Prime Holyfield vs Prime Liston

Holyfield would be my favorite in this fight.....

 

I just get the sense that Liston was more denser as a heavyweight-just a bit more bony.

 

Probably right.

 

We all have to grow up eventually.

I was just fighting it.


... Liston's still overrated though.

 

I, the classy one say, "I'm w/ you on that oh my brother". Liston wipes out the overrated Holyfield inside of 6. Liston was the real REAL DEAL. Holy had trouble in his prime w/ an old Foreman and an old Holmes. As Liston it took the best of Ali to beat him. As Liston said :ass

 

No more than Liston did with Machen, Marshall, or Whitehurst.

No, the best of Ali didn't appear until about 3 years later. As Liston it took only a young and green Ali that still showed much room for improvement against Jones and Cooper to beat him (twice) - that, and Marty Marshall.

 

You guys are really milking that Marty Marshall loss for multiple times of what is was worth in th big picture ... Liston was without question for real and remained so till his mid thirties ...

 

But a wide decision win over Foreman is something to be criticized for?

 

.Sober now.
I don't think this comparison is valid.
When Liston fought Machen,Machen was in the top 3 heavies ,and 28 years old.
Whitehurst was 26 years old and finished the fight half out of the ring saved by the bell having taken a count of 7 before the bell rang,to stop the round, and save him from a ko 1954.
Marshall was 31 ,Liston was having his 7th fight, when he lost a dec to him and fought with a broken jaw after the 4th rd.
Rematched in Liston's 14th fight Marshall only managed to draw the 1st rd as Sonny scored a shutout in the others.

Evander was in his prime, the Champion fighting 2 ,42 year old men in Foreman and Holmes, big difference.

 

Exactly.

Then throw in the next Holyfield title defense, Bert Cooper. That was supposed to be another easy win for Evander. Next was Bowe. Hardly an easy nights work in any of those fights & anyone following the sport back then knew Holyfield was not the type guy that was going to have a long title reign. He was a guy that was going to get beat.

 

Yeah, then there's Liston's extraordinarily long title reign to consider...

 

Liston was past prime when he won the title, and he lost it to the consensus number 1 heavyweight of all time.
How long would Holyfield's reign have been ,if he had met Ali in his second defence, been in his mid to late 30's and had three actual rounds of boxing in 3 years?

When you rate Liston ,you have to look at what he acheived BEFORE becoming champ imo,rather like Jack Johnson.

 

I do, McVey. But I was pointing that sarcastically at someone who clearly isn't taking Holyfield's career under any context either.