Burns worked out publicly for Johnson , he and the watching reporters said he was in perfect shape. Tommy was inclined to be fleshy, he trained hard for Johnson, perhaps he overtrained? As he was a close friend of the promoter I discount talk about him not being100% ,as champ he could have postponed if he was below par.
I think Burns's run as champion is a little underrated, all things considered. O'Brien was probably the number two heavyweight behind Jack Johnson when he challenged Burns in late 1906 and early 1907 (Langford was still primarily campaigning at middleweight, and Jeannette really only stared to put together a win streak following the two O'Brien fights). Burns successfully defended against him twice-by most accounts, he should have won both decisions, as well. Moir and Palmer were both English champions at a point when that title would have established one as a being worthy of contention. Flynn was a longtime fringe contender who could produce good results from time to time. Squires was essentially undefeated, British Empire champ and was the favorite over Burns the first time around. He would have certainly been considered highly ranked going into that first challenge. There were definitely some soft touches, but there were challenges from fighters who were considered legit threats to beat Burns long before he faced Johnson.
LOL Jeffries the Ref didn't start the count until the guy was prone on the canvas seeing stars. No standing 8 count for the other knockdowns.
Jeff stuttered that first swing didn’t he? - I counted 8 swings down all up then waved off. Jeff looked like there were other places he’d rather be - didn’t give Tommy much acknowledgment, quick raise of the hand then “I’m outta here” - looked hot, Jeff probably glad to get out quick. I’m not sure but I might’ve read that Jeffries wasn’t too sweet on Tommy as Champ - perhaps Burns’ effort was a bit more exciting than those posted by Jeff in the latter part of his reign. Burns foot work was pretty cool for defensive and offensive purposes, Tommy also looked like he had the stamina to move for a good number of rounds - O’Brien certainly gave him an extended foot race.
True. 168 lb was a lighter than what he was fighting at otherwise around the time (several matches he weighed in at 175 lbs - 181 lbs) - and he went up as high as 187 lb IIRC but he could def. fight effectively at the weight of 168 lbs. Johnson was simply far too big a mountain to climb - and in addition, Johnson’s clutch tactics removed any hope for the smaller Tommy. Finally, almost without fail, when I read comments attached to YT clips of Burns, the reactions are very positive - stating that Burns looked far more mod. than other fighters of the era recorded on film - observers particularly impressed with his footwork, mobility and well leveraged power punching. His fight vs Gunner Moir is a good watch also. Very consistently applied.
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/in...s-adam-j-pollack/1105318019?ean=9780979982231 https://www.amazon.com/Ring-Tommy-B...x=in+the+ring+with+tommy+burns,aps,126&sr=8-1
