January 2002 - July 2006 - The Jerry Quarry Foundation

cause some, even if it's minuscule. Archie Moore and Sugar Ray
Robinson were both notoriously punchy, although when seen
briefly on TV, the damage may not have been obvious to all. ***That's a
good point. For short interviews or commentary, many sound good, and, in fact,
speech isn't always affected, or as much in one fighter as in another. Look at
George Chuvalo. A tough man to be sure, but in terms of speech, one would never
know he'd a boxer, while I've heard Olympic boxers interviewed who sounded like
Leon Spinks.
Today in the newspaper, Warren Sapp, a former NFL lineman and
All Star who weighs 350+ pounds and stands 6'7", is quoted as
saying he is "confident" he could defeat Mike Tyson in the boxing
ring. Sapp holds a championship in a competition combining
karate, tae kwon do and other martial arts. Of course, if he were
allowed to kick and so forth, he probably would win. ***Maybe, but
it's no accident that in kick boxing tournaments, they have a minimum number of
kicks the fighters have to execute each round. They do this, then box the rest
of the time. Tyson would train for kicks, which take much longer than a punch to
arrive, and leave the athlete momentarily very vulnerable, just as a boxer
crossing his feet when moving does - you talk about a paintbrush jab leaving a
fighter open for a counter! The first time Sapp tossed out a kick, the
footballer would have to have his corner tell him how many times he got hit.
Tyson would have his choice of rope a dope with a little lateral movement, while
Sapp punched himself out, street fighting style, or he could get the big man's
respect real fast with a few body punches. Sapp wouldn't rush Tyson as he would
someone in a bar, and he'd never be able to catch up in a gym on all the things
MT would throw at him, top pro moves that fighters don't even think about (Joe
Louis said he knew he was getting old when he started thinking about what to
throw). This would be a massacre, and no responsible governing body would
sanction it, though "responsible" and "boxing regulatory commissions" are pretty
much oxymorons, contracictions in terms. Sapp would be as out of his league with
Tyson as he'd be trying to play for the 76ers, or wrestling Rulon
Gardner. A good
heavyweight on a great night might stand a chance
against an excellent one on a poor night. Otherwise, though,
there is little chance an average fighter like Riddick Bowe would
beat an excellent fighter like Ali or Frazier. It could happen, and
there have been big upsets, but it's so improbable as to be
ridiculous to discuss. ***These Hail Mary situations tend to take on
status as the rule, and something that could happen at any time, so used are
people to the mostly ludicrous world of Hollywood boxing. Or Wepner and Cobb
last 15 rounds as human punching bags, and their somewhat strange moral victory
is turned around into something else. Once in a while weird combinations of
styles, along with an off night by a great can produce surprises, ala Jimmy
Young beating Foreman. Foreman beat Frazier like a drum, yet Frazier would have
gone through Young like he was wet tissue paper. It can all get crazy, but
that's all it is, crazy randomness, not patterns.
Could we please knock off
all this speculation over whether Joe
Bugner or Tommy Morrison could KO George Foreman or Joe
Louis on a big night?***This could happen only in the most bizarre
of accidents. Call it luck even - a bad lapse on Louis's or Foreman's part, and
Bugner, Morrison, whomever, in the right place at the right time to throw the
right punch. Of course, they'd have to follow up, in all likelihood, which would
tend to put things back in proper balance, as the top man cleared his head. Even
the lucky punch at the proper time isn't being thrown on an ordinary guy on the
street, and a fluke, one punch KO of your real big timers is extremely rare,
even one superior fighter to another.