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It is conventional wisdom that today’s heavyweights are the worst in the history of the sport. Boxing historian Bert Sugar and others have repeatedly written that they have not witnessed a greater display of mediocrity. I, for one, will agree that this division is not best, but the Heavyweight division has gone through similar periods in the past. There have been times in boxing history that the division has been just as weak, if not weaker.
Let’s take the 1930’s. While “Cinderella Man” brought back pleasant memories of boxing in the 1930’s and the courageous fighter James J. Braddock, the reality was that the 1930’s were a weak period for the heavyweights. The reason was two fold:
There was no dominant superstar that took control of the division in the periods between 1929 and 1937. The champions that reigned were good fighters, but not great fighters. Max Baer, Max Schmeling, Jack Sharkey, and Primo Carnera all had skills, but no one is going to mistake them for Joe Louis or Muhammad Ali.
Even the beginning of the Joe Louis era hid a division that was lacking in depth underneath the top. Joe Louis ripped through the division so easily that sport reporters at the time called it the Louis “Bum of the Month “club. [details]
Let’s take the 1930’s. While “Cinderella Man” brought back pleasant memories of boxing in the 1930’s and the courageous fighter James J. Braddock, the reality was that the 1930’s were a weak period for the heavyweights. The reason was two fold:
There was no dominant superstar that took control of the division in the periods between 1929 and 1937. The champions that reigned were good fighters, but not great fighters. Max Baer, Max Schmeling, Jack Sharkey, and Primo Carnera all had skills, but no one is going to mistake them for Joe Louis or Muhammad Ali.
Even the beginning of the Joe Louis era hid a division that was lacking in depth underneath the top. Joe Louis ripped through the division so easily that sport reporters at the time called it the Louis “Bum of the Month “club. [details]