The Legendry Larry Holmes, Greatest Fight?

Cooney... That performance was one of the best HW shows ever.

Against Norton he scraped through with an Injured shoulder.

 

I agree that Larry's best win is Norton but it speaks to the lack of quality of the 1980-1985 heavyweights that, despite 20 title defenses, Holmes best win is a life or death bout against a man who was gifted the heavyweight title outside of the ring and never had a successful title defense.

This is not saying anything bad about Holmes, whom I have as the number 3 all-time heavyweight, it is just to say that some people just come along at the wrong time.

 

I just think honestly he got up too fast and hadn't fully got his faculties together.

Against Shavers Holmes literally had no legs for entire duration of the round, it's just Shavers couldn't land a punch after landing that devastating right hand.

 

Not going too far off the collective path, but :

1) Norton: settled the doubters, won the title he’d keep and defend for a decade. Kenny close enough to prime for a creditable win for Larry

2) Shavers 2: for getting up from a punch that would have ended most fighters - recovering in 30 seconds and even fighting back by the end of the round. When Holmes dropped, he truly looked like he was dead. Ridiculous recovery

3) Mercer. Took a legitimately tough fighter in his prime literally to school. Showed the relaxed caginess of a seasoned veteran, a bearing he shared with his comebacking classmate, George Foreman

Just my .02 -

 

The Ken Norton fight.