I'd say he had an off night. When he was coming through I don't think he was a hype job, but time in prison, fighting too often and above your natural weightclass upon release, will not be of benefit. Kirkland realised that last night. He can come back but I think prison spoiled his chances of being as good as he could have been.
the guy is a moron, earning loads of cash as a hyped prospect then goes round armed robberising fools, i never tire of watching that idiot get sparked. hate his nickname too.
and he needs to get to 154 where he can be bigger than 95%, would like to see him fight margarito or ryan rhodes/sam webb
James Kirkland just came out of jail 1 or 2 fights ago so that didnt help his boxing career. He was blown away partly because of his time in jail, but not to take credit away from the Japanese opponent who was great!
Yep, I hate the current vogue to write off fighters after a defeat which anyone who knows the history of our sport will point out is something that happens to most guys at some point in their careers for any number of reasons... As Tommy says, there is no reason to beleive that he is a complete and utter "hype job" after one defeat and the recent turnaround of Amir Khan should bear testament to that. Also, as Beeston says, he really should stop trying to make 154. He is clearly having to shift a lot of weight and being weight-drained can lead to a serious problem with your ability to take a punch.
Weren't his recent fights at middle. Him being Albigenses at 154 was his big advantage, being an accumulative puncher. Accumulative style+ awful chin does not bode well for the future IMO
Kirkland is struggling to lose the weight because he’s arrogant, undisciplined and head-strong. He fell out with his trainer weeks before the fight and refused to speak to him. He prefers to sweat weight off rather than eat right. And he likes to be the man in charge rather than take advice from those around him. That he lost isn’t the end of the world. The way he lost is. A first round KO loss to an opponent with only eight stoppages is shocking. It shows three things: Kirkland can’t take a punch anymore; he lacks the fundamental skills to allow him to compete with elite fighters; and he was never that good in the first place. All fighters, if they have dreams of being the elite, need to sacrifice something of themselves to get there. It might be drink, or women, or seeing your family, or being in complete control – but you need to give to take. Kirkland doesn’t want to do anything but suit himself.