On This Date, 75 Years Ago: Ezzard Charles is World Champ!

[elmersalsa]

It was Wednesday, September 27, 1950 at Yankee Stadium in New York City. The great Ezzard Charles, a long time contender at middleweight, Light-Heavyweight and now heavyweight, finally gets the whole wide-world recognition as World Heavyweight Champion when he defeated the great Joe Louis in 15 rounds by decision.

Charles was too fast, slick and clever and outpointed the former great champion Louis who was 36 years old and was trying to make a comeback to regain back his title that he held for almost 12 years and with 25 title defenses. He retired undefeated champion in 1949.

That year, Charles at 30, became the champion by out-pointing the great Jersey Joe Walcott in 15 rounds. Even that he won the crown, Charles, The Cincinnati Cobra, wasn't fully recognized as the real champion of the big men.

And Louis came back to fight Charles the champion, not for glory, but because he was heavily strapped in the IRS for back taxes.

Charles gave the Brown Bomber the opportunity and licked Louis for 15 rounds to earn the decision. Still, not appreciated by the boxing public, Charles became the real champion of the world. The man that beat the man.

It was Charles's greatest achievement and defining win. It's kind of odd that he never received a title shot at middleweight and light-heavyweight where he fought most of his career. A true all-time pound per pound great that is very underappreciated, but getting recognition as years go by.

[Ambling Alp II]

Charles fought before the 1960s, which automatically means that he had "primitive skills".

[elmersalsa]

Charles fought before the 1960s, which automatically means that he had "primitive skills".

Tony Zale had primitive skills.
Rocky Graziano had primitive skills.

Not the great Ezzard Charles.

[Ambling Alp II]

You had said a while back that fighters before the 1960s had primitive skills.

[elmersalsa]

You had said a while back that fighters before the 1960s had primitive skills.

I have never said that, mister!

I have said that guys like Tony Zale, Rocky Graziano and Benny Leonard had primitive skills. That's what I have said.

[elmersalsa]

Also, I have said that the great Joe Louis had primitive skills. But, comparing them to Tony Zale and Rocky Graziano, Louis was ahead of them in skills

[Ambling Alp II]

You had said a while back that fighters before the 1960s had primitive skills.

I have never said that, mister!

I have said that guys like Tony Zale, Rocky Graziano and Benny Leonard had primitive skills. That's what I have said.

Yes you have. But anyway, you are in your own little world. The guys that you like always seem to be better than those that you don't.

[gilgamesh]

You had said a while back that fighters before the 1960s had primitive skills.

I have never said that, mister!

I have said that guys like Tony Zale, Rocky Graziano and Benny Leonard had primitive skills. That's what I have said.

And Joe Louis. You said Joe Louis had primitive skills.

Graziano, I'd agree with you. Benny Leonard and Louis, I'm about a million miles from agreeing with you.

[elmersalsa]

You had said a while back that fighters before the 1960s had primitive skills.

I have never said that, mister!

I have said that guys like Tony Zale, Rocky Graziano and Benny Leonard had primitive skills. That's what I have said.

And Joe Louis. You said Joe Louis had primitive skills.

Graziano, I'd agree with you. Benny Leonard and Louis, I'm about a million miles from agreeing with you.

I have never said that fighters before 1960 were primitive. I have said that Joe Louis has primitive skills to compete with today's giants. Look it up.

I also said that the great Benny Leonard had primitive skills compared to the great Roberto Duran.

[Ambling Alp II]

Yes you did. It was on a thread in in the Fantasy Fights section. you also once said that Ray Leonard was not a real fighter.

[elmersalsa]

Yes you did. It was on a thread in in the Fantasy Fights section. you also once said that Ray Leonard was not a real fighter.

In a way, Sugar Ray Leonard wasn't. He was pampered by the American boxing media. He had all the leeway and help from outside sources. He was always looking for an advantage like enlarging the ring, use thumbless gloves, catch the other fighter off guard by not making him train and win 2 titles in one night courtesy by the WBC and a dehydrated Don't Lalonde who had to lose 7 pounds for the fight. He waited for Marvelous to slip up to challenge him instead of doing the challenge 5 years earlier.

Sugar Ray was a great fighter. And he didn't need outside sources to win a fight. But, unfortunately, he did those shady things. Not, like Marvelous or Duran that would fight you anyway, anywhere and at any time.

[Ambling Alp II]

What a load of crap.

[elmersalsa]

What a load of crap.

You can't handle the truth.

Nobody in this world thinks that Sugar Ray Leonard was more real of a fighter than Marvelous or Roberto Duran. They didn't look for advantages. They didn't cherry pick. They took the fights as is. But Leonard? If he doesn't feel comfortable for the fight, he's not fighting. And he didn't need to do all those shady things on his favor.

[gilgamesh]

What a load of crap.

You can't handle the truth.

Nobody in this world thinks that Sugar Ray Leonard was more real of a fighter than Marvelous or Roberto Duran. They didn't look for advantages. They didn't cherry pick. They took the fights as is. But Leonard? If he doesn't feel comfortable for the fight, he's not fighting. And he didn't need to do all those shady things on his favor.

How can you be less of a "real fighter" than 2 men you defeated? You sound like an absolute fool when you say things like that.

You've just insulted Hagler and Duran. They're not good enough to beat a man who's not a real fighter?

[elmersalsa]

What a load of crap.

You can't handle the truth.

Nobody in this world thinks that Sugar Ray Leonard was more real of a fighter than Marvelous or Roberto Duran. They didn't look for advantages. They didn't cherry pick. They took the fights as is. But Leonard? If he doesn't feel comfortable for the fight, he's not fighting. And he didn't need to do all those shady things on his favor.

How can you be less of a "real fighter" than 2 men you defeated? You sound like an absolute fool when you say things like that.

You've just insulted Hagler and Duran. They're not good enough to beat a man who's not a real fighter?

I am saying that Leonard was more manipulative than Marvelous and Roberto Duran. Two fighters that fought anybody, any weight and at any time. Sugar Ray Leonard had to have estipulations always for him to be in his favor, like paying the other manager more money, enlarge the ring, don't let the other guy train enough, use outside sources to accommodate him, and guys like Donny Lalonde got to shed 7 pounds for Leonard to fight him and win two crowns in one fight?

Marvelous nor Thomas Hearns nor Duran had to use outside sources nor were manipulative. They didn't cherry picked like Leonard did. And certainly the powers of boxing were not on their side. They were pampering Leonard the whole time.

And it's a shame because he didn't need to do that. He was an exceptional fighter. But, he did for his advantage.

[gilgamesh]

I can't think of many fighters that I would accuse of cherry picking less than Leonard. He fought the best of the best.

[elmersalsa]

I can't think of many fighters that I would accuse of cherry picking less than Leonard. He fought the best of the best.

You ain't going to find many boxers as a cherry picker ever again. If Floyd Mayweather Jr is accused of cherry picking, then Sugar Ray Leonard is the catalyst of it. And he should not had to do that. But, he did.

[Ambling Alp II]

He did not cherry pick at all.
Before he fought for the title, he beat 8 ranked contenders. Name someone else who has done that in the last 60 years?
His first fight for a title was against a truly great fighter, Wilfred Benitez.
With a year, he defended the title against Roberto Duran.
fought unification fight against Thomas Hearns, another truly great fighter.
With the exception of one fight, he was out for 5 years and moved two weight classes and fought Marvin Hagler for the middleweight title. (and somehow beat him.)

Leonard is about the last guy in the last 50-years who should be called for cherry picking. Absolutely asinine to say that he was.

[gilgamesh]

He did not cherry pick at all.
Before he fought for the title, he beat 8 ranked contenders. Name someone else who has done that in the last 60 years?
His first fight for a title was against a truly great fighter, Wilfred Benitez.
With a year, he defended the title against Roberto Duran.
fought unification fight against Thomas Hearns, another truly great fighter.
With the exception of one fight, he was out for 5 years and moved two weight classes and fought Marvin Hagler for the middleweight title. (and somehow beat him.)

Leonard is about the last guy in the last 50-years who should be called for cherry picking. Absolutely asinine to say that he was.

Calling Leonard a cherry picker is like saying Jake Lamotta had a glass jaw or George Foreman couldn't punch.

[elmersalsa]

Sugar Ray Leonard blinded you guys eyes for real. There's hasn't been a greater cherry picker in the history of the sport of boxing as Leonard.

He beat 8 top welterweight contenders, none of them world beaters. While Roberto Duran before fighting for a world title, fought fantastic boxer like Ernesto "Ñato" Marcel and former champion Hiroshi Kobayashi. That trumps anything Sugar Ray did before fighting for the title.

Marvelous fought contenders that NOBODY WANTED TO FIGHT. He went to their cities and kicked their asses. When you fight Sugar Ray Seales, Willie Monroe, Bobby "Boogaloo" Watts, Kevin Finnegan, Bennie Briscoe and Eugene "Cyclone" Hart, you gotta have a lot balls. That was a 70s decade murderers row.

Leonard needed outside sources to pay a greedy old bastard of manager like Carlos Eleta. That was something never done in the history of boxing. Of course, he is Sugar Ray. He got to have an advantage or no fight. He was American Golden Boy. America got to be the greatest. Everything at his advantage. Roberto Duran, the champion, didn't get any more time to train. But, I bet you all if it were reversed, Leonard would have gotten all the time he needed for training.

Marvelous for years was challenging him. What did he, the great Sugar Ray do? He said that it will never happen. Marvelous, embarrassed, wait for him for five more years until his skills deteriorated. In the worst performance of his career, he loses to a guy that has fought one time in five years. And the people believe that it was an incredible achievement? Please!

And he never gave immediate rematches. At least Floyd Mayweather Jr gave immediate rematches.

And after Sugar Ray fought Marvelous, he cherry picked Donny Lalonde? Two titles in one night? Lalonde had to starve 7 pounds? Unbelievable! Nobody in the history of boxing had the LEEWAY AND accommodation as Sugar Ray. Nobody.

Then, the great Thomas Hearns had to wait 8 years for his rematch? After that, Duran had to wait 9 years? And after that, he knew he couldn't beat the Michael Nunn's, the Mike McCallums, Julian Jacksons and Michael Watsons of the world, so he challenged "Terrible" Terry Norris?

His manipulation, cherry picking and schemes, caught up with Leonard and Norris gave him the best down of his career.

Seven fights in the last 15 years as a professional. And you want him at top ten? Are you serious?

I want other people to comment on this. Please!

[gilgamesh]

[Ambling Alp II]

elmer's comments are hilarious. Duran and Hearns had to wait so long/ both of them fled the welterweight division after losing to Leonard. If anything, you could argue that they were running from Leonard.
8 or 9 years? He left out the part where Leonard had a detached retina and was out for 5 years.

Why does Leonard owe Duran and Hearns rematches after all of these years? Why is it that Leonard has to fight everyone twice? who won the Duran-Hearns rematch?

always love how Leonard gets ripped for fighting Donny Lalonde. Duran has about 70 wins on his record against guys far worse. Hearns has dozens.

Why is the word is Leonard ripped for not fighting guys like Mike McCallum, Julian Jackson, and Michael Watson? Guess what, Duran, Hearns, and Halger never fought any of them either. Why should Leonard have to fight these guys when he was way past his prime.
The guy beat all of the best guys of his era. 4ATGs. Few guys can say that. Duran can't. Hearns can't. Hagler can't. Leonard can.

[gilgamesh]

The Donny Lalonde fight is awesome. One of the funnest slugfests of Leonard's career. Don't know why anyone would take issue with it.

[elmersalsa]

Why nobody else get into the subject? Just Ambling Alp and gilgamesh?

[elmersalsa]

elmer's comments are hilarious. Duran and Hearns had to wait so long/ both of them fled the welterweight division after losing to Leonard. If anything, you could argue that they were running from Leonard.
8 or 9 years? He left out the part where Leonard had a detached retina and was out for 5 years.

Why does Leonard owe Duran and Hearns rematches after all of these years? Why is it that Leonard has to fight everyone twice? who won the Duran-Hearns rematch?

always love how Leonard gets ripped for fighting Donny Lalonde. Duran has about 70 wins on his record against guys far worse. Hearns has dozens.

Why is the word is Leonard ripped for not fighting guys like Mike McCallum, Julian Jackson, and Michael Watson? Guess what, Duran, Hearns, and Halger never fought any of them either. Why should Leonard have to fight these guys when he was way past his prime.
The guy beat all of the best guys of his era. 4ATGs. Few guys can say that. Duran can't. Hearns can't. Hagler can't. Leonard can.

Why Sugar Ray got to be the pampered one? Why he had to call the shots all the time when guys like Marvelous and Roberto Duran couldn't?

Sugar Ray was the cash cow. Everybody knew that. The Golden Boy of America. In the history of boxing, America never had a Golden Boy or a hero as Leonard. Maybe the great Joe Louis comes close. But, Louis didn't had estipulations like Leonard. Leonard did had estipulations. And plenty to see.

Muhammad Ali wasn't the hero. He was hated in the 60s. He became beloved by the media in the 70s decade.

Sugar Ray Leonard became America's darling. The product that cannot fail. That's why the outside sources helped him more than any other fighter in history. Is that a lie?

Leonard himself didn't want a third fight with the great Roberto Duran. That was full of bullshit and baloney. He didn't want to give the great Thomas Hearns a rematch. He didn't want to give Wilfred Benitez a rematch either.

He fought Marvelous because he knew that Marvelous wasn't the same hungry fighter of the late 70s and early 80s decade.

That's why he not a real fighter. He is a real fighter when is CONVENIENT for hom to fight. All that cherry picking. All those estipulations has never been made by any other fighter in history but Sugar Ray Leonard.

He was a great fighter. Yes. But, he flunked by using outside sources for his advantage.

And yes, Alp. Why he never took the Michael Nunns, Mike McCallums or Julian Jacksons of the world and then cherry picked "Terrible" Terry Norris? Ain't you supposed to fight the best?

Where are the other posters in this subject?