Note From An All-Time Heavyweight Tournament

[Jersey-Jim]

Notes from an All-Time Heavyweight Tournament

On January 20, 1970, The Superfight – Ali vs. Marciano was shown on time in 1500 theatres across North America and Europe.

Murry Woroner, a Miami boxing promoter, conducted a radio series of fantasy fights between Champs of years past. A then state-of-the-art computer was fed statistics about each of the fighters. A revolutionary new software program allowed the computer to predict what would have happened had the fighters met at the peak of their careers.

Announcers read the punch-by-punch commentary. Marciano won the tournament, beating Jack Dempsey. Ali, who lost early in the series, felt slighted and sued Woroner for defamation of character.

The lawsuit was settled when Woroner agreed to have the computer decide a match between Ali and the “All-Time Computer Champ” Marciano. Worner then convinced the two champions to simulate on film what the computer predicted.

Marciano, who fought long before the age of inflated purses, had not been very successful in his post-boxing career. Whether it was a restaurant in New Jersey or a potato field in Iowa, one deal after another went down the tubes. When Marciano received Woroner’s offer, he agreed immediately. His prayers answered, he had a challenge again.

Hank Kaplan, the technical director of the project, compiled the data using only the matches from each of the fighter’s best five consecutive years.

The data was fed into the NCR 315 computer that took up an entire floor. That was 1970.

Now, in 2008, I will reenact the great All-Time Heavyweight Tournament.

Using our boxing simulation, carefully developed over a 30 YEAR PERIOD, it is undoubtedly the most accurate boxing simulation in existence.

Instead of one individual compiling the data for the tournament, the boxer data has been updated, evaluated and play-tested by many individuals over the same 30 year period.

Each bout has been scheduled for 15 rounds under the Unified rules. There will be no standing eight counts. The fighters cannot be saved by the bell except in the final round.

Will Marciano duplicate his 1970’s performance against Dempsey in the finals? Or, will Ali or Louis triumph in 2008?

60 Champions, past to present will compete.


Stay Tuned…

[professordp]

Will you also be including those who were denied title shots (Harry Wills, most of the top contenders during the Floyd Patterson era, etc.)?

[Tommysixfingers]

This sounds good. Wouldn't be surprised if Louis takes it. Him or Ali.

[Mad Bomber]

Outstanding idea.


Greg

[Jersey-Jim]

I first gave the All-Time Tournament a try during the summer of 1979. I gave the black fighters from Jack Johnson's day a spot in the tournament. Sam Langford and Joe Jeanette were included. The problem is, you have to add fighters in groups of 4.

That way, you ultimately arrive at 2 fighters in the finals. In this tournament, I've included 60 fighters which is the most ever for me. I'm sticking with only with those who have won held or won a piece of the Heavyweight Title.

Here are the fighters who will be included in the tournament.

Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Jack Johnson, Rocky Marciano, Jack Dempsey, Gene Tunney, George Foreman, Larry Holmes, Mike Tyson, Sonny Liston, Joe Frazier, Evander Holyfield, James Jeffries, James Corbett, Riddick Bowe, Wlad Klitschko, Lennox Lewis, Ezzard Charles, Jersey Joe Walcott, Max Schmeling, Vitali Klitschko, Oliver McCall, Bob Fitzsimmons, John L. Sullivan, Max Baer, Ken Norton, Jack Sharkey, Sam Peter, Floyd Patterson, James Braddock, Ernie Terrell, Jess Willard, Jimmy Ellis, Ray Mercer, Tim Witherspoon, Pinklon Thomas, Bonecrusher Smith, Tony Tucker, Greg Page, Michael Spinks, Michael Moorer, Chris Byrd, Michael Dokes, Lamon Brewster and others.

There's bound to be a few upsets in there!

[Jersey-Jim]

Welcome to the 2008 - All-Time Heavweight Championship Tournament.

The opening ceremonies included the Marquess of Queensberry's lighting of the FLAMING BOXING GLOVE which will remain lit until the conclusion of the Tournament.

The defending Computer Fight Champion from the 1970 Tournament will open up the 2008 tournament against Big John Tate.


Rocky Marciano vs. John Tate
Jack Dempsey vs. Mike Weaver
Joe Louis vs. Leon Spinks
Muhammad Ali vs. Tommy Morrison

[Jersey-Jim]

Rocky Marciano vs. John Tate
MARCIANO TKO3
(Marciano and Tate butt and foul each other in a sloppy 3 round fight. Tate gets floored after absorbing several big right hands to the head in the 3rd. His rises and complains about being butted several times. Seconds later, Zach Clayton stops the fight when Tate is not defending himself.)

[Jersey-Jim]

Jack Dempsey vs. Mike Weaver
DEMPSEY TKO 5 - cuts
(Jack Dempsey tears into Weaver at the opening bell. Weaver stands his ground and fights back. The first round ends with Weaver cut over the right eye and swelling around the left. Weaver tries to hold his own over the next few rounds but the eye and the bleeding only get worse. The referee, Arthur Mercante Jr. stops the fight 33 seconds into the 5th)

[Jersey-Jim]

Joe Louis vs. Leon Spinks
LOUIS KO4
(Spinks gives a spirited effort, reminiscent of his first Ali fight. He darts in and out, attempting to land combinations. Louis, however is too fast and too strong for Spinks. A terrific combination to the head drops Spinks in the 4th. He tries to beat the count, but fails)

[Jersey-Jim]

Muhammad Ali vs. Tommy Morrison
ALI W15
(Ali delivers jabs, hooks, crosses and combinations from the outside for the first 3 rounds. Morrison follows landing infrequently. In the 4th, Ali is rocked badly by a huge left hook thrown out of desperation. Morrison does a Frazier imitation and batters Ali badly along the ropes. Morrison fights at a torrid pace, backing Ali up by paying a large price for doing so. Both eyes are swelling badly by the 8th. Morrison beats Ali’s body like a drum in the 10th, but walks back to his corner totally spent. Ali sensing Morrison fading, unloads in the 11th – giving Morrison a terrible beating and sending him to the floor for a 5 count. Tommy survives the last 4 rounds somehow, but Ali takes a unanimous decision)
144-140, 145-139, 143-141

[Tommysixfingers]

Originally Posted by Jersey-Jim

Muhammad Ali vs. Tommy Morrison
ALI W15
(Ali delivers jabs, hooks, crosses and combinations from the outside for the first 3 rounds. Morrison follows landing infrequently. In the 4th, Ali is rocked badly by a huge left hook thrown out of desperation. Morrison does a Frazier imitation batters Ali badly along the ropes. Morrison fights at a torrid pace, backing Ali up by paying a large price for doing so. Both eyes are swelling badly by the 8th. Morrison beats Ali’s body like a drum in the 10th, but walks back to his corner totally spent. Ali sensing Morrison fading, unloads in the 11th – giving Morrison a terrible beating and sending him to the floor for a 5 count. Tommy survives the last 4 rounds somehow, but Ali takes a unanimous decision)
144-140, 145-139, 143-141

Scores were closer than I thought that they should be. Good showing from Morrison (or bad from Ali).

[Jersey-Jim]

Originally Posted by Tommysixfingers

Scores were closer than I thought that they should be. Good showing from Morrison (or bad from Ali).

Morrison surprised - even shocked me with his showing. Ali coasted rounds 12 through 15 when he could have stopped "The Duke."

Marciano also looked "sloppy" in his fight against Tate.

[Jersey-Jim]

Gene Tunney vs. Primo Carnera
George Foreman vs. Gerrie Coetzee (this one hurts just thinking about it!)
Larry Holmes vs. Sultan Ibragimov
Mike Tyson vs. Oleg Maskaev (ringside doctor on red alert!)

[mikehoudini]

Nice writeups! I assume someone will get a bye (as opposed to the bye-bye 4 have already received) once you get to the round of 15. Morrison surprised, but Ali probably was conserving his energy and fists for later bouts!

[Jersey-Jim]

Originally Posted by mikehoudini

Nice writeups! I assume someone will get a bye (as opposed to the bye-bye 4 have already received) once you get to the round of 15. Morrison surprised, but Ali probably was conserving his energy and fists for later bouts!

Thanks. Yes, it will be interesting to see how it all plays out. Morrison got respect. Ali got a wake-up call. I'm sure he'll be better prepared for the next one!

[Jersey-Jim]

Gene Tunney vs. Primo Carnera
TUNNEY TKO13
(Tunney in continuous motion, landing jabs and quick punches to the head and body of Carnera. Primo has the disadvantage of having to punch down, negating his punching effectiveness. A quick left/right combination drops Carnera in the 5th for a 5 count. Tunney starts busting up Carnera pretty good in the 6th through the 9th rounds. Primo makes another trip to the canvas in the 10th for a 3 count. Tired, bloodied and beaten, Carnera visits the canvas for a third time in the 13th and the fight is stopped soon afterward when a stinging combination causes yet another leak in his facial plumbing)

[Jersey-Jim]

George Foreman vs. Gerrie Coetzee (this one hurts just thinking about it!)
FOREMAN TKO4
(Coetzee engages Foreman to get his immediate respect in the 1st. A murderous combination beginning at the body and ending at the head dump Coetzee hard near the end of the first. He rises at 8 and survives the round. Coetzee clears the cobwebs and uses his jab and lateral movement to keep Foreman from setting down on his punches.
A sudden, thunderous hook has Coetzee out on his feet in the 4th. Foreman opens up and referee John Condon jumps in to prevent any type of permanent damage)

[Jersey-Jim]

Larry Holmes vs. Sultan Ibragimov
MAJ. DRAW 15
(Holmes dominates the opening round with his hard, snapping jab. Ibragimov settles down in the 2nd and a boxing match becomes a “fight.” Holmes digs in and uses the jab and right hand. Sultan keeps the pressure on Holmes not allowing him to establish a rhythm. They arrive at the 10th round with most observers having Holmes ahead by a few rounds. Sultan gets mugged in the 10th when the tank reads – empty… and returns to the corner with an uncertain look on his face and his left eye starting to swell. Ibragimov surprises as the championship rounds begin and out-punches Holmes in rounds 11-13. Holmes calls upon his reserves and takes the final two rounds. The fight goes to the scorecards. 144-142 Holmes, 143-143 Even, 145-145 Even (The fight ends in a Majority Draw)

The rematch to follow.

[Jersey-Jim]

Mike Tyson vs. Oleg Maskaev
TYSON TKO 6
(Maskaev settles in as fights Tyson from the opening bell. Both fighters trade nice shots and snap each other’s heads back. By the fourth, however, it’s Maskaev who is worse for the wear with swelling around his left eye. Tyson lowers the boom on Maskaev in the 5th and he barely makes it to the bell. Tyson forces a stoppage in the 6th when an uppercut and the follow-up punches almost tear Oleg’s head from his shoulders)

[Jersey-Jim]

Sonny Liston vs. John Ruiz (Liston should duplicate David Tua's result)
Joe Frazier vs. Bruce Seldon
Evander Holyfield vs. Tony Tubbs
James Jeffries vs. Hasim Rahman (Say goodnight, Hasim)
Jim Corbett vs. Frank Bruno (Bruno's power could cause an upset)
Riddick Bowe vs. Buster Douglas (Imagine if both come in motivated)
Lennox Lewis vs. Nikolay Valuev
Wlad Klitschko vs. Ruslan Chagaev
Ezzard Charles vs. Lamon Brewster
Jersey Joe Walcott vs. Michael Dokes
Max Schmeling vs. Chris Byrd
Vitali Klitschko vs. Michael Moorer
Oliver McCall vs. Michael Spinks (Will McCall land enough to stop Spinks?)
Bob Fitzsimmons vs. Greg Page (Fitz has talent, Page has "chin!"
John L. Sullivan vs. Tony Tucker
Max Baer vs. Bonecrusher Smith (Bombs away!)
Ken Norton vs. Pinklon Thomas (Interesting matchup - Norton should win)
Jack Sharkey vs. Tim Witherspoon (Should be close)
Sam Peter vs. Ray Mercer (Can Mercer's chin absorb Peter's bombs?)
Floyd Patterson vs. Jimmy Ellis
James Braddock vs. Ernie Terrell