Made this thread for obvious reasons, but felt that a Marciano appreciation thread wouldn't be too bad. I know we give a lot of **** here on Classic to certain Rocky fans, but he was the real deal for the time, and I think it'd be nice to see some people talk about some of their favorite moments of his. I'll turn the other cheek this time for Marciano, and Corbett can have his day next year. This content is protected
Happy birthday to one of the best to ever do it...the only undefeated heavyweight champ, and a man with unbelievable stamina, two-fisted power, a great chin, a unique and awkward style of fighting, and a heart the size of Massachusetts
What I admire about Marciano was his ability to rise to the occasion in the situations when defeat seemed on the verge of inevitable. Joe Walcott was cruising to a decision win, thoroughly outboxing Rocky, when thunder struck to pull it out. Likewise, the split nose crisis vs. Ezzard Charles made Marciano step on the gas to get a finish in his favor before the fight would have been stopped — yes, he was ahead on points but it couldn’t have gone much longer with his nose split down the middle like a hot dog bun. The other thing I appreciate about Rocky is that if you were going to get him, you’d better get it done the first time — the man was hell in rematches, and seemed to have just beaten the life and will out of opponents the first time so that the second go was way in Marciano’s favor. (Yes, Ezz had the chance for the cut nose stoppage but he was being beaten otherwise from the get-go after being competitive in going the distance in his first match with Rocky.)
Marciano surely had some of the best killer instinct ever seen in the world of boxing, he was like a shark smelling blood in the water. Yeah, Rocky had you dead to rites by the time of the first bell in a rematch... Super fights have taken life out of many men, and most ATGs were absolute hell to go fight for one match, but Marciano took your soul completely.
Not a fan of Marciano but hes one of the best sub 200 pound Cruierweights/Heavyweights ever. Extremely dedicated very strong for his weight and always a consistent performer.
Happy Celestial Birthday to Rocky. One of the toughest,most relentless fighters ever. Up until the early sixties I'd have had him as the third best heavyweight of all.
I rate him incredibly high in a p4p sense both head to head and accomplishments. Below 190lb, he might be the rings ultimate animal. I grew up in a few towns near his hometown and I have met his family a few times. He was an incredibly humble man, but possessed a fearless confident attitude. He had a gift at capturing your attention when he spoke in interviews.
I am late to this thread; he is who inspired me to get into boxing, and I rank him 3rd at heavyweight and 24th P4P. Being raised in the great depression, he and many other fighters of his day had a taste for money like it was a buffet after a week long fast, youll never find desperation like that again. Love reading about him, and his style is one of my favorites to watch, he had the brute strength to bully men bigger than him and the durability to constantly march forward, while not being wholly a caveman but rather an awkward fighter with underrated defense and a very diversified offense. Marciano vs Walcott is my favorite fight to rewatch, it has everything. RIP champ
His record and accomplishments put him in very good company with the greatest former heavyweight champions such as Joe Louis, Jack Johnson, Muhammad Ali, etc... Here is a piece with Marciano in 1969 with him giving comments on Mac Foster and some of the other top fighters. He Also recounts his first fight with Walcott. As a fighter Rocky Marciano was a swarmer - a perpetual motion machine that hammered at opponents from all angles. He parleyed that rough and rugged style into one of the most successful careers in heavyweight history - 49 straight victories. And he was a big winner last night with another knockout before a turnout of more than 500 at the Sportsmen of Stanislaus. The Former heavyweight king talked of the past, the present and the future, delighting the crowd with his warm and sincere approach. Although his is still enthusiastic about the sport which made him famous and his eyes light up when he recall some of his memorable moments in the ring, he sees a dim future for the sport. "I gauge this though on the the heavyweight division because this is where the excitement is," said Marciano, "and there just aren't that many top flight fighters around. With the exception of Jimmy Ellis and possible Sonny Liston or Fresno's Mac Foster, there just isn't anyone around to give Joe Frazier any competition. "When I was fighting it seemed like every town had a heavyweight or two." In summing up the heavyweight situation Marciano said Frazier is much better than most people realize. "He hits hard, moves well and is strong." Marciano said he saw Jerry Quarry as a great prospect three years ago, but feels Quarry has one shortcoming - a lack of discipline. "That's why I am impressed with Mac Foster," he said, looking down the table towards Fresno's unbeaten contender. "He was in the Marines and knows the meaning of discipline. And that's what it takes. But Mac, every time I think about the sweat and blood, and the sacrifices I made - I know it was worth it." Marciano termed WBA king Ellis a "clever fighter, one who could give Frazier a tough fight." "But I'd still have to pick Frazier in that one." Concerning Cassius Clay, Marciano said he doubted that Clay would ever return to the ring. "He wants to fight, anyone who fights that well would have to want to. But he has a lot of problems, mainly his religion. And I know he's sincere about his religion because I have talked to him about it. He feels he's right, and is willing to go to jail for it. "Many fans hate Cassius Clay, but he's been given a bad rap. He's not a bad guy at all." When asked what old time fighter he would most like to have a chance to meet in the ring, Marciano said a computer is the best way to judge. "Besides," laughed the Brockton, Mass., hero referring to last year's all-time computer matches, "I won and that's why I think so much of the damn thing." "When I fought Jack Dempsey in the finals of those matches," laughed the Rock, "my father even bet against me. And to tell the truth, I really didn't think I could beat him either." Marciano called his first fight with Jersey Joe Walcott his toughest-ever match. "My trainer tried to build up my confidence, and had me convinced that Walcott was at least 44 years old and didn't want to fight me. He told me all I had to do was rush out there in the first round and hit him first. When the bell rang I took one step and got hit by the hardest punch I ever felt. It was the first time I had ever been knocked down and I remember rolling over and looking at my trainer, I asked him, 'Are you sure this guy is 44 years old?' But I did recover and finally stopped him in the 13th round to win the title. That was the biggest thrill of my career." Other guests at the Boxing Night event were Fresno fight manager Pat DiFuria, State Athletic Commission inspector Robert Goodband and Modesto boxing and wrestling promoter Johnny Miller. The crowd was one of the largest to attend an SOS sports night in some time, and it isn't hard to figure out why. They love the Rock in Modesto. https://imgur.com/fbvL2om A picture of Rocky Marciano and Mac Foster https://imgur.com/GFQaXtS
Happy Birthday to the only retired undefeated Heavyweight Lineal Champion, and he defeated the best his era had to offer.
Ive never seen that photo with him and Mac Foster, which is shocking, ive spent more hours than i dare to admit looking for old time boxing photos. Thanks for sharing
