Harry Wills v Peter Jackson. And I demand that Mendoza & Senya make picks!

I'd like to read detailed local reports of these. I have a feeling the wire reports don't tell all the story. For example, the wire says McVea clearly outfought and outgeneralled Wills throughout the fight. Revealing no details whatsoever. Then I'm looking at non-local Boston Journal report, which is different from wire version, and the fight was much closer than the wire's author wanted us to think. True, even local reports not always tell all the story (as I pointed out in another thread on the example of Dobbs-Gans fight ib Brooklyn), but I'd rather see a report that describes the fight in less general terms than "clearly outfought and outgeneralled throughout the fight", especially when I know that McVea wasn't very clever or skillful boxer, and hardly could outgeneral a great boxer like Wills, most probably he won on aggression instead.


Sam McVea Wins From Wills in Twenty Rounds
New Orleans, La., Dec. 20.--Sam McVea, the Parisian negro, won from Harry Wills, local negro heavyweight, at the end of twenty rounds before 3000 sports at the New West Side Athletic Club today. The decision of Referee Dick Burke met with the crowd's approval.
McVea's slashing offensive throughout the bout gave him the verdict. The French negro won nine of the rounds, six were for Wills, while the other five were even. Both men tried desperately for knockouts, but neither could score.
In the fifteenth round McVea came closer to a knockout than at any other time in the bout. After Wills had hooked with his right, McVea sent him reeling in the ropes with a terrific left hook to the jaw, and the crowd rose from its seats. Wills fell into a clinch, however, and saved himself.

 

Talking of Marciano, you've actually influenced my judgment of him lately by pointing out certain aspects of his career and opposition that I was trying hard to conveniently ignore. Perhaps most importantly, he didn't face any very good big men. Walcott wasn't really much bigger than him. Louis was washed-up. Combined with his average footspeed, and lack of accuracy, this fact is important because it casts doubt on his ultimate effectiveness. This wasn't something I had overlooked, it was something I had dismissed. But deep down I cant help thinking he might suffer against taller, heavier GOOD powerful opposition. On the other hand, he was a pure swarmer/pressure fighter, so closing gaps was his thing, he might have been capable of wrecking some VERY GOOD big men.

I've always forgiven Marciano his athletic flaws, while always instinctually prefering the quick athleticism of an Ali, Dempsey, Holyfield, even peak Frazier.
Marciano's sheer hell-bent deternination and lust for violence makes up a lot for his lack of footspeed, accuracy and fluidity. But I'm re-considering how MUCH I what to credit him for it.

 

Maybe I'm wrong to object so stiffly - if that's how it comes across.
Maybe I'm pre-empting the potential "Peter Jackson versus Riddick Bowe" thread that I dont want to see coming.
"Tom Molineaux would murder Floyd Patterson" and all that stuff.
That's where the "knowledge" gets really mis-used, and I think "bull****" is the best way to categorize the whole phenomenon.

 

To get back on track a little, Jackson was afighter who was really seen to have everything by contemporary writers and became a legend in his own career. Wills for contrast had an ugly style that nobody liked but kept winning ugly.

While this is not to imply that Jackson was greater than Wills or that he would beat him they were poles apart in terms of how they were perceived. Jackson was sort of the pre title Joe Louis of his era who inspired an aura of invincibility even without a title while Wills was the Larry Holmes of his era only being fully recognised retrospectivley.

 

:good