Gene Tunney is not an all time great HW

[Max Power]

Thank you for acknowledging that Gene Tunney was a pioneer of his time. He received first million dollar cheque, retired champion and was a skilled boxer.

He was extremely good looking and had a chiseled body too just the way you like it.

LOL Yeah, yeah, you think your funny...

Hey, wasn't John L Sullivan the first to make a $Million?

Or was that the first sportsman to make $1Mil in total?

Sullivan earned a million wow. Did not know that in all seriousness. Gene got the cheque in the Dempsey fight I think.

Yeah he did, I suspect Sullivan was the first person to earn a million dollars from his whole career though. That would have been a fortune in the late 1800's!

Gene earned a $Million for one fight vs Dempsey!!!

I wonder what that would be adjusted for inflation. Approximately 90 years. Unreal!

[Mr140]

But didn't Tunney beat all the white guys who beat the black guys makes it a wash sort of for him. I think it is bullshit they didnt fight blacks but hey that was the times dude. I mean Willard beat great black champ and Look what Dempsey did him fucking killing. As for today they would get fucking killed Walds jab could tear Tunney and Dempsey faces off i mean they might die. Saying that i think with how far ahead Tunney was if he had all the shit they have today and the Training he could be great Lhw.

[Andre]

In 1900 the average industry wage was $439 per year.

Average house $5000.

So one million was a shit load.

[Beanflicker]

A million was crazy cash back then you could probably spit in the president's face and get away with it with that kind of dough.

But with all that money to be made, it's just a shame punks like Tunney never gave black fighters a chance to earn a decent living.

In the end he probably made the right choice though, because if him and Dempsey had regularly fought the black fighters of the time, I doubt we'd be talking about them.

Stanley Ketchel fought black fighters, so did Greb, Pep, Lamotta, Marciano, ect. So no, I don't take guys like Tunney or Jack Dempsey seriously.

On this forum I see guys like "Oh if only we had Dempsey or Tunney here today, they'd clean up the HW division." Bull shit. Never mind Wlad, do you think those guys would be up for fighting a 6'8'' black guy with a 100% KO ratio? Or a 6'3'', 240lb black guy like Stiverne?

If you could go back in a time machine and bring prime Dempsey and Tunney to the present, they'd be terrified to get in the ring, and that's a fact. Neither of them would break the top 10.

[brocktonblockbust]

why does this thread have to even mention black or white? We're just talking about Tunney.

[Beanflicker]

why does this thread have to even mention black or white? We're just talking about Tunney.

Because blacks tend to rule the sport and if you ain't fighting black fighters, you're missing out on a ton of great competition.

If Tommy Morrisson didn't have to fight black fighters he would have retired undefeated except for the AIDs.

[Master]

why does this thread have to even mention black or white? We're just talking about Tunney.

Because blacks tend to rule the sport and if you ain't fighting black fighters, you're missing out on a ton of great competition.

If Tommy Morrisson didn't have to fight black fighters he would have retired undefeated except for the AIDs.

Yes that Aids will get you.

[Max Power]

why does this thread have to even mention black or white? We're just talking about Tunney.

Because ducking black fighters is one of the hallmark attributes of Tunney's (and Dempsey's) career.

Everybody knows that in early times, racist motives were involved in keeping black boxers out of the HW championship.

Therefore it's very relevant when considering how great Tunney and Dempsey were to consider the impact of their decisions to duck them. Beanflicker gets it!

[Bill Paxtom]

Gene Tunney

"I'd rather be smart, than try to make every boxing pundit happy.
They do not have to get in the Ring with guys that want to rip
your head off. Boxing is a rough business."

"I'm content with myself, and have not one single regret about
not fighting this one or that one."

"Look at Muhammad Ali. Sure he was tough, but look at him now. Yes,
I'm sure he made everyone happy."

[Max Power]

A million was crazy cash back then you could probably spit in the president's face and get away with it with that kind of dough.

But with all that money to be made, it's just a shame punks like Tunney never gave black fighters a chance to earn a decent living.

In the end he probably made the right choice though, because if him and Dempsey had regularly fought the black fighters of the time, I doubt we'd be talking about them.

Stanley Ketchel fought black fighters, so did Greb, Pep, Lamotta, Marciano, ect. So no, I don't take guys like Tunney or Jack Dempsey seriously.

On this forum I see guys like "Oh if only we had Dempsey or Tunney here today, they'd clean up the HW division." Bull shit. Never mind Wlad, do you think those guys would be up for fighting a 6'8'' black guy with a 100% KO ratio? Or a 6'3'', 240lb black guy like Stiverne?

If you could go back in a time machine and bring prime Dempsey and Tunney to the present, they'd be terrified to get in the ring, and that's a fact. Neither of them would break the top 10.

LOL "Punks like Tunney", I like your style.

Yes everybody intuitively knows that Stiv and Wilder would knock any of those guys out with the first connected, off centre jab LOL.

I don't think Tunney or Dempsey could really have made an impact on the light HW division today, they don't have all around skills.

I think Kovalev would have knocked them out and the Andre Ward of a few years back clowned them.

[Beanflicker]

LOL "Punks like Tunney", I like your style.

Yes everybody intuitively knows that Stiv and Wilder would knock any of those guys out with the first connected, off centre jab LOL.

I don't think Tunney or Dempsey could really have made an impact on the light HW division today, they don't have all around skills.

I think Kovalev would have knocked them out and the Andre Ward of a few years back clowned them.

When I was a boxing n00b and was ranting a raving about Tyson, all the old timer so called boxing experts would say "Pshhh, if you think Tyson could punch, you need to watch Dempsey vs Willard. Then watch Earnie Shavers. Those guys hit ten times harder than Tyson".

It didn't take long to realize that most of these so called experts just have a hard on for old dudes and these guys were overrated.

Dempsey looked like a fucking amateur throwing those wild haymakers at a Willard, who I am convinced had Down Syndrome or some shit. Dempsey sucked and Earnie Shavers sucked even harder (I know Shavers wasn't mentioned in this thread but fuck him anyway).

Dempsey was a punk, he pimped out his prostitute wife, dodged the war (like he dodged black fighters), and people want to ooh and ahh over his shovel hook. Yeesh.

[Max Power]

LOL "Punks like Tunney", I like your style.

Yes everybody intuitively knows that Stiv and Wilder would knock any of those guys out with the first connected, off centre jab LOL.

I don't think Tunney or Dempsey could really have made an impact on the light HW division today, they don't have all around skills.

I think Kovalev would have knocked them out and the Andre Ward of a few years back clowned them.

When I was a boxing n00b and was ranting a raving about Tyson, all the old timer so called boxing experts would say "Pshhh, if you think Tyson could punch, you need to watch Dempsey vs Willard. Then watch Earnie Shavers. Those guys hit ten times harder than Tyson".

It didn't take long to realize that most of these so called experts just have a hard on for old dudes and these guys were overrated.

Dempsey looked like a fucking amateur throwing those wild haymakers at a Willard, who I am convinced had Down Syndrome or some shit. Dempsey sucked and Earnie Shavers sucked even harder (I know Shavers wasn't mentioned in this thread but fuck him anyway).

Dempsey was a punk, he pimped out his prostitute wife, dodged the war (like he dodged black fighters), and people want to ooh and ahh over his shovel hook. Yeesh.

Haha brilliant, every word, Dempsey, Shaver the lot!

Yes, I also grew up with Tyson and when all the oldies told me about prior boxers being greater, I thought to myself fuck, they must have been absolutely unreal!

It was many years later that I actually got a chance to watch them and to say that I was grossly misinformed is a mild understatement to say the least.

Personally I find most of those old fights unwatchable for any but educational purposes.