A poster stated in this thread that "Jack Dempsey would beat the **** out of AJ." Could the Dempsey that devastated Willard This content is protected Defeat the similar sized Anthony Joshua This content is protected Or is AJ a step too far for Dempsey?
Willard was just a big dude, he was a horrible boxer with regards to technique. Dempsey would get KO'd by AJ within a couple of rounds. Too much of a size difference.
Comparing athletes from different Eras is quite disingenuous. Boxing relatively was at it's infancy when Dempsey was fighting. Fighters back then had very few resources to rely on in preparation for their bout compared to modern fighters. If I"m 6"6 today and want to get into boxing but don't know how to accord myself as boxer, I can go to youtube watch several videos of Lennox Lewis, Wladimir Klitscho or Anthony Joshua for that matters. I can learn vicariously through these men's mistakes but earlier fighters can't do the same due to fighting relatively at the early stage of the sports. Fighters back then pretty much had to figure things out as they went. I don't know if I make any sense but I hope you got the idea.
The Dempsey Roll would give AJ fits. Dempsey was relentless when he got man in trouble. You look at how fatigued AJ became after getting knocked down by Wlad, JD would be all over him. JD would have a significant hand speed advantage and is quicker on his feet than AJ, JD could box as well as Brawl so he could very well be a stylistic nightmare for AJ. AJ would do far better than Willard, I could see him getting Dempsey deep into the fight by using his jab, and trying to control range vs the shorter fighter but could AJ actually stop Dempsey? I just can't see it, Dempsey was only stopped once in his entire career, which was a disputed early first round KO where Dempsey claimed Flynn took advantage of the customary touching of gloves by throwing a right hayemaker to the jaw instead of touching gloves which resulted in the KO. AJ's height advantage could work against him here, Dempsey's bobbing and weaving I think would frustrate AJ trying to land on somebody so low to the ground, and Dempsey could get inside tight on AJ and start the Dempsey roll and AJ would be trying to push off or holding his arms to stop the Dempsey roll. I'd expect a lot of clinches and many looping rubber band style hooks from Dempsey which could catch AJ. AJ would have to time Dempsey with the right hand and try to land a big shot. Dempsey was hard to hit cleanly and get him in trouble. Now, Prime Tyson I think would dispatch of Dempsey as Tyson's style was a variant of the Dempsey roll and Prime Tyson's hand speed and power would be too much for Dempsey. But styles make fights and I think Dempsey would give AJ a lot of problems.
There is actually a better chance that Joshua KO's a tag-team of Dempsey and Willard inside 2 rounds than Dempsey being any competitive with AJ.
Almost 60lbs weight advantage, 5 inch height advantage, 5 inch reach advantage...Dempsey doesn't stand a chance in hell against Joshua. We just saw Okolie man-handle Chamberlain, and there's a much lesser advantage in weight, height and reach there. Joshua is a yeti, Dempsey is a human in comparison. Joshua will slap him all over the ring and knock him out in 3 or 4 rounds....
people still don't understand that the dempsey that fought willard was possibly the most aggressive fighter of all time, he oozed rage. and willard alone was 2x the man that all boxers are today.