Tommy Morrison versus Joe Bugner

[goose 5]

12 rounds

[DrDuke]

Morrison swarms Bugner and wins a dec. A KO is possible at some point.

[Jaguar]

Morrison on PTS. No KO, Bugner's got good whiskers, a decent defence, good ring craft, and he's generally durable.

[Joson]

This is a great fight. I pick Bugner on points.

My reasoning is that Bugner was a much tougher, more experienced, and more versatile fighter than Tommy. Bugner knew how to fight it out in the trenches, scrapping it out with the best of them. Morrison didn't have that character depth, IMO.

Another advantage for Bugner is his left jab. From center ring, Joe would pepper, cuff, slap, or sting Morrison with that jab all night long. I can't picture Tommy neutralizing Bugner's jab.

Of course, Morrison had a big advantage in punching power and aggression. Others here have pointed that out. But I don't think Tommy's power would help much against Bugner, who had a rock solid chin and a tight defense.

Watch Bugner's fights against power-punchers Joe Frazier and Ron Lyle. You'll see Bugner really holds his own with those brutes, even though he loses both times. IMO, Morrison wasn't as good, dangerous, or tough as Frazier and Lyle.

Bugner's performances against Frazier and Lyle pretty much tell us how a Bugner-Morrison fight would unfold. Tommy goes on the offensive, swarming Bugner, and pinning him to the ropes. Morrsion would have his moments, but Joe would take the best Tommy had to offer, and emerge on top on the scorecards.

[AngryGoon38]

This is a great fight. I pick Bugner on points.

My reasoning is that Bugner was a much tougher, more experienced, and more versatile fighter than Tommy. Bugner knew how to fight it out in the trenches, scrapping it out with the best of them. Morrison didn't have that character depth, IMO.

Another advantage for Bugner is his left jab. From center ring, Joe would pepper, cuff, slap, or sting Morrison with that jab all night long. I can't picture Tommy neutralizing Bugner's jab.

Of course, Morrison had a big advantage in punching power and aggression. Others here have pointed that out. But I don't think Tommy's power would help much against Bugner, who had a rock solid chin and a tight defense.

Watch Bugner's fights against power-punchers Joe Frazier and Ron Lyle. You'll see Bugner really holds his own with those brutes, even though he loses both times. IMO, Morrison wasn't as good, dangerous, or tough as Frazier and Lyle.

Bugner's performances against Frazier and Lyle pretty much tell us how a Bugner-Morrison fight would unfold. Tommy goes on the offensive, swarming Bugner, and pinning him to the ropes. Morrsion would have his moments, but Joe would take the best Tommy had to offer, and emerge on top on the scorecards.

Morrison Did have that Special 1 punch knockout power though. Frazier, although tougher than Tommy, broke fighters down, Before the Ko or Tko, "quite gradually in process" compared with Morrison and "His extra special ability" to get an opponent out of there, and basically out of nowhere, without the opponent knowing what hit them. Lettuce be reality, as the popular slogan goes, on bodybuilding.com.....Morrison simply had substantially More 1 punch Knockout power than Frazier. More than Lyle as well.

Yes, Lyle was Tougher than Tommy as well. I'd pick both over Tommy, but as the old addage goes, Styles Do indeed make fights. And since Bugner simply lacks the Firepower, I don't see how he would win versus Morrison. This bout would basically be more or less a case of Morrison having a boxer's field day versus the likes of Bugner. It'd be a fun day of Target Practice for Tommy. Chasing and Bulling around too, but mainly Target Practice. Morrison by 9th round Tko. The ref would wave it off after warning Bugner several times to Show him something. You've obviously heard Ref's doing that special lil warning slogan....

Show me something !
Bugner simply wouldn't be able to.
He'd be chronically running and very hesitant to punch back after eating one too many left hooks and close quarters right uppercuts.

[DrDuke]

Watch Bugner's fights against power-punchers Joe Frazier and Ron Lyle. You'll see Bugner really holds his own with those brutes, even though he loses both times. IMO, Morrison wasn't as good, dangerous, or tough as Frazier and Lyle.

By the way, Frazier could batter and stop Bugner, but he had a meercy on him. When Bugner laid on the ropes dazed, with an opened head, Frazier threw a shot, but intentionally stopped it in front of the defenceless face of Bugner.

[Joson]

This is a great fight. I pick Bugner on points.

My reasoning is that Bugner was a much tougher, more experienced, and more versatile fighter than Tommy. Bugner knew how to fight it out in the trenches, scrapping it out with the best of them. Morrison didn't have that character depth, IMO.

Another advantage for Bugner is his left jab. From center ring, Joe would pepper, cuff, slap, or sting Morrison with that jab all night long. I can't picture Tommy neutralizing Bugner's jab.

Of course, Morrison had a big advantage in punching power and aggression. Others here have pointed that out. But I don't think Tommy's power would help much against Bugner, who had a rock solid chin and a tight defense.

Watch Bugner's fights against power-punchers Joe Frazier and Ron Lyle. You'll see Bugner really holds his own with those brutes, even though he loses both times. IMO, Morrison wasn't as good, dangerous, or tough as Frazier and Lyle.

Bugner's performances against Frazier and Lyle pretty much tell us how a Bugner-Morrison fight would unfold. Tommy goes on the offensive, swarming Bugner, and pinning him to the ropes. Morrsion would have his moments, but Joe would take the best Tommy had to offer, and emerge on top on the scorecards.

Morrison Did have that Special 1 punch knockout power though. Frazier, although tougher than Tommy, broke fighters down, Before the Ko or Tko, "quite gradually in process" compared with Morrison and "His extra special ability" to get an opponent out of there, and basically out of nowhere, without the opponent knowing what hit them. Lettuce be reality, as the popular slogan goes, on bodybuilding.com.....Morrison simply had substantially More 1 punch Knockout power than Frazier. More than Lyle as well.

Yes, Lyle was Tougher than Tommy as well. I'd pick both over Tommy, but as the old addage goes, Styles Do indeed make fights. And since Bugner simply lacks the Firepower, I don't see how he would win versus Morrison. This bout would basically be more or less a case of Morrison having a boxer's field day versus the likes of Bugner. It'd be a fun day of Target Practice for Tommy. Chasing and Bulling around too, but mainly Target Practice. Morrison by 9th round Tko. The ref would wave it off after warning Bugner several times to Show him something. You've obviously heard Ref's doing that special lil warning slogan....

Show me something !
Bugner simply wouldn't be able to.
He'd be chronically running and very hesitant to punch back after eating one too many left hooks and close quarters right uppercuts.

See the remarks I highlighted in bold. I disagree with both counts.

It's true that Bugner generally wasn't a big puncher. He tended not to get his full weight behind his blows. But sometimes Bugner could really sit on his shots, and when that happened, he could hurt the toughest of guys. Notice that Bugner's rights buckled Frazier several times. Lyle himself said he felt Bugner's power.

Don't overlook that Morrison was chinny. He simply didn't take a punch very well. I saw Tommy wobbled and stunned by several of his tune-up foes, guys that shouldn't have hurt him.

IMO, Bugner might have hurt and floored a chinny guy like Morrison.

Also, between the too, Bugner was the superior boxer. By a wide margin too. That's what Bugner was known for: his stand-up, orthodox boxing style, including a tight defense and fast, crisp left-jab. Watch Bugner's first Ali fight and the Frazier bout. Notice that he constantly dances in circles, dodges punches, and scores often with his jab. Morrison couldn't box as well as Bugner. Not even close.

Morrison could not hope to outbox Bugner. Tommy's only shot at victory would be to bull Bugner into the ropes, and dominate the infighting. Certainly Tommy would force Bugner to the ropes, no argument there. But I don't think Morrison would puncture Bugner's defensive shield during the infighting on the ropes. So, ultimately, Tommy doesn't accomplish much during these parts of the action.

[Joson]

Watch Bugner's fights against power-punchers Joe Frazier and Ron Lyle. You'll see Bugner really holds his own with those brutes, even though he loses both times. IMO, Morrison wasn't as good, dangerous, or tough as Frazier and Lyle.

By the way, Frazier could batter and stop Bugner, but he had a meercy on him. When Bugner laid on the ropes dazed, with an opened head, Frazier threw a shot, but intentionally stopped it in front of the defenceless face of Bugner.

Maybe, maybe not. It's possibly that if Frazier had capitalized and banged Bugner during that moment, that Joe still would not have been knocked cold. We'll never know.

Don't overlook that Bugner's durability was legendary. He ranked up there with George Chuvalo for being able to take a huge punch.

I don't think Morrison had the power or infighting ability of Frazier and Lyle. Tommy would force Bugner to the ropes, for sure. But when that happened, Joe would cover up efficiently. He'd also grab Morrison, spin him, push him around, and punch back from time to time with light punches at close quarters. Bugner could handle himself in the trenches.

[Ambling Alp II]

If Frazier couldn't stop him, it unlikely that Morrison would. Bugner was a much better boxer than Morrison, so Morrison it's unlikely that Morrison would win a decision.

Could Bugner stop Morrison? Bugner had some punch, but wasn't a huge puncher. However, Morrison had a weak chin and not a lot of defense, so it's possible.

The thing with Bugner was that on occasion he was lethargic and just mail it in. If that version showed up, Morrison could take it on points. however, you can't count on it.

Most likely result is Bugner on points.

[Joson]

If Frazier couldn't stop him, it unlikely that Morrison would. Bugner was a much better boxer than Morrison, so Morrison it's unlikely that Morrison would win a decision.

Could Bugner stop Morrison? Bugner had some punch, but wasn't a huge puncher. However, Morrison had a weak chin and not a lot of defense, so it's possible.

The thing with Bugner was that on occasion he was lethargic and just mail it in. If that version showed up, Morrison could take it on points. however, you can't count on it.

Most likely result is Bugner on points.

I agree with everything you say.

I pick Bugner, but realize Morrison would have a good shot at winning. Tommy's best chance would come if he forced Bugner into a defensive shell and then outhustled him to win rounds. Bugner was known for putting on some shoddy efforts.

But still I'd rate this a 70%/30% favoring Bugner.

[scorpio83]

Bugner would counter the Duke's big left hook with sharp left jabs and combinations to take a decision.

[Noxy]

I think Bugner on pts. The Duke was good on his day but could also be erratic.

[margaret thatcher]

let's swing the momentum back a bit................. morrison wins

[DrDuke]

Watch Bugner's fights against power-punchers Joe Frazier and Ron Lyle. You'll see Bugner really holds his own with those brutes, even though he loses both times. IMO, Morrison wasn't as good, dangerous, or tough as Frazier and Lyle.

By the way, Frazier could batter and stop Bugner, but he had a meercy on him. When Bugner laid on the ropes dazed, with an opened head, Frazier threw a shot, but intentionally stopped it in front of the defenceless face of Bugner.

Maybe, maybe not. It's possibly that if Frazier had capitalized and banged Bugner during that moment, that Joe still would not have been knocked cold. We'll never know.

Don't overlook that Bugner's durability was legendary. He ranked up there with George Chuvalo for being able to take a huge punch.

I don't think Morrison had the power or infighting ability of Frazier and Lyle. Tommy would force Bugner to the ropes, for sure. But when that happened, Joe would cover up efficiently. He'd also grab Morrison, spin him, push him around, and punch back from time to time with light punches at close quarters. Bugner could handle himself in the trenches.

Morrison had decent infighting abilities actually. He carried a lot of power, quite comparable with Frazier and Lyle. Those two had other avantages over Tommy, but not really in terms of power. Those were tougher, but Morrison was more technical. Yet Tommy wouldn't need to be the same relentless as Frazier. Bugner was timid and swamed even by the aged Henry Cooper, when he was unfairly awarded a win.

[Jaguar]

If Frazier couldn't stop him, it unlikely that Morrison would. Bugner was a much better boxer than Morrison, so Morrison it's unlikely that Morrison would win a decision.

Could Bugner stop Morrison? Bugner had some punch, but wasn't a huge puncher. However, Morrison had a weak chin and not a lot of defense, so it's possible.

The thing with Bugner was that on occasion he was lethargic and just mail it in. If that version showed up, Morrison could take it on points. however, you can't count on it.

Most likely result is Bugner on points.

I agree with everything you say.

I pick Bugner, but realize Morrison would have a good shot at winning. Tommy's best chance would come if he forced Bugner into a defensive shell and then outhustled him to win rounds. Bugner was known for putting on some shoddy efforts.

But still I'd rate this a 70%/30% favoring Bugner.

I'm a Joe Bugner fan so I'd like to be convinced but, more often than not, he seemed to find a way to come second when it mattered most. The Lyle fight being a case in point.

Marvis Frazier was another one. Bugner should have won that but allowed himself to get hustled out of it and Marvis went on to fight Holmes next. Somehow, I think Bugner would manage to lose to Morrison. On paper, yes, he should be able to handle Tommy but I still think Bugner would end up getting outpointed.

[Ambling Alp II]

I actually thought he fought a good fight against Lyle, but Lyle was just a little better. But yeah, he had a few subpar performances. To be fair to Bugner, when he was well past his best, he beat Tillis, Buy and Page in three straight fights.
Morrison was an aggressive puncher, but not much more than that. Easy to hit and didn't have a good chin. Always a chance that Bugner would blow it, but the odds are he would win this one.

[Jaguar]

I actually thought he fought a good fight against Lyle, but Lyle was just a little better. But yeah, he had a few subpar performances. To be fair to Bugner, when he was well past his best, he beat Tillis, Buy and Page in three straight fights.
Morrison was an aggressive puncher, but not much more than that. Easy to hit and didn't have a good chin. Always a chance that Bugner would blow it, but the odds are he would win this one.

The Lyle fight is an interesting one because apparently Bugner went into it with a broken bone in his foot which reduced his mobility and meant he had to stand and fight rather than 'get on his bike' which would have been a better tactic against Lyle.

Bugner was quick on his feet despite his size and he had a good jab so I think he'd have outpointed Lyle had he been able to fight his natural fight rather than go toe-to-toe with Lyle, which must've been a nightmare.

Bugner said that Lyle hurt him more than anybody else in that fight. He was, I believe, in hospital for some time afterwards.

ps. They were apparently pushing for Bugner v Tyson on the back of those three early 'Aussie Joe' era wins. It's a good job it never came to pass though, because Tyson was at his peak then and Bugner would've been way out of his depth.

[Joson]

Morrison had decent infighting abilities actually. He carried a lot of power, quite comparable with Frazier and Lyle. Those two had other avantages over Tommy, but not really in terms of power. Those were tougher, but Morrison was more technical. Yet Tommy wouldn't need to be the same relentless as Frazier. Bugner was timid and swamed even by the aged Henry Cooper, when he was unfairly awarded a win.

Actually, many people agreed with the Bugner-Cooper verdict. But we rarely hear about them. That's because a popular myth arose about this fight. That it was a robbery. But the myth isn't necessarily true.

The London Times had Bugner winning. Graham Houston has gone on record saying the decision was fair. I've watched the film several times, and am convinced it was close enough to go either way legitimately.

From the standpoint of jabbing, Bugner scored enough to deserve the nod. I think he out-jabbed Cooper by a slight but clear margin.

The argument favoring Cooper isn't that he landed more punches. Rather, it's that Henry constantly maneuvered into position to throw his big left-hook, and Bugner constantly pulled back without throwing punches. From a tactical standpoint, it could be argued that those moments were "won" by Cooper. Entire rounds, I suppose, could be awarded to Cooper on this basis, meaning in turn that he deserved the decision.

This one boils down to the scoring philosophy of the observers, I guess.

IMO, Cooper never "swarmed" Bugner. Henry rarely got close enough to open up with both hands, or to force Bugner into his defensive shell. Most of the bout was fought from center ring, a battle of jabs. A boring tactical affair, really.

A final thing to keep in mind is that in 1971, the time of the Cooper fight, Bugner was just a 21 year old neophyte. Bugner wasn't nearly as good, tough, and as seasoned as in the 1973 - 1977 period, which was his prime. This mythical match-up pits a prime Bugner against a prime Morrison. So we can discount Bugner's 1971 effort against Cooper.

To be honest, I'll bet a prime Morrison (when he beat Foreman) was better than the 1971 version of Bugner.

[Joson]

If Frazier couldn't stop him, it unlikely that Morrison would. Bugner was a much better boxer than Morrison, so Morrison it's unlikely that Morrison would win a decision.

Could Bugner stop Morrison? Bugner had some punch, but wasn't a huge puncher. However, Morrison had a weak chin and not a lot of defense, so it's possible.

The thing with Bugner was that on occasion he was lethargic and just mail it in. If that version showed up, Morrison could take it on points. however, you can't count on it.

Most likely result is Bugner on points.

I agree with everything you say.

I pick Bugner, but realize Morrison would have a good shot at winning. Tommy's best chance would come if he forced Bugner into a defensive shell and then outhustled him to win rounds. Bugner was known for putting on some shoddy efforts.

But still I'd rate this a 70%/30% favoring Bugner.

I'm a Joe Bugner fan so I'd like to be convinced but, more often than not, he seemed to find a way to come second when it mattered most. The Lyle fight being a case in point.

Marvis Frazier was another one. Bugner should have won that but allowed himself to get hustled out of it and Marvis went on to fight Holmes next. Somehow, I think Bugner would manage to lose to Morrison. On paper, yes, he should be able to handle Tommy but I still think Bugner would end up getting outpointed.

Bugner was well past his prime in 1983. He was a heavier, less mobile, less agile version of the fighter we saw in the 1973 - 1977 years. Be aware that after the Lyle loss, Bugner remained inactive for five years. Upon coming back at age 32, he was fleshier and slower, and never really regained his earlier ring flair.

Even so, Bugner still displayed impressive hand-speed against Marvis in 1983. I thought Marvis outhustled Joe too, but many of the rounds were pretty close. Frazier won them only by a margin of two or three punches, I thought.

I closely followed Bugner's 1982-83 comeback. Too bad Bugner couldn't have gotten fights against Tex Cobb, James Tillis, Renaldo Snipes, or Lucien Rodriquez during that period. They were all ranked in the worldwide top-10, and I believe Joe would have beaten them all. I think the 1983 version of Bugner might have stood a 50% chance of beating Trevor Berbick.

But Marvis Frazier was all wrong for the 1983 Bugner, from the perspective of fighting styles. I guess Joe took that fight because it was the only big TV match available to him.

After the Marvis loss, Joe took six months off, then fought a pair of fights in Denmark in early 1984. IMO he may not have trained properly for those fights. I thought he looked awful (like a dinosaur) against Stefan Tangstad, whom he lost to, although the decision could have gone either way. I didn't see Bugner's controversial points win against Anders Ecklund, but heard he fought poorly, and almost lost because of a severe cut.

[Jaguar]

Morrison had decent infighting abilities actually. He carried a lot of power, quite comparable with Frazier and Lyle. Those two had other avantages over Tommy, but not really in terms of power. Those were tougher, but Morrison was more technical. Yet Tommy wouldn't need to be the same relentless as Frazier. Bugner was timid and swamed even by the aged Henry Cooper, when he was unfairly awarded a win.

Actually, many people agreed with the Bugner-Cooper verdict. But we rarely hear about them. That's because a popular myth arose about this fight. That it was a robbery. But the myth isn't necessarily true.

The London Times had Bugner winning. Graham Houston has gone on record saying the decision was fair. I've watched the film several times, and am convinced it was close enough to go either way legitimately.

From the standpoint of jabbing, Bugner scored enough to deserve the nod. I think he out-jabbed Cooper by a slight but clear margin.

The argument favoring Cooper isn't that he landed more punches. Rather, it's that Henry constantly maneuvered into position to throw his big left-hook, and Bugner constantly pulled back without throwing punches. From a tactical standpoint, it could be argued that those moments were "won" by Cooper. Entire rounds, I suppose, could be awarded to Cooper on this basis, meaning in turn that he deserved the decision.

This one boils down to the scoring philosophy of the observers, I guess.

IMO, Cooper never "swarmed" Bugner. Henry rarely got close enough to open up with both hands, or to force Bugner into his defensive shell. Most of the bout was fought from center ring, a battle of jabs. A boring tactical affair, really.

A final thing to keep in mind is that in 1971, the time of the Cooper fight, Bugner was just a 21 year old neophyte. Bugner wasn't nearly as good, tough, and as seasoned as in the 1973 - 1977 period, which was his prime. This mythical match-up pits a prime Bugner against a prime Morrison. So we can discount Bugner's 1971 effort against Cooper.

To be honest, I'll bet a prime Morrison (when he beat Foreman) was better than the 1971 version of Bugner.

I agree with you about the Cooper fight. It was very close and could have gone either way, but it was no robbery. Personally, I thought Bugner just shaded it.

The thing I'd question is about Bugner being at his peak 1973-1977. One one hand, yes, that's when he did his best work and his performances against Ali (first fight) and Frazier were both admirable and valiant.

But arguably we never really saw Bugner at his peak. To me, a heavyweight should be at his peak in his late 20s and early 30s but Bugner was basically dormant during that period as you explain above. A peak Bugner was living it up, partying and trying to break into films. He was, as you say, past his best when he finally returned.

[Jaguar]

I agree with everything you say.

I pick Bugner, but realize Morrison would have a good shot at winning. Tommy's best chance would come if he forced Bugner into a defensive shell and then outhustled him to win rounds. Bugner was known for putting on some shoddy efforts.

But still I'd rate this a 70%/30% favoring Bugner.

I'm a Joe Bugner fan so I'd like to be convinced but, more often than not, he seemed to find a way to come second when it mattered most. The Lyle fight being a case in point.

Marvis Frazier was another one. Bugner should have won that but allowed himself to get hustled out of it and Marvis went on to fight Holmes next. Somehow, I think Bugner would manage to lose to Morrison. On paper, yes, he should be able to handle Tommy but I still think Bugner would end up getting outpointed.

Bugner was well past his prime in 1983. He was a heavier, less mobile, less agile version of the fighter we saw in the 1973 - 1977 years. Be aware that after the Lyle loss, Bugner remained inactive for five years. Upon coming back at age 32, he was fleshier and slower, and never really regained his earlier ring flair.

Even so, Bugner still displayed impressive hand-speed against Marvis in 1983. I thought Marvis outhustled Joe too, but many of the rounds were pretty close. Frazier won them only by a margin of two or three punches, I thought.

I closely followed Bugner's 1982-83 comeback. Too bad Bugner couldn't have gotten fights against Tex Cobb, James Tillis, Renaldo Snipes, or Lucien Rodriquez during that period. They were all ranked in the worldwide top-10, and I believe Joe would have beaten them all. I think the 1983 version of Bugner might have stood a 50% chance of beating Trevor Berbick.

But Marvis Frazier was all wrong for the 1983 Bugner, from the perspective of fighting styles. I guess Joe took that fight because it was the only big TV match available to him.

After the Marvis loss, Joe took six months off, then fought a pair of fights in Denmark in early 1984. IMO he may not have trained properly for those fights. I thought he looked awful (like a dinosaur) against Stefan Tangstad, whom he lost to, although the decision could have gone either way. I didn't see Bugner's controversial points win against Anders Ecklund, but heard he fought poorly, and almost lost because of a severe cut.

I saw the Eklund fight and thought Bugner just about deserved the win. I also think he should've got the nod against Tangstad but it seemed like a bit of a home town decision, that one. I remember Bugner was furious about it.

Regarding the others: I reckon Rodriguez would have been an easy night's work for Bugner, I think he's probably have stopped him, and I I'd see Bugner outpointing Cobb. The other two, Bugner should have beaten as well, and he did beat Tillis a few years later, but it would have depended which version of Bugner turned up. In other words, how motivated he was.

I thought the early Aussie Joe version of Bugner was keener and more motivated, partly because the Australians really got behind him, but also Bugner was skint by then so needed to get his act together. So, I think the 86 Bugner would have had a better chance of beating Marvis. Maybe it would've panned out a bit like Bugner-Tillis.

[wrighty]

I heard that Bugner didn't have much killer instinct as one of his opponents died early on in his career? He looked like he had it all but would ease off. I'm not sure about how this fight would go. Part of me says Morrison catches him with that left. There is always the chance Joe catches him on the counter coming in though

[Jaguar]

I heard that Bugner didn't have much killer instinct as one of his opponents died early on in his career? He looked like he had it all but would ease off. I'm not sure about how this fight would go. Part of me says Morrison catches him with that left. There is always the chance Joe catches him on the counter coming in though

Ulric Regis died after fighting Bugner. It was very early in Bugner's career, he'd only have been 18 or 19. I've heard it said that it always caused Bugner to hold back and maybe that's true. But it's hard to say because we don't know how things would have panned out in different circumstances.

Either way, I've just checked Bugner's record and he was in the ring again two weeks after the Regis fight, stopping Lion Ven in five rounds. Which is staggering really.

[Joson]

I heard that Bugner didn't have much killer instinct as one of his opponents died early on in his career? He looked like he had it all but would ease off. I'm not sure about how this fight would go. Part of me says Morrison catches him with that left. There is always the chance Joe catches him on the counter coming in though

Ulric Regis died after fighting Bugner. It was very early in Bugner's career, he'd only have been 18 or 19. I've heard it said that it always caused Bugner to hold back and maybe that's true. But it's hard to say because we don't know how things would have panned out in different circumstances.

Either way, I've just checked Bugner's record and he was in the ring again two weeks after the Regis fight, stopping Lion Ven in five rounds. Which is staggering really.

Regarding punching power, Bugner always struggled to put his weight behind his punches. Nobody knows why. He tended to throw arm punches. Some heavyweights are just like that.

It's amazing that Joe had this problem, given his size, physical strength, and athleticism. But it's not uncommon among heavyweights. Not every boxer is a naturally born puncher.

Lots of observers believed Bugner may have been a tad musclebound, that there was some reason for his physical stiffness in the ring. That's what we're really talking about concerning his punching difficulties.

Of course, sometimes Joe would really sit on this punches, and when that happened, he could hurt or KO almost anyone. Certainly he had the potential to throw genuine power shots. But most of the time he couldn't.

I've always believed Bugner's problem with punching power was nature, and not in his head.

[Jaguar]

I heard that Bugner didn't have much killer instinct as one of his opponents died early on in his career? He looked like he had it all but would ease off. I'm not sure about how this fight would go. Part of me says Morrison catches him with that left. There is always the chance Joe catches him on the counter coming in though

Ulric Regis died after fighting Bugner. It was very early in Bugner's career, he'd only have been 18 or 19. I've heard it said that it always caused Bugner to hold back and maybe that's true. But it's hard to say because we don't know how things would have panned out in different circumstances.

Either way, I've just checked Bugner's record and he was in the ring again two weeks after the Regis fight, stopping Lion Ven in five rounds. Which is staggering really.

Regarding punching power, Bugner always struggled to put his weight behind his punches. Nobody knows why. He tended to throw arm punches. Some heavyweights are just like that.

It's amazing that Joe had this problem, given his size, physical strength, and athleticism. But it's not uncommon among heavyweights. Not every boxer is a naturally born puncher.

Lots of observers believed Bugner may have been a tad musclebound, that there was some reason for his physical stiffness in the ring. That's what we're really talking about concerning his punching difficulties.

Of course, sometimes Joe would really sit on this punches, and when that happened, he could hurt or KO almost anyone. Certainly he had the potential to throw genuine power shots. But most of the time he couldn't.

I've always believed Bugner's problem with punching power was nature, and not in his head.

If it was nature then he wouldn't have been able to punch hard, ever. But, as you say above:

"sometimes Joe would really sit on this punches, and when that happened, he could hurt or KO almost anyone. Certainly he had the potential to throw genuine power shots"

If this is the case, it must logically have been a mental or emotional issue. At least to some degree.