Name me some fighters who had late starts in boxing but still ended up being solid contenders or even champions at a certain point. One that pops up to mind is Ron Lyle he started off late in boxing due to prison time and became a pretty solid contender for the time he was even going into the fight with Ali before being stopped and giving us a great brawl with Foreman.
that's a good one I forgot about him starting late. Definitely one of the best at lightheavyweight and did his thing in Cruiserweight
My man Rocky Marciano turned pro and insanely raw and crude at 26 which is late-ish most of the better champs at heavy have been established champs by that age - Jack Johnson aside
that was actually another fighter I was thinking of when making this Thread. Rocky had a late start and some disadvantages one being small as far as heavyweights are concerned but he made his disadvantage into an advantage and with the help of Charlie Goldman he also had some good defense than given credit for to go along with his punching power and a very awkward style. But I feel like even if he had started early his swarming style of fighting wasn't made for long careers
Dennis Andries; started late and then reinvented himself in his mid 30s, after the Motor City Cobra defeat.
