Do you feel prime is when a fighter is at their best or their age?

Do you feel prime is when a fighter is at their best or their age?

Look at how when G Johnson was younger, he was beaten several times and had a run where there were several losses, yet when older became a LHW champ and scored some of his best wins over Tarver and Jones. Was Johnson prime then? Or was he in his prime when Ottke, Sheika, Branco, Hopkins were beating him?

Hopkins is another fighter who in his 40s has scored some of his biggest wins over Tarver, Pascal, Pavlik. Was Hopkins better due to ring savvy as he got older, so a better fighter? If you think he was, does that make it prime?

Do you think a fighter is prime when they score their best win, if having lost to a lesser fighter previously?


So discuss, do you view prime as an age thing or based on when a fighter looks to be performing their best even if it is when they are far older?

 

Calzaghe was overrated, that is all. :hi:

 

Think it really depends on the fighter,

I always tend to think smart fighters/defensive fighters/counter punchers are more likely to get better with age and learn from defeats/past experiences

Whereas aggressive/offensive fighters are move likely to get worse as they get older and peak at a younger age when they are athletically In their prime

Just my opinion and not an exclusive rule for every fighter

 

I tend to agree. Although as a general rule I would view prime as when a fighter is at their best in terms of performance. So this can involve being their most athletically gifted, or when their skills are developed to such a degree as to make their athleticism less of a determining factor.

That said, generally someone is past their best when their physical attributes wane. So when someone is past prime, their chin can't take punishment anymore, like Katsidis, or it's when their speed is waning and they caught more often, perhaps like Malignaggi.

Good question

 

Depend

PAC was ruthless at 122-126 but he didn't fully developed his arsenals until north of 135. If PAC has his current skills at 122-126 the featherweight would **** in their pants.

 

This is a gd example of a fighter going against my train of thought, obviously Roach had a lot to do with Pacs expanding arsenal..

When Paq joined Roach he was a lead left/ double jab straight left fighter and that's all he really had (combined with his power) he's added a very fine right hook to his repertoire over the last few years

 

Prime means at your best whenever that is. Some people act as if past this certain age you cannot be at your prime, or you have a loss you can't be prime, when none of that matters.

 

:good Age has nothing to do with it. If it did, everyone would reach their prime at the same time 25? 30? 35? :think

It's when you're at your best whatever age that happens to be :!:

 

It's when they are at their best.

Nobody will say that Wladimir Klitschko was in his prime during the years when Sanders and Brewster were stopping him... He clearly became a much better fighter (his prime), in the years which followed those losses.

 

C Froch I felt has been past his best for a while, but still has a great chin. I think Froch arguably had his best performance against Bute when I think he was past best and after having a tough time with Groves looked better in the rematch, though much of that could be down to Groves second time around. Do you feel Froch is prime?

 

Do you think Wlad is prime now, whilst getting on in age?

 

Pac has never had a full arsenal of punches has he?

 

Tyson at 20.

Lennox at 33.

 

I think one reaches their prime when all their skills fall into place with their age.

Hw for example.
you have an explosive fighter in Tyson who's prime is in their youth.
Compare him to Wald, another HW
His prime was when his jab was perfected and nobody could touch him.
Perfecting ones Jab takes years.

I think explosive fighters are in their prime in their early years. When they lose that explosiveness they're sitting ducks.
Its why Shawn Porter for example will be just a short lived boxer, he's in his prime right now. In a few years, he's gonna be just an afterthought.
RJJ's prime was when he had his explosiveness.
After he lost that, he become what he always was, a poor boxer.

The ATG's
Manage to adapt their skills to new weights.
Like FMJ, he's not knocking people out but he's got the skills to defeat people with ease.

 

This. Performance is more important than age for me when determining a fighters prime but some fighters miss out on what could have been their prime.