Rate the Heavyweights 1927-37

Interesting question.

I would have to say that for my money Schmeling is thge greatest.

1. Max Schmeling
2/3. Jack Sharkey/Max Baer
4. Primo Carnera
5. Tommy Loughran
6. Jimmy Braddock
7. George Godfrey
8. Young Stribling
9. Johnny Risko
10. Maxie Rosenbloom
11. Steve Hamas
12. Earnie Schaff
13. King Levinsky
14. Art Lasky

 

Tunney
Baer
Sharkey/Schmeling
Loughran
Godfrey
Gains
Braddock
Hamas
Carnera/Stribling
Risko

 

Carnera beneath Hamas, Braddock, Gains, Godfrey and Loughran?

 

Braddock had wins over
Farr
Baer
[who destroyed Carnera]
JH Lewis
Lasky
Slattery
Griffiths[who was 40-0-0]
Dropped Louis[who destroyed Carnera]

Gains wins over
Walker
Carnera[easy win ,flooring him along the way]
Mckorkindale
Renault
Scott
Godfrey
Rojas
Gorman
Schmeling
Roberti

Loughran ,wins over
Griffiths
Impelletiere
London
Ettore
Godoy
Hamas
Levinsky
Uzcudon
Sharkey
Braddock
Baer

Thats three wins over three men who held the title
AND NOT A FIX IN SIGHT!

 

Carnera had 61 fights when he fought Gains how can you call him green? atsch

 

If as you claim most of these fights were fixed then they would not have been of much value to him.

That aside:

Carnera improved after this point. It is not just Sharkey that thought so but Dempsey as well. The evidence is also available on film.

Carnera was well schooled and refined over this period.

 

In the words of Dylan you can have your cake and eat it too".I don't think so.Nice try though. So Carnera was well schooled and improved then suddenly he meets a live one in Baer ,followed by Louis and gets murdered in both ,the then twice by Leroy Haynes,,but of course he is past it now right? At29! Braddock lost his licence because he was figting with broken hands and needed the dough ,not because the mob were fixing fights for him.What evidence have you that a, Baer had broken hands? and b,that he had a fixed fight?Braddock with painkilling injections in him the day of the fight ,and suffering with arthritis gave Louis a competitive fight putting him down .Carnera was slaughtered by Louis.Primo ,after the fight being asked if he wanted a rematch, with Louis" JESU GOD NO"

 

Gains was knocked out by Godfrey in their first bout. In the second, he won on a foul, the same as Carnera. Godfrey probably lost more fights on fouls than any other major fighter. The Carnera foul win over Godfrey may well have been legit.

 

Gains won the decision over Carnera, but did he floor him? The New York Times report on the fight does not mention Carnera going down:

After stating that Gains was the sharper boxer this night, there is this comment:

"Carnera appeared hurt, however, only once. In the sixth Gains caught the Italian with two terrific rights to the jaw and the tiant went back on his heels, a look of surprise on his face."

Carnera did hurt Gains, however:

"In the seventh, a hard left sent Gains back on his heels just before the bell and in the 10th the Canadian nearly went down when Carnera connected with a right swing to the jaw."

This 10th round is on Youtube in a profile of Carnera and the film in fact shows that Gains was indeed knocked down. He appears to sit on the floor and there is no doubt at all that his right glove is on the canvas. It was a flash knockdown, though.

Carnera lost four decisions from 1930 through the Loughran fight, to Maloney, Sharkey, Gains, and Poreda. The Poreda decision was considered a robbery. Carnera defeated Maloney and Sharkey in rematches. He definitely lost to Gains but had Gains down. All the while he was beating a fair number of highly rated contenders.