Will we ever see a Heavyweight Champion under 6' again?

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Im more optimistic than others.

How many really good champs over 6-5 have we had? Lennox and the Klits. After wlad retires, theres no guarantee that the next undisputed guy is going to be that big.

Size alone isnt enough otherwise Valuev would be champ, and to his credit, his stamina was really good for a 7 ft tall guy but he got outboxed by a more mobile former cruiserweight.

Most heavyweights these days are over 240 but the majority of them are really 220 pound guys with 20 pounds of gut they could stand to lose.

There are a lot of tall guys like Wach and Fury but they suck balls and will lose to a smaller mobile guy. Size matters to a point though, Cunningham only lost to Fury due to size, he was clearly the better fighter, with Fury going down from a cruiserweight punch.

Even Steve Cunningham is 6'3". He may look miniature in the ring with Fury but he's a fairly big guy.

Same with David Haye (since you mentioned Valuev), 6'3"-6'4" range.

A guy Tysons size (I think he was 5'10" at his tallest?) would have incredible difficulty. A few brutal KOs but he wouldn't be able to keep up the element of surprise and intensity level to defend a title year after year.

6 ft seems to be the absolute bottom limit for heavyweight right now and it's quickly going up.

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Im only 5'10/11 and around 215lbs and Ive sparred guys around 6'0/6'6..

Its demoralising infact I had better sparring down at Cruiserweight and even there I were a inch or two shorter than my opponents.

Im a massive Tua fan not because he was around my height but because he was fearless and had that zero ****s given attitude in the ring.

I massively respect any HW under 6' because it is a massive task at hand especially nowadays with the likes of Wilder, Joshua and Fury.

Could it happen Hell yes, isit probable not very.

Yeah I'm 5'10" and when I spar guys who are 6'3"+ it tends to turn into me with my head down bumrushing them ala a 160 pound Tua.

You could never consistently reign as a champion like that, at most you'd score a few blind knockouts, but once they find distance with their jab you start wishing it was an MMA match s you could just lift them by the ankles and slam them..

[Suckmedry]

Probably not because theres no good inside fighters around anymore.

Height and reach can become a disadvantage against a good inside fighter who can close distance, get inside and STAY THERE AND WORK. The style isn't coached as much these days, mainly due to the amateur systems scoring not paying inside fighting in the last 20-30 odd years.

Morons scoff at this but I'm telling you, if a Joe Frazier came along at HW today he would seriously test Wlad, because he would not be content to sit back and get his head jabbed off, he'd come inside, **** the body and work hard. Thats how you beat taller guys. Theres no one around today with the capabilities to do that anymore.

[Francis M.]

The days of Tyson sized heavy weights are long gone... The new super heavy weights of 6'5 and up weighing in at 250+ is just to much to overcome....

I'm predicting the absolute minimum size in coming years that employs a Tyson or Frazier style would need to be 6'0 or 6'1 at minimum....

[twrx]

Im 5'10 sparred a guy 6'4 210 that i dropped. He was big framed really slender and his jab was easy to slip ended up hitting him with an overhand right. But the other 2 one 6'4 and 6'6 were a pain in the ass i was so damn frustrated they were bigger framed 240 and 255 their ****** stiff arm jab kept me away all session and when i could get them in the ropes to rough em up a bit i got tossed around like a *****

[Elroy1]

Historically the optimum height was 6'2" but of course that includes all eras so obviously the optimum height has increased along with increased weight and improved training because the taller the boxer the more challenging the balance and some other factors.

Mike Tyson is the only notable great champ in my book that was less than 6' and still a thrashing machine in a modern era with big+athletic boys.

I concur with 80's fighter, evidence clearly shows Mike struggling with bigger guys more and now that 6'3-6'4" is a "regular" height now, Mike wouldn't fare nearly as dominantly anymore. Of course Mike would still crunch through many a contender but his longevity would be far less. I think this is the only reasonable opinion.

So no I can't see any sub 6 footer really playing a major factor in the division again. I would like to see something like a 6'2" version of Mike Tyson, that'd be nice!!

[B-Bomber]

I don't know if you've ever gotten in the ring with a much taller fighter but it's an absolute nightmare.

I'm 6'2 and I haven't sparred or fought a lot of taller guys but I've fought against some 6'6+ and above and it's not fun.

I sparred with this 6'8 visitor at my gym once and it was almost impossible to hit him. His head always felt out of range. He would dangle his head almost in range for me to hit, and then pull back whenever I made a move. I kept hitting nothing but air. Jabs were completely innefective and even if I touched him, it felt like a tap and I wasn't hitting him with my full weight because I was reaching and out of form. Hooks and uppercuts were out of the question unless I was countering him but he was always keeping me at the end of his jab. Even his body felt out of range because his humongous tree arms were keeping me out side of hitting distance.

The only shot that felt effective was my straight left(i'm a southpaw) if I could time it right and shoot it fast enough while he wasn't moving backwards.

Fighting a much taller fighter is an overwhelming obstacle. You have to be a master of the science to get away with it.

It depends on one's style, but height is not always an advantage.

By the way, regarding your sparrings. Normally tall guys are vulnerable to feints.

They thend to do exactly what you said , get out of range. Of course it depends on how good they (and you) are, but if you manage to have them move when you want, then they are in trouble.

The most basic trap I can think of is to feint a right hand to the head,( lead or as part of a 1-2). If they react to it by just pulling back, you'll normally be able to slip in with a left hook or a left uppercut to the body.
Rangy guys normally -hate- body shots, and become very tentative.

Not saying you can beat every single 'tall fighter' by using such simple tricks, just thought I could maybe help


As for the the TS question , I agree with Lewis , it's not impossible, but unlikely.
Not only because of height, weight and reach could be a bigger disadvantage for a guy so small, imo.

[HughJass]

How tall is Andy Ruiz lololol

[Suckmedry]

Historically the optimum height was 6'2" but of course that includes all eras so obviously the optimum height has increased along with increased weight and improved training because the taller the boxer the more challenging the balance and some other factors.

Mike Tyson is the only notable great champ in my book that was less than 6' and still a thrashing machine in a modern era with big+athletic boys.

I concur with 80's fighter, evidence clearly shows Mike struggling with bigger guys more and now that 6'3-6'4" is a "regular" height now, Mike wouldn't fare nearly as dominantly anymore. Of course Mike would still crunch through many a contender but his longevity would be far less. I think this is the only reasonable opinion.

So no I can't see any sub 6 footer really playing a major factor in the division again. I would like to see something like a 6'2" version of Mike Tyson, that'd be nice!!

We've been waiting for months now to hear what these improved training methods are.

[kiDynamite92]

Height and reach can be negated very easily with feet and/or head movement. If you watch the opening round of Tyson vs Lewis, you'd notice that Mike was actually able to trade jabs with Lewis even though he had a 13 inch reach disadvantage by using a bit of feet and upper body. Problem is not many people know how to do this nowadays.