Marciano put away elite fighters, Dempsey didn't even put away an anorexic Gibbons who'd be dehydating down to MW or LMW today.
Gibbons was stopped just once in 63 bouts, in his last fight. This thread is about Dempsey's punching power, not Marciano's the title gives you a clue to that.
Hey Mac, d'ya want to borrow my psy caahl agist? It might help you with your new stalker. And just when you thought Mendoza had backed off a bit.:rofl:rofl
Dempsey had to land many punches on a ship wrecked, helpless Willard, and likewise in that wild and wooly battle with Firpo, but as shown at the end of his career, he could be very deadly with single punches ala Sharkey and a select few like with Tunney. i think he hit very, very hard...he was explosive.
I'm one of the "fanboys" who is not ashamed to be in the same corner with the multitudes of great fighters, great trainers, and experienced and hard nosed boxing writers who saw the prime Jack Dempsey fight, and thought he was the most destructive heavyweight they had ever seen...Was he perfect every fight ? Hell no, but which heavyweight can his noble detractors name that was stellar in every bout ? Name one ? Was Dempsey's legacy affected by his 3 year layoff, when loaded with moolah, he went Hollywood to live the life La Dolca Vita, banging silent screen sirens ? Of course for him to quit boxing at his prime in 1923 didn't enhance his legacy, but I would have done the same thing, to live life to the hilt after a rough youth hitting the rails as a hobo in the Western States... Boxing was a tough business in his day, and say what you will about Jack Dempsey, for at his best no heavyweight was more tougher, more vicious a puncher, and the greatest ring attraction of all times...And one helluva fighter to boot, who in all his fights gave no quarter, and asked for no quarter...Dempsey, my man Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, and Joe Frazier were my vey favorite heavyweights. So sue me...
rc, yes Dempsey all 187 pounds of him, went all out against big Jess Willard at about 260 pounds, who was NEVER DROPPED before even though Jack Johnson hit Big Jess with every punch in his ****nal for TWENTY FIVE rounds in Havana without even dazing Willard. And Dempsey knowing that his gambling manager Jack Kearns bet a large amount on Dempsey scoring a first round knockout, threw caution to the winds and dropped Willard 7 times in round one, and today the bout would have been stopped after 3 knockdowns for sure. I remember reading an article many moons ago in an old boxing mag a writer watched Jess Willard spar when he was champion and taken hellacious shots on his chin without blinking an eye...Jess was a natural BIG MAN and not some steroid modern 260 pounder...Let us remember rc, that the great puncher Joe Louis hit the lumbering Abe Simon with tremendous shots to the head for THIRTEEN rounds without putting Simon away, until the referee stopped the bout with big Abe still on his feet...Why isn't Louis's punching power criticized for allowing Simon to go 13 rounds still on his feet ? And Rocky Marciano, a much vaunted puncher hit an overblown LH Don ****ell with every punch in the book for NINE rounds before the referee stopped the bout...Truly I can't imagine an Abe Simon or Don ****ell lasting more than a few rounds with the Dempsey of his prime...As I have posted before only on ESB it seems is Jack Dempsey regarded so LIGHTLY...But not by me rc...:good
Two points. !- How good can ANY man look being dropped SEVEN times in one round by the tornado that was Dempsey that day in Toledo ? 2- The fact of the matter is Jess Willard regardless how he looked to you, HAD an iron chin that was NEVER dented before in his career by a man he OUTWEIGHED by SEVENTY THREE POUNDS.. 3- What more could Dempsey have done, KILLED JESS ?...
