Jess Willard versus Jim Jeffries

45 rounds with a sadistic referee? Very hard to make a pick.

I would say that Jeffries has the edge in skill but it's hard to judge because of the lack of film.
When Willard came along, gloved boxing had evolved a bit and while i don't think much of Willard's jab compared to later gloved champions, how good is Jeffries' jab? I have not seen much of it nor do i see fighters of his time make much use of it.

Willard proved his conditioning when he went 26 rounds with Johnson and knocked him out. Johnson was a big guy, though somewhat overweight, old and seemed to be not 100% focused on boxing.

On the other hand, Jeffries as far as i know, never fought a 200+lb guy with good skills and durability to go with it. He also took quite some beatings from smaller fighters. It seems to me he often took quite some "early" (10+ rounds) punishment to wear his opponent down and knock him out later. It should also be noted that Fitzsimmons and Corbett weren't quite young anymore either; this helped him in wearing them down. I'm not sure if he could do the same with Willard.


I think this is a toss-up because there are too many unanswered questions.

 

If you are right ,remembering that Willard is considered one of the less impressive Champions ,where does that place Jeffries considered by some one of the best?,Im not making a judgement either way here,I think your post has some very pertinent points,with which I agree,particularly the bit about Jeffries taking a lot of punishment before wearing down ,smaller ,older fighters.I wonder if Dr Mendoza will respond ?

 

At the first look most will probably think "Jeffries by KO, easily...", but IMO that would be a great matchup if you are also a bit bloody-minded, sadistic and hardboiled fight-fan like me. Willard was unbelievable hard, he had an iron chin, he was 6´6 tall with over 230 lbs weight, he had a good one-punch, good stamina, etc., Jeffries had similiar strenghts, only that his skills were much better. Jeffries was like Willard a slow starter, who wore his opponents down, the same "tactic" Jess used to do. But I would pick Jeffries by KO in the 18th round ca., because his jab and his hooks would do a lot of damage, Willard on the other side can´t KO him IMO, it would be relatively close in the first few rounds, but than I see James J. taking advantage because of his much better boxing skills...

 

Probably would have been a marathon, but I can see Jeffries taking it late.

 

Well, it depends a bit on the context. Boxing has changed a lot over the last 100 years.


Under his own rules and circumstances, Jeffries was a great fighter. The way he went undefeated with little boxing skill while fighting excellent fighters is a remarkable feat for sure. But you can't look at his record without noticing that his best opponents were in different weight and age classes.

Willard on the other hand, is much less highly regarded historically and i don't think there are many champions from the '20s to the current crop that would lose a 15 rounder to him.
But a 45 rounder? Different story. Boxing ability, dancing on your toes (the things Ali was great at) are lot less important whereas durability, stamina and heart become a lot more important.
Willard is the ultimate example of evolution, in other words, he was a product of his enviroment (the boxing rules). And at that he may well have been a great fighter. That's why this fight is hard to call.

 

What is your opinion, Fogey?

 

Please slam your head in the oven door as punishment for this remark.

 

Too much emphasis on weight here. A great fighter is a great fighter and Jeff beat way better opposition than Willard. I would be a lot more afraid to get in the ring with 170-pound Bob Fitzsimmons than some of the 200+ pound guys that Willard fought. Willard didn't even take up boxing until he was 30 years old. Jeez. And he's going to beat Jim Jeffries? I don't think so. Look, his win over Johnson was fantastic, but let's face it, Johnson was over the hill. I think he was like 38 years old, had been very inactive, living the good life, so he was completely ripe for the taking by anyone who was in shape and sturdy and could take a punch from a guy not known for having the greatest punch anyhow. When Willard got in there with a young 185-188 pound Dempsey, he got beaten down. Not saying Jeffries would do it as fast as Dempsey, because Jeff was a lot more methodical, but he'd eventually break Willard down, I think.

 

Jeffires KO'd a 250 pound Dunkhorst in sparring. Those who know boxing will tell you a heavier and slower fighter is more prone to being hit than a smaller and quicker fighter. Which do you want to be vs a puncher?

Willard was rather poor on film. IMO, Moran got the better of him in the film I have seen, and it was truly an awful display of boxing. Willard lost to Smith, and MCMahon on points.

Basically Willaird's entire rep was based on a few white hopes and an older Jack Johnson.

I do beleive Willard was big, could hit, was game ( although he quit once, and never liked boxing ) , but he could not box a lick. How durable was Willard?

I'd say Willard could take a punch, yet he lost via KO vs the two best punchers he faced in Fripo and Dempsey in one sided fights that did not go past 8 rounds. I don't think Willard makes it past 10 vs Jeffries.

 

I have to disagree with the consensus here. The fighting style that Jeffries had against Corbett or Fitz would be different when he fought Willard. He could bide his time vs other opponents and simply wait until the moment was right and take them out.
If you watch any kind of reliable film, you will see that Jeffries was not a slow and ponderous type of guy, he was very fast for a large guy. Sullivan called him the fastest big man he ever saw. Not true for Willard. Who was fairly slow and ponderous.
Willard is going to present himself as a huge, upright, big target, open to Jeffries hooks to both the head and body. Those hooks would take their toll on Willard, I think they would land pretty easily, and what would keep him up would be his ability to take punches, but round after round, I see him getting hit by massive shots and somewhere along the way, he would have been unable to continue and would probably not get off his stool somewhere around the 15-20 round mark.
I think it would be a fairly one sided horrible beating, personally.