Ketchel wrote:So we are still debating a guy who had 27 fights compared to a guy who had over 180? Does Kalan think that Valero was going to stay unbeaten for the rest of his career and keep his 100% KO record? Was Valero going to go up through the weights like Armstrong and win more titles? Does Kalan think that Valero would have gone on to beat Pacquiao, Mayweather, Sergio Martinez because these are the guys he would have had to beat to get close to matching Henry's achievements?
You guys want it both ways and say Armstrong was more experienced. Many strident Ali fans insist his best days were in 60's when Ali had 19 to 27 fights. Joe Louis always said his best fight was Max Baer when he had only 14 months pro experience and only 21 fights. Having 27 fights doesn't mean you won't beat a ring worn out swinger with 100 fights or more. Armstrong wasn't a technician anyway. Armstrong’s KO streak of 27 is always hyped. What they DON’T tell you is one of those KO victims was 0-2, another was 1-1, and another was in the middle of a 15 fight winless streak and it was his 6th loss in a row. Armstrong’s record was heavily padded. Robinson shut him out easy as pie. Fritzie Zivic stopped Armstrong and beat him bad twice in a row. Zivic had 24 losses when he fought Armstrong and a KO ratio of 35%. He was no hitter but got Armstrong out of there.
You have to understand that boxers in those days had same day weigh-ins. They didn’t dry out 20 pounds to gain maximum size advantage. Armstrong wasn’t giving up as much weight as many boxers do today. And Barney Ross was never a real welterweight. Ross fought Armstrong at 142 and weighed from 141 to 143 for his Welterweight fights. Ross fought at 136 for as late as his 61st fight in a 79 fight career so he wasn’t big or strong. It was Ross’s last fight. He was cooked. He was a young man, but his body was worn out and kaput from boxing. “My legs were gone” Ross explained. Armstrong never went back to defend his featherweight title because he couldn’t make the weight. He was basically a lightweight at that time, and a lot stronger than the washed up Ross.
Ross was a featherweight hitter with a KO ratio of 27%. Watch that fight and witness how wide open Armstrong was for yourselves. See how Armstrong led with his head and how easy he was to hit. You’ll agree that Valero knocks him out easily. If you don’t check the video record, you’re just buying a common myth.