The most under rated thing about old time heavyweight champions is....

Maybe cruder on technique but ten times tougher mentally. Boxing is not about what it used to be and for that we dont see the best of what a fighter is capable of.

 

They generally had to pay their dues more on the way up. Had to earn their shot at the title rather than be inactive for over year (Gerry Cooney: May 1981 to June 1982 shot at Holmes). Although, as I recall that fight was supposed to take place in March but got postponed until June of that year. I believe it was an injury Cooney suffered in training.

 

What new techniques have been developed? you mean modern nutrition and weightlifting? ever see a modern heavyweight the last ten years fight hard for 12 rounds, fight after fight?

 

Most definitly! Especially Jeffries and Johnson!

Corbett, Jeffries and Johnson did not lack modern techniques! they just used technique that was adapted to the rules they were fighting under. Dempsey was a guy of the transition era so it´s even more wrong with him.
The bold thing is what should be done. That´s the proper way and the method used in historic sciences. You can´t judge an event, or here a fighter, by modern standards but you have to judge them by the standards of their time. Else you won´t be able to understand what you are looking at. :good

Of course they could. I have absolutly no doubt about that. I disagree with the bold statement. Watch Johnson, he is very sound defensivly, uses the jab and threw combinations - watch the first 10-12 rounds of the Willard fight, you´ll see some nice combinations from him.
Those things didn´t look exactly like it does nowadays whoch is partly the fault of the films and partly of the rules they fought at. Those "modern techniques" already existed but where adapted to the rules of the time. Of course it looks different.

Yeah, they look crude by modern standards. But that doesn´t mean they were crude by the standards of their time.

Jeffries and Johnson would probably top today´s division if they would adept to today´s rules. Dempsey would easily rule cruiswerweight.

 

ali would ko jeffries,corbett and fitzsimmons without breaking sweat.
comparing those old timers to modern fighters is a joke.roy jones junior,who i'm not a fan off, would make jeffries look like a right twat

 

I don't think Jeffries or Johnson would take the average tough man competition today, let alone make a dent in the rankings.

 

:roll:i know.i can see johnson had skills but jeffries was a caveman

 

Endurance - the amount of fights they had, and rounds they did, was ridiculous compared to today's fighters. It wasn't uncommon for a champion to fight once a month, and contenders did even more on the way up.

 

They don't need to adapt. There styles may stump more 'modern' fighters due to their perceived awkwardness, at least in accordance with what we expect from a 'modern' fighter in terms of technique.

As awful as it looks, the style Fitz implements against Corbett might frustrate the Hell out of a 'modern' fighter.

MIGHT:good

 

I...don't even know what to say to that. :!:

 

Pretty special, I think. Almost poetry.

 

I've always been more impressed by the sparring sessions of Jack Johnson and Jim Jeffries than their actual fights.

 

Neither of them impress me with what they did in the ring. Johnson had enormous cajones for what he did in that era society, almost unprecedented. However, he had a lot of marginal performances against smallish, crude and/or shot fighters. Jeffries also struggled mightily with the same lot.

 

Would you say that Jack Johnson and Jim Jeffries look completely crude in sparring exhibitions such as this:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBHTzfclc10[/ame]

3:17

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWJNa93ndZE[/ame]

2:10

or this:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beygNk7O-so[/ame]

2:43

So much that they couldn't even compete in today's toughman contests? Obviously an intentional exaggeration by you but still, don't you think they could be competent? I think both of them could very well be molded into modern boxers.