Would Tunney have "seen something" in Joe Louis as well?

Surely he would have seen something although I do not think he had a right hand like Schmeling's nor were they stylistically too similar. I imagine Tunney would use a similar approach that he did in the two Dempsey fights. Schmeling felt he could not afford to back up against Louis and always stayed in punching range.

 

I always assumed that Tunny would fight Louis the way that Billy Conn did. The good old "Stick and move" strategy. Something tells me that Louis would have beaten Tunney anyway. Tunney didn't have the right hand that Schmeling did, and it took 72 right hands from Max to finally knock out Joe.

 

I think it's entirely possible. Tunney's ability and courage would be tough for any heavyweight to deal with. I would give him a good chance against Joe Louis, especially the Louis who fought Schmeling the first time. Tunney better not get caught on the ropes the way he did in the rematch with Dempsey though. It might be all over if he did.

 

Have to agree with that one.

 

It would be interesting to read any predictions Tunney had about Schmeling-Louis I that were actually published before that took place.

Gene was a diligent analyst and film junkie. If he was preparing to take on Joe himself, there's no doubt in my mind he would have deciphered any stylistic flaws and vulnerabilities he could take advantage of. (I also believe Corbett would have done so as well, though I don't know that he had the durability to withstand Joe's attack when caught.)

Head to head and peak for peak, I believe Tunney would have decisioned Louis over 15. Gene was bigger, stronger and smarter than Conn, and Joe's body attack wouldn't have been very helpful in slowing him down, any more than Dempsey's downstairs work did. (Here's a major difference between Tunney and Sharkey. Dempsey's body punching was starting to take a toll on Sharkey when the end came. Without a controversial ending, Sharkey would have been hard pressed to survive another eight rounds. Gene had no such trouble taking it below.)

Unlike Schmeling, Tunney would not have come in with the intention of knocking Louis out. He would have deployed his right for scoring purposes, and he had the speed to do it. As Jorodz has already pointed out, Gene had a fine counter right over the top, different from what Schmeling had, but perfectly sufficient for doing the job.

Beyond that, Tunney usually lathered his opponents with multiple jabs, rather than one at a time. Joe's battering ram of a jab wouldn't have been fast enough to compete with it. Louis did outbox Farr masterfully, however, the fact remains that Tommy was able to have some success jabbing with him. Gene's jab was on an entirely different level than Farr's.

 

I'm unsure whether to buy the 'Louis took Schmelling for granted' excuse or he just took a beating from a style he'd always have nightmares with or if he just had a bad day at the office. Im not sure Schmelling was the same for the rematch either. Schmelling always seems to be assumed to be the inferior man

 

It's difficult to "see something" against somebody as textbook as Louis. I think the strategic aspect to Schmeling's performance gets overstated a little; really, he just had a really nice right hand, Louis wasn't that great at reacting to it, so he took full advantage. Not saying he didn't follow a game-plan or that Tunney didn't, but it's not like there's one part of Louis' game that everything hinges on and that you can exploit for a guaranteed win.

I don't think Tunney has enough to keep Louis off him, and I think Louis would knock him out pretty emphatically.

 

Well said. A lot of myths float around about that fight. Conn's speed and combinations were the problem, not his movement - actually, Louis was cutting off the ring and forcing the action very effectively, and Conn had his best moments when he engaged Louis. Louis just caught up to him eventually, that's all.

 

Soooo very well said.