Give respect where respect is due

i would like to start of by saying i was not a calzaghe supporter once upon a time, infact i hated him at one time. maybe it was because he absolutely destroyed my favourite fighter- jeff lacy (it took me ages to get over it). he looked so unbeatable in doing so. he looked perfect technically and looked as if no one could stop him.
or maybe i hated him cos he is so confident...bordering cockiness.

but the main reason is a combination of the two points above and the fact he is really is that damn good. im not a calzaghe nuthugger, never was and dont plan to be. i was a hater at one time tho.

im not hatin, cos you cant deny greatness. Calzaghe is a boxing master, just watch his fights, and you will see high level of offense, and DEFENSE (underrated thing in his arsenal)! you will also see great footwork (mixed with foot feints- rarely seen) feints, great jab and tactically mature and has a great understanding of rhythm and the pace of the fight and how to control it. Two other very big factors in his game are that he is very versatile (can handle anytype of opponents and can do it all himself)
and can adapt to any situation as he showed in his fights with kessler, hopkins, lacy, bika and more. You have to be a very special/GREAT fighter to have all of these qualities.

you dont stay undefeated for 15 years if your ordinary. not only that he has remained undefeated at the highest level - championship level for 11 years. the thing that lets him down is his opposition and the fact he fought exclusively or almost exclusively in the UK. his opposition doesnt match a guy like James Toney's for example. but h2h he would give JT a good fight.
the names calzaghe fought arnt exactly great but h2h they werent stiffs. its the last 2/3 years calzaghe has been fighting legends or top oppositions and so far he has shined!
what more can you ask for!?

before joe fought kessler, i thought only two men have the ability to beat calzaghe. kessler and hopkins. well we all so what he did to mikkel kessler, he outclassed him, although kessler put up a good fight. hopkins makes everyone look ugly, however calzaghe did land the most punches on ol hopkins according to compubox. this is imo a bad performance for JC but a good win cos hopkins was coming of two big wins and a nice juicy name to have on your resume.

imo calzaghe has redeemed himself in the last couple of years. he is such a talented fighter it would have been sad if he didnt fight the kessler's or the hopkins or the lacy's. he whooped em all. its funny how before the fight calzaghe has a good chance of getting beat and then all of a sudden everyone critises him for taking on a poor quality opponent after calzaghe makes em look bad.

i am dissappointed he is retiring after fighting RJJ. i would have liked to see him beat kelly pavlik, then he really would seal his legacy. btw rjj is no slouch. he is far more experience than before, and he still has the speed as he still shows. the power is also there and they are both of similar age.
this fight can go either ways.

imo he would probably have beaten the likes of benn, collins and eubank with eubank being his toughest. im talking prime 4 prime.
however, saying that he is the greatest fighter of the last 20 or 25 years like some ppl believe is going a bit far. not that he isnt, its just not nice to say that when he hasnt fought the greatest of oppostion (not his fault-the era-division etc) and with names like RJJ and James Toney floating around.
However he is definetly up there.

h2h he could have beaten anyone from middleweight to light heavyweight atleast.

imo if calzaghe beats Roy jones jr, he will retire but will announce a one fight comeback to fight kelly pavlik, thats if kelly continues on his 'brutal winning' ways. THAT FIGHT WOULD BE HUGE!

I hope i made sense
Thank you
PEACE :thumbsup

 

haha i hope you're not being sarcastic.

yeah yod is a monster. Amazing fighter!