Quote Originally Posted by Spicoli View Post
Both guys have similarity but I don't see a wash at all for Castro. Castro was rugged and raw and both of these guys were very dangerous when hurt, and both could be hurt. Barkley was a solid inside brawler with his own odd angles and both struggled with movers and slickness. But Castro wasn't bullet proof, frankly the record is very impressive but like evertyhing else, numbers can be inflated and he had a huge run up with backyard cooking and faced the same opponent on a handful of occasions. Norris didn't have the best of beards and was unfazed by a young fresh Castro and little known Anthony Andrews gave Castro all he could handle and had him staggered and down in that one. Takehara found him repeatedly with left hooks and had him badly hurt and knockdown with bodyshot early. Barkley carried the weight better to me and went deeper and closer with a better class of fighter. Not saying that equates to a win, but he wouldn't be looking and chasing down Castro and I think he hit everybit just as hard. Great match while its lasted, and both were true to their styles and damn good at what they did.
Nice breakdown. Barkley was bigger and quite possibly a cut above Castro in terms of class. I certainly wouldn't favor Castro against Tommy Hearns. Not at all.