I think Norris has the tools and I would be tempted to lean towards him, but if this is a war.... Vargas may just well indeed be the last one standing. I still think Norris is better but Vargas has a legit shot.
Norris was much better than Vargas, much better. People rip on Norris but they forget that after Tito, Vargas used to get rocked and hurt as a matter of routine, by some scrubs. Norris had a viable career after a brutal KO against JJ.
Norris would have hurt Vargas badly before Norris got sloppy enough to get caught, and, having been lit up early-doors,it's not certain Vargas would have had anything left thereafter.
We are talking about post-Trinidad Vargas of course?...Vargas will have trouble with Norris speed for the first few round...but he will still touch him..cause Norris ain't no defensive genius...rounds go on and on...Vargas start taking more of a command....and KO Norris in teh championship rounds..
Vargas was slow, not massively slow, but to paraphrase Hopkins, he never fought no slick black fighters ::
THe first part is moot as, for example, Vitali didn't beat anyone as good as, say, Bowe, but I would make him, at least, a live dog vs Bowe. The second part is valid, but who did Vargas beat that absolutely would have beaten Norris :dunno: Old, inactive Quartey :dunno: Midget arms Campas :dunno: Slow, cut-prone Raul Marquez :dunno: Castillejo.possibly, could have outlasted Norris but.......
The guys who beat Vargas at 154 were DLH and Trinidad... The former has a hell of a shot against Norris and the latter would definitely KO him... Norris's opponents at 154 were largely garbage and washed-up Welterweights... I don't see past-it Simon Brown putting Vargas on queer street with a jab and KOing him in 4 rounds
This is a good matchup. Could go either way. Norris was clearly better but that chinny chin chin of his is the X factor and Vargas hit hard enough to exploit it. I think it'll take a trilogy to settle this one with Norris winning the runner match by late KO
Victories shmicktories...just use your eyes and you can see. Yes, Norris made a habit of feasting on washed up and/or smaller fighters, however Vargas' only big wins were against Wright (which many thought he lost) and a Quartey that wasn't at his best in terms of career stage or weight. So "victories" are a wash at the very least. Norris was clearly faster, and teh better boxer. Probably hit harder too.