Fighters being shot

Cleveland Williams, took some bullet holes to send him over the hill.

 

abnormally think abs helped him:good

 

Fighters like RObinson and Chavez are the exception not the rule, and both were pretty much past it at 35 anyway

 

I think the reverse is true ... fighters nowadays can go on a lot longer without being exposed as severely over-the-hill, because they can pick and choose their fights more, take layoffs to heal injuries, go look for a mediocre "world champion" with a free slot and get endless shots at easy title fights. They can almost always find a big name or a 'world class' fighter who is more shot than them, or just not very good to start with.

Look at Roy Jones Jr. for example. He was proven finished in 2004, completely done, but got ressurected for wins over Felix Trinidad, and Jeff Lacy, and was built up as a good opponent for Calzaghe, (who himself was well-preserved 37 year-old largely due to a career of mostly easy pickings!).

 

I agree. He's an extreme example.
But the same strategy applies to all the other fighters too. Look at Vitali Klitschko now. Look at Bernard Hopkins.
Holyfeld's been over-the-hill since 1994 ! And completely 'shot' since around 2001, or '02.
But he was unlucky to not get the WBA title against Valuev just 2 years ago. There are so many weak spots for shot fighters to aim for, to get ranked, or to get a title.
This fools SOME people into believing they are not shot at all.

 

I'd say that on average there are more successful old fighters today than ever before. The new generation just hasn't been able to take over.

 

Did things change after the "old days?" It took Foreman's comeback before you started seeing fighters in the 90s and 00s really looking good again into their 30s and 40s. What was Foreman when he started his comeback, 38 or something, and everyone laughed.

 

I agree that Holyfield has been over-the-hill & inconsistent since he suffered a collapsed left ventricle of the heart in '94, but I would say he's been totally shot since '00, he looked god-awful even in the first Ruiz fight.

 

You're right, it was 2000. He hasn't looked good against anyone good since then.

 

last great performance was moorer 2

 

Lacy and Tito, themselves being over the hill also at the time.

 

back in meeeeeh daaaay we used to jump off shed roofs head first