The contenders at lhw today would have had trouble breaking into the lhw Top10 of any era between 1920 and 1980. :good
It's become more basic as it's more about physical advantages and maximizing them, and less about developing an all-around game. Irish Bob Murphy gets lauded as one-dimensional and he's probably more well-rounded than anyone fighting at 175 right now and would unify that division if he were fighting today.
The LHW's of the 60's weren't that great. Dick Tiger, Pastrano, Johnson, Foster... Now the 50's were something special. Today's fighters are mediocre in comparison. They have no stamina, don't fight often enough to get the experience they need, and are by and large very mentally weak.. I'd say these traits are first and foremost in guys like Pascal and Dawson actually, who for whatever reason can't seem to keep it together for 12. It's a shame really. It's not nostalgia, this sport just isn't what it used to be, protein shakes aside.
booradley once said Pavlik would beat Carlos Monzon because Monzon was too small. This was actually post-Hopkins aswell by the way.
go and watch the Froch fight and you will see the same Pascal. the reason for gassing out/stamina issues is because he carries too much muscle. and don't blame him for a weak era of boxing - blame the organisations for all these titles in the game.
I think it's a bit of a stretch to call Chad Dawson great. That said, I think he'd beat Pascal in a rematch anyway.
with all due respect to what b hop did last night i think the fight showed how weak that division is and how overrated both JP and Chad Dawson are.