Saw his fight with Joey Giardello and he looked pretty good. Boxrec has him losing to some very good fighters and the only name I recognized that he beat was a very young Jimmy Ellis at middleweight. So how good was he? How would you rate him among todays middleweights?
Nicky, you must be fairly new to boxing if you don't recognise names he beat like Johnny Bratton, Spider Webb, Georgie Benton, Henry Hank and Jose Basora. No matter. Suffice to say Holly Mims was one of the great spoilers of all time. The kind of guy that would always go into the other guys backyard, hold him tight and lose a close decision. He kept everyone honest because one slip up and you were done. He lost a lot on the road on debatable decisions. In 100 fights or more he was only stopped once at the age of 37 on a cut. Scartissue
lol, I don't think i've ever seen fights of Henry Hank or Jose Basora no. But I wouldnt say im new, I just know about more popular classic names. I'm always trying to learn more though. Thanks a lot for the rundown on Mims. Scar, do you think he would do away with most of todays middleweights?
Nick, Mims was so fluid and was such a thinking, counter-punching master. I cannot think of one fighter today in his league. To tell you a great story I heard, which will tell you how he was thought of back in the day, Hurricane Carter was scheduled to headline at MSG but his opponent pulled out at the last moment and Teddy Brenner substituted the always reliable Mims. Carter supposedly threw a tantrum, wanting no part of Mims. Brenner supposedly screamed at him, "Rubin, you can't lose!" Take that however way anyone wants. Carter wins the decision but is dropped along the way. The story was that Mims said after the fight, "I always like to at least let them know I was there." Scartissue
Late fifties thru mid-sixties there was a wealth of WW & MW talent on TV Friday Night fights Most of the fighters were very competive against each other.
You know, I really do believe that. He has a nice stance, threw his hands well, and you can tell he's always thinking of the next setup. I can imagine him giving Carter fits.
Late 80's and early 90's is what i was watching growing up. How would you say that talent level compared with the late fifties through the mid sixties?
The 50's & 60's fighters showed up in better shape because they fought more often....they were ready to go on short notice. That earlier era had a Top 15, with all the fighters being competitive against each other. Whereas, in the 80's a Top 10, and today maybe a truly Top 8. Il Duce and other ESB posters from the NYC area have some great info on the 60's fighters.
