Pete Rademacher, the heavyweight Olympic champion of '56, challenged Floyd Patterson in his very first professional fight and lost. Could anybody have done it? Name cases where you would pick an Olympic gold medalist or another amateur with no pro fights over a world champion of the same weight division. For example Tyson or Foreman would probably have beaten Patterson after no pro experience. Name some others
kwang sun kim was an 88 gold medalist and only in his 5th or 6th pro fight or so was whupping chiquita gonzalez in a 12 round title fight until he gassed and was stopped in the 12th round.
Do you mean an Olympic gold medalist vs a champ from any era? If so i'd take most Olympic heavyweight champs from the 60's onward to beat guys like John L Sullivan.
Drawn fighters are banned from this thread because of their vast superiority, so try to find guys from remotedly same era.
Obv didn't get the gold, but I'd have my money on Roy Jones against Rene Jacquot who had a 154 title in 1989.
Tyson won an Olympic Gold? Personally, I don't think he would've beaten Patterson at the same time he'd fought Rademacher, medal or no medal, & the same goes for Foreman. However, I could see how the upset could happen.
I would definitely pick Tyson over Patterson. I think quick KO artists have the best chance in this type of comparison. For guys like SRL it would be difficult to hold up for 12 rounds, even against Baldomir
Nevertheless, Tyson is ineligible for the thread. Alternatively, there is Frazier for Patterson, but then, there are weaker Champions in HW history to target. Much, in fact. Edit: I guess going by the original thread idea, Frazier isn't eligible either, since he didn't win his Gold in the same weightclass as Patterson was Champion.
Ah, true. Then the list is extensive I'd pick Clay over: Andries Harding Hearns Griffin Maxim Stevenson over: Spinks Seldon Bruno McCall Rahman etc etc etc
Well, if you water it down by going after partial titleists, sure. Just limiting it to linear Champions, though, is a tough ask. Foreman won Gold at Heavyweight, & I suppose he'd have his chances with the likes of Burns, Briggs, & Spinks.
Well, if you water it down by going after partial titleists, sure. Just limiting it to linear Champions, though, is a tough ask. Foreman won Gold at Heavyweight, & I suppose he'd have his chances with the likes of Burns, Briggs, & Spinks.
True enough, in greater detail, he is. I don't think he'd have beaten Patterson without any pro fights, however.
I would take rookie pro Leonard over the limited Baldomir in a title fight. Leonard was a different class of fighter, even as a new pro.
