Do you think Prince Naseem retired because of Barrera

Discussion in 'Classic Boxing Forum' started by Jay1990, Jan 4, 2018.


  1. Jay1990

    Jay1990 Active Member Full Member

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    I think so. I mean his ego had to have been crushed after that humiliating defeat at the hands of Marco Antonio Barrera. But what are your thoughts?
     
  2. HerolGee

    HerolGee Loyal Member banned Full Member

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    he didnt have a champions heart
     
  3. williams7383

    williams7383 TKO 6 Klit Lickers Full Member

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    If he didn't have a champs heart he wouldn't have got up against Kelley. He was beaten like a dog. Took his money and run.
     
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  4. HerolGee

    HerolGee Loyal Member banned Full Member

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    i dunno, a champ would come back from loss.
     
  5. Cecil

    Cecil Boxing Addict Full Member

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    I think he was basically alright when everything was going ok, but when he was schooled decided to bail out.
     
  6. Anabolic

    Anabolic New Member Full Member

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    He got lazy, well documented he hardly trained for Barrera, and had to take some extreme measures to boil down to make weight - this is partly due to arrogance, but clearly his appetite for the sport had gone.
     
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  7. Combatesdeboxeo_

    Combatesdeboxeo_ Well-Known Member banned Full Member

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  8. bodhi

    bodhi Obsessed with Boxing Full Member

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    Well, if you look at his fights he wasn't the same anymore for this fight as he was a few fights before. This has to do with laziness and with him buying in his own myth. Barrera destroyed this myth.
     
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  9. scartissue

    scartissue Boxing Junkie Full Member

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    He had zero heart. A real fighter would have been salivating at the lips to get another fighter back in the ring that had given him a thumping. His bubble burst, the aura of invincibility shattered and he went off meekly with his tail between his legs. He had talent, just didn't have the ticker to go with it.
     
  10. Gudetama

    Gudetama Active Member Full Member

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    I feel he was too protected early on. I know most marketable fighters are these days, but I would have liked to have seen him brought through the ranks differently. However, class tells. And he couldn't step up to the plate. So so exciting, though. Miss that badass swagger. I think his power was real. But Barrera was a half tier above a prime naseem. And a full tier above the one he faced.
     
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  11. LD Boxer-Puncher

    LD Boxer-Puncher Well-Known Member Full Member

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    He lost focus and his desire, cut corners in his training and to be fair, his hands broke down on him and the Barrera defeat was the final straw
     
  12. Seamus

    Seamus Proud Kulak Full Member

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    He had a ten year career, longer than Marciano, as long as Dempsey if you take out his 3 year lay-off, the same number of fights as Joe Frazier... I think we got a good sample of his abilities. Why is it the Brits never appreciate their greatest fighters?
     
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  13. Momus

    Momus Boxing Addict Full Member

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    I think he realised at some point before, during or immediately after the Calvo fight that he just didn't have "it" any more.

    His hands were falling apart, his motivation was on the wane, and he was either unwilling or unable to make the sacrifices he would have needed to have any chance of avenging the loss to Barrera.

    He'd been a pro for 10 years, which is a long time for a lighter weight fighter with a lax work ethic and less than spartan lifestyle.

    Labouring to a dull points win over a fighter he would normally have blasted out in a few rounds, was the clear indicator that he wasn't going to beat Barrera (or Morales). He had already made a fortune through boxing, and there wasn't any real incentive to keep going as a second tier fighter and a stepping stone for Marquez, Pacquaio or even Harrison.
     
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  14. Hessu

    Hessu The Worst Ever Full Member

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    It probably as one of the reasons, but he didnt really seem to care about boxing anymore. Didnt like to train that much and probably wanted to eat like he wanted but couldnt, nowadays you can see he has gained a lot of weight. Maybe he lost even the rest of his motivation after the loss
     
  15. Momus

    Momus Boxing Addict Full Member

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    I think the Barrera fight would have happened sometime between 97-99 if MAB hadn't loss to Junior Jones. The hype had already been building from before they had even won titles, and there was potentially huge money on the table if they had both remained unbeaten.

    While Hamed was carefully managed to some extent, I think circumstances often got in the way of fights that were lined up. Barrera lost to Jones, who then lost to McKinney, who then lost to Espinoza, who then lost to Soto (who Hamed eventually unified against).