Is Bob Fitzsimmons still a top 30 all time heavyweight?

I feel like you need to rate him relatively highly or not rate him at all. As much as pains me to say, if h2h starts being taken into equation he falls of dramatically for most people.

 

It's tough to sneak him into the top 30, but possible

 

H2H, no .. too small. P4P, top five.

 

Ignoring H2H, I think he'd easilly be top 20.

 

What the hell, let's give it a try, 30 names, excluding fighters that are yet to retire.

Wlad
Lewis
Tyson
Holyfield
Holmes
Ali
Foreman
Frazier
Liston
Patterson
Marciano
Walcott
Charles
Louis
Schmelling
Dempsey
Wills
Langford
Johnson
Jeffries

That's 20, you could justifiably rank him over some of them names, so I think the better question would be is he a top 20, not top 30

I'll give you another list of names that could be put in contention, although with most comparative to what they did in their own era, it's hard to see what they really achieved that means they deserve to be ranked above Fitzsimmons without getting into an extensive debate.

Vitali
Bowe
Witherspoon
Norton
Ingo
Moore
Ray
Baer
Braddock
Sharkey
Tunney
Jeanette
McVea

Might have missed one or two, if anyone wishes to add any names please do!

 

Just stream of consciousness, so ignore the exact order, but I think this is about how he'd place. (With that criteria)

1. Muhammad Ali
2. Joe Louis
3. Jack Johnson
4. James J Jeffries
5. Larry Holmes
6. Lennox Lewis
7. Mike Tyson
8. George Foreman
9. Rocky Marciano
10. John L Sullivan
    
11. Wladimir Klitschko
12. Jack Dempsey
13. Ezzard Charles
14. Evander Holyfeild
15. Bob Fitzsimmons
16. Jersey Joe Walcott
17. Sam Langford
18. Sonny Liston
19. Floyd Patterson
    
20. Max Schemling
21. Joe Frazier
22. Peter Jackson
    
23. Harry Wills
24. James J Corbett
25. Max Baer
26. Riddick Bowe
27. Vitali Klitschko

(Like I said I just did this to work out who I'd place above and below Fitz)

 

Joe Frazier once said: "I can only fight the guys of my era". In reverse, would Jim Thorpe be rated a top American football player in this era? Thorpe, could run, pass, punt, place kick, and drop kick. Pre-game,
Thorpe used to drop-kick field goals from the 50 yard line, then turn around and drop-kick a field goal going the other way. Scan the NFL line-up and find a player that can do all of that.

 

What if you counted Bareknuckle too?

By the same criteria (my knowledge of some of these guys is just secondry and tertiary stuff), and it's much harder to assess achievement with such sketchy info

Chucking them in

1. Muhammad Ali
2. Joe Louis
3. Jack Broughton
4. Jack Johnson
5. James J Jeffries
6. Larry Holmes
7. Tom Cribb
8. Lennox Lewis
9. Mike Tyson
10. George Foreman
11. Tom King
12. Rocky Marciano
13. Jem Mace
14. John L Sullivan
15. Benjamin Brian
16. Tom Johnson
17. Jack Slack
18. Wladimir Klitschko
19. Tom Sayers
20. Jack Dempsey
21. Tom Hyer
22. Ezzard Charles
23. Daniel Mendoza
24. Deaf Burke
    
25. Samuel O'Rourke
26. Evander Holyfeild
27. Bob Fitzsimmons
28. Jersey Joe Walcott
29. Sam Langford
30. Sonny Liston
31. John Jackson
32. Floyd Patterson
33. Jem Belcher
34. Max Schemling
35. Henry Pearce
36. Tom Molineux
37. Joe Frazier
38. Peter Jackson
39. Harry Wills
40. Gene Tunney
41. James J Corbett
42. George Taylor
43. Max Baer
44. Riddick Bowe
45. Vitali Klitschko
46. John C Heenan

Just for fun I need a lot more thought and research before a more serious attempt at a bareknuckle ranking, don't take it too seriously.

Truely all time, you'd ought to add ancient too, but I don't know where to begin with that.

 

The answer is no. Bob Fitzsimmons isn't even a top 1000 heavyweight of all time because he isn't a heavyweight by modern standards. If you want to say was a good heavyweight for guys who weight 150 to 170 pounds then that is another story. But compared to modern sized heavyweights he isn't a heavyweight.

 

If you want to use that logic Deontay Wilder is one the best ever. Just look at his knock out percentage right? Then you would also have to add Anthony Joshua to the list as well. When you ask a person who is the best fighter in a certain weight class then you are talking about head to head. Since the heavyweight division has changed and 150 pound guys aren't heavyweights anymore than Bob wouldn't be ranked in the top 10,000 heavyweights. He wasn't a heavyweight. Never beat any modern sized, modern skilled heavyweights. He was only good for his limited era.

 

Um you this thread is called is Bob a top 30 all time heavyweight right? So I told you he isn't a heavyweight but a 150-160 pound fighter. Then you ask me what does that have to do with anything? Classic.