Is Jess Willard Underrated?

2 and Willard's neither.

Bowe and Vitali were.

Not to mention boxing ability, he has an underrated defence, I'll give him that. But in terms of how to dominate a smaller guy he wasn't as good as he shouldn't have been

Vitali was better, his Defence was better and so was his power and chin. He was a better combination puncher and had much better footwork, and his isn't the best.

Vitali is on a different level to Willard, he added stuff to his style and was successful because of it, and even then he didn't win or strughled his biggest fights without fighting the best HW in the division.

 

I think so, even if he only really peaked for one fight, he was damn good in that fight.

 

A. That would put him in fairly select company?
B. How would those guys have done past twelve rounds?

There are legitimate criticisms that can be made there.

I don't think that he was on a different level.

I just think that he was better at applying the same tactics.

More instinctive fighter, better ring general, more killer instinct, more of a thug.

 

For those that like Superheavyweights what’s not to like about Willard? J

 

No. Because hes not in that company, both Bowe and Vitali have better chins and power. By a pretty clear distance imo.

I think Bowe wouldn't make 15, but I'd be fairly confident in saying Vitali would be able to make it tho.

I have never questioned Willard's Stamina, it's legendary. I just think that's where his legendary attributes start and end

 

Now there I would have to disagree!

So you are effectively saying that he had the best stamina of any super heavyweight ever!

In some ways being the best super heavyweight, is a bit like being the tallest midget!

 

I'm saying he's in the discussion of best stamina ever pfp. The guy could fight for days. It's as I said, legendary.

Is it? Can you explain?
I have Lewis as the H2H GOAT, I think he only loses to Liston. Do you think all SHWs lose to the smaller guys?

 

That on its own could deliver dividends against today's crop!

A super heavyweight, is typically somebody who is crap at everything except being big!

Very few of them have been outstanding in a p4p sense, and you do not have to be that good, to be in the top ten of this particular category.

Pretty much all of them have a flaw, that would be fatal in any other wight class.

 

Yes

 

I get what your saying with guys like
Bugner, Simon, Breazeale, Valuev, Carnera ect.
But there's a few others, a good 7/8 SHWs are very good at more than being just big.

For example Fury, Lewis and Wlad are/were all master boxers at there best.
Bowe, Vitali and Joshua are all good to great boxer punchers.
Wilder is unquestionably one of the hardest punchers ever.

That's 7 guys there who, whilst only 5 are truly elite imo, are SHWs who were better at more than just being big.

I can't see any flaws in Fury, Bowe or Vitali that would be 'fatal' in an other weight class. Bowe's tendancy to brawl was his biggest weakness when he showed up at his best, that and his lack of Defence.
Vitali doesn't really have any weaknesses, he just wasn't as good a fighter as guys I'd pick to beat him.
Fury's lack of power is his biggest weakness in the ring, that's not a huge weakness at all.

 

Nothing much about Willard. Even the small heavyweights in recent years like Chris Byrd and Eddie Chambers, two of my favorites would toy with the slow plodding Willard.

 

He's pretty lowly. Outside of beating a Johnson who had grown old, fat and weary of the crown, there is almost nothing else to speak from his resume but middling efforts.

He would be lucky to qualify as a tough man today.

 

His win vs Johnson should not be dismissed. Willard was in shape to “fight the world” that day in Havana and he fought a winning strategy from the opening bell.

 

You underrate him all the time!!

 

We MUST go off to SEA with you!!!!