How could 150 pound middleweight KO heavies in the 1940s but they can't in the 2020s?

Any know about the quality or even style of Turner ? From Boxrec the only source I looked for this response , his record seemed very much like that of a journeyman ...

 

So it's Burly Charley???

 

Yes, I meant the actual fight.

Ali got KO'd by Ellis in sparring before going on to take Shavers's best. Sparring isn't fighting.

 

I meant today's HWs over 40's HWs.

 

If there's a big mismatch in skill and the middleweight is durable and can crack, it could probably still happen with more modern fighters. Throw Julian Jackson at his best in against some club-level HW's and he probably gets the job done.

 

Because sparring is not an actual fight.

 

Then there is the definition of the word "knockout" as it applies to sparring.

 

"Ali, the world heavyweight champion who will defend his title Sept. 29 at Madison Square Garden against Earnie Shavers, first went down from a left uppercut then from a right cross before quitting for the day, the spokesman said.

The spokesman said Ali claimed he was knocked down and didn't remember anything afterward after the first knockdown.

All was quoted as having said: 'I was pressing too hard. I worked out too much on the floor before going into the ring.' Ali also said he had a sore neck from the knockdowns."

Source: New York Times 09/22/1977.

In this case it seems that "quitting for the day" equals the "knockout."

 

If fights with this kind of weight disparity were allowed today, which they arent, I see no reason why a top JMW or MW couldnt stop a cruiserweight on his stool who was severly mismatched and lost most of his fights, which is what happened when Burley beat Jay D. Turner.

 

It's like Magoo said in one of the first posts in this thread, concentration and attitude etc might be vastly different in a sparring session compared to a fight. That was also the case when Ellis put Ali down. See Shay Sonya's quotes from the article above.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/1977/09/22/archives/ellis-floors-ali-twice.html

 

Yes. So when it comes to the story of Burley KO'ing Ray in sparring the first question is if this is verified anywhere or just a myth?

Secondly, if it did indeed happen, sparring is still different from a fight. With that said, I'd be very surprised if a 150 lbs fighter today (which probably would be a LW on fight night) knocked out a ranked HW even in sparring. Of course, someone Ray's size likely wouldn't be a HW today.