If I absolutely had to bet I would probably pick Bugner. However, the Spinks that beat Ali had a tremendous work rate....something Joe never had. He might have outhustled Bugner whom, unlike the main guys who troubled Leon, did not have a KO punch to really deter him.
Spinks by decision See Marvis Frazier v. Bugner. I know Bugner wasn't as good when he fought Frazier as he was in his prime but it's a similar style matchup.
Depends which Bugner shows up. The one who came to fight against Joe Frazier could handle Leon, but a disinterested version could get outhustled. Edge to Bugner.
After a couple of posters said they'd rank Bugner over Spinks in my "Ali's Title Challengers Ranked" thread, I figured we must've done a Bugner vs. Spinks fantasy fight thread sometime. Sure enough... I think it's one of those fights where it depends on which version of each fighter shows up. Per the original poster's criteria, I'm going to go with Leon. Bugner was one of those guys who seemed to always find a way to lose the big ones.
This is such a hard one to think about. Bugner could get timid if the opponent was overly aggressive. However Bugner was no chump, he endured some brutal body shots from Lyle and stood his ground. Although he lost to Frazier he hung in there and gave a good account of himself. Leon was utterly fearless and had tremendous stamina but didn't have the build to fight like that all the time. He lacked size and durability but made up for it with his volume and tenacity. He would definitely win a lot of rounds on activity against a more cautious boxer like Bugner. I think I'd favor Bugner 6/10 but like some posters said it depends on the mind set and condition of both guys.
Leon far too aggressive and Bugner doesn't have the level of power it takes to knock out Leon. Exciting, but one-sided bout. Leon UD.
He really had quite a career, I think was 50 for his lasr two fights which he won, and had some excellent wins. Should be easy win for him over Lein, although the Leon who showed up for the first ali fight has a chance with anyone
