Larry Holmes comments on boxing's current state, Ali, Lewis, and Frazier...

Former heavyweight champion Larry Holmes, who'll be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame this weekend, takes his best shots:

On Lennox Lewis: "If he would've got in the ring with me I would've tore his ass up. Lennox Lewis doesn't have heart. He jabbed half-assed, and they say he got a good jab."

On today's heavyweights: "They're fat and out of shape. That's why (Evander) Holyfield doesn't want to quit, because these guys can't fight."

On boxing then vs. now: "Boxing was better then as far as fights. Now guys are making more money and can't fight. I have a lot of respect for (Floyd) Mayweather, but he's the kind of guy I wouldn't want my fighter to be like."

On his former promoter, Don King: "We have a love-hate relationship. He'll call me when he needs me, but when he don't he won't call. But when he calls me he has to pay me."

On Ali, who hired him as a sparring partner for four years: "When I beat him they said he was old at 38. I fought until I was 52 and winning. Ali made the fights hard because he wasn't that (expletive) good of a fighter. He made an easy fight a hard fight because he didn't have the power and he stood there and wanted to prove to people he could take punches. He made Joe Frazier a hard fight by not training like he should've. Ali was a good fighter, but he talked (expletive) and made everybody think he was a good fighter. I used to kick his ass all the time in the gym when I was learning."

 

Where was this from? Is there more?

 

Holmes takes a jab at the boxing world - USATODAY.com

 

Back 20-something years ago when Holmes opened up his own gym in Easton he understandably had a group of his own pictures up on the wall in his office there. After personally hearing & reading his words for the last 30 years, what is even more understandable is the caption he had put underneath those pictures in big block letters which stated simply the following;

THIS MAN is CRAZY

Take that for what it's worth.

P.S. I do like his thoughts on Ali, though.

 

I agree with everything he said.

 

Larry Holmes sounds like he could use a good hug. The man definitely has his PHD.

 

Holmes tells it like it is!

 

Thats a bitter man.

 

He really is bitter. It seems everytime he gets a chance to talk he rips great fighters and promotes himself. He was a great fighter, but his constant bashing of other fighters only lowers his legacy in my opinion. He'll never be considered as good as ali no matter how hard he pushes for it.

 

i thought the cooney fight looked hard...

 

Not much of what he said make any sense actually.

Ali was not old at 38 but he (Larry) was 38 too when he got KO ed violently by Tyson. Whats his excuse then - he said Tyson cant box as well??

And if Ali was out of shape all the time, how comes he won most of his fights? The other guys were out of shape as well or what?

Thing is, HW division was as its lowest in the Larry Holmes era. Nothing. Boring. Death.

No one is really good fighter to him. Please somebody ask him was there ever a good fighter on this planet (besides of himself, of course)

And Lenox would hurt him.

 

In there primes Holmes would have skooled Lennox.

 

So I guess he admits that Tyson would have destroyed his disrepectful ass any time of his career, since he is brining up age not mattering.

 

I think LH would kill MT and LL.

 

Holmes may be the most underrated HW of all time.

He may also be the most bitter of all time.

Anyone who has heard his rants about Foreman knows what I mean.

 

MT? Mike Tyson?

err....

 

He couldn't even beat Spinks. Lewis would have taken him out and Tyson did.

 

Holmes was a good technical boxer with good power, but Tyson was way to agile/fast and Lenix too big (all in their primes) ... he wouldn't have beat either of them.

 

The above tells you exactly why Holmes is considered an asshole and no one liked him. I reasonably concur with the comments about Lewis having an overrated jab. And on this point Holmes has a right to talk as he had perhaps one of the top 3-4 HW jabs ever.I also agree with his point that the quality of HW's is down. But in regards to Ali the guy is a total asshole pure and simple blinded by jealousy and envy. Until Holmes fought Frazier, who would have torn him a new asshole by the way, and until he fought the 70's Foreman who would have finished what Shavers and Snipes couldnt, he should stop being so damn outspoken.
He might want to consider that Ali fought him at 39 when Parkinson's and bad living had already taken its toll. What makes Holmes remarks even more shamefaced are that he knows that Ali was sick and that only 3-4 years earlier Ali was being forced to take it easy on him in the gym, while at the same time telling the press Larry was an upcoming talented youngster. Ali didnt do half as bad at "38" (actually 39) as Holmes did against Tyson at 38. Tyson murdered him. So larry should shut up and stop making excuses. Also Ali didnt get floored by Butterbean or beaten by a Oliver Mccall or Brian Nielson.

For the record I rate Holmes as a top 20 HW of all time.

 

Agreed. Look at his fights from '83 up until Spinks fights. He fought a nobody with 7 losses and then six fighters with under 20 fights. The hwt division was WEAK! Withersppon and Bonecrusher eventaully got belts but I try to foget those years.