Muhammad Ali vs Igor Vysotsky

Your icon and poignant observation that a 15rd fighter has a distinct advantage over a 3rd amateur really brought alot to the conversation, thank you for pointing out realities that me nor anyone else in here would have realized without your brilliant comments.

MagnaNasakki thanks for sharing your experience. Top HW amateurs like Biggs, Harrison, Mazykyn have obviously been busts as pros and not been capable of adapting. That successful transition isn't a guarentee as history has provided us with countless examples.

It wasn't specifically stated in the OP but this is obviously a fantasy fight in which case i, like most i imagine, tend to suspend certain realities. A successful transition is assumed and the style matchup is the focus although we know that transition isn't a guarantee. Especially when discussing fighters from the past who were unable to go pro due to Communism.

 

Vyotsky ko'd Teofilio Stevenson in one fight. Him and Ali were both holding back there in that film. If he had come to Amercia in 1974 when he was gettin gto his beat he would have been title contender at least

 

Good to see you coming to your senses.

 

Vysotsky is good, but a bit overrated.Mitch Green said he was the toughest fighter he ever fought in the ring, but hinted that the nourishment was lacking in Russia, and that everyone on the US team lost.Both Page and Angel Milan beat him, so he wasn't invincible, as did Jimmy Clark the first time they fought.

 

That Eurotard is hilarious

 

Not everything is about the Americans.....the Americans are not, nor ever were the best.....not when there's nearly 200 nations

 

Lmao hi igor

 

Not sure why this topic got brought up after all this time, but the real post to look at would be this one, from 2011.

 

What do you mean by "the nourishment was lacking in Russia"?....do you mean it in the literal sense, like a food and nutritional deficit?

 

Igor's biggest problem was he cut too easy....and for a guy that only fought 3 rounders that's not a good a sign


Clark "beat him" on cuts....but vysotsky wasn't losing the fight....Igor outright win the rematch of course

The page fight was a controversial split decision that didn't seem to be the consensus among those that saw it.....especially seeing as the fight was in his opponents backyard

Honestly I think he gets underrated in the sense that people only talk about him in two ways....
That he He knocked out tubbs and teofilo and that solely what's rating him
.....And 2, that he was a middling top level amateur to the russians(he was only the Russian champ once) who proved Stevenson wouldn't have been able to hang with the pros or have any shot against Ali in their proposed match

Regardless his career was cut short/hindered by his cut problem and his working career more so than his lack of ability

The fact that he wasn't even the most dominant heavyweight in Russia is the more telling info to me in regards to Russian boxing today and of yesteryear when the opposition was of a supposed higher quality...also I saw the Vegas meet between the Soviets and American (on abc I believe) back in the day, and was struck by the Soviets style which was a bit ahead of its time and more closely resembled today's modern style

And I'm not even joking about how much cuts literally hindered his ability....when he would do a tournament and get cut in day the opening round, he would have to completely alter his style and the way he fought, which cost him matches....in the headgear era he probably would have been less susceptible to this problem though