How good was Ray Mercer

To me he was the one HW that if you could beat him you could compete with the title holders. He was a TRUE gatekeeper of the division.

Mercer was a good tough fighter with a solid jab, respectable power, and an excellent chin, but as said before, sometimes he was his own worst enemy due to his laziness. He was rather inconsistent as well. He was fighting poorly against Damiani before his left uppercut caught his nose and broke it. Later that year came his brutal win over Morrison, then shortly after that he get outboxed by a 42 year old Larry Holmes. He could've gotten a title shot a year later against Bowe, but ruined it by losing to Jesse Ferguson, when he allegedly told Ferguson he'd pay him to lay down. And then came the draw with Marion Wilson. He fought fairly well in a loss to Holyfield, and fought very close (I had it even) to Lewis. By the time Wladimir and Briggs got to him, he was a shell of what he once was. He was probably the best HW of the 90s who never fought for one of the big 3 belts.

Some good posts above, the key with Mercer to me was he was lazy, whatever he was able to accomplish in the sport could have been much more had he of really been smart about things. He was consistently out of shape and when your consistently out of shape you consistently refuse to let your hands go, Mercer could have been a much better fighter then he was. if he was in optimal shape he wouldn even be a heavy when he was younger

He was a tough one to fight against, but it was too unlucky for him to fight in Lewis era. he beat lewis ... he was great for his size

Some good posts above, the key with Mercer to me was he was lazy, whatever he was able to accomplish in the sport could have been much more had he of really been smart about things. He was consistently out of shape and when your consistently out of shape you consistently refuse to let your hands go, Mercer could have been a much better fighter then he was. Yep. What set him apart (in a bad way) was his lack of drive. A accredit this to his late entry into the sport. He didn't have that "young hunger". As Paul said, he usually had a stunning win, and then would be content with the money. His next few fights would have to open his eyes up, so he could get that ambition again. Unfortunately, that's not how championship careers are made.

Some good posts above, the key with Mercer to me was he was lazy, whatever he was able to accomplish in the sport could have been much more had he of really been smart about things. He was consistently out of shape and when your consistently out of shape you consistently refuse to let your hands go, Mercer could have been a much better fighter then he was.

I think he's underrated. First of all, I believe he edged the lewis fight, or at the very least deserved a draw. Although it was a close fight; the stats at the end showed he was unlucky not to come away with at least a draw, to say the least. To say Mercer was just a tough guy with power, would be doing him a great injustice. He displayed one of the best jabs you'll see, against Lewis. Mercer said that after he beat Tommy Morrison, he relaxed too much and that was the reason he had some bad performances after that fight; it seems like a plausible explanation and I think some people overlook this. Someone said that he failed when he ''stepped up'', but the Lewis fight proved otherwise, and to a lesser degree, the Holyfield fight. He hung very well with two of the top three heavyweights of the 90's, and on other nights, may very well have gotten two wins over them. The knockdown against Holyfield was a strategic knee because he started to gas towards the end of the fight; for anyone who doesn't know; he wasn't hurt. I'd give Mercer a good shot against any fighter of his era, as long as he was at his best, and that includes Tyson. Mercer had a great chin, great jab, good power, and certainly wasn't the type to be intimidated in the least. He started too late, made some wrong decisions that cost him dearly, but at his best, showed he was a match for anybody. Great post. What opened my eyes to the guy was when he went jab-for-jab with Lennox. No small feat. He walked through Morrison (took those big punches like they were nothing), and gave Holy one hell of a fight. Against Tyson, I'd have Mercer being pummeled (but fighting back) in the first 6, but gaining a slight edge as Mike lost steam. He'd get UD'd probably.

I think he's underrated. First of all, I believe he edged the lewis fight, or at the very least deserved a draw. Although it was a close fight; the stats at the end showed he was unlucky not to come away with at least a draw, to say the least. To say Mercer was just a tough guy with power, would be doing him a great injustice. He displayed one of the best jabs you'll see, against Lewis. Mercer said that after he beat Tommy Morrison, he relaxed too much and that was the reason he had some bad performances after that fight; it seems like a plausible explanation and I think some people overlook this. Someone said that he failed when he ''stepped up'', but the Lewis fight proved otherwise, and to a lesser degree, the Holyfield fight. He hung very well with two of the top three heavyweights of the 90's, and on other nights, may very well have gotten two wins over them. The knockdown against Holyfield was a strategic knee because he started to gas towards the end of the fight; for anyone who doesn't know; he wasn't hurt. I'd give Mercer a good shot against any fighter of his era, as long as he was at his best, and that includes Tyson. Mercer had a great chin, great jab, good power, and certainly wasn't the type to be intimidated in the least. He started too late, made some wrong decisions that cost him dearly, but at his best, showed he was a match for anybody.

Ray Mercer is one of my favourite heavys ever and i feel he's over looked alot but he's just that bit below elite! :nonono:

Gave Lewis one hell of a fight like evryones said. Top 15 of the 1990's, maybe cracking the top ten. Maybe the Holyfield knock down tarnishes his iron chin myth, maybe not. He couldv'e easily beaten Seldon, Bruno, Botha for their titles. Probably wouldv'e KO'd Tyson after his stint too

had and was are the key words there... I think people are mistaking the old Holyfield/Morrison/Lewis version of Mercer and the old man that will be fighting Kimbo.. Mercer is NOT the same today I think everyone knows mercer is a shell of his former self but its still enough to go through a street fighter in kimbo slice

Mercer had a good jab, a good chin, and a big punch and was a good contender. had and was are the key words there... I think people are mistaking the old Holyfield/Morrison/Lewis version of Mercer and the old man that will be fighting Kimbo.. Mercer is NOT the same today

That highlight reel reminds me of how I was impressed just as much if not MORE with Lennox Lewis... was a good HW fight

Mercer had a good jab, a good chin, and a big punch and was a good contender.

Mercer was a scary dude to box because you know you are in for a long night the same with James Toney. And Mercer hit hard so if you had a weak chin you would be found out ala Tommy Morrison. I thought Morrison was dead when he was taking those punches. But i what did LL say about Mercer after the fight. I guess it was one of his hardest fights ever.

I don't understand why there was never rematch between Lewis and Mercer! They fought in may 96. Ray fought witherspoon next in dec 96 while Lewis was in court with the WBC and waited for his title fight against Mccall in feb 97, Mercer didnt fight again until 98 because he had Hepatitis and he only fought once in 98 before only fighting once in 99. He came back later but was fighting bums. Thats how he qualified for a shot at Wlads WBO title. Meanwhile Lewis was fighting Golota, Briggs, Mandatory challenger Mavrovic, Unification against Holyfield and then the mandatories all came together, just when was Ray available to fight Lewis again and when was Ray qualified to fight for a title by 2000? He wasnt!

I don't understand why there was never rematch between Lewis and Mercer! yea,,,,mercer did deserve one. that fight was very very close. could have gone either way

Clearly lost against Lewis, but it was an incredible fight - Mercer walking through incredible combinations to consistently land bombs of his own - just couldn't quite match Lewis for speed or variety. Was one of Lewis's best performances too. . Yeah I thought so too. A lot of people did favor Mercer...but for reasons mentioned. And I agree in that was one of Lewis' best performances ever. Never pay again for live sex! | Hot girls doing naughty stuff for free! | Chat for free!

He's just a tough guy and you can't teach that. The proof lies in the fact that he had a late start to boxing.....and was never considered a very skilled guy. His jab was alright to an extent but his physical size, strength, punching power and toughness is what made him a good fighter......good enough to give top guys problems. I wonder though, if he had started boxing at an early age how good would he have been? Because it takes years to develop the kind of boxing skill let's say a Lewis has. In fact, the last time I watched Lewis/Mercer on ESPN classic I scored the fight in favor of Lewis....but I could see how someone would justify that fight being scored a draw. However you could clearly see the difference in skill level....it's just that Mercer's workrate and toughness made it close. That's kind of a microcosm of who he is and what he hangs his hat on. Never pay again for live sex! | Hot girls doing naughty stuff for free! | Chat for free!

Do you guys consider his brutal ko of Morrison one of the best in history?