Who Thinks Jack Johnson Could Step Out Of A Time Machine And Fight For A Belt?

Before you make up your mind about such unknown quantities you must ask yourself how much of Jack Johnson have you seen? Ted Spoon can comfortably confirm that not even 10% of Johnson's prime is on film.

 

There are fights of him over a nearly-10 years period. While Tyson tried to fight on his toes in the amatures a few times and Foreman changed style completely after 20 years, i highly doubt that Johnson changed style so much between 1900 and 1906. Why would he leave these prominent weapons (jabs, straight right hands, counter punching) for some reason at home during that period?
Why do none of his opponents consistently use those techniques either? Boxing was still mutating from bareknuckled to gloved form and as a consequence, not all techniques had fully been developed yet.

Johson was great in his own time, no doubt about it, and should rank high based on accomplishements. But head-to-head, he's just not equipped to fight modern fighters. And by "modern", i mean post-30's. Just like modern fighters would drown if they had to fight under Johnsons rules.

 

Take away just couple of key fights for other greats and it would change our perspective accordingly, don't underestimate the lack of material.

1900-1906 was a huge developmental period for Johnson - that encompasses from being under-fed and essentially a tumble weed in the wind, to prime condition and well into his mission.

 

Sure, but the point is that we saw his fights after his 1900-1906 developement. I doubt that he was jabbing and throwing counter right hands in 1900 but thought "nah, this is useless" and went back to his throw-a-punch...clinch...do-damage style that we saw.

 

Clinching with middleweights like Burns(yes he was a middlweight with a few extra pounds on him) and Ketchel and a completely shot weight drained Jeffries is'nt the same as getting in the ring with the likes of Klitschko or Lewis or Holmes or Ali. Boxing has evolved in the past 100 years. Old techniques are dropped in favor of newer proven methods of fighting. The emergence of true combination punching and the emphasis on jabbing are two examples of the modern style of fighting that were nearly nonexistent in Johnson's day and the size of todays athletes simply cannot be ignored. The old timers were tough as nails, no doubt about it but they were pioneers still making adaptations to thier respective sports. Do we really think that football teams from the 40's 50's and 60's could compete with todays NFLers? Or that basketball teams from the 50's could compete with todays NBAers? I think we all know the answer to that don't we? I think the same holds true for boxers, particularly the HWs. A middleweight is still 160lbs but a HW is no longer 180-200lbs and roughly 6 feet tall. Nor are they plodding giants whose punches come 1 at a time and can be clocked with a sundial. Ali forever changed the rules when it comes to HWs. Many(but not all ) of todays(from Ali's time on)HWs can box, move and punch. Much more so than the big boys back in Johnson's time. For Jack to compete today he would have to tweak his technique a bit and make the most of his natural athletic ability. I think a few adaptations here and there and he would be fine(less holding...would'nt work with today's rules and todays big boys and more jabbing and combination punching...only 12 rounds not 45...need to pick up the pace a bit) and could conceivably contend for one of the many HW titles out there(a shame). If he does'nt then he gets the living s--- beat out of him...or disqualified or both.

 

I more or less have always felt that if you took greats from past eras, put them in a gym and locked them away for 6-12 months they would all be able to not only compete by dominate. They probably have more than a couple of pieces of intelligence that have been wasted on the way, too.

whether or not he could jump out of the time machine and do it, I am not so sure. It would be like Johnson getting behind the wheel of a modern sports car, an adjustment, but not long before he would be saying "I like this" and he would soon be getting speeding tickets.

But I give modern champs just as much of a culture shock if they were to go back in time and fight during the johnson era. The look on their faces when
their trainer would say to them
"okay champ, you're through 17 rounds only 23 more to go" would be priceless.

 

No topic has better illuminated the delusional opinions of the posters on this board.

Johnson-out of time machine- wouldn't be ranked in the top-20 with his style and stature.

Sometimes I wonder if any on here have ever boxed a round in their lives.

 

I think Johnson could step out of a time machine and compete today - the question is: who would want to see him fight?

 

Just out of interest, are you implying Johnson is limited in todays day and age as a heavyweight, or altogether, i.e., P4P?

What I'm saying is lets say he fought at cruiserweight, which I think is a decent weight for him (200lbs)

Not top20 in your opinion?

 

Everyone apart from the diehard religious morons who have an ethical problem with transporting fighters through time.

 

I just think he would need to have been groomed with today's technique and style. Otherwise, he appears to have the tools.

I have a great deal of respect for Johnson as an innovator, a hard-ass, and a guy who withstood a great amount of social pressure. It's really unbelievable he did what he did in his day and age.

At cruiserweight, with some tune-ups and sparring with modern boxers, he would probably wipe the slate clean.

 

I think Johnson could compete with current HW champs. He was big enough and experienced enough to compete with any of the current HW champs (except for Vlad) But his success would be limited b/c once he realized he could get all the white women he wanted he would stop training hard and lose to some chump like Maskaev. Johnson is one of my favorite champs b/c he went against the establishment... Publically and privately Jack was Muhammad Ali before Muhammad Ali!

 

Johnson would get DQ'd if he fought for a modern HW belt.

If he didn't get DQ'd, he would be humiliated.

Of course, the third alternative is that the ref lets him get away with bull****...he could "Johnny Ruiz" his way to a HW title.

Jack Johnson was a hell of a fighter, and with some work he could definately be competitive in today's division - but NOT stepping right out of a time machine.

 

Well Johnson I feel would loved the new sportsters of today. He was getting speeded ticktets in the 1900's lol. He was addition to speed of a car. (Which killed him of couse) Instand of going 60 or 70, he go 100 or 120 miles per hour is all.

 

Janitor;I wouldn't hire Tommy Burns as a bouncer against 168 pound drunks.Going by the films,I don't think Johnson was that good.Even if the Williard fight was a fakeroo,I doubt Johnson could've beaten Dempsey.The first "modern heavyweight" was Gene Tunney;I think he could be competitive against cruiserweights.