Worst HW Champs

On the negative side for Braddock, it wasn't right at all, #rd Reich or not, that Max Schmeling was denied a crack at the title. I think Max would have confirmed the Braddock people's worst fears and would have won the title....the crown would had resided then in Nazi Germany.

 

Off the cuff, Leon Spinks, I think would reign supreme, followed by Shannon Briggs who got a gift decision over old George Foreman for the lineal title before losing it bravely to Lewis.

So, listed...from worst...

Leon Spinks
Shannon Briggs
Ingemar Johanson
Hasim Rahman
Michael Spinks

...the second Spinks was a great light-heavy and might have been good enough to defeat son older fighters from the pre-Louis era; but I'll have to examine that at another time. At the moment, he's got a close win over an old, ill-prepared Holmes and a robbery/political decision over the same man, a defense over Stefan Tangsted, and a semi-retired alcoholic who could have been a pretty good contender, Gerry ****ey.

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Leon Spinks Hands Down....

 

Patterson wasn't one of the best but I don't think he makes the cut as one of the worst either. Probably middle of the road.. Wasn't his fault he ran into Sonny Liston at the height of his game. Marvin Hart, Leon Spinks, James Braddock, Hasim Rahman, and a few others I can think were below Patterson.

 

Patterson should not be on the list.

 

Leon Spinks is the outstanding #1 worst pick. Can't see any real competition here.

Jimmy Braddock--always impresses me a mediocre fighter who caught Baer when in his clown mode, and also possibly not at his best due to an injured hand. Otherwise, not much, but he did beat a pre-title John Henry Lewis. Off the film, I thought Braddock didn't deserve the nod over Farr.

Ingemar Johansson--very thin resume. I think only Patterson and Machen were rated when he fought them, but the big right gives him a chance against quite a few of the other below average champs. I would favor him over Carnera, for example, because of that right.

Floyd Patterson--below average but certainly should be rated above Johansson.

Primo Carnera--hard to rate due to all the fix effluvia. I think he does well, myself, against guys who don't have a big punch and so could handle Spinks and Braddock at least.

Hasim Rahman--KO of Lewis gets him off the worst list.

Shannon Briggs--only way to rate him above rock bottom is on a size basis.

so my list

Spinks,
Briggs,
Braddock,
Carnera,
Johansson

 

Lets grade the candidates by looking at their second and third best wins, and then seeing if we can go further without getting outside the elite level.

That would be a fair measure of whether they were lucky to become lineal champions, or whether they naturally fit into the category.

With Carnera and Patterson, you not only have good second and third best wins, but they are still looking pretty respectable at five or six. This tells me that they are the two fighters who are misplaced here.

Rahman got mixed results against the best, but he has a number of quality wins, and went on to regain the WBC title. He might have been a natural champion in a weaker era.

Braddock has good wins over Lasky and Lewis at heavyweight, but after that we get to his disputed win over Farr, and then we are out of aces in the pack.

Johansen has a brilliant win over Machen, but after that his best wins start to look a bit Euro level.

Briggs's second best win is his upset of Lyakovich, and I am not seeing much beyond that. I think that he legitimately sits a little bit below the people that I have listed above him here.

Spinks doesn't really have anything much of substance, outside his win over an ageing Ali, so I think that he is rightly the favorite choice here.