For us Americans, that averages out to be about 6 minutes 15 seconds per mile, over 14 miles, which is excellent. I once averaged 6 minutes per mile for 6.2 miles (a10k) in high school back when I was running almost every single day like a fiend training for track and field and cross country, and believe me, that speed for half the distance was not easy. And I was only about 140 pounds. To do that pace over that distance, at well over 200 pounds, if true; dude was in phenomenal shape and very talented. The real question is whether these claims are true. But certainly, for a world class athlete pro boxer who trained very hard on a near daily basis, and valued roadwork, such claims are not fantastical or out of the question.
I think I read the following ,interesting story from Corbett’s ROAR OF THE CROWD - note, it doesn’t tell us exactly what speed was involved and I don’t know Corbett’s own prowess as a runner for a comparative gage, but anyway:- Corbett noted that whenever he did roadwork with Jeffries (whilst Corbett was in camp for the Fitz fight) Jeffries always kept a respectful distance behind him - a distance that never changed. Jeffries never tried to gain and he never fell back. However, on at least one occasion, if not several during the same run and/or over several runs, at some point Corbett would deliberately run a lot faster (perhaps his fastest - I don’t recall, long time since I read the book). I think Corbett might’ve also said that he’d done this previously with other members of his camp and that he always left them in the dust after he put the pedal to the metal. Anyway - with Jeffries in tow and after running a good distance at top speed, Corbett would look back expecting to see Jeffries well behind him but to his surprise, Corbett said he would always see Jeffries still keeping pace at the exact same, respectful distance behind him.
