Marciano was overrated and not an ATG.

[Alexis Vastine]

The major downer on Rocky is that he was in a relatively weak era, his best opponents were all smallish and at the tail end of the careers, and they all gave him hard fights. Even Roland LaStarza and Rex Layne, the best young heavies of his era, weighed under 190lb. He was never tested against a big, prime top tier heavyweight, which makes it difficult to judge how he'd fare against other greats.

But he did what he had to do, beat who was there, and 49-0 is not to be sniffed at. I have him just outside the top ten. Definitely an all-time great.

Debate is nice, but it don't win titles.

Any boxer that can win 49 of 49 bouts and retire as an undefeated champion
must have the right tools to compete against the best of any era.

As many of Marciano's opponents looked like they were stand-ins for
Shock theatre after their bouts with the Rock must mean Marciano had the right stuff.

Of course he could compete with the likes of Frazier, Ali, Lewis, Tyson and the rest of the titleholders.

That jive talk minimizing Jersey Joe Walcott ability to downgrade Marciano is a shame. The left hook used by Walcott to starch Ezzard Charles would have taken out any other top contender or champion even Ali at his best. To say that Walcott was slow is pure fantasy,
and I have a bridge in Alaska to sell you.

RJJ would do to Marciano what he did to John Ruiz. I don't agree with Kid McCoy but at least he is making some kinda sense. zelley, Walcott fought Charles at an advanced stage of his career and his punches would not even land on a prime Ali, wtf. You people are in cloud cuckoo land. Walcott shouldn't even be mentioned in same sentence. And that is not a disparaging remark! The truth is Walcott was good for his age and era, but would have been a nobody in the 70's. He may not have been slow, but he wasn't exactly fast.

[JAB5239]

Sorry, I made a mistake. RJJ would not give him a run for his money although B-Hop would. RJJ would wipe the floor with him! Different class. RM was not technical enough and not naturally gifted enough to deal with RJJ's speed and power. Anyone who thinks he was is just lying to themselves!

[StarshipTrooper]

RJJ would do to Marciano what he did to John Ruiz. I don't agree with Kid McCoy but at least he is making some kinda sense. zelley, Walcott fought Charles at an advanced stage of his career and his punches would not even land on a prime Ali, wtf. You people are in cloud cuckoo land. Walcott shouldn't even be mentioned in same sentence. And that is not a disparaging remark! The truth is Walcott was good for his age and era, but would have been a nobody in the 70's. He may not have been slow, but he wasn't exactly fast.

Jerry Quarry wasn't exactly swift but he held his own against all but the very best of the 70s. "good for his age and era"? Please! I just love the way the cult of the "modern" act like boxing was invented in 1960 ffs. The boxers of today could be half-starved crack addicted pygmies and they'd still swear they were better than anything that came before. Good grief, talk about myopic! Rather than nut-hug a particular fighter they nut-hug an era: The current one! People need to get over themselves and stop being so short-sighted.

Poet

[marciano1952]

RJJ would do to Marciano what he did to John Ruiz. I don't agree with Kid McCoy but at least he is making some kinda sense. zelley, Walcott fought Charles at an advanced stage of his career and his punches would not even land on a prime Ali, wtf. You people are in cloud cuckoo land. Walcott shouldn't even be mentioned in same sentence. And that is not a disparaging remark! The truth is Walcott was good for his age and era, but would have been a nobody in the 70's. He may not have been slow, but he wasn't exactly fast.

Didnt Ali Look up to Walcott and Prais him on several Ocastions(sp)? so it seems Ali thought Highly of him

i wounder how much you have actully seen of fighters Pre Ali era

[Alexis Vastine]

Didnt Ali Look up to Walcott and Prais him on several Ocastions(sp)? so it seems Ali thought Highly of him

i wounder how much you have actully seen of fighters Pre Ali era

Too much. Justbecause Ali liked him doesn't mean the guy is in the same class! Ali also looked up to Louis (when he called him an uncle tom, even then he said it was only that aspect he disliked of Louis) but that doesn't mean he was as good as him either. Maradona looked up to Alfredo Di Stefano but he is still the best footballer ever. He even would not claim he is better than Pele! In comments made to RAI television in 1997, he said, "I don't know if I was a better player than Pelé, but I can say without any doubt that Di Stéfano was better than Pelé. I am proud when one speaks of Di Stéfano... I can say that Maradona could be worse than Pelé. But I emphasize Di Stéfano was better"

That doesn't mean Di Stefano isn't good as he is still in top 10-20 without a shadow of a doubt. He was also a pioneer too and had skills that were never seen before. Just because they won't make it in 70's and are not top 10, I am not saying they are not good, legends or whatever else you want to call them. i am just saying marciano is overrated because alot of pundits make him out to be top 5, or even top 3 material when he is not. Just like Maradona is overrating his hero who is defo a legend!

Jerry Quarry wasn't exactly swift but he held his own against all but the very best of the 70s. "good for his age and era"? Please! I just love the way the cult of the "modern" act like boxing was invented in 1960 ffs. The boxers of today could be half-starved crack addicted pygmies and they'd still swear they were better than anything that came before. Good grief, talk about myopic! Rather than nut-hug a particular fighter they nut-hug an era: The current one! People need to get over themselves and stop being so short-sighted.

Poet

You make some good points but you lost me when you talk about today's fighters. they are obviously generally ****ter! I really do think the 60's and 70s were the peak of HW boxing. Especially in terms of strenght in depth. Yes Quarry did hold his own and Maybe Walcott may have too. but he wouldn't have been champ either just like Jerry. I hate to say it but alot of the fighters pre 1960 were hugely overrated and not just the Rock. It doesn't mean they were not greats of their era, or legends of the sport who's history they shaped. But some of them are not ATG's when they are dubbed as such. Rose tinted glasses if you ask me.

[Boxing Purist]

The thing that annoys me about his overrating is that his falsely preserved record was th reason why Larry Holmes was robbed of what was rightlfully his. And yes Larry was right when he said that Mr. Rocco Francis Marchegiano was not good enough to carry his jockstrap!

[j.razor]

marciano is jus another great white hope...blacks & ricans rule the sport! mexicans coming 3rd.

[RJJp4pbaby]

Not sure about that mate, but yes he was overrated and maibnly because he was white. if he was black then the powers that be would have no problem letting the record go to the rightful owner: Larry Holmes!

[Deadbirds]

He is an all-time great and no he isn't overrated ! That's my imput ! It's not his fault that he had a weak division ! Is joe Louis overrated ? Think about it he had a bum of the month thing going and they were bums ! Conn a light Heavyweight ! Braddock - please ! If your gonna judge Marciano cause of competition than you might as well do it to Louis ! And Louis is considered number two by historians ! Yeah Marciano wasn't a skilled boxer ! But he was a machine and trained like one ! solid chin, heart, one punch power, physically strong, and determination ! Walcott was old true but crafty and hard ! The man made no money ! He fought his heart out everytime he fought ! Charles tough even past if it was past his prime ! Marciano fought him the first fight with a broken nose and still kept coming ! And fought him again ! Lamotta is considered one of the greats cause of his toughness and durability ! Why not Marciano ? He was the same ! 49-0 is impressive ! I hear he fought bums ! Blah ! How do you know for sure or fact that the other greats would've went 49-0 during his time ? Anybody can be beat on a certain day or off day or bad day ! For a guy that did'nt have really any boxing skill to go 49-0 against boxers to me is an accomplishment ! And his punch most certainly could knockout about any all time great if it landed flush ! Marciano is an All Time Great !

[logan58]

Marciano one of the greatest

I totally disagree. Marciano was great. He wasn't a great boxer like Sugar Ray Robinson, who had boxing down to an art; but Marciano was the best puncher since Jack Dempsey, also one of the greatest. He was dubbed the Brockton Blockbuster for a reason. When he hit you, you knew you were hit. He was smaller than average for a heavyweight, but the power in his fists made him big. No one tops him in that respect, not even Dempsey. Ali, Liston, none of those who followed him could equal him. Ali was not the "greatest" except when it came to his mouth; he was simply a lot of hot air. Many others were superior to Ali, who won his fights with his mouth whereas Marciano won his by fighting, not ranting and raving his opponent to death as Ali did. You can put down Marciano all you want, but he was among the greatest. I watched some of his fights live and there was no match for him. Since Marciano, boxing has become mediocre and boring.

Marciano was overrated. If he fought Liston isntead of being a chicken he would have bean beaten to a pulp. He struggled against slow old men like Walcott and a washed up Charles. I reckon most top heavies from each era would have wiped the floor with him. Do u really think he could stand in there with Big Klitchko, Lewis, Holyfied or even Samuel Peter?LOL. Way too easy to hit. He was lucky that Italians loved boxing at the time, it was number one in sports and he had no competition.

Only idiots who have no fight dvd's (i have 1000+ 500vhs) and haven't seen much would rate 'the rock'. The best of his era were old men, and even then he was getting outboxed by the painfully slow Jersey Joe Walcott (equivalent to a journeyman like glen johnson)just by looking at footage one can see he wouldn't stand a chance aginst a Prime Roy Jones, the old Hopkins or even our Clinton Woods! Never mind any genuine heavyweight. He didn't lose coz he didn't fight anybody. Look at all the best, they lost coz they fought the best. He knew he had to retire early or get ko'd by the up and coming fighters! Smart guy but still rubbish.

I've seen every major boxing match that took place in the past 100 years and every Marciano title fight. Walcott was an old slow man and even then he had to hit the man when he was down because he was being outboxed. Marciano is overrated because he was the white hope in a segragated America where they believed they were evolutionarily superior. Marciano never beat anybody decent in their prime and was lucky he was in a dead era. The truth is he was overrated and would lose to many of todays light heavyweights including Calzaghe Hopkins and maybe even Tarver. People who know boxing know he is not a top ten heavyweight. Don't get upset, it is the truth.

LOL some Marciano advocates believe Joe Louis was not totally over the hill when Marciano fought him!!! He was pulled out of retirment and looked more washed up than the shores of Blackpool. Just because Rocky was crap and made a meal out of him and the other old men he fought doesn't mean they were not washed up. Also he did not fight everyone around at his time and retired early to avoid the likes of Sonny liston, Cleveland Williams etc. Even so, it may not be his fault but still exposed his weaknesses. He struggled with Walcott who was average, slow and ever so OLD. It took a dirty shot and there was never to be a rematch in segregated america that needed their hero so bad. He was so easy to hit it was a joke. Completely outboxed for many rouns. Marciano would lose to David Haye in about 2 rounds.

I think he is not even in the top 20 in the heavyweight division of all time. It pisses me off when people think he was in the top 5 or even the best! ROFL. Why does he always pop up on p4p lists? He was absolutely ****!