After causing problems for Marciano in the early going,Spinks succumbs to Rocky's bigger firepower,anytime after the eighth round or so.
Rocky would find it hard to get to grips with Spinks' style and he would get outboxed for large periods, but Marciano was a vicious puncher with really good inside work. He would take what he had to take and put a lot of mental pressure on Spinks. Rocky catches up to Michael and stops him late whilst behind on the cards. His chin, punching power and ability to throw power punches from a crouching position would see him pull it out. This could look like Foster/Frazier but much more competitive, as Spinks wouldn't fight Marciano in the pocket until he was forced to later in the fight.
It's a pick em fight ... a prime Spinks is better than anyone Rocky fought ... he had speed and stamina to move for a full 15 rounds as he proved against a prime Qwai ... if he traded with Rocky he would lose but who knows if Rocky catches him ... good match up ..
I did not say he was better than them although he may have been ... I said he was better than the versions Rocky fought.
You must really hate Spinks. Peak Spinks is a lot better than Old Charles & Old Walcott. Exactly, they were still very good, but not Peak Spinks good.
Shyeah, really. The only thing they did to prove they had even a modicum of legs left was go better than twelve hard rounds with a prime version of an all-time great who is renowned for his punching power, pressure and stamina. They were basically legless corpses, really.
Walcott was amazing at heavyweight. Every fight I've seen him in, he was leading on the scorecards and doing things with his hands, feet, and upperbody movement, that nobody has been able to replicate since. The atmosphere was different then though. Jersey wasn't in it to win a decision with Rocky, he was in it to knock him out. Same with Louis the second time around. It's just that sometimes you get caught. If he fought with the Mayweather or Klitschko mentality, he would have won those fights.