Jerry Quarry vs Earnie Shavers(Dec.14.1973)

[Caractacus]

here is a link to some really excellent video footage of Jerry Quarry vs Earnie Shavers(1973).
This fight was shown live on closed-circuit theater in nine cities(including Cleveland and Philadelphia).
It was also shown live on early HBO in an experimental basis in parts of Pennsylvania,New York and New Jersey.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyBpm4vHeRQ

[HomicideHenry]

On this night, Quarry was at his best... I think had anyone fought this version of Jerry, he would of been heavyweight champion of the world.

[BoxBuzz]

....unless he was facing Joe Frazier or Ali. And in fact, if Joe would have showed up instead of Quarry.....I'm thinkin this would be the same sort of bad night for Shavers

[Tomasino]

Or Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Evander Holyfield and Larry Holmes.

[tiny_acres]

Quarry was a very good heavyweight but not great.
But I always wondered how dominate he would of been had there had been
a cruiserweight division in the early 70"s?

[Cap]

If what we now consider the cruiserweight class existed and the limit was 200 pounds, Quarry would've been a champion.

[tiny_acres]

If what we now consider the cruiserweight class existed and the limit was 200 pounds, Quarry would've been a champion.

Quarry could of dominated the cruiser division for years.

[Cap]

He certainly could have.

[SenorPipino]

He probably wouldn't have bothered with the cruisers.

Quarry was groomed by his old man to be heavyweight champion. He beat quite a few established and talented heavies in his time. Just because he couldn't get over the hump with Frazier and Ali doesn't mean that he would have sought the safety of the smaller cruisers.

Quarry would have spit at the thought of toiling in the lackluster cruiserweight division.

[Broomhall]

Many of the heavyweights of the past could have been small enough for the cruisers. Louis, Marciano, Braddock, Tunney, Dempsey, Patterson, Even Frazierand Ali could probably have made Cruiserweight at 200lbs. It is a pointless argument as clearly if you are good enough you would always prefer the cash and glamour at heavyweight.

There is also no guarantee that being a good heavyweight would mean being a great cruiserweight. If Cruiser weight had existed Archie Moore would have been hard to beat at that weight, so would Billy Conn or Bob Foster. John Conteh crippled himself to box at light heavy-he would have been a good cruiser.

I never get this myth around Quarry. he was a good fighter with decent skills but he lost to Machen who weighed under 200lbs, Ellis weighed under 200lbs when he beat Quarry, the ageing patterson drew with him weighed under 200lbs, Alongi who weighed around 200lbs drew with him, Doyle another draw weighed around 200lbs.

[hhaehre]

I never get this myth around Quarry. he was a good fighter with decent skills but he lost to Machen who weighed under 200lbs, Ellis weighed under 200lbs when he beat Quarry, the ageing patterson drew with him weighed under 200lbs, Alongi who weighed around 200lbs drew with him, Doyle another draw weighed around 200lbs.

If anything, Jerry did better against bigger and slower guys.

[Broomhall]

I never get this myth around Quarry. he was a good fighter with decent skills but he lost to Machen who weighed under 200lbs, Ellis weighed under 200lbs when he beat Quarry, the ageing patterson drew with him weighed under 200lbs, Alongi who weighed around 200lbs drew with him, Doyle another draw weighed around 200lbs.

If anything, Jerry did better against bigger and slower guys.

Thats why I think Shavers made him look good. No doubt he was a good fighter but I think this myth has built up almost like he was the uncrowned champ who was somehow denied his true greatness. And sadly I think the irish american Californian beach boy image has a lot to do with it rather than the reality.

[Caractacus]

I would hardly catagorize Jerry Quarry as sometype of "Surfer Dude".

[Caractacus]

here is a link to some really excellent video footage of Jerry Quarry vs Earnie Shavers(1973).
This fight was shown live on closed-circuit theater in nine cities(including Cleveland and Philadelphia).
It was also shown live on early HBO in an experimental basis in parts of Pennsylvania,New York and New Jersey.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyBpm4vHeRQ

Has anyone seen a copy of the closed-circuit advertisment for this bout?
(I think it was Video Techniques)
I think the reason why it is rare is because it was probably advertised with those small handbills variously posted around the nine cities
that it was shown in,instead of being advertised in a newspaper.
One of the nine cities was Montreal Canada,where it was shown after a live boxing card.
Also the semi-final to the Quarry vs Shavers bout was
Argentian Light-Heavyweight Jorge Victor Ahumada vs Andy Kendall.
Most likely it was part of the closed-circuit broadcast too.
Has anyone seen video footage of that bout?

[Broomhall]

I would hardly catagorize Jerry Quarry as sometype of "Surfer Dude".

I dont think I did. But his background is important in how he is viewed and I think if he had a been a black fighter from Detroit we wouldnt be having this discussion. Jimmy Ellis was a smallish mobile heavyweight who was as least as good as Quarry, but no one says if cruiserweight was around Jimmy would have been an all time great at that weight.

[SenorPipino]

Quarry a "surfer dude?"

He was from the very inland Bellflower, quite a distance from the beach.
In SoCal. a lot of people saw Bellflower as more "white trash" than surfer.

[Broomhall]

Quarry a "surfer dude?"

He was from the very inland Bellflower, quite a distance from the beach.
In SoCal. a lot of people saw Bellflower as more "white trash" than surfer.

FFS All I said was that if Quarry was a black fighter from Detriot he wouldnt get this "legend" status. This is taken from Gaelic web.

"It wasn't until the 1960's, with the emergence of Jerry Quarry, that the Irish-Americans had one of their own become a number one challenger in the heavyweight division. With his Beatles-style haircut and California cool, Quarry had more in common with the Beach Boys than he did with his Irish counterparts "

So, No Pipino, Quarry wasnt a "surfer dude" but he rode a wave of pop culture that was happening at the same time as the beach boys. And he could only do this as a white heavyweight. I personally dont understand the legend that has built up around him.

[SenorPipino]

I never realized that Quarry was accorded "legend" status.

He was a pretty decent, rugged heavyweight---one of the better contenders of the 60s thru mid-70s.
He beat some quality heavies in Patterson, Spencer, Lyle, Foster, Mathis and Shavers, so he should be acknowleged as a top fighter during that period, regardless of ghis color.
But I don't know that he's been placed on that pedestal reserved for legends. I wonder if today's neophyte boxing fans are even aware of him.

But I'll agree that in his time, Quarry probably received added hype because he was white.

I might have a distorted view because when I was growing up in Southern California. Quarry was the subject of heavy media attention. This was probably more so due to his status as a "local" heavyweight contender, rather than being white.

Quarry was certainly a huge sports star in the L.A. area during that period. But I think his ring accomplishments were kept in perspective, and he was never presented as a fighter on the same level as Ali, Frazier or any other true ring legends.

[Caractacus]

Has anyone seen the compleat HBO broadcast of HBO debute of live Coast to Coast Boxing?
It was Earnie Shavers vs Jimmy Ellis in June 1973.
IVe never seen the entire broadcast only the short clip of Shavers knocking out Ellis.
(Rodney Bobick fought on the semi-final)
Actually the first live boxing event HBO had ever done was
George Foreman vs Joe Frazier in January 1973.
However that was shown only on an experimental basis in parts of Pennsylvania and Florida.
Everyone else had to go to see it at a closed-circuit theater or arena.

[Caractacus]

here is a link to some really excellent video footage of Jerry Quarry vs Earnie Shavers(1973).
This fight was shown live on closed-circuit theater in nine cities(including Cleveland and Philadelphia).
It was also shown live on early HBO in an experimental basis in parts of Pennsylvania,New York and New Jersey.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyBpm4vHeRQ

The video footage is so good in that clip that you can now actually read what it says on the back of Earnie Shaver's robe there.

"Doin It For Ohio"

As a matter of fact,I think next month Im gonna go get and buy a hoodie with that logo on the back,
for the next time that
Im out Dating and schtuphing the Babes.

[Leonid]

IMO he could be fighting at LHW today and I'd give him next to zero chances against Kovalev.
He would be slow and smallish at current CW. Just look at what happened to Fast Eddie. Quarry would be an underdog against any top 10 guy.
Having said all that I still ackowledge his accomplishments in his own era, which does not seem as golden too me.
I already know I'm ignorant and plain stupid, so don't even bother.

[drunkenpiper36]

If what we now consider the cruiserweight class existed and the limit was 200 pounds, Quarry would've been a champion.

Perhaps but if 200 lbs were the weight limit, then Ellis, Frazier and Patterson could have made that weight too. Of those three, Joe Frazier would have least likely made that change given that he was already very successful at heavy. But Ellis,an aged Patterson, Bonavena and quite a few other respectable men of that era could have beneffitted from the induction of such a class. You also had some very good light heavyweights who may have transitioned well there too..Therefore, I am hesitant to say that Quarry would have "dominated"

[Caractacus]

ppphhffft,
there wouldnt have been no glory in being THE cruiserweight champion back in 1967.
why you think so many light heavyweights gained some weight to try and fight in the heavyweight division over the decades
instead of loosing weight to also become middleweight champion?
being Heavyweight Champion meant that you were at the top of the food chain in the annuals of "Fistiana".

[drunkenpiper36]

ppphhffft,
there wouldnt have been no glory in being THE cruiserweight champion back in 1967.
why you think so many light heavyweights gained some weight to try and fight in the heavyweight division over the decades
instead of loosing weight to also become middleweight champion?
being Heavyweight Champion meant that you were at the top of the food chain in the annuals of "Fistiana".

All very true. But you had a lot of good light heavys like Bob Foster who ruled the division and did nothing at heavy, while you had plenty of smaller heavy's that were very good who could have made the cruiser limit. If we were to take a few of those guys from each of those divisions, it might have made for an interesting scene. The primary reason why such a weight class didn't exist until much later however was that there was no real need for it. Men just weren't that big in those days. Once we started seeing more and more guys who were between 6'3 - 6'6" and weigning anywhere from 220 - 250, then it became more necessary, because the 5'10" 198 lbs guys couldn't keep up anymore.

[Caractacus]

If what we now consider the cruiserweight class existed and the limit was 200 pounds, Quarry would've been a champion.

Perhaps but if 200 lbs were the weight limit, then Ellis, Frazier and Patterson could have made that weight too. Of those three, Joe Frazier would have least likely made that change given that he was already very successful at heavy. But Ellis,an aged Patterson, Bonavena and quite a few other respectable men of that era could have beneffitted from the induction of such a class. You also had some very good light heavyweights who may have transitioned well there too..Therefore, I am hesitant to say that Quarry would have "dominated"

I remember back sometime in the late 1960's,
some boxing experts critized Jerry Quarry for fighting in the heavyweight division due to his lack of size.
You know what his response was?

"Dynamite Comes in Small Packages".