Oscar Bonavena vs Ken Norton

Exactly what I'm saying..Norton wouldn't be able to hold Oscar off of him..and Ken would hit the deck and freeze vs another guy who was capable of hurting him.

 

This fight was supposed to come off in 1975 but Bonavena withdrew for unknown reasons. Jimmy Young was brought in to replace Bonavena, but pulled out and was replaced by Jerry Quarry.
Norton beat Quarry.

Then Bonavena and Norton was scheduled to fight again, in 1976. But Bonavena was shot dead.

 

I'm not meaning to belittle Norton's every accomplishment but Quarry was shot basically in that fight with Kenny. I'm sure that it may have been a different situation entirely back when Quarry had more on the ball...especially the Quarry of the Spencer, Mathis, and Lyle fights...even the Quarry of the Shavers fight.

 

I think Norton would have had a very rough evening, though he may have won, vs George Chuvalo even. George didn't have the puch, the clubbing punch of Bonavena, nor the snap and speed of Quarry, but he had that great durability and cin...the "never say die" attitude that took him the distance with Ali twice. Norton may have been able to decision Chuvalo, but at a price.

 

Bonavena hits harder then Garcia and Cobb for sure. He might be a better boxer then Bonavena, but Bonavena is strong in his own right, and could certainly hurt the very dentable Norton.
Norton is overrated by that victory over Ali. Ali wasn't in shape and he expected an easy fight. Ali in the rematch won clearly IMO.
And Besides that, Norton never really beat anyone worth mentioning past Ali.

 

The outcome would depend on two factors, IMO.

1) The approach Norton takes: By this I mean the style Norton would adopt. A Norton who decided to take it to Bonavena would be in for a very rough experience. For a good chance of a win, Ken must keep to jabbing and boxing.

2) The attitude Bonavena brought to the fight: Oscar, as I am sure many would recall, tended to be up and down as far as attitude was concerned. In certain fights, he would be dogged and determined whereas in some others he tended to be disinterested. A Bonavena who came to do serious damage as he did in the early part and last round of Frazier I, Mildenberger, Chuvalo or Ali would be a bit too much for Kenny. Yes, even the version who would opt to stick to careful boxing.

 

Pretty good analogy ...