Iran Barkley vs Jeff Lacy @168

I like Lacy before Calzaghe and more importantly before he blew out his shoulder. I think this is an outstanding action fight but even though Lacy had a short prime, he was at his best against guys that tried to bang with him. Barkley is absolutely that kind of guy.

 

Jeff Lacy was fun to watch though I thought he was a little disrespectful against Robin Reid. Showed guts to survive the shellacking he took from Calzaghe.

Barkley was not in his prime at 168 pounds though he did beat Hearns again to win the light-heavyweight crown.

Toney manhandled him in his 1st defence after blasting Horn in 2.

Lacy would have to take some decent punches but would wear him down and bust up Iran for a late stoppage or clear points win.

 

Barkley would beat the Hell outta Lacy.

 

I think you’re right.

 

Definitely Barkley. Did Lacy even have a single win against a legitimate top 10 fighter?

 

Barkley would beat that boy badly.

 

Lacy's best win at Super middleweight was against Robin Ried who really did beat Sven Ottke but got screwed by Germany's corruption. Reid also gave Calzaghe his toughest test and I believe lost by Split decision.

Barkley's best win at 168 was against Van Horn. His other notable opponent at 168 was Benn who blew him out. Barkley was definitely at his best at 160 but with that said, he was always wildly inconsistent. Not saying he couldn't beat Lacy but Lacy really was a beast before his shoulder injury and stylistically Barkley is the right guy for him.

 

Robin Reid was top 10 ranked before and after Lacy utterly dominated and destroyed him.

Lacy was massively overhyped, but the post Calzaghe, damaged shoulder Lacy, bore little resemblance to the pre Calzaghe, Lacy.

 

Benn vs Barkley was at 160lbs, but otherwise I agree with every word.

 

My mistake. He really didn't fight at 168 for very long at all. Pretty much the destruction of Van Horn and the beatdown at the hands of James Toney. After that, he was at 175 or above.

 

Technically, Reid might qualify. But, he was on the downside by the time he faced Lacy. I watched most of Lacy's fights when he was on the way up. He was exciting, but, a bit limited. The hype for him was out of proportion to the talent. HBO was desperate to back someone exciting at that point.

 

I would agree that he was a bit overhyped but a lot of that was because of his successful amateur career and how popular his trainer, Dan Birmingham was at the time because of all of Winky's success. Lacy was exciting because of how he destroyed his opponents but against an ATG like Calzaghe, he was exposed. I don't really count much of his career post Calzaghe because he was basically a one armed fighter after his shoulder injuries.

I will always love Barkley for his heart but I think he would struggle going toe to toe with a prime Lacy. The key word is prime regarding Lacy.

 

I agree Reid was probably past his absolute apex, but only 3 fights earlier he beat Ottke on fair scorecards. He warranted a top 10 ranking and Lacy was so dominant, he demonstrated he was more than just a run of the mill top 10 SMW.

That said, I agree Lacy was massively overhyped, pre Calzaghe.

I feel that many people conflate the Lacy with a damaged shoulder towards the end of his career with the version up until the Calzaghe fight.

Same man, but 2 very different fighters.

 

The hype with Lacy was puzzingly. I´d heard how he was the second coming of Joe Frazier and I finally saw him against Vanderpool.

It was a good fight, that´s what surprised me cause the Canadian was a solid fighter, beat Glen Johnson who was a in his erratic stage of losing decision to half decent fighters. Still a good win but Vanderpool was dominated by Hopkins. Fought to survive.

Lacy was easy to hit, he showed good power but he didn´t look elite. I then saw him struggle with Omar Sheika which was very surprising.

Unsung Rubin Williams did ok before being overwhelmed whilst Robin Reid looked shot to me. A quick ko of Sheika 2 time conqueror Scott Pemberton did look good but Permberton´s chin was not best in the world.

Solid credentials, not enough for Calzaghe but I still think enough to beat a war torn Barkley at super-middleweight.