Fifteen rounds. In the light of the extended interest in the Jeffries/ Foreman thread. With all except Mendoza, and Janitor, [I assume Janitor is picking Jeff,] going for Big George , does Jeffries do substantially better against Foreman contemporary ,and victim, Ken Norton?
No Jeffries isn't really a puncher, certainly more of a proven puncher than Holmes or Ali. He also doesn't hold a size or stamina advantage. Norton is also the product of several generations of an evolution in boxing skill and technique as the sport matured. he has the workrate, intensity and pressuring style to break down boxers and stylists Norton UD 15 or maybe a stoppage
Again, the Jeffries match ups are among the biggest leaps of faith we have on this forum ... there is so little to go on with regards to how Jeff would match up based on actual opponents fought or footage ... As with the Foreman - Jeffries match up I simply give a clueless don't know ... if we have to go on established facts , the facts favor Norton ... however, I am not sold on the fact that there may have not have been far more to Jeffries ...
For many years, well into the 1950s at least, Jefferies was rated by Nat Fleischer and others as a top-5 heavyweight. Some of these people saw him fight and rated him that highly. I don't think that anybody ever would confuse Kenny Norton and his 4-8 record against top 10 opponents as a top 5 hw. People confuse Norton, who was once my favorite HW, with being a good fighter because he gave Ali trouble, and that onscures a lot of truth about Norton. I'd bet on the opinions of the old-timers and pick Jefferies to beat Norton.
We've got footage of both guys in their prime don't we. Norton's victories over ali and young **** all over jeffries resume. His losses to foreman and shavers demonstrate he will get sparked by those who can actually punch at the highest level. His losses to ali and and holmes demonstrate he'll get outboxed by those who can box at range at a high level. Jeffries was an durable fighter who had very good athletic qualities for a man his size. He could wear down and overcome those who would be small cruiserweights. He never proved himself against anyone as good as norton. Norton did prove himself against people as good as jeffries. I wish we'd have seen norton vs frazier during ken's prime (ali 1 - shavers) it would have answered some questions we might have about ken. Same with jeffries, he really should have defended against johnson. The problem with james and rocky is that whilst their greatness isn't or shouldn't be in question, their h2h ability is very questionable considering they didn't beat anyone who'd be a noteworthy heavyweight today.
I agree with you to a certain extent. I think you're writing off Jeffries a bit easy though. Too much again might be weighed on his fight with Johnson. Near six year layoff against a prime champion is a long time. Prime Jeffries was true strong man of his time and by reputation. He had a heavyweight punch, good skills, stamina and wasn't scared of anyone despite race being an issue. Who knows what fight he would have produced had he given Jack Johnson a shot at his title and put race aside when he was a prime champion. Norton could probably outspeed Jeffries for the entire 12, perhaps 15 round fight. Norton fought with a bit more of a pressure style with the cross arm defence, being in the Futch/Frazier camp. This could be dangerous for him against Jeffries. Triple J could knock Norton out at any time in the fight if he catches Kenny standing and trading with him. Kenny likely fights a lot smarter than that the moment he tastes Jeffries power. Jeffries can't close in on the opponent in long strides like Foreman and finish. I could see him punishing Ken in subsequent rounds and finishing him only if Ken gets brave and fights in close quarters. Norton by decision, 9 rounds to 6 over 15, or, 7 rounds to 5 over 12.