BoxRec

Jack Johnson – W Flynn, Moran, Roper, Cowler D Johnson L Willard
Jess Willard – W Johnson, Moran, Burke, Morris, Pelkey D Fink, Miller L Dempsey, Gunboat, McCarthy, Cox, Mcmahon
Jack Dempsey – W Sudenberg, Keller, Miller, Gunboat, Morris, Brennan, Devere, Fulton, Levinskey, Miske, Willard Dan Flynn, D JL Johnson, Flynn, L Meehan
Meehan – W Dempsey, Miller, Barry, Fink, Langford, Thompson D Miske W Norton, L Wills, Dillon, Houck, Greb, Fulton
Sam Langford – W Thompson, Clarke, Tate, Jim Johnson, Norfolk, Jeanette, Devere, McVey , Bell, Lester, Barry, Dan Flynn, Ross, Obrien, Barry, D Flynn L Wills, Meehan, Fulton
Jim Johnson – W Tate, D Johnson, Wills, L Langford, McVey, Jeanette, Dan Flynn
Harry Wills – W Thompson, Langford, Clarke, JL Johnson, Jim Johnson, Jeanette, McVey, Meehan D Jeanette
Jeanette – W Cowler, Dan Flynn, Jim Johnson, JL Johnstone, Cotton, Tate, Harris, jack Sullivan, Barry D Wills L Langford, Norfolk
Kid Norfolk – Clarke, Jim Johnson, Miske, Jeanette, Tate, Thompson, Gunboat, Cowler, Pelkey, McVey L Turner,Langford, & others
Clay Turner – W Sudenberg, D Norfolk L m Gibbons, Houck, Greb, T Gibbons, Levinskey
Fred fulton – W Meehan, Flynn, Weinert, Morris, Langford, Cowler, Flynn, Pelkey, Kaufman L Dempsey, Palzer, Carciofini

This is an interesting decade. The top 7 or 8 or so seems pretty set in stone. I will add some others who might have some good wins in time, and i am sure that there will be a couple who have slipped through the nets, but it really does seem as if the top 10 did a pretty good job in this decade of raising above the others. Probably the biggest surprise for me is Wills. I criticised his competition in the 20s, but in this decade, he may very will reach the number one spot. Dempsey does still have to be in the running though.

There are still quite a few of the challengers to look at, but I cant see anyone getting a better record than most of the above guys.

I think Jess Willard, Gunboat Smith, and Jeff Clarke deserve to be in the conversation

pound per pound wrote:I think Jess Willard, Gunboat Smith, and Jeff Clarke deserve to be in the conversation

I will have a look at the Gunboat, probably a good call.

Jeff Clarke, also i will look at. But i must say, i will be surprised if he climbs too high up the list. I know most people seem to rate him really highly. but to be honest, he seems to have lost to pretty much every good fighter he fought. I cant see him any chance of cracking the top 10 for the decade and would be surprised if he makes the top 20, but one never knows.

Sam McVey has to be belong here. He certainly was one of the top 10 of the decade.
This was a very deep decade. There are other guys worth mentioning such as Luther McCarty, Carl Morris, and Frank Moran.

Ambling Alp wrote:Sam McVey has to be belong here. He certainly was one of the top 10 of the decade.
This was a very deep decade. There are other guys worth mentioning such as Luther McCarty, Carl Morris, and Frank Moran.

Yeah, i am not sure how i missed out doing Sam. I will put him up a bit later. Feel free to list the records of the above there and any others and i will include them when i get time.

McVey was competitive enough in several fights with Wills, Langford, and Jeannette to deserve to be ranked at #6 (Behind those 3, as well as Johnson and Dempsey).

As for the other 3, McCarty was the best. He only fought for a couple of years but did very well. May have gotton a lot better with experience. As it was, his only official defeat was the tragic last one. He did knockout Flynn and Morris. He probably deserves to be in the top 10 even though his career was brief.

Morris has a lot of DQ's and no-decisions in important fights. He did Gunboat Smith and Flynn, but probably had too many losses to make the top 10.
Moran held his own in several key fights but didn't really have many major wins. Probably a little outside the top 10 as well.

Going strictly by what happened from 1910-1919, I would go with:

1. Langford
2. Johnson
3. Dempsey
4. Wills
5. Jeannette
6. McVey
7. Willard
8. McCarty
9. Fulton
10. Norfolk

Johnson was the best in the early part of the decade, but then began to fade as he got older. Dempsey didn't start until 1914 and wasn't an elite fighter until 1917. Their overall careers as heavyweights were better than Langford, but since you can't count what Johnson did before 1910 or what Dempsey did after 1919, Langford is probably the best.

This list sucks, where the heck is JIM JEFFRIES?????

Based only on who beat whom, these were the top ten heavies at the end of 1910:

1.JACK JOHNSON
2.TOMMY BURNS
3.AL KAUFMAN
4.SAM LANGFORD
5.BILL LANG
6.SAM MCVEY
7.JOE JEANNETTE
8.FIREMAN JIM FLYNN
9.PORKY DAN FLYNN
10.COLIN BELL

Based only on who beat whom, these were the top ten heavies at the end of 1911:

1.JACK JOHNSON
2.SAM MCVEY
3.FIREMAN JIM FLYNN
4.SAM LANGFORD
5.BOMB BILLY WELLS
6.JOE JEANNETTE
7.CARL MORRIS
8.PORKY DAN FLYNN
9.ALF LANGFORD
10.AL PALZER

Based only on who beat whom, these were the top ten heavies at the end of 1912:

1.JACK JOHNSON
2.SAM LANGFORD
3.TOMMY BURNS
4.JOE JEANNETTE
5.JESS WILLARD
6.BOMB BILLY WELLS
7.LUTHER MCCARTY
8.GUNBOAT SMITH
9.FIREMAN JIM FLYNN
10.SAM MCVEY

Based only on who beat whom, these were the top ten heavies at the end of 1915:

1.FRANK MORAN
2.JESS WILLARD
3.HARRY WILLS
4.JIM COFFEY
5.JACK JOHNSON
6.JOE JEANNETTE
7.JACK DILLON
8.TOM COWLER
9.SAM MCVEY
10.SAM LANGFORD

Based only on who beat whom, these were the top ten heavies at the end of 1919:

1.JACK DEMPSEY
2.FRED FULTON
3.HARRY WILLS
4.HARRY GREB
5.TOMMY GIBBONS
6.GEORGES CARPENTIER
7.JACK JOHNSON
8.SAM LANGFORD
8.KID NORFOLK
10.JESS WILLARD

HomicideHenry wrote:This list sucks, where the heck is JIM JEFFRIES?????

You mean the guy who fought once in the decade and lost that fight? His placement is not on the list. I accomplished the same as him in that time span.

In 1910 Jeffries' braintrust, realizing what poor condition he was really in, decided to avoid any kind of a tuneup fight rather than risk the big purse and sidebets for the fight with Johnson.

Cap