Rocky Marciano vs Max Schmeling

If Schmeling can beat a young Joe Louis, he could beat Marciano. Would he? I'd have Max as the clear underdog though.

 

A lot of people initially think that Marciano gets him after he wears him down but what they don't know is that Schmeling's stamina was as about as good as Marciano's, with announcers and writers remarking on how well he kept his speed and power in the late rounds. ("Schmeling has all his well known stamina" ~ recording from first Louis fight)
At 192 lbs 6"1, Max won't be easily bullied and outsized, and with his footwork, defence and counter punching, Marciano will struggle with his sweeping blows.
Louis could not for the life of him get Schmeling with a clean hook or cross in 1936, it was just the jabs landing. In the rematch he had to tighten his punches to get through Max's guard, Marciano would never be able to match the speed, power and combinations of a 1938 Louis to crack Schmeling (hell, he can't even match 1936 Louis in combinations and precision).
I believe Max wears him down slowly for a tko in round 15. His right will be landing consistently, and his cross guard and head movement will keep him mostly safe from Marciano's uppercuts and overhands. He was as big as Walcott and an even better fighter, so win or lose, Marciano will have his toughest night yet.
That being said, if Schmeling has a Baer or Hamas 1 like performance, Marciano gets a UD.

 

If Schmeling fights Marciano like he fought Baer he's getting slept.

 

This. Marciano’s work rate & dirty tactics will disrupt Schmeling’s early success timing & counter-punching. Late stoppage in a competitive battle.

 

Marciano but he'll have to work for it. Peak Max Schmeling was a pretty stout prize fighter.

 

For almost any fighter under 200 pounds Marciano was both an irresistible force and an immovable object. He would hunt down Schmeling in plain sight, both fighters knowing exactly what Rocky was doing and neither being able to stop it. Because Rocky could only do what he did and there is little Max could do about it. KO9.

 

The one time where you pick Marciano to win. Fascinating!

 

??? I have no problem with Marciano. I just think he's a difficult guy to evaluate.

 

This, because I think he represents "something" to people ... and it's probably different "somethings" to different people ... that transcends boxing to where there's almost a cult of adoration or personality that has grown up around him.

And I don't mean that to denigrate him, I've said repeatedly that I have him No. 5 on my ATG list because of what he did accomplish against the people who were placed in front of him in the ring, even though I think the number of other ATGs who would probably whip him is in double figures. And that's not an oxymoron because my ATG list doesn't depend totally on H2H matchups.

 

Rocky (swarmer) 5'10, 68' reach, 188 lbs

vs

Max Schmeling (boxer/counter puncher) 6'1, 76 reach, 192 lbs

Power: Rocky
Hand speed: Max
Chin: Rocky
Stamina: Rocky
Footwork: Max
Body shots: Rocky
Technique: Max
Accuracy: Max
Combinations: Rocky
Defense: Max
Ring IQ: Max
Timing: Max
Experience: Even
Finishing ability: Rocky
Heart: Rocky

7-1-7 Pretty even set of skills/overall ability

Awkward night for both men. That's probably what the judges and commentators would say at the end.

Rocky is bringing the obvious and visible stuff: power, toughness, work rate, etc. Max is bringing the subtle stuff in boxing brains and speed. As a counter puncher, Max would want to have a little bit of distance between him and the Brockton brawler so that he can pick his shots carefully and impress the judges. For Rocky, the closer he is the better and he'd be applying pressure every minute of every round.

This is a war over the pace and range. Max has superb timing, accuracy, a good jab, good lead right, and decent defense. In addition to all of that, Max is slightly taller with a significant reach advantage. So despite how good Rocky was at applying pressure and taking a good punch, he would go through hell having to get close and fight his fight at his preferred range every round. Max would sting him with jab, move laterally, time him with sharp right hand counters, and ties Rocky up to slow the pace down or goes in his guard.

Rocky would do everything in his power to stay in the fight. Throw body shots to slow Max down, punch at his guard, go for dual exchanges, eating 2-3 shots to land one of his own, etc. By round 7, both guys are pretty banged up. Max is up 5 rounds to 2, it had to earn every round. Max's boys is bright red and bruised from all the body shots, as is his arms covered in welts and knicks from Rocky hammering away at his guard. Rocky on the other hand has a swollen left eye from eating dozens of jabs and even his amazing stamina and work rate have gone down a bit from running into so many counters.

Round 8, and Rocky is being belted before throwing a sloppy wild punch but gets clipped by a solid right hand counter from Max that has Rocky fall to one knee. This certainly isn't what the crowd expected. Rocky is more mentally damaged than badly hurt, but he knows not to be reckless and is feeling it a little in his jaw. Max just takes his time to let the round play out knowing he's firmly ahead.

Round 9 and Max is moving around the ring patiently boxing while Rocky sticks to short, crisp combos up close, otherwise he doesn't do anything crazy so he can recover from his damage. Round 10 and a slightly rejuvenated Rocky slams into Max from the opening bell like a freight train. He throws crashing hooks to the hips, belts Max's body just above the belt line, and attempts huge bombs to the head. Max's guard can barely remain intact before it gets blasted open. Rocky then uses a gazelle punch up the middle through a narrow gap just as Max attempts to hide in his shell again. Max's head is snapped back by the first major punch to tjr head he receives and he goes down hard.

Max has a cut lip and makes the count at 7 on unsteady legs. Rocky attempts to finish with a ferocious barrage, but Max puts up a tight guard. Finally, Max lands a counter in between the barrages and now Rocky is hurt. They stare each other down and the round ends. Round 11 and the two fighters get tangled up many times in clinches. Both are gasping for air. Max is more than happy to do this as he's still ahead despite then knockdown. Rocky attempts to create space shoving the German and going for
body shot but Max simply uses his fleet footwork to move away corner to corner.

Round 12 and both fighters have recovered a bit. Max is not fond of mixing it up with the slugger and starts jabbing and waiting for opportunities again. However, at this point Rocky is starting to get the hang of Max's timing and finds himself able to close the distance faster and faster with each round. Rocky can now step in and time Max's jabs with looping lefts or rights to the head--stunning the German. Max ties up and Rocky logs in a winning round. Round 13 and once again Rocky can storm out the ring and Max and the audience are wondering where this sudden surge of energy came from. Max is caught in the middle of a thunderstorm of blows against the ropes and his legs are gone. As he did in round 8, Max attempts to time and counter Rocky between barrages. Rocky makes a feint, and adjusts to land a Suzie Q right hand to the face and Max goes down for the 2nd time in the fight.

Max's face is distorted as he goes down hard. However, he's barely managing to get up at 9. Just as Rocky is about to swarm all over him, the bell rings causing the audience to sigh, but they applaud Max's guts. Round 14 and the two fighters are absolutely exhausted. Even Rocky cannot believe his opponent is still conscious and now he has bad cuts above the eyes and a smashed nose, forcing Rocky to blink and breathe out his mouth. Charlie Goldman gives Rocky a serious glance that spoke figure this out or I'm stopping it. Max, meanwhile looks as if he was jumped and beaten by guys with clubs having welts all over and a huge imprint from the Suzie Q on the left side of his face. His eyes still slightly glazed, but firmly fixed on his short but mighty opponent.

The two fighters start round 14 slow, but steady. They are now very wary of each other knowing both have the tools to take each other out. Rocky only has one way: forward and ferocious. He takes the initiative while Max studies Rocky's pace trying to find the right time to lash back. Rocky throws dozens of short, compact, heavy blows but only maybe 1/3 of them are landing and most are being blocked. He just doesn't have the energy to overwhelm Max as he did before. Max is jabbing, tying up, and redirecting Rocky as much as he can, but this plan won't work forever. Rocky wins the round due to being busier. It should be roughly 9 rounds to 7 with Max having 1 knockdown, Rocky having 2. The final round is absolutely crucial.

Round 15 and now Max has recovered enough to use all his tools once again, albeit not as sharp as before. Max is making Rocky look foolish with good timing, counters, and defense, but Rocky doesn't let up. Rocky becomes more and more desperate as he gets pelted by jabs and counters with blood gushing from his nose. There is a clash of heads at the halfway point as Rocky is being very wild and rough hoping something lands and both men are cut. The doctor examens both and says things are looking bad but he'll allow a little bit more action. Max times Rocky with a solid 1-2. Rocky falls to the canvas as he can barely see out either eye and is stumbling about clumsily. Rocky gets to his feet and then something snaps inside of him seeing 30 seconds left on the clock. He empties the kitchen sink: jabs, uppercuts, body shots, right crosses, flurries, every punch he ever threw at the heavy bag is unleashed on Max. Very few punches are landing due to his wild they are, but the ones that do cause Max to go down like a Jenga tower. Rocky also goes down from the momentum of his own barrage and is completely gassed.

A confused ref counts for both men. Rocky and Max both get up and just lean into each other shoulder to shoulder throwing arm punches with no snap on them until the final bell rings.

Rocky wins a split decision. He has PTSD flashbacks to the first Walcott and Lastarza fights.

This fight was pretty hard to envision, but I think it could go either way if both are at their best. In a best of 3, I think Max Schmeling definitely gets the better of Rocky at least once.

 

Excellently detailed & a very plausible outcome.

 

I just think Max would counter Rocky to death with that right hand

 

I disregard head-to-head entirely in rankings, personally. That’s theory, results are practice. That makes Marciano a top-10 all-timer, but yeah, he’s in front of some guys who would damn near kill him in my view

 

He would. The question is, for how long? All night, or would he come up short down the line.