Zora Folley beat some good fighters...

Bethea was rated in the top 10 by Ring Magazine when Folley beat him. hardly qualifies him as a journeyman. Also Bonavena may have beaten Folley in a rematch, but folley was past his prime then.


Folley is one of the better contenders never to win a title. Very slick counterpuncher with good power in the right hand. very intelligent. very poise. A master boxer.

 

I find that an interesting take on Norton. I always thought of him as an UNDERachiever considering his natural athletic talent. I've always been under the impression that the only opponent he was truly 100% invested in beating was Ali and that he could have done more in his career, but was more about treating it as a gig and less about a passion for the sport or a legacy in it.

I take absolutely no responsibility for anything I say about James Toney's fine rack.

 

I have more regard for Eddie Machen than Folley..and yes, despite Eddiie going 0-1-1 against Folley.

 

I think Lyle's performances against Norton , Shavers and Foreman put him a notch above Norton and far above Folley

 

But Lyle never had a performance against Norton.

 

I think the problem is that there isn't a whole lot of footage out there on Zora Folley. He was a really solid operator though.

Watch the early rounds against Cooper before he goes wild with the right hand in an effort to finish:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIGXJNxahxY[/ame]

 

:good It really annoys me that Liston vs Folley is unavailable to watch, do you think one day it will be uncovered and uploaded?

 

"Journeyman" might have been harsh, so I edited it to "fringe contender". Bethea lost most of the time when he was in against top men.

 

I think Zora Folley was a good household named contender in the 50's and 60's. As Fogey said, he rarely beat top level opponents, but did very well against second tier guys, and even put up some good fights against the elite in losing efforts.. He also had incredible longevity with nearly 100 pro fights, and lasting to the near age of 40..

 

A lot of people on here are high on Machen. I hope Folley's jab clinic he put on Machen surfaces on youtube, so people can really appreciate the fine artisan Folley was in the boxing ring in his prime.

 

True , maybe I was too transitive

 

I think one could argue that a prime Folley would have given a 1970s Ali more trouble than Norton did. It's also not clear how competitive Norton would have been if he had in with a 1967 Ali.

 

I remember Zora quite well. Hewas top ten along time. If he could have skipped the7th round he did quite well.Believe he was kod by Johnny Summerlin???,know by Lavorante ,Jones, Ali. Was considered very good boxer.:smoke