Fighters winning titles and being called ATGs before they even get to 20 fights...

The Ukranians and Russians have made a huge impact on boxing in last few years, but the traditional legacy paths that fighters have always followed is changing as a result.

So many of these guys turn pro at a late age, and are fighting for titles with less than 15 pro fights in many cases....it sounds good on the surface, but can you picture many of these guys sustaining a long term career with all the ups and downs that great fighters typically go through?

I dont see many of these guys racking up 40 or 50 fight careers, due to them hitting the scene in their late 20s and early 30s...
also coming back from a loss can be a bit of a process in many cases and takes time.
Lennox Lewis was written off for a good 3 years after he lost to McCall.
It took James Toney even longer to rebound from his loss to Roy Jones.

This guy Gvodzyk that got KOd last night is a great example. He seems like a decent fighter, but I believe he's about 32? Hard to imagine him regrouping after a bad beating like that and fighting his way back into contention at his age. He may very well end up going down as a one hit wonder now.

It's the very reason I refuse to run out an anoint Usyk an ATG at this stage in his career. He's put together a fine little run at CW and beaten some decent guys, but no way a guy with 16 fights should be put in the kind of conversations he's been put in. We really haven't seen him tested at this point. That's not his fault, but that kind of legitamcy only comes with more fights and more experience.

What do you people think?
Is this just the new norm? Is it really no big deal? If Beterbiev gets KOd in a tough fight, or Usyk gets pummeled by a real HW will they be able to jump right back in where they left off ?

 

how many fighters from anywhere get to fifty fights anymore???

 

I’d take quality over quantity any day of the week.

 

It doesn't matter if a fighter who is 40-0 fought 30 outside the top 20 to begin their career. That is inferior to the fighter who is 10-0 with more wins over world class and the overall better opponents.

 

In most cases we get neither.

 

What the current crop of EE fighters are doing is very refreshing, no padded records full of Mexican firecracker salesmen, no African blood diamond miners, no Hungarian cab drivers.....

It’s good to see but you still get guys who are not happy.

 

The actual amount of fights is irrelevant. All that matters is the resume. Say someone has had 15 fights at world level, what difference does it make whether he’s had 15 fights or 50. Those other 35 are irrelevant to whether he’s an ATG and just provide a number on a piece of paper.

 

Sung Kil Moon

 

Yeah go watch another sport

 

Correct.

 

I'd rather back a fighter who is 18-0 and fought 13 world champions vs a guy a who is 40-0 and fought 10 of them.

 

You are right, Beterbiev and Usyk should have fought 35 noname journeymen before taking on world level opponents just like your hero Wilder did, that's the path to build a legacy and become a real ATG.

 

Holyfield was unified cruiser champ after about 16 and unified heavy champ after about 22-25 fights

multiple losses, multi champ.
Also didn’t cop his first defeat until he was in his 30s

 

it doesnt matter, ignore it, they arent.

However a few of them WILL BE!

For instance, out of bivol kov and grov and Beef, one will become an elite(note that Kov was already there). And one of those elites will become an ATG!

Its a triangle of achievement, with one man getting to the peak in each generation.

But ignore handily anyone who claims they all are ATG/elite, they are fools trying to call the whole of boxing history a lie.

 

Like who?
I'll use Beterbiev as an example, he is 15-0. Outside of Gvodzyk, his best wins are against a shop worn Travois Cloud coming off 2 losses and a one year layoff, and Gabriel Campillo.
Do you consider this a championship caliber resume?