Jack Dempsey vs Lennox Lewis.

[Barn]

A lot of bunk fighters couldve reached LEGENDARY status if they employed the Dempsey rule.

Imagine if Tyson took a 3 year vacation right after the first Bruno Fight?
-No Buster Douglas....
-Tyson keeps his Aura of invincibility..
-All the unwarranted praise Tyson recieved in the 80's hardens into stone-cold facts

What if Sonny Liston took a 3 year vacation after beating Patterson?

-No phantom punch
-Ali's boxing liscence is gone by the time Liston returns
-Liston is considered the greatest of all time

Times change. End of story.

[MickyHatton]

I agree with you. At the count of 10 Lennox had stumbled into the ref and then side to side. He could not continue and the stoppage was the correct call. If not in that case, then when?

C'mon, that was a premature stoppage especially for a Champion. He was hurt, obviously but he got to his feet and given a few more seconds may have regained his senses. All of us know of a hundred other 'non' stoppages where the ref has let them carry on. If not fights such as Castillo v Corrales would never have become what they became.

As for the point of the thread, I feel the additional size and strength allied with his skills would have been too much for Dempsey. We are looking at 45-50lb difference in weight. My opinion.

[CarlosG815]

C'mon, that was a premature stoppage especially for a Champion. He was hurt, obviously but he got to his feet and given a few more seconds may have regained his senses. All of us know of a hundred other 'non' stoppages where the ref has let them carry on. If not fights such as Castillo v Corrales would never have become what they became.

As for the point of the thread, I feel the additional size and strength allied with his skills would have been too much for Dempsey. We are looking at 45-50lb difference in weight. My opinion.

Dempsey destroyed guys with with weight advantages.

[Barn]

C'mon, that was a premature stoppage especially for a Champion. He was hurt, obviously but he got to his feet and given a few more seconds may have regained his senses. All of us know of a hundred other 'non' stoppages where the ref has let them carry on. If not fights such as Castillo v Corrales would never have become what they became.

As for the point of the thread, I feel the additional size and strength allied with his skills would have been too much for Dempsey. We are looking at 45-50lb difference in weight. My opinion.

Dempsey would weigh more in Lewis' era and Lewis would way less in Dempsey's era.

[MickyHatton]

Dempsey destroyed guys with with weight advantages.

No argument but we are talking about one of the great big heavy's, Im not getting into the argument as to how great but he is easily one of the top 20 best heavies so....the size advantage added to the skill and power has it all day over the cruiser weight that was Dempsey.

[Joeyzagz]

Joeyzagz just for you

http://coxscorner.tripod.com/jdempsey.html

this link shows how popular Dempsey was:

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=18121

No one is saying he wasnt popular. Naseem Hamed commanded 12 million per fight as a featherweight, but I wouldnt rank Naseem above Willie Pep.

Dempsey was popular, he was exciting, and he looked very skillful against a 37 year old statue...against Sharkey, Greb and Tunney he looked amatuer. Reminds me a lot of another over-rated Heavyweight that you seem to like...

[MickyHatton]

Dempsey would weigh more in Lewis' era and Lewis would way less in Dempsey's era.

What???

The body average had risen plus that was their weight? If Dempsey had put on another 20lbs he would have been a fat lump. Lewis at his lightest and slimmest was 230lb so....

[Wild Blue Yonda]

I am not one to count Lewis out of a fight with Dempsey, but it seems the first thing people bring up is the weight advantage for Lewis --- I would argue that, even if you ignore Dempsey's smashing record against big men (& we shouldn't, as some were good, capable fighters independent of their size), is it not just as significant an edge for Dempsey in speed, as it is for Lewis in size? The gulf in actual overall speed between Dempsey & Lewis is as utterly vast as the size differential, & at least as important in deciding the outcome.

Regarding the McCall-Lewis I stoppage, I don't know why this is an argument nearly twenty years on. Yes, the call was somewhat debatable, but there is just no feasible way anyone can point to that TKO & say, "Hands down, that was premature, that was a robbery." At best, it was an arguable call --- & one I agree with, but even if I didn't, Lewis gets up, has --- at absolute best --- really shaky legs, & heavily-glazed eyes. Even when it's waived off, look closely. He protests, but his eyes are still unclear.

There's not one thing wrong with that stoppage. Lewis could've continued, possibly. However, I doubt it, & I defy anyone to tell me the man was standing there in no trouble at all.

[Kid McCoy]

I am not one to count Lewis out of a fight with Dempsey, but it seems the first thing people bring up is the weight advantage for Lewis --- I would argue that, even if you ignore Dempsey's smashing record against big men (& we shouldn't, as some were good, capable fighters independent of their size), is it not just as significant an edge for Dempsey in speed, as it is for Lewis in size? The gulf in actual overall speed between Dempsey & Lewis is as utterly vast as the size differential, & at least as important in deciding the outcome.

Regarding the McCall-Lewis I stoppage, I don't know why this is an argument nearly twenty years on. Yes, the call was somewhat debatable, but there is just no feasible way anyone can point to that TKO & say, "Hands down, that was premature, that was a robbery." At best, it was an arguable call --- & one I agree with, but even if I didn't, Lewis gets up, has --- at absolute best --- really shaky legs, & heavily-glazed eyes. Even when it's waived off, look closely. He protests, but his eyes are still unclear.

There's not one thing wrong with that stoppage. Lewis could've continued, possibly. However, I doubt it, & I defy anyone to tell me the man was standing there in no trouble at all.

The point I'm making is that there have been many instances where a fighter was glassy eyed and on shaky legs, and still allowed to continue. It was early in what had been a pedestrian fight to that point. The champion beat the count, was on his feet and deserved the chance to continue, a chance that many past champions were given in fights they went on to win. With that referee, many more great fighters who were glassy eyed and wobbly after a knockdown would have some additional KO losses on their record.

Would you say Lewis was hurt worse than Larry Holmes was here? Would the Lewis ref even bother to count once he saw Larry almost KO himself on the ringpost?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tlu4R_ZobU0

[Scott9945]

the count reached 10... time it

Lewis was clearly on his feet and beat the ten count. The Don King bought ref counted to nine for some reason (incompetence). The only debate is whether or not Lewis was fit to continue. But he was NOT counted out against McCall.