Hearns vs Ray Robinson @ welterweight: Is there any hope for the Hitman

Ray is THE best! Let a late 40's Hitman fight a late 40's Ray. Let an 80's Ray fight an 80's Hitman?

 

RRobinson would take charge late for an 13th round stoppage.

 

Was Hearns better than 5' 7" Tommy Bell?
(Bell floored Robinson in the second round, and Robinson dropped Bell in the eleventh.)


1946-12-20 : Sugar Ray Robinson 146½ lbs beat Tommy Bell 146 lbs by UD in round 15 of 15

• Location: Madison Square Garden, New York, New York, USA
• Referee: Eddie Joseph 10-5
• Judge: Arthur Schwartz 10-5
• Judge: Jack O'Sullivan 8-6

• Unofficial United Press scorecard: 10-4-1
• Unofficial Associated Press scorecard: 8-5-2
• World Welterweight Championship (Vacant)

"Sugar Ray Robinson last night reached the pot of gold he has been hunting for five years by coming on in the middle rounds to outpoint Tommy Bell and win the world welterweight championship in Madison Square Garden. Robinson weighed 146½; Bell 146. The Harlem stringbean, known for five years as the uncrowned champion, finally got his shot at the crown this time and hit the jackpot, but only after the roughest, toughest going he has ever gone through in his career, as the rugged Youngstown, O., Negro walked in and belted away from start to finish of the 15-round slugfest. Loser of only one fight in his career of 75 trips to the post—and that one to a middleweight—the uptown thumper had to come off the floor from a second round knockdown to finish in front." - Associated Press

Notes

• Robinson had been scheduled to fight World Welterweight Champion Marty Servo at Yankee Stadium on September 6, 1946, but Servo pulled out of the fight due to a nose injury and announced his retirement on September 25.
• Former lightweight champion Beau Jack and former junior welterweight champion Tippy Larkin were each offered the opportunity to face Robinson for the vacate title, but they both declined.
• Robinson had been called the "uncrowned world welterweight champion" for five years.
• The fight was promoted by Mike Jacobs.
• Robinson was a 5-1 favorite.
• Bell floored Robinson in the second round, and Robinson dropped Bell in the eleventh.
• A crowd of 15,670 produced a gross gate of $82,948.

Sources

• The Windsor Daily Star - September 25, 1946
• St. Petersburg Times - October 6, 1946
• St. Petersburg Times - December 21, 1946
• Reading Eagle - December 21, 1946

 

Hearns would have a chance, of course. He was too good a welterweight not to be highly competitive with even Sugar Ray. And if Hearns could catch SRR like he caught Pipino Cuevas or Duran, who knows?

But he couldn't catch Ray Leonard like that and I suspect it would be the same story with the original Sugar Ray. Plus Hearns' major weakness was his chin so sooner or later Robinson would land and hurt Hearns. And Robinson didn't let 'em off the hook easily.

Robinson is the greatest welterweight of all time, based on his talent, his achievement and any hypothetical h2h. I'd pick Hearns in most h2hs at WW. But just not this one.

It'd be great while it lasted though!

 

Agree with most here, Hearns could hang with anyone from welter to light middle. Let's not forget he was well on his way to beating the second best welter in history until the effects of an early bodyshot caught up with him. Still, it's hard to pick against SRR especially at welter so I see a similar fight to Leonard 1 with SRR coming from behind late on.