Ranking these Heavyweight champions eras

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

how would u rate these eras


larry holmes - early 80s

top ten fighters during that period

1. larry holmes- 6'3 210lbs
2. michael spinx- 6'3 199lbs
3. tim witherspoon- 6'3 219lb
4. pinklon thomas- 6'3 215lb
5. trevor berbick- 6'2 218lb
6. mike weaver- 6'1 202lbs
7. mike dokes- 6'3 216lbs
8. greg page- 6'2 239lb
9. tony tubbs - 6'3 244lb OBESECITY jk
10. gerrie coatzee - 6'2 215lb



Marciano- early 50s

early 1950s top 10

1. rocky marciano - 5'11 185lb
2. jersey joe walcott- 6' 197lb
3. ezzard charles- 6' 185lb
4. archie moore - 5'11 188lb
5. Harold johnson- 5'10 178lbs- dont let it fool u, he was RIPPED
6. Roland Lastarza- 6' 190lb
7. Nino Valdez - 6'3 210lb
8. Rex Layne- 6'1 200lb
9. Bob Baker- 6'2 220lb
10. Bob Satterfield - 6'1 182lb



Jack Dempsey- late teens, early 1920s

- dont include tunney cause he wasnt till later on

1. Jack dempsey- 6'1 185lb
2. Harry Wills- 6'4 220lb
3. Jess Willard - 6'7 245lb
4. Tommy Gibbons- 5'9 175lb
5. georges carpentier 6' 175lb
6. Fred Fulton- 6'5 210lb
7. Bill Brenan- 6' 197lb
8. Billy Miske- 6' 185lb
9. Luis Firpo - 6'3 216lb
10. Carl Morris- 6'4 225lb


Joe Louis- late 30s early 40s

1. Joe Louis - 6'2 200lbs
2. Max Baer - 6'3 210lb
3. Max Schmeling- 6'1 193lb
4. Billy Conn - 6' 175lb
5. James Braddock - 6'3 195lb
6. Jimmy Bivins - 5'11 180lb
7. Tommy Farr- 6' 205lb
8. Lou Nova- 6'3 202lbs
9. Buddy Baer - 6'7 250lb
10. Elmer Ray - 6'2 200lb



Sonny liston - late 50s early 60s

1. Cassius Clay*- 6'3 200lbs
2. Sonny liston- 6'1 212lbs
3. Floyd Patterson- 6' 190lb
4. ingemar johannsen- 6' 195lb
5. eddie machen- 6' 195lbs
6. cleveland Williams- 6'3 210lbs
7. Henry Cooper - 5'10 185lb
8. Zora Folley - 6'1 195lb
9. Tommy Jackson - 6'4 195lb
10. Doug Jones - 6' 180lbs

[wolverine1]

Wow Brockton that's pretty impressive work. I'm not being sarcastic as some would come to believe.
What have you got for the '90s?

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

thanx man,

funny thing is alot of these great all time light-H deserve to be in there because they beat the best heavy contenders, and even at 175 had to much speed or skill for some heavies.

- only two light-H could ever slug it out with the big boys and still win, archie moore. though moore usually boxed and waited for the opening. the other was sam langford who could knock out skilled giants weighing only 175-185lb.

guys like charles, tunney, spinx, conn too fast and skilled for most heavies.




Lennox lewis- early-late 1990s

1. Lennox Lewis- 6'5 240lb
2. Evander Holyfield - 6'2 208lbs
3. Mike tyson - 5'10 220lb
4. Riddick Bowe - 6'5 235lb
5. Michael Moorer- 6'2 215lb
6. Frank Bruno- 6'3 247lb
7. Ray Mercer- 6'1 230lb
8. Tommy Morrison- 6'2 225lb
9. Oliver Mccail - 6'2 235lb
10. Old George Foreman- 6'3 257lb

[wolverine1]

Brockton, outta that list, I would have liked to have seen:

Lewis/Bowe
Tyson/Mercer
Morrison/Bruno

How 'bout you?

[evndrbsn]

how would u rate these eras


larry holmes - early 80s

top ten fighters during that period

1. larry holmes- 6'3 210lbs
2. michael spinx- 6'3 199lbs
3. tim witherspoon- 6'3 219lb
4. pinklon thomas- 6'3 215lb
5. trevor berbick- 6'2 218lb
6. mike weaver- 6'1 202lbs
7. mike dokes- 6'3 216lbs
8. greg page- 6'2 239lb
9. tony tubbs - 6'3 244lb OBESECITY jk
10. gerrie coatzee - 6'2 215lb



Marciano- early 50s

early 1950s top 10

1. rocky marciano - 5'11 185lb
2. jersey joe walcott- 6' 197lb
3. ezzard charles- 6' 185lb
4. archie moore - 5'11 188lb
5. Harold johnson- 5'10 178lbs- dont let it fool u, he was RIPPED
6. Roland Lastarza- 6' 190lb
7. Nino Valdez - 6'3 210lb
8. Rex Layne- 6'1 200lb
9. Bob Baker- 6'2 220lb
10. Bob Satterfield - 6'1 182lb



Jack Dempsey- late teens, early 1920s

- dont include tunney cause he wasnt till later on

1. Jack dempsey- 6'1 185lb
2. Harry Wills- 6'4 220lb
3. Jess Willard - 6'7 245lb
4. Tommy Gibbons- 5'9 175lb
5. georges carpentier 6' 175lb
6. Fred Fulton- 6'5 210lb
7. Bill Brenan- 6' 197lb
8. Billy Miske- 6' 185lb
9. Luis Firpo - 6'3 216lb
10. Carl Morris- 6'4 225lb


Joe Louis- late 30s early 40s

1. Joe Louis - 6'2 200lbs
2. Max Baer - 6'3 210lb
3. Max Schmeling- 6'1 193lb
4. Billy Conn - 6' 175lb
5. James Braddock - 6'3 195lb
5. Jimmy Bivins - 5'11 180lb
6. Tommy Farr- 6' 205lb
7. Lou Nova- 6'3 202lbs
8. Buddy Baer - 6'7 250lb
9. Tami Mauriello - 6' 190lbs
10. Elmer Ray- 6'2 200lbs


Sonny liston - late 50s early 60s

1. Cassius Clay*- 6'3 200lbs
2. Sonny liston- 6'1 212lbs
3. Floyd Patterson- 6' 190lb
4. ingemar johannsen- 6' 195lb
5. eddie machen- 6' 195lbs
6. cleveland Williams- 6'3 210lbs
7. Henry Cooper - 5'10 185lb
8. Zora Folley - 6'1 195lb
9. Tommy Jackson - 6'4 195lb
10. Doug Jones - 6' 180lbs

Lennox lewis- early-late 1990s

1. Lennox Lewis- 6'5 240lb
2. Evander Holyfield - 6'2 208lbs
3. Mike tyson - 5'10 220lb
4. Riddick Bowe - 6'5 235lb
5. Michael Moorer- 6'2 215lb
6. Frank Bruno- 6'3 247lb
7. Ray Mercer- 6'1 230lb
8. Tommy Morrison- 6'2 225lb
9. Oliver Mccail - 6'2 235lb
10. Old George Foreman- 6'3 257lb

In this order: Sonny Liston era (aka most in prime era), Joe Louis era (3 of top 5 nearly post-prime, yet still great era), Lennox Lewis era (bigger fighters), Dempsey era (partially clumsy), Holmes era (great but wasted talent), and Marciano era (best three contenders at end of careers).

Foreman was not 6'3" when he came back in 1987. I have no clue how, but he was an inch taller at 6'4" with his new bald head look (maybe he grew two inches; he might have only been 6'2" with the fro, 6'3" with it). He made a comment on it before in an interview, but I forgot what he said.

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

Marciano era (best three contenders at end of careers).

how was marcianos the weakest???

where talking 1951-55.

u had 5 HOF in the top ten, moore, johnson, charles, walcott, marciano??

walcott and charles are top 15 or 20 heavies, and marcianos at leaast top 10 heavy.

marcianos era was 51-55, and charles was still only 29 and champ then. walcott as u know was a late bloomer and but did smartly retire after knockout loss in rematch with rock. but u had those 3 heavies in 1951, 1952 with charles, marciano, walcott at or near there best, not to mention charles incredible 1954 preformance againnst rocky. and moore 45-1 in his last 46 fights tearing up the heavyweight division.

i would rate dempseys below marciano or on even terms.

i would rate joe louis on even terms with rocky.



- u had archie moore harold johnson, roland lastarza, nino valdez, satterfield, layne etc

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

out of all the eras i just listed, only one had the top 5 all HOFs, marcianos era. something to think about.

if u had the 90s scene in, all those guys will be HOF so lennox and marcianos era.

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

were schmeling and baer better than walcott and charles?




my order would be

1. liston
2. lewis
3. marciano
4. louis
5. dempsey
6. holmes- however he prob should rank higher because had a lot of depth

[TheRiverCityHippy]

hey brockton nice post, pretty informative.
here`s the average`s from your figures

teens/20`s = 203 lbs
30`s/40`s = 202 lbs
40`s/50`s = 193 1/2 lbs
50`s/60`s = 195 1/2 lbs
early 80`s = 217 1/2 lbs
90`s = 231 lbs

the 30`s/40`s era kept weighing in at an average of 220 and i was thinking no way, until i realised you have 2 fella`s at number 5.
i took the heaviest of the pair for the average.

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

oops!!! my mistake i put 11 under the 30s and 40ss ill revise and take one out.


thanx for the calculations though u cant base it all on weight because some of the most skilled fighters were under 200lb.


i could easily replace 200lbb maureillo and put in 255lb abe simon or 270lb primo carnera to make the average bigger but i chose skill first.


could u do the heights average please??

[TheRiverCityHippy]

oops!!! my mistake i put 11 under the 30s and 40ss ill revise and take one out.


thanx for the calculations though u cant base it all on weight because some of the most skilled fighters were under 200lb.


i could easily replace 200lbb maureillo and put in 255lb abe simon or 270lb primo carnera to make the average bigger but i chose skill first.


could u do the heights average please??

heights a bit tricky because its multiples of 12, we need a mathmatician on here

[evndrbsn]

Using the heights you provided, here is the average:

1980s: 6'2 ½”

1910s/1920s: 6'1 ¾”

1930s/1940s: 6'2"

Early 1950s: 6’1 1/3"

1950s/1960s: 6'1"

1980s: 6'2 ½”

1990s: 6'2 1/3”

[Cojimar 1945]

Some of the heights seem a bit inaccurate and I don't agree with the rankings of the best fighters of each period. It's much easier to rank fighters based on birthdate than when they fought since some guys had extremely long careers.

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

Some of the heights seem a bit inaccurate and I don't agree with the rankings of the best fighters of each period. It's much easier to rank fighters based on birthdate than when they fought since some guys had extremely long careers.

like what?

[Cojimar 1945]

Louis was 6' 1 1/2, Baer was 6' 2 2/2, Marciano 5' 10 1/4, Braddock 6' 2.

[pound per pound]

BrocktonBlockbuster49 how would u rate these eras?

larry holmes - early 80s

top ten fighters during that period

1. larry holmes- 6'3 210lbs
2. michael spinx- 6'3 199lbs
3. tim witherspoon- 6'3 219lb
4. pinklon thomas- 6'3 215lb
5. trevor berbick- 6'2 218lb
6. mike weaver- 6'1 202lbs
7. mike dokes- 6'3 216lbs
8. greg page- 6'2 239lb
9. tony tubbs - 6'3 244lb OBESECITY jk
10. gerrie coatzee - 6'2 215lb



Marciano- early 50s

early 1950s top 10

1. rocky marciano - 5'11 185lb
2. jersey joe walcott- 6' 197lb
3. ezzard charles- 6' 185lb
4. archie moore - 5'11 188lb
5. Harold johnson- 5'10 178lbs- dont let it fool u, he was RIPPED
6. Roland Lastarza- 6' 190lb
7. Nino Valdez - 6'3 210lb
8. Rex Layne- 6'1 200lb
9. Bob Baker- 6'2 220lb
10. Bob Satterfield - 6'1 182lb



Jack Dempsey- late teens, early 1920s

- dont include tunney cause he wasnt till later on

1. Jack dempsey- 6'1 185lb
2. Harry Wills- 6'4 220lb
3. Jess Willard - 6'7 245lb
4. Tommy Gibbons- 5'9 175lb
5. georges carpentier 6' 175lb
6. Fred Fulton- 6'5 210lb
7. Bill Brenan- 6' 197lb
8. Billy Miske- 6' 185lb
9. Luis Firpo - 6'3 216lb
10. Carl Morris- 6'4 225lb


Joe Louis- late 30s early 40s

1. Joe Louis - 6'2 200lbs
2. Max Baer - 6'3 210lb
3. Max Schmeling- 6'1 193lb
4. Billy Conn - 6' 175lb
5. James Braddock - 6'3 195lb
5. Jimmy Bivins - 5'11 180lb
6. Tommy Farr- 6' 205lb
7. Lou Nova- 6'3 202lbs
8. Buddy Baer - 6'7 250lb
9. Tami Mauriello - 6' 190lbs
10. Elmer Ray- 6'2 200lbs


Sonny liston - late 50s early 60s

1. Cassius Clay*- 6'3 200lbs
2. Sonny liston- 6'1 212lbs
3. Floyd Patterson- 6' 190lb
4. ingemar johannsen- 6' 195lb
5. eddie machen- 6' 195lbs
6. cleveland Williams- 6'3 210lbs
7. Henry Cooper - 5'10 185lb
8. Zora Folley - 6'1 195lb
9. Tommy Jackson - 6'4 195lb
10. Doug Jones - 6' 180lbs

Lennox lewis- early-late 1990s

1. Lennox Lewis- 6'5 240lb
2. Evander Holyfield - 6'2 208lbs
3. Mike tyson - 5'10 220lb
4. Riddick Bowe - 6'5 235lb
5. Michael Moorer- 6'2 215lb
6. Frank Bruno- 6'3 247lb
7. Ray Mercer- 6'1 230lb
8. Tommy Morrison- 6'2 225lb
9. Oliver Mccail - 6'2 235lb
10. Old George Foreman- 6'3 257lb
[/quote]


Good work Mr.BrocktonBlockbuster49!

For my part, the depth in the early to late 90's was the best. Overall, I think it had the most talent. Indeed, Lewis, Holyfield and Tyson are top 15 fighters. Bowe career was like a shooting star, but he was brillant as well. Top to bottom, the 90's crew all had puncher's chances. No other era can say that. Amazingly enough, I think Holmes could be viewed as the 8th, 9th or 10th best fighter in the 90's.


My picks based your your given data are:

early-late 1990s
late 50s early 60s
early 1950s
early 80's
late teens, early 1920s
late 30s early 40s

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

i rounded up, and marciano was 5'10 3/4 so i rounded it up to 5'11.

braddock wa 6'2 1/2. louis was basically 6'2, very close to it.

[Cojimar 1945]

I believe Marciano was 5' 10 1/4 rather than 5' 10 3/4. I have never seen any measurement putting him at the latter height. Louis was 6'1 1/2 according to the Fleischer and Louis's autobiography. Nat Fleischer's tale of the tape measurements for various champions puts Braddock at 6' 2 with a 75-inch reach. Jess Willard was reportedly 6' 6 1/4.

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

marciano in box rec is lited 5'11. plus in his fights he was anhwere from 5'10 1/4 to 5'11 and usually 5'10 3/4.


louis and braddock 6'1 1/2 and 6'2 1/2 i rounded up. louis was measured at 6'2 a lot.


willard was usually measured at 6'6 3/4

[Ambling Alp]

The 1990's had the most talent of these, but many of the best fights didn't materialize, so it wasn't the best era. If Mercer-Tyson, Mercer-Moorer and especially, Bowe-Lewis and Bowe-Lewis would have taken place then it probably have been.

Dempsey's late Teens and early 1920's was the weakest of these.

[dempseyfire]

When you think of it, were the early 80s really worse then the early 90s? I mean, an old Tubbs arguably beat a prime Bowe, you had 80s retread Bruno as a champion, old Foreman . . .were Moorer, Mercer, and Morrison a superior bunch to a prime Dokes, Witherspoon, and Weaver? I don't think so.

[The Great John L]

When you think of it, were the early 80s really worse then the early 90s? I mean, an old Tubbs arguably beat a prime Bowe, you had 80s retread Bruno as a champion, old Foreman . . .were Moorer, Mercer, and Morrison a superior bunch to a prime Dokes, Witherspoon, and Weaver? I don't think so.

Hmmm, I'd have to agree. The 80's and 90's were both equally weak.

[Rory McCloskey]

1 quick question...where are the 70's????

[BrocktonBlockbuster49]

i chose to ask about these eras only, i could have mentioned 70s but i wanted to ask what people thought about other eras

[Cojimar 1945]

It appears that Harry Wills only measured 6' 2 while Tommy "Hurricane" Jackson measured 6' 2 1/2.