Was Bert Cooper a good fighter?

[80sboxingrules]

anyone remember this guy?

[juandabomb]

not really he was one of those durable guys though from the 80s and early 90s

[boliodogs]

I remember him. He was a good puncher and a top 10 contender at his best. He was never a world champion quality guy although he may have held a belt for a short time. I can't remember if he ever won one of the 4 versions of the heavyweight title or not.

[boliodogs]

I looked him up on boxrec and he apparently wasn't as good as I said he was. He won 38 fights and scored 31 KOs. He lost 25 fights and was KOed 16 times.

[BattlingNelson]

He Was a good journeyman. He Was durable and quite exiting. Rarely fought distance fights. He is Best remembered for his war with Michael Moorer for a Mickey mouse hw title. If you guys havent seen that fight, I recommend it highly.

[SouthPawHitman]

He was the best.

[Chollo Vista]

Not really. Even though he challenged some of the best fighters in his day to really good fights, he also loss to some of the worse fighters in his day.

[BoloPuncher1]

Bert Cooper fan here as my avatar will attest.
I would say Bert was a talented fighter who underachieved and didn't have the self discipline it took to be a champion.
That said, he started his career quite successfully under the guidance of Joe Frazier, hence the moniker "Smokin' Bert Cooper. He was in a phone booth war with Ray Mercer, in which he split Mercer's lip and broke his jaw, but he lost the decision.
On short notice, as a result of Francesco Damiani sustaining an injury, Cooper received a shot at Undisputed Heavyweight Champion Evander Holyfield and gave him everything he could handle, including knocking Holyfield down in the 3rd Round. It's not an exaggeration to say Cooper was perhaps a few punches from stopping Holyfield. Holyfield would rally to stop Cooper in the 7th.
A year later, in 1992, Bert would get another title shot, this time for the vacant WBO title against Michael Moorer. What resulted was one of the best Heavyweight fights of the 90s, with both fighters tasting the canvas in the 1st round, Moorer hitting the deck again in the 3rd, and Moorer getting the last laugh with a 5th Round TKO.
Bert had some nice wins in his career against the likes of Willie DeWitt, Orlin Norris, Tyrone Booze and Joe Hipp.
Bert had drug problems that really derailed promising career. In fact it was that, and his reluctance to do roadwork that caused Joe Frazier to leave him a few years into his career.
So I would say Bert Cooper was more than a journeyman but not dedicated enough to be a champion.

[ИATAS]

At his best absolutely! The problem was he was inconsistent inside and outside the ring. Didn't take training seriously and iirc had a substance abuse problem. He typically gassed out past four rounds as a result, but man, he was a ****ing beast in those first four rounds or so.

He was involved in a couple of my all time favorite heavyweight fights.

[soul_survivor]

Fun fighter to watch but nothing more. A fringe contender at times and very much the type of contender present at heavyweight in the 80s and 90s.