Comeback Carlos Zarate - Did he have anything left?

Heya Russell, mate Zarate was shot when he came to Oz and fought Fenech. He was a shadow of his former self.

I reckon Zarate was one of those lighter weight fighters who was primo at one weight. He was such a huge bantamweight that I reckon he must have gotten used to fighting blokes a lot smaller than himself. When he fought Gomez it was like Zarate was in shock at the power of Wilfredo's punches and with Gomez' physical strength.

I was actually " rooting " for Zamora in the battle of the Z boys as he was an incredibly exciting bomber and a more publicised and well known fighter than Zarate was at the time.I had also watched Zarate defeat Aussie " semi legend " Paul Ferrari

Zarate was a great bantam but I wouldnt rate him at the same level as Olivares or Jofre as a fighter. They were on another level in my opinion. Ditto Foster and Hearns as far as being super tall destroyer types. Zarate never had the hand speed or jab those two had at their best but I would say the Mexican was more durable at 118 than Hearns at 147 or even Sheriff Bob Foster at 175.

Cheers Matey.

 

Yeah, they have shorter shelf lives it seems. A mix of making weight, the smaller body being put under greater strain, more fast-twitch reaction burn out maybe? Never really looked into the physics behind it tbh.

Jofre was a vegetarian who really took care of himself iirc. He struggled making the weight against Harada but had always made it comfortably prior to those fights. He had intended to move up to fight Saldivar but stayed at bantam instead and Harada crashed the party. Apparently he stayed very sharp in the gym and maintained his good diet without having to strain making weight for a couple of years, so the break and move up in weight seemed to reinvigorate him.

It helped too that his refined array of skills and offensive timing never really diminished or deserted him like so many others, even though he was physically slower.

 

Great post mate. Ferrari was indeed an excellent fighter, one of Carlos's best wins.