Prime Hvy Holyfield vs Havanna Willard, 45 rounds

It is not a bodybuilding contest.

Yes Dempsey hit harder than Holyfield, in fact a lot harder.

He also hit harder than Valuev.

Power is a neuromuscular thing.

 

you act like you got punched in the face by both?
holyfield knocked down more proven chins like tyson,bowe,mercer....
he was also heavier about 20 lbs if not more...isn't bodybuilding but the size difference is evident,especially considering that dempsey was a lightheavyweight juding by his weight

 

Holyfield was a hurtful puncher, but he generally relied on attrition to stop people.

With Dempsey it was an accomplishment if you made it out of the fourth round.

Anybody that he could hit, was road kill very quickly, regardless of size or durability.

He actually did much better against super-heavyweights than Mike Tyson did!

 

I doubt Willard would last more than 8 or 9 rounds.
Holyfield would butcher him. Target practice all the way.

 

Where do you get the figure of 8 or 9 rounds from?

The only people who really stopped Willard were Dempsey and Firpo.

Whatever you think of these guys, they were both helacious punchers.

It seems that your prediction involves a few assumptions.

 

Holyfield was one of the most accurate combination punchers in history. One of the best I've seen anyway.
Willard was not hard to hit.
Holyfield would go at him like target practice.
8 or 9 rounds is how long I think Willard could withstand it, that's me giving him a lot of credit - which he's earned, btw. If he lasts longer, I can't see it being much longer.

 

There are very few heavyweights who I would advise to go after Willard early in a long fight.

Even Dempsey gave up trying to get Willard out of there early when he came out for the second round, but by then the damage had been done.

Holyfield was a punishing hitter, but was he really enough of a finisher to break Willard down in 8 or nine rounds?

I would have serious doubts.

I would add that Willard was not that easy to hit, simply by virtue of his height and reach.

 

Holyfield knocks him out inside of 6 rounds.

 

So, the fight is scheduled for 45 rounds? Is anyone going to tell Holyfield about this or is he going to be surprised with it right after Buffer says, "let's get ready to RUMBLE"? My point? Holyfield knows it's a 45 round fight and would train for a 45 round fight, no problem, don't expect any stamina issues.

 

Jess Willard won a fight that lasted longer than 12 rounds just once, KO26 Jack Johnson. Evander Holyfield fought past the 12th round once as well, W15 Dwight Muhammad Qawi in just his 12th pro fight.

 

This. If Holyfield were to fight for 45 rounds, he'd be ready more than anyone. However, he KO's Willard inside 10 rounds, no need for 45

 

Holyfield might well be able to get himself ready for a 20+ round fight, there is a but though......

He would have to train for endurance, which would mean that he probably comes in lighter, thus increasing Willard's weight advantage.

He would also have to fight at a more measured pace, which makes all this talk of six or ten round stoppages seem more far fetched.

 

Jess Willard lost a 20 round decision and stopped Johnson in the 26th round. He went past the 10th round only 5 times and he lost two of those fights.

20 KO wins in 34 fights, he was not a huge puncher. 3 KO losses... Firpo LKOby8, Dempsey LKOby3, and he quit vs. Joe Cox LKOby5 early in his career. Some of you are acting like he was always prepared to go 45 rounds, he wasn't. He was often overweight and most of his fights were scheduled for 10 rounds.

 

Holyfield went past the 10th round 19 times and was still doing it at nearly 50 years old. At age 46 he boxed circles around the 7' 320 Lb. Valuev (who also has an 85" reach) for 12 rounds without even getting tired. What's the big big issue here? This isn't Bowe or Lewis, it isn't even old versions of Foreman or Holmes... it's just Jess Willard.