Would Ali be too small for today's heavyweight division?

Incredible that from 18 to 22 he gained muscle and weight, its unique!atsch

 

I think he took them to lose weight.

 

This was the thread starters opening paragraph:

Therefore you can take the question however you want, but I am addressing it directly as it was presented.

Yes you can. The question was in regards to him being too small for today's heavyweight division and furthermore made reference to a prime Ali. Well today's heavyweight division features a 39 year old Klitschko, 35 year old povetkin, 30 year old Wilder, 43 year old Thompson, etc, etc,.. If you want to shop around for an older more vulnerable version of Ali and place him at the Mercy of being too old AND too small, then go right ahead, but that won't address the thread.. BTW, if you were asked to put Vitali Klitschko in the 70's I doubt very much you'd select the 41 year old rendition who fought manuel charr.

Possibly but he was also washed up and for obvious reasons that went beyond just mere age. He had health issues, a load of mileage in tough fights, and a style that wasn't well suited for longevity much beyond about the age of 34.. Why select the worst version of the man unless you have doubts about today's combatants beating him at his best?

Of course it would.. I'm not one of these idiots who naively believes that size doesn't matter. It definitely does. Is it the end all be all of every outcome? No..

And was also arguably the fastest and one of the most skilled and durable heavys of all time too, attributes that I believe would aid him in this era.

 

Interesting thought,indeed. If a twenty something Ali was active in today's heavyweight scene,he'd maybe weigh 230 - 235 lbs. He'd probably fight those who outreached him,and whom were taller,in a similar way that he did Ernie Terrel.

 

I'm pretty sure Povetkin is a better pro heavyweight today than he was at 25.

 

yeah considering that he was debuting about this time 10 years ago.

 

@Magoo - you're making some really good points here.

@Mendoza - hope you understand you lost that argument and should just move on.

 

Only if you literally think that size is the only thing that matters.

 

The average height in the US probably increased by one or two inches from those born in the early 40's to the late 80's. And seeing how his training certainly would include more interval running than old school road work and possibly some weight training he would probably be a bit bulkier, so 230-235 lbs seems about right.

But he would still be small for a HW and the leaning back style wouldn't come as naturally. He'd probably have to evolve his slip and counter abilities, that actually were much better than given credit for as they were.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LDrDk-K4W4

 

For whatever it is worth, I don't think that Ali would be a particularly small heavyweight today.

Look at any picture of him with Lennox Lewis, or one of the Klitschko's.

 

I think people are forgetting that the super heavys of today who are 6'7", 240 + aren't the norm.. Alexander Povetkin is the second best heavyweight in the world and stands 6'2" and weighed anywhere from 219-230 during his career. Vyacheslov Glazkov is 6'3" and weighed 218 for his last fight.. Bryant Jennings is 6'3" and in the 220 range. Hell even antonio Tarver is currently ranked in the top 10 and he's a former lightheavyweight. Recent years have also featured such men as Eddie Chambers, David Haye, Ruslan Chagaev and Tomasz Adamek - some of whom weren't even indigenous to the division.. There's really only one truly elite heavyweight right now who meets the parameters of a super heavyweight and he's 39 years old.... The only drastic difference that I've seen between this era and Muhammad Ali's is the age of the contestants which is seemingly climbing all the time.

 

I don't think people realize that there really aren't that many 6'7", 245 lbs heavyweights at the elite level today. There is only one and he's 39 years old and was beaten earlier in his career by smaller men..

Here are a few heavyweights both current and or recent and their size parameters:

- Alexander Pevetkin - 6'2", 230 lbs

- Vyacheslav Glazkovic - 6'3", 218 lbs

- Bryant Jennings - 6'3", 226 lbs

- Antonio Tarver - 6'2", 225 lbs

- Eddie Chambers - 6'1", 210 lbs

- Tomasz Adamek - 6'3", 220 lbs

- David Haye - 6'3", 210 lbs..

Note that some of these men weren't even indigenous to the heavyweight division and some even held titles at one point. The only significant physical difference between today's era and Ali's is that the average combatant is much older today. So would Ali be too small for the current picture? hell no..

 

:good

 

To be honest, I don't think a prime Ali would score too many stoppages or knockouts against today's crew... But he'd sure as hell make a lot of them look stupid in some embarrassing one sided decisions.

 

I already added my input, he would have a harder time vs. larger men who can jab today then he did in his prime years.

If asked to put Vitali in the 1970's I would list the ten best years of his career. Vitali was a very good fighter in his 20's and late 30's. I say he's likely the champion post Ali vs Frazier 3, and probably the champion if he meet Frazier in the early 1970's before Forman cleaned him out.

Arguably one of the fastest and most durable. I'd agree. Most skilled? Ali was not a technician, and had a limited offensive game.

This is to say Ali had an average left hook, no body punching and no uppercut. Ali had world-class speed and clinching ability, but the most skilled? I think Kenny Norton was more skilled on offense, and so was Larry Holmes.

Ali's defense was not built on a high guard, or blocking. He used quick reflexes and a height advantage. The height advantage used for leaning back on defense would diminish today.

The Ali of the mid 1960's would likely be champion today, but like I said the champion is 39, and the #1 contender is 35.

Which makes an interesting what if type of scenario. Would the big Ali backers (Media, White liberals, and most minorities) say the division was bad if Ali was king today, June 2015? I'm guessing a good portion of them would not.