How would you advise 1904 Jeffries vs. prime Dempsey/Marciano/Frazier?

Do you think that any of them would have fought Tom Sharkey with their left arm largley out of action?

 

I doubt I could teach him any new tricks, so I'd advise him to use his counter uppercut and better impose his strength in the clinches to keep from getting torn apart on the inside. One of the problems I see for Jeffries is that despite some claims to the contrary, he did not really possess one punch KO power and thus would find it difficult to contain these three men. His strength and his immense stamina would have to come to play in a grueling war.

It would come down to whether he had the heart to take the punches and actually outlast the likes of Marciano and Frazier, which would be extremely difficult. Skill-wise I see Marciano and Frazier having "evolved" from Jeffries's style which was suitable for long-distance bouts, but not necessarily against these two brutally efficient inside swarmers. Athletically he may have been their match but whether he could hang in there in a contest of "hitting while not getting hit quite as much as the other guy" is anybody's guess. The combinations, the frantic pace and the constant bobbing & weaving of Frazier and Marciano might prove to be too much for him to handle.

 

Precisely why I didn't give Jeffries much of a chance against Ibeabuchi or Tua in your other thread.

 

I think Jeffries beats Tua, Tua was slower than the trio in the frame and he was really a one armed banger.Frazier was too I know, but he was quicker and more elusive,imo.
Tua had a great chin ,but I remember how he reacted after tasting a couple of Lewis's right hands,he settled for survival, I think Jeffries would out game him.
Jeffries sinking that left into Tua's fleshy midriff could take the starch out of him, of course we are taking Jeffries chin on trust a bit ,but as he weathered Fitz and ,Choynski's shots ,I think we can.
Ike is a hard guy to apppraise he looked terrific against Tua ,imo, his work rate and punchstats [and Tua's ,for once] showed great potential, but thats what it was, potential ,he really was not proven .

 

Jeff was a class guy. Good physical specimen. Had training techniques and an approach to the game that was years ahead of his time.... Had a great record...

But I don't like his style against top fighters of the past 40+ years. He carried his right hand low, while holding out his left in front, which made for a very poor defense, resulting in his nose being broken on three occasions, including once against a much smaller man. He fought men who at or around 200 lbs, perhaps once or twice in his career and lost to one of them ( albeit past his prime. ) Of his 20 or recorded pro fights he fought but maybe one who wasn't white, and that man was too far finished to prove any sort of a test.

Tua was not pretty, but he was plenty dangerous and durable. He was never stopped and floored only once in nearly 60 fights, with that one knock down coming at age 37 and being on the comeback trail for the second time in his career. He survived the power of Lennox Lewis, Ike Ibeabuchi, Hasim Rahman and several others who could hit. at 230 lbs, or whatever he was, he'd be by far the heaviest man Jeff ever fought, including Jeff himself. Tua wasn't exactly multi dimensional in his offense, but neither was Jeffries, and managed to KO a large percentage of his opponents, including the durable John Ruiz within seconds.

Legacy wise, Jeffries was a divine figure, while Tua will likely be forgotten. But using the two very different animals in legacy and head to head matchups is not something that I'm huge on when picking a winner.

 

Excellent appraisal ,and a plausible conclusion.:good

 

And to you as well sir, who I have always regarded as a gentleman and a scholar. :cheers

 

I think you are in a minority of one with that opinion on here.