How would big Frank have faired on the current scene?

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In his own words, 'there were a fair few cups of tea around in my day'.

He only ever lost to World Champions or future World chapions in an era that was significantly tougher than the current one. Furthermore he arguably ran out of gas against Smith and Witherspoon when both matches were his to throw away.

How does he fair against the likes of the K's and Haye? In my eyes his achievements prior to beating McCall were greater than becoming World champion. I feel he would be in the top 5 current heavies with a shout at being undisputed number 1.

He was not the first man to hurt Tyson Ribalta was give Tyson nightmares before Mike closed the show.

Ribalta gave Tyson nightmares? I've heard it all now... Yes he asked more questions than most and to be fair it's been a while since I watched it but Ribalta spent nearly the whole fight on the ropes taking punishment! I think in the second maybe he blasted off and attacked Mike but he wasn't really hurt or anything...

He absorbed an enormous amount of punishment that night and to his credit he actually took the shots quite well and maybe the ref could have let it go on but all Ribalta was doing was taking hooks to the body and head. In like every round and the beggining Ribalta pracically ran to the ropes and allowed Tyson to tee off, if that's what you call him being given nightmares I don't want to know what you thought of the Holyfield performance.

i would back frank to beat both haye and wlad, but although i think he would be competitive for a while, i think vitali would be too clever for him

Haye could've been better. Went for the money too early unlike jones and maywether

Lance wrote:i would back frank to beat both haye and wlad, but although i think he would be competitive for a while, i think vitali would be too clever for him

Are you on glue?

Frank would be a danger to any fighter that has suspect wiskers.

If Haye stopped running away for a second and Frank hit him it would be lights out.

Strongback wrote:Frank would be a danger to any fighter that has suspect wiskers.

If Haye stopped running away for a second and Frank hit him it would be lights out.

No it wouldn't.

I think he'd build up a good early lead against Vitali, before being stopped late. Vitali is too smart and too durable to be beaten by Frank.

Think Wlad would outpoint Frank 8 times out of 10, but if Frank got in with his big right he would have stopped Wlad.

Frank would smash up the second tier fighters like Povetkin, Adamek and Arreola.

And below that we've got our own domestic scene with the likes of Haye, Fury and Harrison who obviously would stand no chance whatsoever.

As an aside, I think Tyson would destroy both the Klits - Wlad probably in the first round, and Vitali in around 6. Their upright fencing master style and pawing jabs are made for him.

Well, there's a blast from the past.

Warm welcome back, Bamber. I was beginning to wonder if we'd ever see you again.

Thanks Windy, do still regularly read the pages, but am struggling to cope with 3 children (one of them 3 months old) and work at the moment.

Can't resist sticking up for big Frank, whilst eating my lunch though

Forum is doing great I think.

Belated congrats on the new arrival, mate. To you and Mrs Bamber.

Cheers Windy.

Haye has to work harder and alot more to beat Frank - Probably tire himself out before he does Frank.

Bruno would be fringe top 10 probably. The Klit's would both banjo him out inside of a round.

Jukebox Timebomb wrote:Bruno would be fringe top 10 probably. The Klit's would both banjo him out inside of a round.

I doubt it - not with Byrd in his corner. With that kind of input and Frank's dedication Poor old Vitali will rendered completely 'armless'.

Jukebox Timebomb wrote:Bruno would be fringe top 10 probably. The Klit's would both banjo him out inside of a round.

Funso Banjo? Good link, although I don't think he fought Big Frank.

fearlessBamber wrote:

I doubt it - not with Byrd in his corner. With that kind of input and Frank's dedication Poor old Vitali will rendered completely 'armless'.

Have you worked out how to do larger scale text on the new 606 yet?

Good to see you put the Fearless back into Bamber.

Strongback wrote:

fearlessBamber wrote:

I doubt it - not with Byrd in his corner. With that kind of input and Frank's dedication Poor old Vitali will rendered completely 'armless'.

Have you worked out how to do larger scale text on the new 606 yet?

Good to see you put the Fearless back into Bamber.

Cheers Strongy, forgot about the big text - it's not the same with the forbidden fancy font buttons.

Too much nice things being said about Fwank here. His time came during the dark, dank late eighties and early ninties where the heavyweight scene was also pretty dismal as it is today. Bruno was a limited fighter and fringe contender during a pretty lousy time.

Amazing how someone's stock rises when they've been retired a while , Eubank hailed as a legend for gawd sake! God knows how Calzaghe will be viewed in ten years time. Probably a God or something!

Boony

The 80s had a far better of standard'r fighter than nowadays. It was a poor era yes, but knowhere near what it is nowadays.

You had:

Tyson
Lewis
Bowe
Holyfield
Witherspoon
Bruno
etc

I'm sorry, but that stuffs todays HW era by quite some considerable distance.

For a start the careers of the likes of Holyfield , Lewis and Bowe didn't exactly overlap with Big Fwank's. Maybe guys like Tubbs, Thomas, Smith, Berbick, Tucker, Witherspoon were all around Bruno's era and none , apart from Tyson were really stand out fighters.

Argue what you will about it being better than it is now but it was still pretty weak and hardly way way above this era. You mean to say fatties like Witherspoon necessarily get past the eastern beasts you got now? Not necessarily, as bad as some of the heavies are , the majority these days are well conditioned - hardly an accusation you can level on the fat boys in the eighties.

Did someone say Bruno was small.....The guy was what about 6'3 and 230 and with the strength of an ox....Haye wobbled Valuev..my goodness Frank would kill him...

Sure the Klits are twenty pounds heavier but Bruno would be stronger.....

The Klits would struggle with Bruno's jab...Before he got tired he'd outjabbed the taller Lewis and if he clocked Vitali we would know if he could be taken out or not....

Let's be honest if he clocks Vlad clean it's over...

Have the Klits 1 and 2... but I wouldn't bet my house on Vlad vs Frank..

Funny how things change a lot of us thought Bruno was average then.....but looking at Lebedev, fury etc and one would think he'd be a great..now!

Let's be honest if he clocks Vlad clean it's over...

-------

I beg to differ his power at the top level is not that great.

Really?????

Vlad's got a top chin has he?? Guess Sanders punches harder than Frank...

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:Really?????

Vlad's got a top chin has he?? Guess Sanders punches harder than Frank...

In fairness to Wlad he's improved since that demolition and you could argue he wasn't "world class" back then. Sanders battered Wlad with a few thunderous knocks as I remember not just the one hail mary so can't see the argument about Bruno landing it's game over. Bruno might have a chance against that version of Wlad but not against the one we know now.

Bob wrote:

Lance wrote:i would back frank to beat both haye and wlad, but although i think he would be competitive for a while, i think vitali would be too clever for him

Are you on glue?

why, have you ran out?

Lance wrote:

Bob wrote:

Lance wrote:i would back frank to beat both haye and wlad, but although i think he would be competitive for a while, i think vitali would be too clever for him

Are you on glue?

why, have you ran out?

Bob the Glue dealer?

Don't see him beating Wlad to be honest - a punchers chance - no more. Haye - I think he wins. Agree with the last bit regarding Vitali winning but only because hes rather brutal when he gets the chance rather than outsmarting Bruno.

So by winning a world title..your chin gets better!!!

Like many on here, I think people rather over stressed Frank's negative points and gloss over his positives a little lightly. He had a very good jab combined with a long reach that made him difficult for anybody. He was fairly tight defensively and had devastating punch power. His weakness was, being a bit manufactured, he was often over muscled and gassed and lacked the real survival/killer instinct.

For me, he probably would beat Wlad, probably not Vitali, although he even has a punchers chance at that. He poses many of the problems Haye tried to avoid with Wlad, although admittedly less nimble so I think he would win against Haye. Haye may even be more cautious against him as his single punch KO power was beyond doubt.

Tyson beats Wlad, no doubts but would struggle against Vitali for all the reasons mentioned above. Haye... think he would win that too. Just too ferocious and Haye showed against Wlad he hasn't enough confidence in his own chin/abilities to take it to someone with a threatening punch.

Super D - you are kidding right? Bruno was pretty much regarded as having the heaviest hands in boxing at the time. He did something nobody had done before and backed Tyson up with a single punch...

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:Did someone say Bruno was small.....The guy was what about 6'3 and 230 and with the strength of an ox....Haye wobbled Valuev..my goodness Frank would kill him...

Sure the Klits are twenty pounds heavier but Bruno would be stronger.....

The Klits would struggle with Bruno's jab...Before he got tired he'd outjabbed the taller Lewis and if he clocked Vitali we would know if he could be taken out or not....

Let's be honest if he clocks Vlad clean it's over...

Have the Klits 1 and 2... but I wouldn't bet my house on Vlad vs Frank..

Funny how things change a lot of us thought Bruno was average then.....but looking at Lebedev, fury etc and one would think he'd be a great..now!

He was average, not small.

Did Bruno actually beat a decent fighter through his whole career? His stand out win was struggling past Oliver McCall. McCall was so high that night I doubt he even remembers the fight!

The Klits are/were in a different league to Bruno and should not be mentioned in the same sentence. Bruno v Arreola would be a better match-up, although Arreola would beat him easily.

In all honestly Herbie Hide was a better HW than Bruno.

And why compare Frank to a cruiserweight like Lebedev?

Jukebox Timebomb wrote:

TRUSSMAN66 wrote:Did someone say Bruno was small.....The guy was what about 6'3 and 230 and with the strength of an ox....Haye wobbled Valuev..my goodness Frank would kill him...

Sure the Klits are twenty pounds heavier but Bruno would be stronger.....

The Klits would struggle with Bruno's jab...Before he got tired he'd outjabbed the taller Lewis and if he clocked Vitali we would know if he could be taken out or not....

Let's be honest if he clocks Vlad clean it's over...

Have the Klits 1 and 2... but I wouldn't bet my house on Vlad vs Frank..

Funny how things change a lot of us thought Bruno was average then.....but looking at Lebedev, fury etc and one would think he'd be a great..now!

Bruno v Arreola would be a better match-up, although Arreola would beat him easily.

In all honestly Herbie Hide was a better HW than Bruno.

And why compare Frank to a cruiserweight like Lebedev?

I think hes miles behind the current champions but upper end of the chasing pack.

In all honestly Herbie Hide was a better HW than Bruno.

Really?!!

Happytravelling wrote:Super D - you are kidding right? Bruno was pretty much regarded as having the heaviest hands in boxing at the time. He did something nobody had done before and backed Tyson up with a single punch...

A devastating punch for a fat clown like Chuck Gardener maybe, but not that devastating at the top level. Like we've discussed before about the hugely overrated Tyson "wobble", it was a wobble no more! Tyson was momentarily shaken but hardly in trouble given Tyson threw right back and pinned Bruno to the ropes straight away. Lewis (not great for his chin), Witherspoon, Smith all withstood Bruno's best work and were probably losing at the time they stopped Bruno. McCall took some hefty knocks against Bruno but still stood the full twelve, I still can't see Bruno as being anything more than a decent puncher at the top level.

Like someone said Bruno never really beat any decent opponents, mainly journeymen, fat lumps like Gardener and way past it fellas like Coetze and Bugner. Just goes to show how dire it was back then. Apart from a drug addled and disinterested Oliver McCall, Bruno never beat anyone decent and looked good knocking out janitors and bus drivers.

The reason Bruno is lauded is because we British we seem to like our heavies a bit thick and stupid and Bruno certainly fit the bill nicely in that department and he was the only half decent heavy from the UK at the time. He was highly manipulative in selling his dopey and stupid persona and his ridiculously unfunny "know what I mean 'arry" routine and make tons of cash for it! How much did the champ Witherspoon get in relation to Bruno for their fight? Think Bruno landed a couple of mils where poor Tim got peanuts!

Anyway, he wasn't that good all things considered.

A devastating punch for a fat clown like Chuck Gardener maybe, but not that devastating at the top level. Like we've discussed before about the hugely overrated Tyson "wobble", it was a wobble no more! Tyson was momentarily shaken but hardly in trouble given Tyson threw right back and pinned Bruno to the ropes straight away.

You're having a laugh, right?

Tyson didn't pin him against the ropes, he practically fell into him. His timing went miles off, his footwork went to complete jelly (if you know what you're looking at) and he was missing by absolute miles with wild hooks.

Christ, there's even a slow mo as Tysons left leg completely buckles and he almost goes down.

But i guess Tyson had:

a) Timing
b) Punch accuracy
c) Footwork

... after he got nailed?! No, he didn't! Bruno finished the round on top, Tyson from the point of getting barel landing a single punch on him from therein (about the last minute of the round)!!! He was content to get inside and hold - is that the actions of a man who had his guy down and was going in for the kill?!

Tyson himself said he hit massively hard, the general consensus was he could seriously seriously bang.

Super D Boon wrote:

Happytravelling wrote:Super D - you are kidding right? Bruno was pretty much regarded as having the heaviest hands in boxing at the time. He did something nobody had done before and backed Tyson up with a single punch...

A devastating punch for a fat clown like Chuck Gardener maybe, but not that devastating at the top level. Like we've discussed before about the hugely overrated Tyson "wobble", it was a wobble no more! Tyson was momentarily shaken but hardly in trouble given Tyson threw right back and pinned Bruno to the ropes straight away. Lewis (not great for his chin), Witherspoon, Smith all withstood Bruno's best work and were probably losing at the time they stopped Bruno. McCall took some hefty knocks against Bruno but still stood the full twelve, I still can't see Bruno as being anything more than a decent puncher at the top level.

Like someone said Bruno never really beat any decent opponents, mainly journeymen, fat lumps like Gardener and way past it fellas like Coetze and Bugner. Just goes to show how dire it was back then. Apart from a drug addled and disinterested Oliver McCall, Bruno never beat anyone decent and looked good knocking out janitors and bus drivers.

The reason Bruno is lauded is because we British we seem to like our heavies a bit thick and stupid and Bruno certainly fit the bill nicely in that department and he was the only half decent heavy from the UK at the time. He was highly manipulative in selling his dopey and stupid persona and his ridiculously unfunny "know what I mean 'arry" routine and make tons of cash for it! How much did the champ Witherspoon get in relation to Bruno for their fight? Think Bruno landed a couple of mils where poor Tim got peanuts!

Anyway, he wasn't that good all things considered.

Tim got peanuts because he wasted his enormous talent by partying all night and not disciplining himself. There was at least 7-8 Heavies in that period of serious worth and didn't realise it because of their indiscipline.

Also - its the only time i've seen Tyson wobbled with a single shot - he was grabbing onto his right arm for the rest of the round - not without taking a sustained beating throughout the fight. Frank may have lacked a killer instinct - but he never lacked a punch.

If Gerrie Coetzee has woken up yet I dare say that he'll tell us Frank could bang a bit when he got his timing right, too.

Weren't the two shots against Tyson short clubbing hooks? They weren't exactly Valero style hail Mary's were they?

And agreed Windy, forgot about that one!

Super D is obviously a WUM. But we like you... cos we like our WUM's like our Heavyweights.....

HumanWindmill wrote:If Gerrie Coetzee has woken up yet I dare say that he'll tell us Frank could bang a bit when he got his timing right, too.

Amen to that Windy, there are any number of criticisms you can throw at Frank but would have to say he could not bang seems a little harsh

Poppycock! Bruno could bang so long as they were bums! I've checked his record of wins and despite an impressive KO ratio who did he actually beat that was any good?

I never said he couldn't bang just he wasn't devastating at the top level and why I still don't see the argument of him landing on Wlad then it's "game over".

That's right the first guy to nearly send tyson to the deck...stiffen Coetzee....

Could only bang out bums..

maybe you should hear Witherspoons post fight interview when he say's how hard Bruno hit....or maybe not.

I think the point that Super D Boon was making is that Frank did hit hard but could never finish off top quality oppostion which there is no shame to

He wouldnt have KO the Klits. Both beat him on a UD snoozefest for me

The Klits are the best around...certainly not top quality..

Steffan wrote:I think the point that Super D Boon was making is that Frank did hit hard but could never finish off top quality oppostion which there is no shame to

He wouldnt have KO the Klits. Both beat him on a UD snoozefest for me

Not a sound argument though, is it?

Bruno failed to knock out an opponent seven times in forty five starts. Two of those were losses to Tyson - no shame in that ; one was a loss to Lewis - no shame in that ; one was a loss to Witherspoon - no shame in that ; one was a loss to Smith - unfortunate one, for sure, but Tyson couldn't stop Smith, either.

Another one was the win over McCall, whom Lewis couldn't stop, either.

Bruno flattened Coetzee, who was stopped only four times in his career, one of those being when he was about forty five years old. Coetzee had credentials at least as good as many Klitschko victims and there are a couple or three other names on Bruno's record that wouldn't look out of place on the Klitschko ledgers, either.

Well and good to make the Klitschkos favourites, but let's not pretend that Bruno was Bruce Seldon.

Or Ray Austin.

Or Calvin Brock.

He would do ok but would lose to khan - khan would be to quick, lighting combo's and take a UD decision

Bruno would beat manny thou

Bruno may have beaten one of them on points

Not by KO though

I stand by that opinion

Ironmiketyson1984 wrote:He would do ok but would lose to khan - khan would be to quick, lighting combo's and take a UD decision

Bruno would beat manny thou

Well, it seems you've found your level, and we all know what we're dealing with.

HumanWindmill wrote:

Ironmiketyson1984 wrote:He would do ok but would lose to khan - khan would be to quick, lighting combo's and take a UD decision

Bruno would beat manny thou

Well, it seems you've found your level, and we all know what we're dealing with.

Life is about opinions - forums are about opinions and discussions - sorry not everyone agrees with your point of view fella