Middleweight Tournament First Pick Tiger vs Steele

Definitely the best of the MW matchups thus far. Steele was a master boxer-puncher, definitely one of the best of the era (which was IMO when the sport was really developing into its modern state), in any weight class IMO. He could box, pick his spots, and land a multitude of devastating punches with precision and accuracy. Here's a fighter from 70 years ago that I can confidently say I'd bet on having success in today's division. I'll even take it a step further. I'd bet the house that Steele out-classes and stops the likes of Kelly Pavlik.

Tiger is an entirely different animal, though. Not only did he posess strength and durability that few MW's have ever matched, but he was also a very skilled boxer-puncher in his own right. People often mistake him for a pressure fighter, which he wasn't even though he was capable of applying it when necessary. He was for the most part a short, squat counter-puncher in the Qawi mold (though with a much more textbook stance), who used his shorter stature, rolling and parrying skills to counter off his opponent's punches and plaster them with left hooks and right hands.

With Steele's boxing skills, I doubt he'd want to stay inside with Tiger too long. I think he'd probably be more content with picking his spots on the outside, and staying cautious to avoid Tiger's counter punches and body work. If he did this, I think he wins the decision. If he's dragged into a brawl, I just can't see any MW consistently getting the better of Tiger.

I think I'd choose Steele by a close decision on the cards over 15 rounds, though.

 

i think steele would get drawn into a fight on the inside and tiger would sneak a decision win just an opinion dont kill me sweet pea

 

I think Tiger wins a decision, he's fast, he can counter with boxers sometimes surprisingly, and he doesn't stop in his own approach. While it is true Steele has the style (though i've only read on him and his era, not seen him) to be counter-productive to Tiger's, i think Tiger gets his decision on song.

 

Steele is a great talent and is probably very underrated today among history's middleweight champs. However, from what footage I've seen and what I've read about him, I get the sense that he might've been vulnerable to pressure. Not only does the loss to Apostoli suggest that, but the fact that Steele refused to risk his title against him, both before and after the fight, which seems to suggest that he wasn't confident he could beat him. Not only that, but once he was outslugged by Apostoli, it seemed to herald his downfall as a top tier fighter, for whatever reason.

If my suspicions on the matter are true, then that would almost certainly be a fatal flaw against Tiger. I think this fight might mirror the Apostoli rematch, in which Steele uses his speed of hand and foot to hold off Tiger early; but he isn't able to keep him at bay for the entire fight, and eventually Tiger forces him into an inside battle and battles his way to a decision or late stoppage victory.

 

I agree.
Tiger's steady pressure would eventually draw Steele into a give and take kind of fight. I think Steele would attempt to fight Tiger because he would be confident of his power, but against Tiger? No...Tiger by 8th round KO.

 

I like Steele by UD over 15. He was nearly impossible to outbox in his prime and I don't think Tiger had the firepower to stop him. Tiger hit deceptively hard (considering the small number of KO's on his record) and could use consistent pressure, but never stopped a fighter the caliber of what he'd be facing in Steele. Style wise, Tiger just doesn't match up well enough to win this one for me.