I might be wrong is suggesting this

[billeau2]

Heres the thing, according the general boxing history fan populous EVERY heavyweight era, except for the late 60s-70s & 1990s, was a weak era. I know some years back I posited what was the third best heavyweight era, I don't remember what the consensus was, but I am sure most fans would decry it as weak

Exactly! I wish I had read this before posting would have given you props!

[billeau2]

I agree, Dee. But sports fans in general, and boxing fans in particular; are far better at cynicism than they are at lining up the fact and reason. As to the question; Climbling and defending roster, R. Bobick, R. Williams, Prater, Sanford, Arrington, Shavers, Norton, Evangelista, Ocasio, Weaver, Zannon, L. Jones, Ledoux, Ali*, Berbick, L. Spinks, Snipes, Cooney, Cobb, Rodriguez, Witherspoon, Frank, M. Frazier, Smith, Bey and C. Williams represent a good scalp collection in anyone's book. Missed opponents like Tate, Coetzee, Dokes, Page and Thomas would have been just more of the same; and each of them, in turn, blew their shot at the real title.

This was neither an extra great era, nor a weak one, IMO.
The gold-standard for weak might be, say; 2002 - 2009. Abysmal period.

See that is the other side of the coin... While not incredible ATG level tear ups, Most heavyweights encountered very skilled and able opposition. This escapes many people... The proof is in the pudding. Watching what fighters did/do in the ring... Also there are a few ways of judging competition. I give Lennox Lewis an asteric (in a good way) because he fought young lions who had gained their footing as well as the flavors of the month near, or at prime... Fighters like Shannon Briggs (coming up) and Golota, Tua, Klitsko, Holyfield, etc. Lewis IMO fought the second best competition after Ali.

[billeau2]

Queenie is a moron who hates Holmes, Lewis, Mayweather and many other fighters, but sticks up for cheaters like Antonio Margarito, Aaron Pryor, Panama Lewis and Luis Resto. Make it make sense!!!

How about Valuev? that great unheralded ATG heavyweight that would clean out Margiano's greek stable, tie Ali in knots and in general represent a real push for those with Giagantism!

[billeau2]

"Tubby Lar" as some of you call him probably should've lost to Tim Witherspoon & Carl Williams & had a shorter reign.

There were some legitimately talented dudes in the '80s, but most of them got hooked on c0ke & Mike Tyson demolished the rest of them. zz0.yo9ctyrpzpszz

Of course Witherspoon was a beast! If King had not royally s c r e w e d him he would have been the next Philly heavyweight.

[billeau2]

and

Kiss my ass youse guys, this is a great post with fair points raised.


Larry cleared out the old men and then did **** all nothing. Got favored pretty much as much as any champion can. Prototyped the degrading of the bodies and belts. Was the first princess to be handed a belt without a fight in the modern era. And his ATG resume is only so-so because he waited talent out and then failed the first fresh face worth a **** who got to him. Yet this guy and his sissy-in-spirit Lennox Lewis get nothing but praise and consistent top five positions.

I'm not saying Lar McTubbyButts or the Cowardly Lion are or where bad fighters by any means. They both made their statement in their way, but, I am saying as men who influenced boxing, **** these guys.


Is it common to wait out talent? Thanks Larry and Lennox, really love that Kronk. So the very next gen featured a guy, Pov, who was pretty good, and a guy, Wlad, who was actually good in any period, but it took more than a decade to get to AND there's secondary belts? ... ... ... And you guys just blame the bodies and promoters. Like it was them who created the idea the champion makes the belt. Or it was them who created the idea there should be second place world champions, not Lennox Lewis's idea he fought for and the WBA eventually caved on with the WBC following shortly after.

Fury treats the bodies, the fans, and other fighters like absolute **** all the way up until he gets his ass kicked by a third worlder in a war torn country ... you can't make this **** up. Still this isn't the environment Larry created, oh no. It's isolated and disconnected for sure.

Why is being a single strapper with the best resume good enough?

Why is being a unified champion who knows damn well 2/3rds of their belts are just splinter groups of their only real belt good enough?

Why do we bend over backwards to make guys like Wlad, who never did **** all anything for fans, things like lineal champions when maybe he didn't earn it?

Why is it okay to spend more than a decade playing around with championship leftovers for secondary titles? Don't you dare blame Lennox for Povetkin's tactics.

Fanboys keep and have kept giving men who did not earn a status the defacto upgrade to said status purely because no one better was around at that time.



It's okay, actually, to say Larry Holmes couldn't hold Rocky Marciano's jock, purely based on undisputed title defenses. Purely based on the reality Larry Holmes never once bothered to gather Marciano's title nor defend it. Resume, and who does and does not excite you, should be and always have been secondary to status.


Instead, Larry great jab doe

Lewis great jab doe

Larry/Lennox resume better doe

Without like even an once of embarrassment we judge based on subjectivity.


So, I say Queen's post here was fire, **** all y'all.

Larry Had perhaps the best lateral movement of any heavyweight doa! One of the best chins doa! And yes that great jab. larry did lose to Witherspoon imo but I happen to think Terrible Tim was en route to greatness before King destroyed his career.

. But Queenie does pop some sensible fo sure! He just likes the Euros too much!

[Anomalocaris]

Larry Had perhaps the best lateral movement of any heavyweight doa! One of the best chins doa! And yes that great jab. larry did lose to Witherspoon imo but I happen to think Terrible Tim was en route to greatness before King destroyed his career.

. But Queenie does pop some sensible fo sure! He just likes the Euros too much!

King destroyed so many careers. Yet the Ring just gave him a lifetime achievement award.

Incredible.

[BKM-]

King destroyed so many careers. Yet the Ring just gave him a lifetime achievement award.

Incredible.

Technically it is an achievement to ruin so many boxers careers for such a long time and live to tell the tale.

[Anomalocaris]

Technically it is an achievement to ruin so many boxers careers for such a long time and live to tell the tale.

Yes, 'The Black Lights' by Thomas Hauser showed what dealing with King was like.

Nothing more than gangster with a f***ing ridiculous hairstyle.

[BKM-]

I do wonder, is Tyson the only one to throw him a beating?

[billeau2]

Technically it is an achievement to ruin so many boxers careers for such a long time and live to tell the tale.

you know what is so funny? King's story is fascinating: Like a roach with the brainpower and hustling IQ of the first percentile... When he ran his numbers racket in Cleveland, in what was one of, if not the most dangerous city at the time... a city where the preferred method of killing was to blow up the entire area where your enemy was located... King stayed right in the middle as a two bigger factions were killing everyone and taking their hustle... King found a way to survive long enough to see both factions obliterate each other! You cannot make this sht up... King survived threats, attempts to kill him, the law... so when it came to dealing with fighters? It was the proverbial taking candy from a baby. That bstrd will outlive even Arum...

I would pass a PHD thesis that came to the conclusion that the health and wealth of Arum and King prove Kierkegaard's lose of faith, and the theory there is no God.