Is the current Heavyweight Division that bad?

My mother used to smoke. One day, she was sitting at the table with her morning coffee and cigarette, doing her crossward puzzle, and I snuck up from behind to pester her. Without looking, she reached back and stubbed it out -- right between my eyes.

 

You're kidding,......right?

 

Now I know how to identify you -that circular scar right between your eyes.











....my scars are all emotional.











I'm kidding. I adore my mom.

 

This is a crucial point that signifies really how dismally weak the current division (and other divisions as well) is; 38 year olds are not good at boxing! Of course there are 1 in a million exceptions, but generally a proliferation of 40 yr olds in any physical sport indicates a lack of talent.

 

I honestly think that's the No. 1 fight I'd like to see at HW right now. I like Chambers. Outside of his fight with Povetkin, anyway.

 

We had Alfredo Evangelisa and Lorenzo Zanon, We also Al"blue " Lewis in the 70's Big Leroy Jones in the 80's and David Bey, the there was Jurgin Blin and Ruddi Lubbers....Seems like Brock and Davarryl may be able to compete with that group and come out on top. I hear what you say but I will be honest every era had there share

 

This is absolutely untrue. Due to sports medicine athletes in all theaters are competing much longer. A 40 year old quarterback almost won MVP of the NFL this year. A 37 year old quarterback just had one of the greatest games in NFL history today. The same goes for track and field, even in the young man's game of the sprints. Hell, a few years back Troy Douglas ran a 10.1 100 meters at 39 years of age. Linford Christie competed to the ripe old age of 40 on an international level.

More specific to boxing, take Vitali Klitschko. 30 years ago were he would have been forced into permanent retirement by back and knee injuries, probably by his 30th birthday. Today, the surgeries for such afflictions allowed him to come back and regain the title.

The longer an athlete, and particularly a boxer, can compete in his sport and hone his craft, the higher level he will attain. Ultimately, his physical decline overtakes his improvement in technique and maturity of skills. However this moment has been significantly delayed by modern sports medicine.

 

Yes, it really is that bad.

 

I think that Denis Boystov kid is going to be something special. He's only 23, is 27-0 with 22 KO's, and he's in tremendous shape although he is of modest size for a modern heavy.

 

well if both Klits fought each other, it would boost the division. but that ain't happenin

 

Care to mention some of these 'sports medicine' developments? It's a myth really, not as bad as the poster who recently said Bowe would beat some old timer 'coz Bowe had all the advantages of 'modern nutrition' , but similar.

If you look at sports where the best have to compete against the best, all the time, you generally don't get 40 yr olds doing well. Tennis players are well past there best in their early 30's; they can't play one match a year against a hand-selected opponent. If boxing champions had to face the best competition, all the time, it'd be the same. Tennis is a good comparison because, like boxing, it has a unique skillset, but its primarily a physical/reflex sport.

 

Boxing is different, you cant compare a quarterback who has people protecting him or younger faster receivers getting open quicker to the reflexes required of one on one combat.
If this is the case, due to sports medicine and nutrition the younger fighters should be that much faster and better as well, and they would be able to take advantage of those older guys if they had the talent. The bottom line is the division is dismal and its purely based on lack of talent and developed skills, mainly for the reason someone mentioned above. No longer are fighters brought along to be tested and experience level ups in boxing, they are just brought along with a nice cushy record and then fed to the champion for a life securing payday in the millions.
When you have the two dominant champions with very blatant flaws in their game such as they do, that should be proof enough how far the level of fighter is beneath them.

 

Are you really comparing quarterbacks in the NFL to boxers? They couldn't be more different. Quarterbacks routinely play to that age....especially the good ones. Quarterbacking is mostly decision making, something that experience aids in. It doesn't rely nearly as much on athleticism, stamina, and reflex as boxing does. Furthermore, Favre has the best O-line and the best running back in the league around him. And if Warner is so good, then why is he going to announce his retirement when their playoff run is over?

Anyway, I'm not saying a 38 year old can't be competitive in boxing, I'm saying they shouldn't be the dominating force. There is a distinction there.

 

Who, pray tell, are the other even decent quarterbacks playing 20 years ago who were pushing 40, let alone ones who were playing at Hall of Fame levels? And Warner's performance yesterday was one of the best ever in a play-off game. And if you people think an nfl qb is protected, I suggest you go talk to some 50 year old ex-nfl qb's and give them a hand with their walkers and wheelchairs.

OK, this isn't a football board... However, more protean to boxing, simple things like rotator cuff surgeries, various hand surgeries, knee scopes, ligament repairs have gone from being non-existent or at best cro-magnon in 70's to being outpatient routine now. These procedures prolong a fighter's peak. The most obvious example, again, is Vitaly, who would be long out of the game if it weren't for two knee surgeries and a back surgery.

 

Joe Montana, Dan Marino, and John Elway all played impressively to the age of 38 when they retired with playoff appearances, and in Elway's case, a Superbowl win. I could easily find more.

Anyway, you are avoiding my points and making points on assumptions I never said. I never said QB's are "protected", and that has no relevance to the discussion anyway.

Again, older athletes can effectively play the position of an NFL quarterback. It places completely different demands on an individual than sustained one-on-one, hand-to-hand combat.

And medical technology has not changed much from the '90's to the '00's.....and even the '80's. Both eras I consider much better than '00's..