''Tony Zale Was A Greater Fighter Than Sanchez, Spinks, Jones Jr, Harada, Pryor.....

T, nice little article about matching fighters for the most money with the least danger. That's why this game of boxing is called " PRIZEfighting...When the 34 year old rusty Zale returned to the ring after a 4 year stint in the Navy, Rocky Graziano by far was the BEST "gate attraction" at that time...Not the best fighter but the rock em sockem Rocky had everyone in boxing talking about him after his astounding come from behind kayo of the "new Joe Louis", Billy Arnold who flattened about everyone he fought except the crafty Fritzie Zivic and was considered a sure champion. I saw both of these bouts and after Graziano an 8-1 underdog was almost kod in the first round, flattened Billy Arnold and a new star was born. So Zale's management chose the biggest drawing card in boxing at that moment in time Graziano , and the rest is history...
By the way Graziano at that time was being COMPARED to the immortal
Stanley Ketchel by some, but events later shot that comparison down...
Let's face it a Champion can pick his opponents for the most part, but a challenger can't be as picky...

 

39,8257 people paid $ 342,497 to see their first fight.

All well and good ,but how would you,as a fan who is pissed off that Bert Gilroy never got his chances, think you would feel if you were Zale's number one or two challenger,[ which Graziano was not], say Burley or Lamotta, do you think you might be a little peeved about not getting any of that $$$$$ , not to mention justice ?

 

Hey man I'm WITH YOU on this, that article exposes quite a bit.

in short Boxing as we know it IS Bull****, and IF it was ORDERED by an Honest Board as to Who fights Who, trust me Boxing History would have been REWRITTEN.

 

That's why good fighters need good managers and good promotion, and good publicity.
To get the really big paydays they need to be exciting inside the ring, OR have some sort of charismatic persona or image outside of it. Preferably both.

Zale made the right choice. Graziano was the biggest draw in boxing, bar Joe Louis. Zale had been on navy wages for 4 years, missed out on a lot of potential paydays. Would have been an idiot NOT to fight Graziano, an absolute moron.

 

Zale was good but no way is he greater than some of those names on there.

 

Can’t believe I passed up the chance to **** all over Bert Sugar all those years ago.

 

Nate and Tony were 2 great fighters in and out of the ring.

 

What's the background on bert sugar not being liked in forums, im new here.

 

He’s a cigar-chomping, whiskey-swilling, fedora-wearing characiture.

Besides the schtick, his lists are abysmal. I mean, I’m a curmudgeon, but he makes me look absolutely progressive.

 

So he was addicted to nostalgia?

 

And his favorite cocktail; bourbon with ice cubes.

 

Tony Zale was a good middleweight skill wise with punching power in the top 10-15 middleweights in history.
Zale fought in an era where a fighter had to be very good to even get a second look.
Unlike today's mainly media creations where average fighters are CREATED into being ATG'S ( Lomo, Usyk, Canelo, May Jr ) I'm looking right at you.
But Tony Zale wasn't a better, more complete fighter than Sanchez, Spinks , or Pryor.
Sorry Bert Sugar.