I've only seen one film of Steele, the one against Dundee...He destroys teh former champ by knocking him down 11 times and fracturing his jaw in three places. Dundee had never been stoped before. Also kayoed Ceferino Garcia 2x, Ken Overlin, Gus Lesnevich, and Fred Apostoli. How would you rate Steele's power compared to other middleweight greats?
Sure looks to have been pretty big, and his contemporaries seemed to be pretty much in agreement that it was. I'd say his power was probably comparable to any big puncher you could name at that weight.
Massive puncher. Many historians will wax about his power at length. The film I've seen of him backs that up. Also, only fighter to ever knock down the titanium jawd Gorilla Jones.
How many films of this guy exist? I have never seen any but have always been amazed by the man's record. It's damned impressive. Is there video on line?
Have to remember that Steele started fighting pro at the age of 15 or 16. He literally fought in almost every weight class from 105 to 160, so of course he wasn't going to be a knockout king as a green, barely past puberty teenager.
I have his fight with Lesnevich, and highlights vs. Apostoli on tape. The Dundee fight is out there, but I've never gotten around to getting it yet. I've also seen clips of his title winning fight vs. Risko, but I don't know where or how much of it is out there.
