Tim Witherspoon vs Jack Dempsey

Verry unlikley.

Dempsey is rightly regarded as a top 10 all time heavyweight. He would be expected to find a way to beat Witherspoon.

 

Whitherspoon on points....

 

Witherspoon wouldnt last long enough for points to be a factor.

He is not elusive enough to stay away from Dempsey so I dont see him lasting the distance.

 

Whitherspoon in his heyday had a great chin...he wasn,t knocked off his feet before the second Smith fight...before that he could last the distance with any heavyweight champion i think....:bbb

 

I would pick Tim Witherspoon to take this by late TKO.

Witherspoon's fights with Holmes, Tubbs, Bruno, Page, Snipes and several others were indications that he could compete with and even beat a lot of modern athletes who actually had a fair amount of boxing talent. He was well accustomed to fighting men who were of modern size, and himself stood 6'3" 215 Lbs on average. Spoon fought a very difficult style for most men to figure out and really did not have a genuine decisive defeat until probably Larry Donald in the late 90's. The decision losses to Holmes, Thomas, Martin and Mercer were all very close and somewhat controversial, while the Smith defeat was clearly a dive. Witherspoon had tremendous defensive skills and was not easy to hit, plus had a solid chin to compliment it. He could work the body, jab to the head, and had an overhand right that was lethal. Against a 188 lb Dempsey, Tim could be a real problem. Sure Dempsey was an all time great while Tim wasn't, but the only person standing in the way of Witherspoon being an all time great during his time was a man who I considered better than Dempsey, and some felt he was robbed of a decision. Thats to say nothing about the corrupt poilitics of the 1980's which kept Witherspoon from reaching his best.

 

You think he went in the tank in the Smith rematch?

I thought he just went in the fight not in the best shape (mentally and physically) and got caught. Was it this fight where he was supposed to take a million and got like $90k?

 

No, the Bruno fight was where he got screwed on his purse, then took King to court later. I started a whole thread on why he took a dive shortly before Christmas. If you scroll back a few weeks, you might find it, and see my explanation along with some of the responses it got.

 

Witherspoon's style is IMO similar to Ken Norton. He comes forward, but I think if he is pushed back, he doesn't do so good. Dempsey is all wrong for Witherspoon. This fight ends brutal for Spoon.

Jack Dempsey KO 8 Tim Witherspoon:good

 

People picking Witherspoon lack a realistic perspective on who and what Jack Dempsey was.

Dempsey was one of the three most destructive heavyweight punchers of all time along with Louis and Tyson. No fourth man can hold a candle to this trio with Sonny Liston perhaps coming the closest.

Witherspoon was a talented and under rated heavyweight but he was never in Jack Dempsey's class or even close to being.

 

I think 'Spoon has a good shot at winning a decision here, he has the talent and stylisically will pose Dempsey a stern test. That fine jab of his will also be a mean tool.

I'm not certifing that view with total, cast iron confidence, though (if it was the likes of Lewis or Liston for example I would make them definite favourite to ice Dempsey). This is a tough fight to call, though.

 

A very good analysis. It's not that Witherspoon isn't a very dangerous boxer or is totally out of his depth against Dempsey; it's that Dempsey perfected exactly the kind of style to match up with someone like Witherspoon.

 

I find it a verry easy fight to call.

There are only a small number of types of fighter who would have the tools to beat a prime Dempsey and Witherspoon dose not resemble any of them.

How can Witherspoon win even theoreticaly?

 

Let's imagine that Tim Witherspoon comes to fight in-shape and motivated, and not sporting a pair of titties.

Those rare instances Witherspoon was pretty good, as he showed against Larry Holmes. I'd give him a good chance against almost any man. Beating Denmpsey is a lot to ask of him though, and I'd expect Dempsey to win.