd hold on Johnson. I just have a hard time seeing the smaller Johnson consistently outboxing Foster over 15 without being tagged with something big. Stylistically this would probably be one of the worst matchups for Johnson.

 

harold shutout 6'3 excellent jabber nino valdez 10 rounds to Zero sweet pea. i dont think the height difference is that big of a deal.

 

I think the power difference would be though. I actually think Foster was more of a calculated puncher than anything who used his jab to set his game up rather than to simply outbox opponents. He was a very crafty puncher and hugely skilled at landing the big bombs, and I think he would in this case at some point, whether it be a glancing blow, a body shot, whatever. I think it would set up the finish for Foster down the road.

 

Bob was not one of those punchers who if they didnt get you quick would fade and probably not get you at all, Bob could set his phasers to "Slow Poison" and Sicken you over a number of Rounds, Harold is hardly likely to threaten Bob with his Power, So Bob may not feel too concerned in adopting a purposeful stalking campaign, Harold was immensly Skillful, andit has to be said, if Ray Anderson could Wing it to the 15 round distence, Chris Finnegan Fight and Box to the 14th before getting stopped, as much from fatigue then the Power, and Mark Tessman get to the 10th, its not beyound the bounds of possibility that Harold can reach the final ferlong, ( i discount the Fourie fights, they can after Ali had left his mark on Bob)

But i feel for Harold a real craftsman, Bob would be very much up for this match, the Slow poison would be administered over the first 10 rounds, dont know why but i feel Bob drps a tired discouraged, banged up (by that Snakelike Jab) Harold a couple of Times to force the Surrender by the Ref ans a White Towel from Harols Corner - 12 Round sounds good to me, Bob tjhe Patient Stalker Happy to take his Time.

 

Johnson is probably THE most underrated fighter ever IMO. Great technician, one of the most complete fighters ever.

Having said that, I think Foster's range and power would catch up to him at some point, but it's hard to count out Johnson. He was that good.

 

Johnson was stopped 4 times ,once on a cut, once on a back injury ,he had a good chin.Archie Moore
stopped him once in 5 fights ,though he had him down a number of times. I see Harold going the route ,but perhaps not doing enough to get the dec.Johnson wasn't a guy who peppered you with jabs then moved away, he liked to counter.Fosters considerable advantage in reach would mean that he would have to initiate more exchanges,than he customarily did.Foster was a patient stalker,I think he would take two out of a three bout series .

 

Foster for me, i will just utimately pick him if im only given one chance to make a pick, thats how i see it. Johnson arguably one of the best technicians this division ever saw, but Foster could box aswell, offensively really, but that means he was working his power shots in, not wading them in. He would be able to have some rounds where he could wreak havoc here imo, and they may just take their toll for a DECISION, a stoppage is on the cards, but i'll go with some of the clever ferocious stuff to seal a hard-fought decision for Bob in a fight where he gets tagged with good jabs himself, and pays for defence being open at times, which ultimately helps his own plan 'keeping sharp'.

 

So well said it's scary.

Foster fought extremely relaxed at a pace perfect for himself. He could KO you in the first or the 15th.

Not a lot of fighter in history with late clutch power like Foster.

 

Foster would probably catch Johnson late, like the 13th round, after coming back from an early round lead.

 

Foster gets dominated, beat down and eventually knocked out

 

i think the sturdiness of johnson, who could fight and dominate top quality heavyweights, is a serious factor here

 

Particularly as Foster did not fight tall, like Terrell he leaned forward to punch. Johnson did a lot better against class heavies than Foster did, interesting match up.
l'll wait and read all the posts.

 

Foster was a brutal puncher at lightheavyweight but did not hold up as well against the heavyweights as Harold Johnson did. Archie Moore was as big a knockout artist as Foster and Johnson made it through five fights with him doing quite well. Moore did KO him late in the championship fight in which Johnson was winning up until the 14th round stoppage. I recall also Johnson dominating the dangerous Doug Jones over the 15 round limit. Foster wasn't as fortunate with Jones. In a fantasy matchup I would pick Harold Johnson to beat Foster.