Gerry Cooney?

[NYDominican]

On June 11, 1982, Gerry Cooney fought Larry Holmes. Larry beat Gerry by a 13th round tko.

Clearly, Cooney had A LOT of punching power, primarily his left hook.

Had Gerry beat Holmes on June 11, 1982? -------------

1. Do you think that Cooney mentally would have gone on?




2. Do you think that Gerry would not taken quite a layoff, and continued to box a respectable amount of fights per year up until say 1987?




3. If so, do you think that Gerry Cooney could have been one of the top heavyweight boxers of all time?



Please explain.

[HomicideHenry]

Had he won the fame, the money, the women, the alcohol, and the drugs would have eventually worn down on him. Holmes was superior in return bouts, and he'd of gotten a return match eventually and of beaten Cooney. I think in either scenario, he'd of probably lost the title in either his maiden defense or within 2 years.

[tiny_acres]

What if Cooney would of fought Weaver instead. He could have and would have beaten him.
Have a couple of years of defenses and then faced Holmes in a unification when Holmes was on the slide.


Cooney is so under rated now. But he was one tough fighter in his day. But in 1982 no one was beating Larry.

[DrDuke]

If Cooney would have made a goal of conquering some of non-Holmes titles, he most likely would have become a one of the champions.

[Controversial]

2. Do you think that Gerry would not taken quite a layoff, and continued to box a respectable amount of fights per year up until say 1987?

Cooney was too inactive before fighting Holmes. He fought Holmes in June 1982 but prior to that had only one fight in 1981 which lasted just 54 seconds and only two fights in 1980, one of which also ended in the 1st round. So he only boxed 6 rounds in 2 years, if he was more active the result might have been closer.

[Nile4000]

A couple of guys named Page and Dokes would have made sure Cooney didn't last long as champ.

[The Great John L]

What if Cooney would of fought Weaver instead. He could have and would have beaten him.

That's hardly a given. While Cooney would have had a good chance against Weaver his chin wasn't the greatest and Weaver was a very hard puncher. On his best days Weaver was a very good fighter and had a much more accomplished career than the fragile Cooney.

[Tony1244]

On June 11, 1982, Gerry Cooney fought Larry Holmes. Larry beat Gerry by a 13th round tko.

Clearly, Cooney had A LOT of punching power, primarily his left hook.

Had Gerry beat Holmes on June 11, 1982? -------------

1. Do you think that Cooney mentally would have gone on?

Not for very long. Even before the Holmes fight, I believe right before the Holmes fight, Gerry stated he only wanted 1 or 2 more fights. His heart was never in it.




2. Do you think that Gerry would not taken quite a layoff, and continued to box a respectable amount of fights per year up until say 1987?

He may have had a couple more fights with the likes of Dokes and Page. I don't necessarily see him winning those either.




3. If so, do you think that Gerry Cooney could have been one of the top heavyweight boxers of all time?

No. And I was a big Cooney Fan at the time. We did not have youtube back then, and now I see in the Leroy Boone fight and others, his power wasn't as great as was perceived. He was an underrated boxer and an overrated puncher.

He had admitted substance abuse issues and didn't have the heart to be great. That's not a knock, most people don't.

[bigjack]

He was a one handed fighter,so frustrating that he wouldn't use his right hand.