The actual skill level of Jim Braddock

If you really believe that then I think you need to start looking at more papers (and maybe actual fights too)!

 

Yeah, the wrestler's bridges and such.

And that's the funny thing; the main book I refer to for strengthening the neck to avoid concussions only believes in relatively light resistance anyway. (For safety.) Things like lateral neck raises using gravity, isometric exercise, and yoga ball type stuff. It's not like you're going to lift a zillion pounds with your neck. So there may not be much difference between then and now.

 

It occurs to me that they've been measuring necks enough throughout boxing history that you might see whether the modern guys built bigger ones.

 

OK Lasky was ranked #3 by Ring Magazine, when Braddock beat him.

What of Tua's wins do you think equaled this, or possibly even exceeded it, given the standing of the opponent at the time?

Not who do you think would win head to head, who was a more qualified opponent.

 

TBH, I'm not convinced tales of the tape are accurate at all.

If you compare fighters, especially from different eras, they just can't be right. I think the way they've taken the measurements must be really inconsistent.

The other issue is just if later ones are just bigger overall, with the change in weigh in times etc. I guess you could try to stick to heavyweights of similar heights and weights maybe.

 

Your Kimbo Slice example actually doesn't go far enough. I bet he could apply his usual formula and make a montage video for an old-school baseball or football star, and a lot of his subscribers would find it every bit as riveting as his Braddock video. You don't need to have a keen understanding of the nuances of a sport to make an entertaining and emotionally impactful montage video of it.

 

So like I thought, when you say "on paper" you really just mean "according to his Ring Magazine ranking at the moment of the fight." You honestly don't see how that is a grossly incomplete and utterly inadequate means of assessing the quality of a win?

Do you have any idea what type of absurd conclusions that logic leads to?

 

That's an interesting point of comparison as well, since I find some combat sport highlights to be impressive even when (because?) I don't know much about the finer points of technique in those sports.

 

You could try to average them out by decade, if you believe that people were making the same kinds of measurement errors over time.

 

I've edited videos before, and you can make almost anyone look good if you pick your clips carefully enough and devise a strong narrative. This same is true in reverse as well. Ultimately, the best analysis has to come from the raw footage. Anything else is always going to be another man's interpretation.

 

It's an interesting idea, but I think you'd have a hard time getting something usefull from it. I think you'd need a lot of data to find anything distinguishable from noise. Especially with variations in height and weight. You could try and match them, but weigh in standards have changed, maybe you could limit to heavyweights, but even then you have complications like old heavyweights drying out for fights.

Plus I'm not sure it's just error, I think it might be lack of standardization, in which case if the varying ways of doing it have changed in popularity etc., or even just have they tend to round or something, it could cause a false trend.

But if you want to try it, I would be interested in the results.

 

Yeah, I agree it would only be useful for heavyweights.

As far as error vs. standardization goes, I guess you'd have to make sure that any (lack of) standardization is also consistent over time. And probably match fighters up by height.

 

When I first saw this video I thought the subject in question was one of the greatest kickboxers on planet earth.

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And the sad reality is that it might be Semmy Schilt, one of the least telegenic fighters in history.

 

At HW definitely.

(Christ, I feel dirty even writing that. I'm an Andy Hug fan.)