Took a lot of brain trauma, and he already had pretty severe dementia pugilistica by the time he retired.
probably, everyone is a bit different in terms of reacting to head trauma but its been researched that the brain does not stop developing until after adolescence...into your mid 20s... can't help to get banged on at 16.
One punch could have done it. Might have been in training. Who knows ? I think James Toney said that he took more damage in sparring than in the ring.
yup. one punch coulda done it. then there are guys like lamotta who are still shadow boxing and feisty as ever at 90 and that dude took severe beatings. who can say?
He just wanted to be shot that's all, he could have became un-shot anytime he want it. Just like Cotto who was shot against PAC but became un-shot vs Floyd.
everyone is different, some people get brain damaged more easily than others, like chavez, he had 100+ fights and is totally fine, while meldrick taylor had much fewer fights, but is in much worse condition. riddick bowe was similar, by the 3 holyfield fight he was shot and brain damaged, and the 2 golota fights added to the damage
Which makes it harder for me to understand, given that Benitez had a reputation of being a defensive genius, and virtually "untouchable". How someone sooooo good defensively ends with brain damage at an early age???
because everyone has on average 10 years in em... start taking the **** and you'll be found out... Though people may shout out the names Foreman, Moore, Hopkins... Those guys are few and far between... The guys who go on too long usually end up kidding themselves with easy fights until they get battered by some young gun. Ali was cruising along fighting stiffs for his last few fights with the exception of Shavers and then got beat by a hungry spinks.... Before fooling himself that he could beat Holmes, a man who knew him better than he knew himself... Leonard was a man who had some great days and they had long left him, his last great fight was when he fought LaLonde and came out with a win, BARELY against a man twice his size... He lost the rematch with Hearns, had a **** poor fight with Duran when both were past best, and by this stage was shot to ****. Jus convincing himself that he still had it only to receive a hammering against Norris and Camacho... Time after time fighters end up getting hammered at the end because your refexes go, its as simple as that...
Turned to drugs after his loss to Hearns, really went off the boil. Great fighter in his prime, who was abused and mistreated by his selfish father
