Opinions on Sonny Liston

Liston was slow...cumbersome...and he was sorely lacking in the "Heart" department! Lousy title run....s**t himself in the 2 biggest fights of his career in front of the whole world in 1964 and 1965.....and once he tasted his own blood in his fight against Leotis Martin on national TV in December 1969...he was done! As champ he was nothing! VERY overrated...This is the guy who destroys Dempsey...Louis...and Marciano? You REALLY need to do research before asking these questions! I lived threw this time...met Liston in November 1964 in Plymouth Ma while training for his "Dive"....I mean...his "fight" with Ali in May 1965. You young guys seem to think that Liston was unbeatable...why?...who the hell knows!

 

The Johnson match was in mid '69, and that size difference of his didn't mean much when he was basically done at that point.

 

Both Ray Arcel and Emaunel Steward had GLOWING praise for Liston! Their testimony alone is plenty good enough for me!! (We're talking guys who had been in the fight game for DECADES and probably forgot more about boxing in a day than I would know in about 100 lifetimes!!)

 

Sonny Liston is known for beating 180 pound Floyd Patterson and Cleveland Wiliams. In no world does that make you a ATG. You will hear other people say but other people said he was. Opinions are opinions, we all have them. I live in the world of facts though. Liston never beat anybody who is a legit heavyweight worth mentioning besides Williams. Then you realize Williams was knocked out in 1 round by Bob Satterfield a 160 to 175 pound guy.

If Liston beating Patterson makes him a ATG then Ike Ibeabuchi is a ATG because he beat Chris Byrd. David Tua is ATG becasue he beatt John Ruiz (Ruiz was champion before). Wait Buster Douglas beating Mike Tyson, Oliver McCall, and Greg Page are fare more impressive wins than Liston beating 180 pound Patterson and Cleveland Williams.

There are 2 group of boxing fans. The ones who believe everything from the past is better and the ones who believe everything now is better. Liston is one of those guys who gets put on a pedestal for doing nothing really. Liston wasn't ATG. He was a guy who won the title in a weak era where most guys were sub 200 pounds and then lost it to Ali

 

He was done but he chose fighting bums instead good fighters unlike Louid,Holyfield,Foreman,Holmes,Lewis,Klitchkos...at that age.

 

you are vastly underrating his resume


Floyd Patterson 2x
Cleveland Williams 2x
Eddie Machen
Zora Folley
Nino Valdes
Mike DeJohn
Roy Harris
Johnny Summerlin 2x
Wayne Bethea
Henry Clark
Billy Hunter
Marty Marshall 2x


Most of these men were highly rated and in their primes, some were excellent boxers others huge punchers. Liston is the only fighter in history to knockout a prime hall of fame champion twice in 1 round

 

Common marciano fan. “Heart” cant get you far if you have no idea what your doing. Also he had his jaw broken and fought for several rounds. Seems he had quite good heart to me.

He would kill all of them.

 

Prime Sonny Liston, if a genie could conjure up the match, could if he was so inclined … and he was a mean MF and could easily have been so inclined … kill your hero in the ring. I mean leave him convulsing in his death throes with his heart and breathing stopped.

 

Cute, just because you name names you think that will change something? Most of the guys you named weren't heavyweights by modern standards. Lol Marty Mashall was a 180 pound guy, Billy Hunter was a nobody, The fact that you think naming these guys proves Liston was a ATG tells me all I need to know about you.

 

Well I do agree with that. Tunney would destroy Liston, Marciano and Louis. 3 guys who were far more overrated than Liston was.

 

Liston defeated Marshall in his 7th pro fight, Marshall was a ring magazine top 10. How many heavyweight champions defeated a ranked contender in their 7th pro fight?

billy Hunter was ranked in the top 5 months prior to facing Liston. Hunter was 6’3 and had skills

how convenient of you to leave out illustrious names of the era Patterson 2x Williams 2x Machen folley Dejohn Valdes Harris

 

Liston would destroy Liston? I reckon it would be a close fight either way.

 

The poster got so caught up in his trollery …

 

Cleary I meant 170 pound Gene Tunney

 

Yes. Gene Tunney sounds and is spelt similar to Sonny Liston. Completely understandable mix up.