He was planning a comeback but changed his mind. How do you think it goes? Please discuss. Thank you.
I favour Johansson. Marciano would be around 36 with back problems and I guess he wasn't that hungry anymore.
He decided against it, for a reason. He knew that he would never get his previous form back, or even anything that was near enough the mark.
If Marciano had decided to comeback, it probably would have been 1960 before he could have gotten in the ring with Johansson (nearly 5 years after his last fight). That would not have been a wise choice for the pressure fighting Rocky, against any active top contender, let alone the Champion.
Yes, and for a period of about a month in 1959 he did begin some serious training with the thought of coming back to fight Ingo. In the Everett Skeehan book "Rocky Marciano - Biography of a First Son" we are told that Marciano said, after meeting Ingemar, "This guy Johansson is a nothing - he doesn't even think tough!" Being very much out of condition when he started training, after a month he came to the conclusion himself that some of those closest to him had said - that he had gone too far out of condition to get back into proper fighting shape. The book makes reference to an earlier amateur bout in which Marciano was not in proper condition and was losing. In desperation he planted a knee to the groin of his opponent, resulting in a disqualification. Skeehan speculates that Marciano's memory of that time when his ill-prepared body had failed him may well have played into his decision not to pursue a Johansson bout. I feel he made the right decision. Marciano's style was such that conditioning was of crucial importance both to his work ethic and success. He would have been facing an undefeated Ingo at his best. Rocky also had back problems that could flare up at any time, rendering him helpless. His fighting heart and will to win might still be enough but it would be risky. He was wise to keep his perfect record intact and not tarnish his legacy with a loss to someone he had referred to as 'a nothing.' I would lean toward Ingo over Rocky in 1959. Interestingly, ten years later in preparing for the computer fight with Muhammad Ali, Marciano went through serious, intensive training in preparation for filming the fight scenes. The book says that he trained with an intensity such that if the staged scenes should somehow turn into a real fight, that he would win. Maybe it had to do with how the computer fight was filmed and edited together, but for what it's worth, I felt that Rocky at times looked more impressive than when he was champion.
Not well he couldn't sacrifice like he had when he was an active fighter,and Marciano without that tip top conditioning would be just another fighter.Ingo would skip away from him behind the range finding jab and land occasional crosses,The Swede wins a lopsided dec or stops Rocky on a tko late.
He was concerned the computer fight could turn real for sure! He wanted to be ready. It’s a shame he died shortly after the filming. Would have been interesting to hear his take of the 70s 80s era. But yes retiring was the rihht move. He recognized his fire was gone.
Good job he neve came back really. Ingo would have had the advantage of youth and speed, no ring rust either. Ingo busts up his face, more than likely the ref has to step in.
It was an understandable concern - kind of like a recently-retired baseball pitcher seeking some notoriety by striking out Joe DiMaggio in an Old Timer's Game. I read a report of Ali throwing a jab that picked off Marciano's hairpiece. Rocky reportedly hit Ali a body shot that knocked him down. Rocky shouted "Watch the piece! Do you want to turn this into a real fight?" Another time, after they had finished a session and were seated for a meal, Rocky said, "How about it, Ali, can I still hit hard?" Ali opened his eyes wide then unbuttoned his shirt to show a bruised mid-section. Don't know how true or accurate these stories are, but there's probably at least some truth to them. It certainly would have been interesting to hear his views on the succeeding generations of fighters. I enjoyed listening to him talk. He talked with a sincere, straightforward authoritative tone that showed great insight. It was a great tragedy that we lost The Rock far too soon.
I doubt Ali purposely knocked off Rocky's toupee. All reports suggested it was securely fastened. Plus they were genuinely fond of one another. Ali attended his funeral
Um Marciano didn't like Ali and Ali couldn't careless about Marciano. Going to somebody funeral could be just the respectful thing to do. Before Marciano did Ali flat out stated that no little 180 pound guy could beat him. Then after Marciano died he was respectful and said Marciano could of been a good fight. Now sad little Marciano fans try to use that as justification that Marciano could beat modern sized heavyweights
Marciano won the fight based on the projection, but the affinity between the two men at a time in history when racial tensions were running high is what resonates with his brother. “The respect they had for each other was something to behold,” said Peter . “This was genuine respect.” The pair were even planning to embark on a tour of the United States, using their own friendship as a vessel to abate racial angst. But sadly, Marciano died in a plane crash not long after they struck up their bond. https://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2018/10/17/peter-marciano/ Throughout filming Ali referred to Marciano as 'champ'. And in his autobiography he wrote: "Rocky was quiet, peaceful, humble, not cocky or boastful" adding that he "deserves his place as one of the greatest of the great heavyweights. Marciano, meanwhile, called Ali "the fastest man on wheels". "But as the fraud came near an end, it was plain that neither of us, both heavyweight champions, liked the idea of being dramatized as defeated by the other – especially in a fake fight – and we were both on edge," admitted Ali. "One afternoon I unleashed a string of lightning-fast jabs that kept coming almost the entire round. Rocky was amazed and said: "I never seen a fighter with hands that fast." The pair separated on good terms. A month later Marciano was dead when the three-seater plane he was travelling in from Chicago to Des Moines crashed into an oak tree in the middle of a cornfield. It was the evening before his 46th birthday. https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2012/nov/13/forgotten-story-rocky-marciano-muhammad-ali
From what I read Ali playfully kept slapping at the hair piece to which Marciano responded with a shot to the gut lol. Was mostly fun from what I read. They went from disliking each other to having a mutual respect and maybe would have been a good friendship had Rocky not died a month later
You're right. I read two different accounts of the toupee incident . One where it was inadvertent and one where it was deliberate. That being said from all accounts they became friends and had a fondness for one another with both saying they had doubts they could beat the other. Rocky said I don't know if I could have beat him but I would have liked to have tried and Ali said Rocky would have presented an even greater challenge than Frazier who actually beat him.