Sugar Ray Robinson vs. Joey Maxim (No heat wave)

My Dad told me of this fight, and I read the autobiography of Sugar Ray Robinson. I feel that if there was no high heat, humidity that night that Robinson would have cruised his way to a unanimous decision victory over Joey Maxim and the Light Heavyweight Title. If he had defended that title, future bouts against Archie Moore or a young Floyd Patterson could have happened, even Patterson in an interview admitted this.

 

Have to go with Ray by a comfortable decision. And this time the ref finishes the fight as well. Jack 'Doc' Kearns was Maxim's manager and in his autobiography "The Million Dollar Gate" he claims that he used the heat as part of their strategy. He wore a heavy sweater that night and when Maxim commented on the heat, Kearns snapped "It was hotter than this for Dempsey in Toledo! Look at this sweater I'm wearing." He further claimed that he told Maxim to hold back and let Robinson do most of the work. Not until near the end did he tell Maxim to step up the pressure. He also said that if the heat had not been so intense that he would have craftily designed another strategy. Be that as it may, Kearns was well renowned for his con games and while reading his book could not help but think that he was conning the readers sometimes. Even giving Kearns the benefit of the doubt, without the heat and Maxim applying more pressure earlier, Joey picks up a few more rounds but Ray still wins the fight and the title.

As lightheavy champion, Ray is immediately confronted with the same problem as his last few predecessors - Archie Moore. Again drawing from Kearns' account, when selling a Maxim fight to Robinson, Kearns told Ray that Maxim "couldn't knock your grandmother's hat off. This is your best chance, because if you don't take the fight sooner or later we're gonna have to fight Moore and he'll win the title. Then if you challenge Moore for the title you won't stand a chance unless they let you carry a meat cleaver into the ring." Plenty of con in this statement, sure, but have to agree that Moore would always be problematic for Ray. In fact, I don't see Ray continuing his ring career as a light heavyweight for long. He may have a rematch with Maxim and make a couple easy title defenses before considering Moore. Besides being a brilliiant ring technician, Robinnson was also a shrewd businessman. It has been said that people would rather fight him than negotiate terms with him for a fight. It has also been said that he was ring royalty and he knew it. And when he was in the driver's seat he knew it. He also seemed to be very much aware of what he could and could not do. As intriguing as a Robinson-Moore fight may be, I would expect that Robinson's terms would be such that no agreement could be reached and the fight would never happen, much like the highly anticipated Robinson-Basilio III middleweight title fight which never happened.

It is worth noting that Robinson retired (for the first time) a few months after the Maxim fight. To my knowledge, he never sought a rematch with Maxim nor did he challenge Moore for the title after the latter won the title from Maxim and held it for nearly ten years. Robinson finished his long career in 1965 as a middleweight, as I believe he would have done if he had won the light heavweight title and held it briefly before going back to middle.

 

Yep, Sugar man gets a verdict over Joey. Not sure if he hangs around after that tho. Probably drops back to Middle as he did.
But if he did an he takes a fight with Moore?
I see Sugar up on the cards, till at least the sixth, then old Archie begin s to do his best work.
Ray s still dangerous, landing excellent hooks on Moore but it doesn't stop him from getting in there.
I don't see Sugar lasting beyond the twelve here. Moore wouldn't need the heat to Ko Ray.

 

Archie Moore has what it takes to take what the great Sugar Ray Robinson could dish out, and you did call it right my friend.

 

Robinson W15.

I don't think he stays at 75 unless a favorable matchup is presented.

 

Maxim looked helpless against Ray. He could not hurt him he could not outbox him so with no heat he just losses. Joey never impressed me on film he has a good resume no doubt but he really isn't the tactical genius he is imagined to be.

 

You can pencil Robinson in as the winner for this one.

 

I think the outcome would have very likely favored Robinson. Another question is how would it have improved his resume had he won the light heavy title. As it stands he’s already viewed by many as p4p the best ever

 

If my aunt had a set she would be my uncle.

Joey deserves a lot of credit for this victory.

 

I don’t think anyone is denying that. But it doesn’t hurt to ask what if questions. Makes for Good conversation

 

Maxim was a damn heavyweight cruiserweight who liked to jab and run. He adapted an atypical pressure style to force Sugar Ray into exhaustion. He would just revert to his spoiler crap and win anyway. Sugar was surrending too many physical advantages against a dude that could deal with quality heavies.

 

So how come a pale white guy like Maxim able to take the heat and humidity so much better than Robinson? Or has it been a kinda red herring that's become a part of boxing folklore but the truth is that Maxim simply had far better conditioning and endurance and wore Robinson down?