Boxing is a conservative sport and I'm sure that boxers to start with in general would be sceptical of something that weight lifters took to enhance their performance, but through their participation in the Olympics many boxers should after a while take note of that even track and field practitioners benefitted from steroids and that it therefore possibly could be of use to them too. This during a time when it wasn't at all illegal and wouldn't really be tested for in pro boxing until long after it was eventually made illegal. This simple logic taken together with the increase in size that started with the generation that went pro in the late 60's/early 70's is quite compelling.
I do think that some of the old school trainers had odd ideas, in terms of getting a fighters weight as low as possible, and in some case even dehydrating heavyweights. Some of them might have done better, if they had let their fighters come in a few pounds heavier.
Yeah, this idea of dehydrating before entering the ring is quite odd. It shouldn't necessarily impact their weigh-in results much unless they took place right before the actual fight. And I don't think they did at HW.
They did some weird stuff. Wen Henry Armstrong needed to gain weight, he used to drink pints of water, which was a net negative. Today he could have lifted weights, and added muscle, which would have been a net positive. You even hear of fighters drinking nickle beers to gai n weight!
The same critiques would be labeled on Lewis if he was around during those times. Clumsy , two left feet etc. Rock never got sparked out cos of bad positioning like Lewis did against Atom Bull
Yeah, can't get past when Norton said he reckoned that Ali and Frazier both had dehydrated before stepping the ring in Manilla. In that heat. And they still fought like they did. No wonder the fight nearly killed both.
Some good points here turning round what was clearly designed to be yet another baiter thread. Well done To the guys responding with knowledge.
The increased size can be attributed to many factors. Diet... today's guys are well-fed with top class, quality foods. They pay close attention to macros and micros. Micros have been neglected for so long, but are critical. 100 years ago, few had any idea about real quality nutrition. Weights and training... obviously this has made a huge impact. Increased quality muscle mass and emphasis on specific aspects of strength and conditioning as opposed to just 'being in shape' has changed the landscape considerably. Not only do you have your trainer, you have a strength & conditioning coach, a nutritionist etc. Some even have yoga teachers. Evander employed a ballet teacher for a while. Knowledge of the human body and how it works specifically to sports has come on in leaps and bounds even in just the last 40 years. PEDs... unfortunately they exist and form part of any modern fighter's arsenal, like it or not. Increased lean muscle tissue, increased ability to burn fat, increased strength, better recovery from workouts, increased ability to train harder and longer etc. Massive game-changer. Change in rules and attitudes... going 12 rounds is not as grueling as going 15 or 20. Fighters can come in a little bigger now and endurance is not emphasized quite as much. Also, big guys nowadays are taught to use that size and strength in a way that benefits them more than before. They sit down on their punches and know how to maul, grapple, hold etc. Genetics... bigger talent pool nowadays and people in general are bigger than 100 years ago. Undeniable fact.
You seriously think Marciano could gain 20 pounds (which would still make him a very small heavyweight today) without sacrificing stamina, and speed (which was already limited as was)?
I don't think I said anything to that effect, did I? But to answer anyway, he could probably do it with the help of steroids without sacrificing speed. Morrison said he'd be 35-40 lbs lighter without steroids and he was explosive as hell. And with the right sort of PEDs I don't think it would be much of an issue for his stamina either. Compare with Spinks and Holy that added that much and more.
The biggest clue of all is Orlin Norris. That guy was as heavy as David Tua when he wanted to be a heavyweight and as light as Marciano when he wanted to be a cruiserweight..and he was a heavyweight first, dropped down, came back up, then retired as an old fighter weighing less than his debut weight. His weight fluctuation was amazing..but he was a solid heavyweight and the guy had the shorter height and similar wingspan to Marciano.
