how good was billy conn.....

Great boxer...I think he beat 10 former or future world champions.....ALMOST beat
Joe Louis in 1941....

 

I just added this on the myths/facts thread. Maybe I should have put it here.

Myth: That Billy Conn boxed and "ran" the entire fight against Joe Louis.

Fact: From the films that exist, Conn engaged and slugged with Louis on many, many occasions during their fight, often INITIATING exchanges. He fought a good portion of the bout right there in the danger zone. It's when he stopped mixing his boxing and slugging and instead went for the KO that he was stopped.

 

Surf, and he weighed in at 168 pounds. What a fighter ! Errol Flynn with gloves on...

 

Yeah, very true......And that was not expected by Louis....

 

How clever was Teddy Yarosz as a boxer? I"'ll tell you how clever," Ray Arcel answered. He was that clever I thought he beat Billy Conn three times, not once as the books say and to me Billy Conn was the greatest light heavy of all time and rates right up there with the best fighters in history.
Al Abrams .
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Google News Archive - Jul 3, 1974

Harry Markson also called Billy "Best Lt heavy"

 

That's a great list of top 7 lightheavies:good

 

It's amazing what Conn did at less than 170 pounds in the 1941 fight with Joe Louis.

 

His combinations on Louis were sick..He nearly KOd The Brown Bomber in spots in that fight..Beautiful to watch..Mixed offence with defence beautifully..His speed dumb-founded Joe almose thru-out that fight..

The Pittsburg Flash was something special for sure.Lock for Top5 ATG Lt HW.

 

Watch those parts of the 1st Louis fight...where he blisters the Brown Bomber with lightning combinations and moves like a cat....and consider that he was fighting one of the greatest heavyweight champs of all time..what kind of opposition would he have to worry about from any lightheavyweight? He had virtually the same speed advantage over any lightheavy that he did vs Louis. An overabundance of balls was Conn's only undoing. I think his showing vs Louis was amazing.

 

thanks

Conn was brilliant and i would rate him even higher had he not lost 4 years to World War 2. Still one of my personal favourites and he definately deserves to be ranked among the best ever at light-heavweight