Ike Ibeabuchi vs Jack Dempsey

Just an aside but it saddens me deeply that all the immortal 165-190lb “heavyweight” great ones died off more than half a century ago, never to be seen again.

 

It is a curious thing that they died off at exactly the same time, that they were no longer permitted to fight within that weight class!

 

190 pounders? They did not die off. They are still here. They weigh 220 now and masquerade as cruiserweights because of 24 hour weigh ins.

Why do they now weigh 220 instead of 190?

The answer to this is “modern training”. The wonders of modern training that can enhance thin armed long necked bean poles into muscular “big men with skill”.

 

Except they didn’t! These diminutive dynamos faded from the scene well before the advent of the cruiserweight era.

If the immortals of yesteryear still lived on, they’d be dominating their 168/175/200lb opponents and stopping them in seconds flat, and boxing fans would be clamoring for a rule change so that we could see them fight the heavyweight giants. But whereas Langford, Dempsey, and Fitzsimmons were some of the hardest-punching men to ever walk the planet, today’s boxers that size are just...ordinary mid-sized male athletes. Sad.

 

This is inconsistent. Are they masquerading as cruisers or are they former cruisers now weighing 220? Are today's cruisers the only true heavies and all those above 200 merely fat slobs?

Your inference is completely without substantiation.

 

So, Bowe and Lewis wouldn't have been able to hold a strap if James Warring or Bobby Czyz had been allowed to fight them?

 

demps krushes him.

 

190-210 are the true classic sized heavyweights. But new training made these guys 220-230. Guys like Holmes, Pinklon Thomas, mike weaver would have been 190-200 anytime before 1970.

Giants were always around.

I have a theory that 230 is the maximum classic sized guys can enhance themselves functionally.

Then new “training” advances allowed the sport to get more out of the tallest guys than ever before. This was helped along by the slower pace of built up older guys that naturally were more classic sized.

Anybody above 200 is not just a fat slob at all. I don’t believe that. I do believe all boxers are enhanced beyond what was achievable before 1970.

well I don’t see how it can be lacking any more substance than your theory? Modern training can convert thin arms and long necks.

 

Tua has a lot of impressive knockouts over name fighters before they were operating at world level (see Dempsey Flynn).

He also has some impressive knockouts over name fighters, who had ceased to be world class (see Dempsey Morris).

What he conspicuously lacks, is wins over men who were ranked in the top ten at the time!

The sole exception is the Rahman fight, and you know what happened there.

 

When somebody treats it as a bodybuilding contest, you have a lot of work to do, to get them to even ask what the fight would look like!

 

You seem to be the one most fixated on Mr. Ike's physique.

I see a guy with power, chin, strength, output and technique. And I also recognize that the Good Lord made weight divisions for a reason.

 

Dempsey throws some hard shots at an impassive, stalking Ibeabuchi. Most bounce off his guard and torso but even the ones that land cleanly have surprisingly little discernible effect. At some point in the fight (exactly when depends on how much caution Dempsey exercises while mounting his ambush attacks), Dempsey walks into a combination featuring the heaviest power punches he's ever endured, gets hurt, and eventually goes down for the count.

 

I think Jack would be cautious and bide his time, using footwork to maintain distance, trying an occasional attack to no great avail. Over the rounds, Ike's productivity and relentless stalking take their toll on the smaller man, who at some point tries to cash in his chips rather face the inevitable. He get's chopped down, get's up. Repeat. At some point a corner or ref take have mercy. Jack wins some rounds but only makes to about 10.

 

Then why don't you find a few big guys at the gym, or the foundry, sort through them until you find one with decent reflexes, than then teach them the mysterious super heavyweight technique!

Wouldn't it be easier than working for a living if boxing was this simple?