Fanasty Matchup: Ingemar Johansson when he did step up and take on top american fighters, he shined. however the only two he fought were machen and patterson. there were many others that he failed to fight that leaves his legacy some what not fullfilling. Ingo vs out of retirement 1959 rocky marciano Nino Valdez Cleveland Williams Archie Moore Zora Folley Sonny Liston Harold Johnson Mike Dejohn Bob Baker who wins?
I would make him a heavy favorite over all of those except for Liston and Moore. Liston vs Johansson is big puncher vs big puncher. In general, the boxer with the best chin wins those type of fights, which would probably be Liston. Archie Moore is a tough cookie. He was extremely skilled and may nick a decision from Johansson, but Johansson always has a great chance because of that big right hand punching power. Folley had too weak a chin to survive Johansson. Dito for Williams.
I believe you have Ingo somewhat overrated. I think Big Cat Williams might well have taken Ingo out. Liston might have decapitated him.
folley i agree, but williams? he was only ever stopped in his prime by a peak liston and liston couldnt even keep him down. satterfield one of the hardest punchers of all time knocked him out but williams was only 19 years old and not yet fully matured. Williams size, strength coped with his incredible handspeed and power might make him a nightmare for ingo. williams threw combinations and tripled up on that left hook.
True, but you can't go around the fact that Williams' record against contender s is very spotty whereas Johanssons is pretty impressive. I think this is important. Now Johansson's chin was a bit weak too, so this fight can definitely go both ways, but i'd have to favor Ingo. You say Liston couldn't even keep Williams down, but i would like to remind you that Liston couldn't get Machen down in 12 rounds, whereas Ingo did it several times in 1 round.
It's impossible to know what Rocky would've been like coming off a four-year layoff. Just out of probability, I favor Johansson. Valdes was well over the hill by the late '50s. Johansson by KO. Williams was ultimately more bark than bite. He scarcely delivered the goods against top opponents, and he has an especially bad record against big punchers. I think Johansson lays low, keeps his guard tight and fights conservatively for a couple rounds, bides his time until he sees his opening, and then uncorks a big right which leads to the finish. This is a tough pick- by the end of the '50s, Moore was noticeably declining. I'd make a mid-'50s Moore at least an even bet against Johansson, but Johansson gets a pretty clear edge over a slowing Moore at that stage of his career. Folley had a shaky chin and a history of upset knockout losses. However, he was a well-rounded fighter and boxer-puncher, and if he fights a very careful, strict gameplan, I do think he has a legitimate chance to keep Johansson, who was somewhat stiff and lacked offensive versatility, out of his comfort zone and outpoint him. 50/50ish, here. Not a terribly good match-up for Ingo. Liston picks Johansson's guard apart with the jab, walks him down and blasts him. Liston by KO 3. Hmmmm.... Johnson did outbox Machen well into the '60s. I'd say he matches up about like Folley here. 50/50ish, nominal edge to Johansson. Don't know much about DeJohn. He was supposed to be a good puncher, so he has a puncher's chance against the less-than-iron-jawed Johansson, but he was far from an elite, so Johansson is probably the favorite. Baker was way past it by the time Johansson was reaching the top. A peak Baker probably has a legitimate chance, but not in a time frame in which the fight could actually have happened.
