R.I.P. Igor Vysotsky, a Heavyweight Boxer of Great Renown

[Willow The Wisp]

I hadn't seen anything here in the past month, and I'm trying to post more knowing that the ranks of posters here have been thinned out, so here's a tribute to Vysotski, and all the communist perma-amateurs who lost out on fighting longer distances for their family's enrichment.

RIP Igor Vysotsky

[JAB5239]

Nice read, thanks for sharing.

[Dr. Z]

Vysotsky was something. His exhibition against Ali happened when he was well past his prime. Igor was a Russian ***. He also had an iron chin and was never KO's by punches in 185 fights. Nor was he knocked down. Though this is disputed. The thunderous punching Vysotsky. He was a man who could deliver a KO with either hand and at any distance. His full amateur record was 161–24. He had an iron head which had an abundance of calcium deposits or his brow. This caused some issues with cuts in the multiple day amateur torments.

He and Stevenson were two very pro like amateurs, #1 at the time when Ali was on top. Politics prevented the fights. As I said Ali had no pro bouts vs these two nations. Russian and Cubans. If Ali fought them in the early to mid 1970's who knows? Imo both men were real talented would give Ali some real problems. Maybe even beat him or least have good showings vs him

[Bronson66]

Vysotsky was something. His exhibition against Ali happened when he was well past his prime. Igor was a Russian ***. He also had an iron chin and was never KO's by punches in 185 fights. Nor was he knocked down. Though this is disputed. The thunderous punching Vysotsky. He was a man who could deliver a KO with either hand and at any distance. His full amateur record was 161–24. He had an iron head which had an abundance of calcium deposits or his brow. This caused some issues with cuts in the multiple day amateur torments.

He and Stevenson were two very pro like amateurs, #1 at the time when Ali was on top. Politics prevented the fights. As I said Ali had no pro bouts vs these two nations. Russian and Cubans. If Ali fought them in the early to mid 1970's who knows? Imo both men were real talented would give Ali some real problems. Maybe even beat him or least have good showings vs him

This was in1978 ,Vysotsky was 25 and the reigning USSR champion.Ali was 36 and had already fought 4 rds against 2 other Soviet boxers.
As Ali was scheduled to face Leon Spinks ,he was being very careful not to risk getting cut.


As Cosell pointed out, the Russian boxers were professional in all but name.
.

[Dr. Z]

Yes, I believe Igor would have beaten Ali when he was 35 if he went pro. He was something of a two fisted Joe Frazier, but with a very solid chin.

[Bronson66]

Yes, I believe Igor would have beaten Ali when he was 35 if he went pro. He was something of a two fisted Joe Frazier, but with a very solid chin.

Vysotsky was 25 in his prime, he had beat Stevenson that year,Ali was 36 and out of shape,plus he had already fought 4 rounds previous to fighting Vysotsky.

Igor Vysotsky competed in an era when Russian boxers, like their Cuban counterparts, were barricaded from turning pro. But as an amateur, Vysotsky’s accomplishments made him a national hero. His death on April 4 at age 69 in his native Yagodnoye in far-eastern Russia (closer to Alaska than to Moscow) warranted more than a footnote in the English-language press.

Vysotsky was the only boxer to defeat Teofilo Stevenson twice and the only man to knock out the Cuban icon, a three-time Olympic gold medalist widely considered the best amateur heavyweight of all time.

Vysotsky won a split decision over Teofilo in Cuba in 1973 and stopped him in 1976 in Minsk. In the latter, he had Stevenson on the deck twice before the match was halted in the third and final round.

During this era, many of Russia’s top amateurs appeared in U.S. rings in one-day tournaments against a squad of U.S. Olympic hopefuls. Vysotsky was 8-2 against U.S. opponents in bouts contested on American soil, twice avenging a loss to Jimmy Clark and TKOing Tony Tubbs, a future U.S. national amateur champion. His other defeat came at the hands of (Having graduated from the same high school in Louisville that produced Muhammad Ali, Page was then the most heavily-touted of America’s amateur heavyweights. After turning pro, he would go on to win a piece of the world title which he lost to the aforementioned Tubbs.)

Several of these meets were all-heavyweight affairs that were nationally televised, albeit usually edited for viewing on a delayed-tape basis.

In November of 1975, a team of Soviet heavyweights opposed a U.S. contingent in meets staged in New York, Cincinnati, and Las Vegas.

The 1975 lid-lifter at Madison Square Garden attracted a crowd of more than 10,000 who got into the swing of things during the playing of the Russian national anthem. They booed it lustily.

The Americans won six of the 10 matches, their best showing in these one-day heavyweight tournaments. The stars were Gerry Cooney and Jimmy Clark.

Cooney, a 19-year-old iron worker from Huntington, Long Island, demolished his opponent, stopping him in the opening round. Clark, a 20-year-old political science major at Pennsylvania’s West Chester State College, got off the deck to TKO Vysotsky whose face was a bloody mask when the match was stopped in the third round. “I sent him back to the salt mines,” gushed the euphoric Clark.

New York Daily News sportswriter Phil Pepe noted that the 10-man Russian squad had 1,285 bouts between them heading into the meet, compared with only 364 for the Americans. While career records in amateur boxing are approximations and invariably inflated, this made it an historic day for amateur boxing in the land of the free.

In the ring, Vysotsky was a stalker. Las Vegas Review-Journal sportswriter Frank Dell’Apa described his style as that of a “Frankenstein-like robot fighting machine,” betraying an ingestion of the stereotype that would shape the Ivan Drago character in the fourth installment of the Rocky franchise.

How far would Igor Vysotsky have gone if he had turned pro? Likely not all that far. His record entering his first match with Jimmy Clark was 82-5 with 72 knockouts per a story in Newsday, but that record was manufactured from thin air. He was a small heavyweight by modern standards, standing five-foot-11 and customarily weighing about 212 pounds, and he was a notorious bleeder, a penchant that kept him off the 1976 Russian Olympic team. However, he conquered the great Teofilo Stevenson and was the face of the touring Russian boxing team during an interesting period in boxing history and for those reasons alone he ought not be forgotten.

[JAB5239]

This was in1978 ,Vysotsky was 25 and the reigning USSR champion.Ali was 36 and had already fought 4 rds against 2 other Soviet boxers.
As Ali was scheduled to face Leon Spinks ,he was being very careful not to risk getting cut.


As Cosell pointed out, the Russian boxers were professional in all but name.
.

Even against old and out of shape Ali you can see he isn't on the same level. He would need a lot of polishing up before stepping up against the best professionals. The way he threw body punches left me a bit perplexed. The could be called scoring punches but they weren't thrown with the intention of breaking a fighter down. Not taking anything away from the man, he was obviously a great Soviet fighter, but the body punches were thrown almost childlike in my opinion.

Interesting how the wore 10oz gloves and no headgear to make it look more like a professional fight than exhibition.

[Bronson66]

Ali was not in good shape Manilla at 33 ,34, 35, and 36.

212 pounds in the late 1970's to early 1980's was a slightly bigger than average heavyweight, not small. Igor was compact.

Ali was not 212lbs when he boxed the Russian, he was way out of shape as he mentions on the video .He was also several years past his prime.whilst the Russian was **** in the middle of his.
Watching the footage it;s obvious Ali is not only not trying to hurt the amateur,he is making sure he doesn't get any injuries himself,which he also mentions on the video.
Vysotsky was very prone to cuts ,without the protection of headgear, I don't think he would fare very well in the pro game .

[Bronson66]

Not Ali, the article said Igor was 212 lbs. The footage shows Ali is on the defensive due to Igor's style and power

Nineteen years old Jimmy Clark beat Vysotsky. The footage show nothing of the sort ,it shows a seriously out of shape Ali,not attempting to do anything but ensure he does not pick up an injury.

[Bronson66]

Vystosky beat Jimmy Clark twice. IMO, Vysotsky looks good in the footage. Ali would lose to Leon Spinks next.

Igor was the better of the two in the ring. With only three rounds, Ali in decline did not have enough rounds to gas.

Ali had already fought 4 rounds before a fresh Vysotsky climbed though the ropes.