What are your thoughts on this? Surely if he found a loophole then why can't anyone else find it? On the one hand he's not a good boxer yet on the other hand he's such a maverick genius he's found a loophole that nobody else has yet been able to find.. make it make sense.. Yes Fitzsimmons would go on to compete as a HW/LHW but for most of his career he was a true MW, rarely weighing much above 160 pounds.. The highest he got in his better years was about 175lbs wasn't it.. but that was as a mature 31 year old.. this fellas arguing he was a HW cutting down to beat up WWs & MWs his entire younger career.. For Jeffries he was 167lbs 1st fight.. 172lbs 2nd.. Jeffries had 40lbs on him For Corbett he was 167 to Corbetts 184.. For Maher he was 165 to Mahers 180.. For 200lb Ruhlin he was 158.. Etc etc If he was a covert 'HW' then wouldn't it be pretty stupid to drain yourself against other legit HWs? You'd think the sensible thing would be to be a HW yourself under those circumstances.. not a drained MW corpse.. & in your late 30s & 40s too sometimes.. that's some going.. Bob truly was the special one LMAO..
I don't mean to offend anyone, but it's nonsense. This poster thinks that height is the ONLY contributor to a fighter's NATURAL weight. He specifically told me thinks the 118lbs 5ft 11in Panama Al Brown is naturally bigger than the 5ft 10ins 225-245lbs David Tua. I think a fighter's natural fighting weight is a combination of their frame and body composition. In the main, boxers fight at the lowest weight division they can safely make. Fitz didn't find some loophole that all/most other fighters in history were unaware of. Firstly, 155-160lbs isn't THAT light for a boxer standing 5ft 11.5ins. Secondly, he had extremely skinny legs and core. What do you think?
I think Fitzsimmons average weight as he aged was in the mid to late 160s.. calling him a HW who drained himself all his career is one of the stupidest takes I've ever read.
Ol Bobby was a naturally wiry bloke, as can be seen in photos. In my opinion once you get to a certain size you have the power to knock out anyone if you land properly clean. Fitz was a bit below this for my money, but he wasn't just a 'good' puncher - he was an absolute freak, very arguably the greatest p4p puncher ever. Fitz wasn't even the only guy around this time doing it - Barbados Joe Walcott was also power punching much bigger men. Although in his training book he is weirdly insistent about using enemas and 'cleanses'. Maybe that's why his weight was low
Whether it was to get more speed or because he liked being light it makes sense. Wilder utilized the same strategy much more recently. Wilders a 6 ft 7 man obviously and is not draining to no MW. But its the same idea.
Glancing through Fitzs' physical culture book again, I remembered that he was quite strict about diet, which explains his weight too: 'Abstain from the use of all fatty and starchy food. Eat all kinds of meat except pork. Eat all varieties of green vegetables, fruits, and dry toast, and drink your tea without sugar. Do not eat potatoes, butter, fresh bread, or sugar.'
People argue with me every single time I bring this up like as if I am guess, thinking, or assuming what is biological fact. So, do not waste your time, look it up yourself. Smaller men have better stamina. They recharge faster, deplete energy more slowly, and require less energy to operate effectively. When rules allow for this to be a style choice in fighting men will fight a more stamina based fight. That said, who does 3 minute round favor? Who does 36 mins of fighting favor? If rounds are down now who is favored? Ah and if there is no scheduled end who is favored? No one fights like Fitzs anymore because they can't. The men just before him and after him could and did. Fitzsimmons is not the only man to show for a HW fight weighing less than his MW fights. Look at literally all the men from the era who could and are known for "doing well against HWs" All of them will at times drop weight to fight a man who weighs more. All it means is they were making sure they had plenty of tank. It is literally impossible to replicate under modern rules, hence no one does it. As world HW champion Burns never weighed below 170 except when he faced his largest contender in Jack Johnson. Then he did dip below 170. He dropped weight rather than gaining it to face the larger man. It didn't work for him but Tommy was prepared for war. Barbados Walcott was 150 against the 160 Gardner but his spritely 140 against the 215 Russell. Barbados, shocker, was looking to use his movement against the bigger, slower, and fast draining HW. Walcott floored him for 6. McCoy was 173 against a 168 Root but 168 against the 203 Stewart, 163 against the 175 Maher Corbett was 190 against the 175 Dom and then shot down to 178 for the 210 Sullivan fight. Corbett just wanted to muscle Dom and dance John. Y'all love Greb! Just scroll his boxrec. Notice all the times he dropped weight to fight a weigher man rather than gaining weight. Notice when he decides to gain weight rather than drop it. Pay attention to who has power on him and who has stamina on him. Who he matches evenly. Willie Meehan pushing 200 so he comes in kinda light given he just fought Levinsky who was 180 at 170. Harry didn't need to muscle Willie so he kept cool and dropped a few pounds. Nothing major but the point is there is no fat division. There is no oh you can come in 165 to fight the 200 pound CW because he's fat today. Today it's make 200 or call for a catchweight or make a special request for weight divisions to not apply to you, or go unsanctioned.
