MODERN DAY GREATS vs OLD SCHOOL GREATS debate

Todays fighters would beat the fighters of then, because they have the possibilities available to do so. If Ali had fought now, he would still have been the best, and the same with SRR.

 

A great fighter is just that, a great fighter. It doesn't matter about era. The top boxers of today are no more skillful nor better conditioned than boxers of the past. Professional boxers in the past had already reached the apex of human potential, other sports are merely catching up As to whether Roy Jones would have beaten Billy Conn will never be known because they will never face each other in the squared circle. All we can do is compare styles and make an educated guess.

 

Is this a head to head thread or a greatness thread?

I tend to agree that they would obviously not fight as much in this era due to conditions, but that is also why most people rate the old-timers higher in ATG lists, because they simply accomplished a lot more.

In head to head terms, from about the 40's onward(with certain pioneers coming before) I believe the game hasn't changed much in terms of styles and fighters, aside from the Heavyweight division, due to size.

 

I just hate how a lot of old school boxing fans give absolutley no modern boxers a single chance against any of the old timers

 

I don't know of any on this site that extreme in favor of the old timers. However, guys like Amsterdam and many others are that extreme in favor of modern day fighters. So I'd say it's actually worse the other way around.

 

The old school fighter's from the 30's -70's were harder tougher men, they fought 15 rounder's + way more often, sometimes once a Month, on just steak and eggs, without the advanteges of modern chemicals, supplements such as Steriods, Creatine, nutrition experts, etc-etc, and they fought the best of the best:deal fighter's these day's are wussies, they build up their record beating up on Tomato Cans, just to wait for the big payday, they are afraid to lose..
The old school guy's were tougher they fought sometimes with half their face torn off, they didn't stop fight's unless a guy was half dead, these day's some ref's will stop a fight if a guy is on the ropes with a bloody nose:-(

 

robinson was notorious for being extremely difficult during negotations, and by his own admission, did not enjoy boxing and looked at it just as abusiness.

robinson, and nearly all of the greats of the past who fought often, wouldn't have fought as much in today's era with a big hbo contract.

why do u think so many hw champs of the past before louis defened their titles infrequently and fought in well-paid exhibitions instead?

 

Someone else illustrated the most important difference between old timers, and moderns in another thread recently. The poster said something like "Imagine Roger, immeditely after the Hatton fight, telling Floyd JR, Take a couple days off, and then back to the gym. We got Cotto in 3 weeks." the old timers were double tough, but I agree that if they had todays money it would be a different ball game.

Boo

 

Everyone I suspect has a favourite era and thus a bias to that era. Mine would be the 80s and perhaps early 90s. Apart from fighters in that era, I think I show little bias. Lil Floyd would beat a Journeyman (in his weight division) of the 50s the same as Robinson would beat a Journeyman today.

The one think I do not like is fighters of the 70s being considered 'old school'...

I remember some of them fighting, thus they cannot be old, because I am still young!!!!

 

He is making a push up my lists. Very overlooked fighter, but a pound for pound juggernaut. He ranks in the top 15 as of now, possibly higher, even top 10.

 

id say any fighter with 60 fights or more fought his share of tomato cans, which is exactly what a lot of old timers did. your telling me theres an old time heavyweight that could take the power of klitschko? no way, his jab would destroy them, and i know there were a few big men back in the day, but none fought big like Wlad.

 

There's the unstoppable Wlad again. atsch

 

A good fighter is a good fighter

The only huge difference is in heavyweights, they are all fat *******s these days