Therefore, Rocky told Jim Norris he'd come out of retirement for the same amount Don King later DID coax Larry Holmes into facing Mike Tyson for [not adjusted for inflation though]. I wonder how Marciano might have done in 1960. He'd abandoned the monastic lifestyle of his competitive years for fleshy indulgences, and still had a bad back. But he trained awfully hard for Woroner's staged performance with Ali ten years later at age 45. [Rocky deserved to be deemed the winner just for that alone, since it NEVER could have taken place without his dedication and hard work in arduously restoring a semblance of his earlier physique despite his bad back.] He'd never have attempted a comeback though unless he could first fully regain fighting trim, regardless of the payoff.
The Rock said that he thought of coming back after Floyd lost to Ingo in June 1959. He trained in secret in...I think... Raynham Park in Massachusetts. He started running and hitting the heavy bag and tried to lose the weight that he had gained since he retired in April 1956...but the desire had gone..
Wasn't Raynham park a horse track back in those days? I know years later it was a dog track. Interesting tid bit by the OP and yourself I wasn't aware of.
So he was ducking Patterson, he'll fight johansen but when floyd wins the title back he loses all interest.
yes, i think burt sugar was telling this story on one of the espn ringside shows. rocky wanted ingo but when patterson won the title back, rocky stayed retired.
I think everyone of us wanted a Floyd Rock scrap in late 56 but IMO this 58-59-60 Rock could still be HW champ BS is just that, BS. Rock an ATG, no disrepect.
