Larry Holmes defence was very underrated.

[QueensburyRules]

If you ever fought, you would realize how much low blows can swing the momentum in a fight. Take the Trinidad-Vargas fight as an example. Cooney fought a great fight and showed he belonged in the ring that night. But it was a 15 round fight. He lost. Plain and simple. Being up offers zero proof he would have won. The fact is he didnt.

- - I'm aware of low blows...duh, but they were low because Cooney was running out of stamina because he was a KO artist seldom having gone many rounds, 81 rds total in 25 fights, 3rds per fight average.

The facts remain that Cooney was both the better boxer and more powerful slugger. He just got by on natural talent and didn't have a good boxing team behind him like Lar had. They promoted him like a freak show, well enough to bring in bigger purses than poor Lar.

Had they taken the Weaver WBA offer while Lar was busy ducking Cooney, that was an easy fight for Cooney and he'd have been better prepared with better status and more on the line.

[QueensburyRules]

The bold is an unfair statement. Calling for the WBA matchup has you doing that "boxing league" fairness thing these other guys do. That's not real.

I know you know the fight was made at the right time (as far as prize fighting goes.) It was the most anticipated bout that year.

The timing was just right. Lots of money was made all around. It was well promoted, well staged, and well fought.

Boxing does not get much better.

- - Weaver team made the offer because Lar was ducking Weaver and Cooney and the rest of the WBA champs. My point still stands that the Lar fight with Cooney holding the WBA belt would've been bigger.

As it were, DKing made this a Great White Hope fight with subsequent nasty undercurrent stirred up such that the FBI had rooftop sharpshooters in case of trouble that was very unsettling, not a normal fight or fight crowd.

[JAB5239]

Sorry... But Queenies version is much more creative. Unlike you or I he does not let a small thing like the facts, or the limits of absurdity get in his way. Can't you see it? If only Cooney had fought Weaver instead, he would have been ready and beat Holmes! May not make much sense now... Have a few drinks, maybe a tab of acid, a few hits of Opium...

I'm dying over here!!

[QueensburyRules]

Not the normal boxing match, but it sure sounds like a great prize fight. 'The stuff boxing legends are made of.'

But yes, it was "tarnished" with racial overtones, but so was JJ-Jeffries, Schmeling-Louis, Patterson-Liston. Sometimes, race sells.

P.S. DIGRESSION - In Toledo (Dempsey-Willard) Tex Richard had "sharp shooters" on the stadium roof (outdoor fight) to keep the birds from craping on the spectators.

- - Interesting. Prob .22 caliber long rifles which don't make much noise, are very accurate, and so perfect for birds. Probably seagulls, but what if some birds fell on customers?

[LITTLE JOE]

This is what I had understood to be the reason Cooney didn't fight Weaver for the WBA title.
In September 1981 Weaver had decided to fight New York heavyweight Gerry Cooney, the WBA's number-one contender for the championship. Under the association's rules a champion must defend against the number-one contender during a specified time period. Arum did not control Cooney. He did control James 'Quick' Tillis, the number-three contender for the title. At a WBA executive meeting Arum argued that Weaver should fight Tillis instead of Cooney. Weaver's lawyer was present at the meeting but was not allowed to speak. The WBA ordered Weaver to fight Tillis or be stripped of his title

[QueensburyRules]

This is what I had understood to be the reason Cooney didn't fight Weaver for the WBA title.
In September 1981 Weaver had decided to fight New York heavyweight Gerry Cooney, the WBA's number-one contender for the championship. Under the association's rules a champion must defend against the number-one contender during a specified time period. Arum did not control Cooney. He did control James 'Quick' Tillis, the number-three contender for the title. At a WBA executive meeting Arum argued that Weaver should fight Tillis instead of Cooney. Weaver's lawyer was present at the meeting but was not allowed to speak. The WBA ordered Weaver to fight Tillis or be stripped of his title

- - Excellent. Squirrely Orgs and Promoters screwing up Boxers and boxing fans for their living.

[Anthony342]

If you ever fought, you would realize how much low blows can swing the momentum in a fight. Take the Trinidad-Vargas fight as an example. Cooney fought a great fight and showed he belonged in the ring that night. But it was a 15 round fight. He lost. Plain and simple. Being up offers zero proof he would have won. The fact is he didnt.

Speaking of low blows, wasn't it Pep and Saddler that kept hitting each other low in their fights? And if so, how did the ref not call the fouls?

[Willie Pep 229]

Speaking of low blows, wasn't it Pep and Saddler that kept hitting each other low in their fights? And if so, how did the ref not call the fouls?

Easy, he kept his mouth shut. Nothing came out.

The fight was a joke (IV). They had no respect left for eachother.

There had been too much animosity; professionalism was out of reach of their personal anger.

You (the refree) either let the fight go as it was or you DQ both of them.

Fans would rather see a foulded fill brawl than nothing.



United Press reported. "Virtually every rule in the boxing commission's book was violated by the two bitter feudists until Pep's badly gashed right brow forced him to withdraw in his corner at the end of the ninth round and give the spindly Negro a technical knockout victory. Sandy and Willie attained the maudlin peak of attempted mayhem in the seventh round when Referee Ray Miller, ex-lightweight contender, was wrestled to the canvas. . . . Miller warned them in every round and in practically every intermission, and he penalized Pep the seventh round on a foul for unnecessary roughness."