1971 Joe Frazier -vs- 1980 Larry Holmes...

[yancey]

"I think Joe brings it to Holmes like no one could in his prime." theone

Exactly!

[BoxBuzz]

that's the ticket.....

[gilgamesh]

I think it would be stiffest challenge of anyone Holmes ever had to face ( outside of Prime Tyson and Holyfield much later in his career ) that being said in his prime I think Holmes has enough ability and the right style to outbox Joe a lot of the way, he'd have a lot of hell towards the end of the bout and I could see him getting dropped somewhere along the way similar to what happened to Ali. I think Holmes would win about 9 of the 15 rounds and take the decision in a very, very hard fought battle.

[yancey]

Someone refresh my memory, did Larry Holmes ever undergo a body assault like Frazier would likely give him?

I know Larry got nailed by Shavers, but that was primarily upstairs, I believe.

Those boxing skills tend to deplete when the body starts hurting pretty badly from an accumulation of punches.

[BoxBuzz]

....and no way Larry could take incoming to the body the way Ali did.

[Counter-puncher]

I guess you have to ask yourself - Is Holmes superior or inferior to the version of Ali that Frazier defeated relatively narrowly on points?

If the answer is Holmes is better you're probably going to say he'll win, because Frazier didn't beat Ali by much (8-7, 143-141 on my card) but if your answer's no you'll come up with Frazier.

Either way, I say it's a tough call but as I stated I lean toward Frazier.

herein lies the key, I believe. Frazier takes it something like 8-6-1, with Holmes rising off the canvas.

[hhaehre]

Someone refresh my memory, did Larry Holmes ever undergo a body assault like Frazier would likely give him?

I know Larry got nailed by Shavers, but that was primarily upstairs, I believe.

Those boxing skills tend to deplete when the body starts hurting pretty badly from an accumulation of punches.

He took some good digs to the body in the Cooney fight and didn't like it one bit. Frazier would be Cooney times ten.

[Counter-puncher]

He took some good digs to the body in the Cooney fight and didn't like it one bit. Frazier would be Cooney times ten.

Witherspoon also hurt him quite clearly, at least once each with either hand, to the body.

[boxerbob]

look at the way holmes lost alot of the late rounds vs norton...frazier of 71 put much much more pressure on than norton

frazier wpts 15........... 9-6 in rounds