Joe Frazier of 1971 awaits his mystery opponent in the ring, it is 1958 Sonny Liston.

lol I'm actually rewatching "A game of pool" as we speak and just seconds ago made a remark to my brother wishing Rod was still here.

 

Liston was good on the inside, as he showed against Patterson in their first fight. That was peak Liston, though. '58 Liston was still a work in progress.

 

When else did he show his ability to fight on the inside? When he got his nose broken by the arm punching China chin Cleveland Williams?

 

That was more midrange and he did noticeably better in the rematch. As I said, Liston was still a work in progress in the late 50's. He only had his 14th pro fight when he came back after years away in '58, and '59 was the first year he started to face higher class fighters.

And Williams "arm punching"? Get a grip. You don't have to belittle other fighters to raise the ones you like. You've been here a while now, high time you start to learn that.

But most knew better than come to Liston. Patterson tried his usual schtick in the first fight and Liston destroyed him with tight hooks in close, so that's pretty much what we have to go on.

 

So Cleveland Williams was an '' arm'' puncher, but still punched with nuclear power.
Now that's impressive.

 

So- to repeat. The evidence we have of Liston being a good inside fighter is based on beating one small, not particularly durable and reckless fighter?

 

It’s a shame he couldn’t do anything with it and is immortalised as an opponent- a guy who lost.

 

A champion, and world class fighter for almost 20 years, who never was beat by anyone else in a similar manner. Not even when he was 37 and faced the guy who decked Frazier three times in one round. Yes, that is correct.

Now give me an example, even just one, that backs up your claim that Liston wouldn't be able to operate effectively at that range.

 

Great info and testimony to the threat still held by an older and physically self abused Liston. Thanks.

 

Rod was a great man.

Coincidentally, I also watched A Game of Pool just a week ago - but it was the one from the 80s reboot series which I’ve now finished. I’ve started in on the old orig. series now.

Crazy thing is, the film quality of the org. BW series is way better than the washed out colour footage from the 80s - and the bad hair dos from the 80s are horrifying in themselves. Lol.

 

I wouldn't know. I refuse to watch the 80s reboot series. Twilight Zone without Rod Serling isn't Twilight... only Twilite.

 

Noooooo.............honestly you really do need some education.Cleveland Williams was a leading contender
for the World Heavyweight Championship for many years,and was listed as the 50th greatest puncher of the
last 100 years by Ring magazine.
However the real reason why Cleveland Williams is so revered is that he was able to resume his boxing career after being shot by a policeman in 1964.In the following seven months Cleveland underwent 4 operations to repair nerve damage to his hips and left leg,and ten feet of his small
intestine had to be removed.Obviously Cleveland Williams was acclaimed for showing such
heroism under the most trying circumstances imaginable.
This is the man whom you regard with such sneering contempt.

 

I’ve got to tell you I just watched The Lonely last night (been working thru from ep. 1). The “robut” quote now makes sense to me. LOL!

They sounded like two frogs talking to each other: “robut, robut, robut”. Strangest pronunciation of “robot” that I’ve ever heard. Plot twist: they were the actual and slightly flawed “robuts” and they killed the “human”. Ha!

 

True. Rod also did another series called Night Gallery (late 60s thru to early 70s I think). That was very good also. How about Twilight with Edward and Bella - still a no go?

 

lol I never watched it. It was all the rage when I was a child back in the 2000s. My sister was obsessed with it.