Why can fighters fight at older ages today but not in the past?

I remember Hopkins doing press ups mid round in the middle of the ring at 47 years old. Against I think a 27 year old opponent

 

A lot less sparring....and probably peds.

The sparring was full bloodied back then in comparison to today by the time fighters hit their thirties their brains we,re probably showing signs of slowing already in terms of peak condition anyway.

 

People in the past looked 40 at the age of 20. They aged badly. Today they age well and can fight for a decade more than the previous generations.

 

Doping.

 

Before the boxers used to fight. Today they faff about.

 

Todays boxing is about practicing creating a style in the gym to minimise having to fight as much as possible in the real fight. Most fighters are standing behind their jab always having a look rather than getting stuck in. Just faffing about in there.

 

It's because of the differences in training and the development of sports science.

 

The question doesn’t need much thought does it.

They simply fought more back in the day.

So much so, that even a 30 year old in the 80’s was considered to be an aged fighter.

It’s more common today for fighters to have less pro fights.

It’s more common today to turn pro much later.

Beterbiev has had just over 20 pro fights.

Joe Louis had almost 70 fights at HW.

So of course a guy like Beterbiev is fresher.

 

It’s to do with fighting a lot less, thus having much less wear and tear.

 

Fighting less, sparring less, and the fact that so many fighters from the past had substance abuse problems.

 

Boxers were a lot more active back in the day and that really takes it toll on the body as you age.

Also, it is more common for boxers to have a long amateur career and start in the pros quite late - Zhang or Joyce for example.