Champions and Paper Tigers.

There are those that are champions and those that wear a piece of tin around their waist. The latter smile for pics, wiggle their way out of dangerous fights and have one fighter they all out refuse to meet.

(1) Hugo Corro: Probably the worst of the bunch. Corro wore something around his waist that resembled a belt in the mid 70's. While Marvin Hagler was busy cleaning out the divison by knocking out Philly Middleweights like Willie "The Worm" Monroe, Cyclone Hart and Sugar Ray Seales, Hugo was busy finding ways out of fighting Hagler. Luckily, there's a happy ending to this one. Hagler would finally become champion and go down as one of the 3 greatest MWs to ever fight, while the name Hugo Corro brings a question mark in the minds of most people.

(2) Floyd Patterson: Called one of the most protected Heavyweight Champs ever. I have to disagree. After talking with President Kennedy in 1963, Patterson decided to fight the man he feared most in the sport, Sonny Liston. Give Floyd credit. He showed up. He may've suffered two first round ko losses to Liston, showed up for the rematch in a laughable disguise before the fight,etc, but he took his beating like a man in front of the world. Also, it should be mentioned that Floyd was hell on wheels. If you weren't Sonny Liston, chances are he'd hit you 12 times before you felt the first one.

(3) Mike Tyson: Mike comes out of prison to challenge for the WBC title. Problem is, the number one contender is Lennox Lewis. Don King pays Lewis a 6 million dollar step aside fee which makes room for the Tyson - Bruce Seldon farce. After Tyson knocks out Seldon (who was probably taking a ten count on his way to the ring) Tyson vacates the belt to avoid Lewis once again.
Tyson finally faced Lewis and got beat within an inch of his life. Most say he was past his prime, yet it was Tyson who ran from Lewis when he was thought to be closer to his best fighting days.

(4) Floyd Mayweather: Well, if you're a fan of boxing you don't need to be a history buff to find out about this one. It's happening right before your eyes. By now, it should be obvious that Floyd Mayweather would rather walk through hell soaked in gasoline than fight Manny Pacquiao. Sherlock Holmes stated, "A Genius is somebody who doesn't miss a fact hitting them square in the face."
Maybe it's just me, but I don't think you need to be a mastermind to see through Mayweather. A real champion would fight any contender if he even suspected the public perceived he was avoiding that particular fighter. See "Joe Louis" and "Ali." There's no point to this cowardly behavior of Mayweather. He's bullshitted the public since the fall of 2009 where Pacquiao is concerned. He has his fan base, but most boxing fans and the sporting press in general will place him on the "Pay no mind list."

Those are my early morning thoughts. Hope you have a great day.

frank very good examples.patterson told kennedy in 1962 though.he and cus avoided liston for a few years but public opinion and demand for the fight won out.floyd indeed was a protected fighting roy harris tom mecnelly pete radamacker all no threats that did deck him. and also helpless brian london who litterly refused to throw punches at floyd.he also avoided the top 3 HW contenders like eddie machen zora folley and liston.he did fight machen after machen declined..much to floyds credit after he was no longer champ he fought ali twice henry cooper chuvalo jerry quarry twice and was willing to fight every top fighter around.

dmar5143 wrote:

frank very good examples.patterson told kennedy in 1962 though.he and cus avoided liston for a few years but public opinion and demand for the fight won out.floyd indeed was a protected fighting roy harris tom mecnelly pete radamacker all no threats that did deck him. and also helpless brian london who litterly refused to throw punches at floyd.he also avoided the top 3 HW contenders like eddie machen zora folley and liston.he did fight machen after machen declined..much to floyds credit after he was no longer champ he fought ali twice henry cooper chuvalo jerry quarry twice and was willing to fight every top fighter around.

What about the other figthers dmar? How do you feel about them? Also, granted Floyd never fought Machen or Folley, but they were no match for Liston. Machen may've taken him the distance and given a brave effort but I don't think he ever would've beaten Sonny. In taking on Liston, Floyd should at least be given some credit at attempting to be a fighting champion. Also, Ali said Patterson was the most skilled figther he ever faced. I think he deserves honorable mention when all is said and done. Was Patterson a protected champion? Yes. However, as you stated, he fought just about everyone after he lost the title.

sorry but FLoyd beat the lineal champs in 4 divisions

Birdofthad wrote:

sorry but FLoyd beat the lineal champs in 4 divisions

He's got everything he wanted from the Pacquiao camp and backed down from the one fighter that seemed to be at least as talented as he is. I'm sorry too.

You guys are like the Sith your hate blinds you

so is Ray Robinson not the man cause he woudnt fight Burley, every great fighter has a guy he didnt fight for the msot part

and are you in the room when negotiations are going on?

Birdofthad wrote:

You guys are like the Sith your hate blinds you

so is Ray Robinson not the man cause he woudnt fight Burley, every great fighter has a guy he didnt fight for the msot part

and are you in the room when negotiations are going on?

C'mon Bird, I don't hate anyone. Let's not go there. This is the biggest fight in boxing and Mayweather backed out of it. You have another opinion and I appreciate it. I don't want this turning into a Mayweather - Pac thread. There are people that agree with you and you should share that opinion with them. We agree on a lot, just not this.

i dont disagree biggest fight and it needs to be made

where i disagree is taht Floyd is a paper champ

Shane had the claim at the title in the division not Cotto

Birdofthad wrote:

i dont disagree biggest fight and it needs to be made

where i disagree is taht Floyd is a paper champ

Shane had the claim at the title in the division not Cotto

You have a right to your opinion.

bird well floyds on franks list..im sure almost every fighter or most fighters have one fighter they either avoided in there career or never fought.that dont make that figter a paper champ..floyd as a welter surely falls into that category and every boxing writer states so..most fight fans also outside die hard blind loyalty of the floyd fans..example when cotto was unbeaten there was plenty of talk for that fight..floyds excuse hes n ot a draw..margo backed out of that fight dispite a reported 8 million dollar minimum..i want to promote myself..ok.promote that fight..paul wiulliams.floyds excuse.hes got a loss..he hasnt of yet officaly backed out of the manny fight but after midnight tonight we can chalk up another floyd excuse..yep me and pop can slander the guy but the lawsuit has to go..uhuh..
look lineal champ in a few divisions yes.he beat the worst legit welter champ ive ever seen in baldimor and ive been watching fights since 1951..baldi may be the worst ever..nooo one is denying flod is a hell of a fighter.but the fact he cherry picked fights as a welter and yes that includes a shot mosley is fact..he belongs on the list..your analogy of robinson not fighting burley is very poor this time bird.
and i think your very knowledgeable about the game and its history.floyd as a welter earned to be on franks list..its a good topic indeed.

frank on floyd i agreeded as a welter on corro ill agree on tyson ill disagree..the lewis fight yes was a expensive buy out-avoidence but he did fight the best out there outside lewis.

dmar5143 wrote:

frank on floyd i agreeded as a welter on corro ill agree on tyson ill disagree..the lewis fight yes was a expensive buy out-avoidence but he did fight the best out there outside lewis.

Somehow, I end up agreeing with you at the end of almost every thread. lol: Thanks for your valuable insight, dmar. I appreciate it.

gotta disagree Dmar, Tyson only fought Holyfield cause he thought he was old and avoided Bowe , Lennox, and any other big fighter that was decent enough to expose him again

like

cough cough GEORGE FOREMAN

Mike did avoid all the fighters Bird mentioned.

olok tyson wanted foreman and would of killed him when they suggested that fight..berbick spinks thomas carl williams terrel biggs frank bruno twice bonecruiser smith razor rudduick and a few others were good top rated fighters.he fought them all.theres the top ten..he agreeded to fight hollifield but you forget he went to jail or that match would of been made earlier..bowe started to establish himself while mike was in jail.bowe visted mike and said when you get out lets fight..thats when bowe was champ..when mike got out of jail bowes stock was down..im not a tyson fan but he ducked nooo one.yes he even fought holmes and the great hollifield coulnt ko a old man..mike did....soo what other big fighter was around to expose him..razor ruddick was big..mike was ready to fight ev ander or the winner of the douglas hollifield fight.that was a given..he went to jail..thats not ducking hollifield..

well he wouldnt have fought Holyfield considering Buster beat him and they replaced Buster with Holyfield then Mike decided to have fun with a beauty queen

Tyson was the elgit champ after beating Spinks

he never was again, he was a paper champ in his comeback

the facts are douglas vs hollifield and the winner meets tyson and mike agreed.thats not ducking them..yes he won a strap later and hollifield won 2 straps afterwords.the fight against the winner was a forgone conclution.a deal mike said ok..thats not ducking him..yes he made a mistake and got jail time for it..there was no mention of a tyson-hollifield fight at all.evander had the title shot and no fight with mike as a eliminater to fight douglas was ever talked about..what was agreeded is the winners got mike.

hey guys.look at my post under the floyd facebook topic..i hate to say it bird but theres several examples of what constitutes ducking a fighter or fighters..ill rest my case guys on that example..meanwhlke some good fights coming up this weekend..more to talk about..maybe even some controversy to debate and disguss.

Birdofthad wrote:

sorry but FLoyd beat the lineal champs in 4 divisions

That 4th lineal title is suspect and probably not official.

He also was a paper champ at 154.

dmar5143 wrote:

olok tyson wanted foreman and would of killed him when they suggested that fight..berbick spinks thomas carl williams terrel biggs frank bruno twice bonecruiser smith razor rudduick and a few others were good top rated fighters.he fought them all.theres the top ten..he agreeded to fight hollifield but you forget he went to jail or that match would of been made earlier..bowe started to establish himself while mike was in jail.bowe visted mike and said when you get out lets fight..thats when bowe was champ..when mike got out of jail bowes stock was down..im not a tyson fan but he ducked nooo one.yes he even fought holmes and the great hollifield coulnt ko a old man..mike did....soo what other big fighter was around to expose him..razor ruddick was big..mike was ready to fight ev ander or the winner of the douglas hollifield fight.that was a given..he went to jail..thats not ducking hollifield..

Sorry Dmar, I have to go with Bird on this one. Tyson wanted no part of Foreman. Foreman had a whole arena chanting "We want Tyson" on USA Tuesday Night Fights after landing a body shot that incapacitated Bert Cooper. Tyson never answered. George would've ko,d Tyson within 2 or 3 rounds easy.