As Ruben Carter was a thunderous middleweight puncher as Florentino Fernandez and Emile Griffith would attest, And Davey Moore was a LT MIDDLE who usually took more then a few to get untracked, i do not think that this is much of a Head-Scratcher !
I always thought that Carter himself was more of a light middleweight. He weighed anywhere from 154 to 157 in his best performances. Davey Moore at his best had a good punch of his own and a solid chin but few could take it from Carter. Moore's lack of defense will cost him. Moore KO's credible contenders Gary Guiden and Charlie Weir: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKTzFrq_AC4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emMo0J-I-6k http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjH_eIf9eHA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SS1MJa7wDZ0 'Hurricane' Carter's first round KO's of Emile Griffith and Florentino Fernandez: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgDxA78CJho http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0LQ5EXSNXI
Moore would get in some good shots, but as someone said earlier, his porous defense will eventually cost him.
Moore burned very bright very early, and needless to say, was very talented.. His prime was short, and as already mentioned, had some flaws that never went fully corrected.. Would Moore's defense always cost him against a puncher of Carter's magnitude? Maybe.. I tend to think that it would take someone of world class ability to capitalize on his weaknesses, and not just a good contender with a big punch, which Carter was more or less. I can certainly see Mike McCallum or Julian Jackson making short work of Davey Moore, but I'm not entirely convinced that Carter could do the same.. I suppose if both men got into an early exhange, and abandoned any sort of actual fight plan, then anything can happen.. Carter sure as hell wasn't supposed to do what he did to Emile Griffith, but it happened nonetheless... In defense of Moore however, he was a TRUE world class fighter, whereas Rubin was briefly a contender, so my loyalty has to go with Moore, but with little conviction...
Moore probably wouldn't have been top 5 in the mid 60's middleweight division, which Carter was, although for a brief period in time. Just too much tough opposition around those days, which burned Carter out quick.
You make a good point that the middle weight division was a treacherous body of water to be swimming in back in the 60's... No question about it.. The other thing that just came to mind, is that there was NO light middle weight class, so anyone who would benefit from the addition of such a class later, would have to find a way to make due back in the old days.... Some of them might fair well, while others maybe not so much.... As for your point about Rubin Carter burning out from constantly fighting top talent, it might be true to some extent, but I don't think that all the men he was losing to, were top flight guys... Something tells me that even though he might have done better in some other eras, his inconsistency and limitations in certain areas, would always keep him from reaching the very top..
I don't think Moore had developed enough as far as his ring-generalship and defensive ability goes. he was a serious offensive talent, but liked to get into wars, and Carter at his best was a more developed, rounded fighter than him...with the power and chin to seriously punish Davey. Carter declined after the Giardello fight largely because of his mentality outwith the ring, he was very good fighter before that and a few rungs higher up the ladder than Moore development wise.
