He won a legitimate vacant belt against Foreman. I see some saying that at the time the WBO wasn't seen as legitimate as it is today, even so.. That fight MADE it legitimate on the night. Do we rate ABC's just because or should we rate the path fighter have to take to earn them? Morrison was a legitimate world titlist.
He had skills Morrison. He showed have been able to beat Mercer and Bentt. Had he known how vulnerable his chin was he could have mastered the outside game, the one he showed against Foreman. For such a big man he was very light on his feet. I don't hesitate in picking him over either Spinks brother or Patterson.
Totally agree and again folk are mentioning this chinny thing again. Need to keep perspective. Tommy got hit by many top heavies and didnt go over. 'Chinny' is a much over used word on here.
I think he might have beaten Marvin Hart if he were fully focussed and fighting the fight of his life.
Morrison would have thrived in most eras even his own had he had better management and competant trainers that could advance his ability and keep his mind on track. i have little doubt he would k.o 99% of the 70's guys who had little concern about defense and came straight at you. He would in all reality pose more of a threat than Frazier to Ali because of his size and left hook which was Ali's major weakness. The 80's would have been more long range boxers more suitable to box him and out slick him. I think the Dougals's and Tuckers with the Holmes pose interesting match ups. Everyone tends to forget his wins and bring up his few losses to lesser fighters. well foreman lost to Jimmy young a 210 pounder with weak power.morrison wasnt very dedicated himself yet we use foreman wasnt mentally there as an excuse but Morrison gets no slack...think about it.
TM had awesome talent and power but lacked something that stopped him becoming a even better fighter. HW is littered with hw who had a weakness outside boxing ability. Gerrie Coetzee and Gerry Cooney it was self belief and confidence. TM was like Francis Botha in that he always had suspect stamina. TM was like Dokes and Bowe in wasting talent. More though like Dokes who substance abuse and womanising lead to a a quick decline . TM could have been champion today but his bad habits outside the ring would mean that his reign would be short.
In a round about sense he won a strap. I'll give him that. But the WBO had not earned recognition as a valid world sanctioning body. And the fact that he won it in vacant fashion from a man who was 44 years old and viewed as being at the end of his rope makes it even less significant. The fact that This 44 year old man regained the crown in Hindsight doesn't change the circumstances at the time or what was really at stake. Tommy became a belt holder that night. But a valid "world champion" is stretching things.
No, I'm talking about them when they were champion. Only Tate, Berbick and Witherspoon were KO'd. Tate in the 15th round to Weaver. Berbick to a prime Tyson. Witherspoon was KO'd by Smith. That's the only one I'd give Morrison a chance against, because Witherspoon seemed to offer no resistance and maybe had no will to win (due to his desire to escape the clutches of Don King). Foreman is Morrison's only good win. Ruddock was no longer a contender. The fighters mentioned were all rated in the top 2 or 3 fighters in the world when they held their titles, arguably Berbick and/or Witherspoon were #1 in the world for brief periods. Morrison was top 5 at best, briefly, and rarely ever was ranked higher than the fringes of the top 10 in the true world order. All of them were better than him.
The 1990 ( not 1995 ) version of Ruddock would have flattened Morrison in my opinion. Ruddock was three years removed from any significant status by the time he met Tommy and had only made one appearance in the years since losing to Lewis against the obscure Anthony Wade. I saw Wade fight Bert Cooper on Tuesday night fights. He was about as mediocre as they come and Razor couldn't finish him. What seems to be forgotten about the Morrison vs Ruddock fight is that it was arguably stopped prematurely In favor of Tommy and also that Morrison was decked in that bout. I saw The Duke come up in the prospect ranks. He was fun to watch. Had loads of power and fast hands. He could sometimes even rise off the deck to take a win. And Rocky V was a pretty good movie ( though III was my favorite. ) but the hype got out of hand. For all his attributes Morrison had poor stamina, a shaky chin, bad defense, and lack of discipline outside the ring. Some have even claimed he was better than Tim Witherspoon. Well Terrible Tim was past his prime in the early 90's and even then it wasn't hard to see why Morrison was kept away from that kind of opponent. A loss to an aging former alpha champion who had been black balled in most promotional circles would have completely derailed the hype train. They opted for Mercer instead and was derailed anyway.. Today Morrison's legacy and abilities have grown to Herculian proportions. One might even be led to believe that the Michael Bentt fight never happened. Ironic considering that many of these Morrison advocates are the same folks who sum up Wladimir Klitschko's entire career by his loss to Corrie Sanders, apparently forgetting that Dr. Steel hammer also had a title reign lasting nearly a decade.... But oh I almost forgot... Morrison held the WBO for ONE fight !!!
I watched the Morrison 1+ hour Youtube tape (Bill Clayton produced) which showed basically all his pro fights up to about 1990 or so (Rocky 5 era, Tommy Gun). Also, He had had 200 amateur fights, plus had only lost by split decision to Ray Mercer in the 1988 US Olympic box-offs. In 1988 Olympics, Ray Mercer was Heavyweight Champ and Lennox Lewis was Super-heavyweight champ..both fighters that stopped Morrison. The PRO brutal knockout of Morrison by Mercer, permanently cracked Morrison's chin to take a big punch. As much firepower as Morrison had, his style left him undersized against the Top Tier Big Guy's that could reach Tommy's chin. Tommy gave it his all, but the "pre-Mercer loss Tommy" was probably the best Morrison really ever was.
