SRR vs the Fab 4

You make a good argument. I always thought Ray Robinson was a little wild at times. I was surprised to hear Jeff Mayweather say the same thing. People forget that a guy by the name of Artie Levine dropped RR for a count of 9! Some say it was a long count. I think its possible that the fight could be a fire fight with Hearns extinguishing RR or possilbly Hearns outboxing RR. We'd never know, I think Ray leonard was a little more clean and polished than RR

 

1) The Marvelous One would be a very tough fight. Robinson's hand speed, footwork, and chin would make him the superior boxer on the outside and ensure the fight goes the distance. If Hagler does not adjust to his stylistic disadvantage against Robinson on the outside, I can't see him winning more rounds than Robinson.

At midrange it gets interesting. Robinson's fluid and unconventional combinations with his hand speed will see him score against Hagler, Hagler's seamless stance switches at midrange would see him trouble Robinson. I am troubled by the memory of Hagler shelling up at times against Leonard's flurries in their fight, but as we are putting a prime Scypion or Sibson Hagler in the ring, I expect him to be sharper.
At mid range I see this as very close, perhaps shading it to Robinson.

On the inside Hagler would have a clear advantage. Hagler was a complete fighter at all ranges, while Robinson disdained staying on the inside too long. We see this against LaMotta and Basilio where Robinson would tie up and reset when pressed. Hagler's tireless offense with his metronomic body attack would see him excel at this range.

So to me, the distance the fight is fought at, who wins the middle distance exchanges, the judging preferences on body shots vs out fighting, and lastly Hagler's questionable strategy at times being the key variables.

Robinson by very competitive decision.

2) Versus SRL, Leonard's slight hand speed advantage would be nullified somewhat by Robinson's slight power advantage. Leonard's reach advantage of 1.5 inches would be negligible, making this an interesting tactical battle. I don't think Leonard can hurt Robinson, but I'm not so certain Leonard can't be hurt by Robinson. SRL's speed would see him fight on more than even terms against the SRR for long stretches. Each fighter has top tier skills in throwing combinations, but I suspect Robinson's were more dangerous due to the power and unorthodox sequence in which he threw them. I suspect Leonard would feel Robinson's power in these exchanges, and would be somewhat reticent to engage as eagerly as he would like to do once he understood the danger of that power carried in their exchanges. I think of the early rounds in Montreal and his first against Hearns, and I have to believe this cautious adjustment after feeling Robinson's power at some point would give Robinson a slight edge in ring generalship for several rounds afterwards. Robinson by close decision

3) A fight against Montreal Duran might be a fight of the decade. The stylist coupling of these two fighters would a breathtaking affair. Would Robinson be able to keep Duran off of him? I don't think so. Would Robinson's superior power to SRL make a difference in this fight? With the fight being fought on the inside on Duran's terms, I don't think so. Will the referee bring Steve Smoger or Kenny Bayless?The referee would have out of these four fights the most impact on the outcome. I'll assume a neutral referee. For Robinson to win this fight, he would have to knock Duran down (unlikely), outfight Duran inside (almost impossible), or keep Duran off of him for most of the fight where Robinson would be the superior fighter, albeit not by as wide a margin as many would think. Duran's underrated defense would make landing flush on him frustrating for Robinson, and Duran's seamless transitions from defense to offense coupled with his ability to close distance would make the skill gap on the outside less of an advantage for Robinson on the outside than the skill gap advantage on the inside for Duran. The silky smooth footwork of Robinson we see against LaMotta would serve him well in keeping Duran away for stretches, but Robinson's inside defense is not as good as Ray Leonard's and he would clinch far more than Leonard did in Montreal. I feel Duran can make this enough of an inside affair despite giving up 6 inches in reach that I'm making a controversial pick here and going with Duran by an extremely competitive decision.

4) Against Hearns I see Robinson being outboxed by Hearn's lightning fast power up jabs enjoying 5.5 inches in reach. At least until Robinson catches Hearns flush ...which he will sometimes in the mid rounds.

Robinson by brutal KO.

 

4 - 0

 

No reason to doubt Ray Robinson couldn't beat them all, probably more often than they beat him... I do however think his toughest opponent of them all, keeping' him on his toes would be Hearns.