Props to Joe Calzaghe

He's looking..

 

:klitfanb:

 

It's just a pity he didn't have one or two more solid wins! If he had lined up Pavlik before B-Hop got to him it would have added greatly to his legacy. I can in no way see Pavlik beating him stylewise, and it also would have been at 168.

 

pavlik is a microcosm of why jc will never be considered in the same league as b-hop.

js fans can rightly argue that jc would've exposed him anyday, but it was bhop that actually did it. one can also argue that if right hands from old men can drop jc, imagine what pavlik's right would've done to him. styles make fights you see.

great talent. could've been an undisputed legend, but cared too much about his 0.

 

Great fighter, who could've done more despite having some fine accomplishments at the end of the day.

When people say a prime Roy or Bernard would've beat him, I don't take it as an insult or knock on Calzaghe; it's usually the first thing that comes up in any Calzaghe thread, but since when would it be a bad thing even if he did drop a fight to two ATG fighters? That people have to dig at the top of the heap to find guys to favor against him speaks to how tough it is to beat him.

 

''

 

right now Calzaghe is a very good fighter. if he beats johnson, dawson, Paul williams at 168..he is great!

 

He already beat a fighter similar (I feel better) Than pavlik as far as 1-2 stalkers go. I'm pretty sure people would have put their money on calzaghe after watching the film from the kessler fight.

Still doesn't mean JC would have beat pavlik like BHop but I feel it would have been very likely.

 

Took the words right out of my mouth...Enough said

 

A great fighter could of should of done more after he won the title from Eubank. There was you know a 9 year lull period where he didnt fight anyone worth mentioning, even if you want to count Reid and Sheika thats still 6 years before his destruction of Lacy who was highly overrated at the time. I give him full credit for his wins over Kessler and Hopkins not so much for RJJ for obvious reasons ...I think he wen't out the right way and was a great fighter but theres a lot more he could of did but didn't in-between.

 

As far as his legacy goes, I don't really know where to put him. People didn't want to fight him when he and other greats were in their prime. When anything came close to happening Frank Warren would make a demand and keep it from happening. I never liked that crook warren. I remember him calling out hopkins and RJJ back in 2001 right after hopkins beat trinadad. He even went on to say that he would KO hopkins in post fight interview. It's a shame those fights didn't happen back then. His wins over Lacy, Kessler, RJJ and mostly BHOP will define his legacy. I see him a a wild card type of guy who will always have hardcore supporters and adamant critics.

As far as skills and intangibles go I think it is undeniable that he had tons of it. He was a very versatile fighter and what I would call a master boxer in his own right. He gets alot more out of his ability than a vast majority of fighters and his style is almost unbeatable on the cards unless Knocked down a bunch. He didn't have the power but he had the speed, versatility and the style to cause problems for any all time great at 168. His offensive defense was just great the way he winged alot of punches in close while waiting for his opponent to swing. As soon as the opponent swung, JC would duck the punch and come up and pop the guy while starting another combination /putting opponent back on defense again. Masterful in the fact that it discouraged fighters from countering and most of all that all those punches started to add up late in fights. He could fight from the outside and inside. That style is taylor made to win fights on the cards. He also had heart, a great chin and recovery ability.

The fight that I think will define him most will be the controversial win against BHop. My take on it is I don't think BHop was fully ready for JC's style. His style was made for BHOP (Another Master boxer). Bhop moves to the right waiting to counter with the straight right. JC will throw either hand to get in and once he's in close he's winging and he doesn't care how good your guard is, because he could throw any angle of punch that could be thrown with speed. BHop had to stay in the shell because if he would have opened up more(like against pavlik) he would have been hit more than ever in his career. I feel that BHOP realized the offensive defense style calzaghe uses and is fully aware of how good JC's footwork and footspeed was in and out. I think the great footwork is the main thing Bhop underestimated against JC. Thats why BHOP was calling for a rematch immediately after the fight and in the following months. I think that fight burns him inside. He didn't only lose to a him, his actual master style got beat too.

 

I remember a buddy of mine saying I should check him out. Told me to watch his fight against Eubank. Now I knew Eubank was starting to decline...not that he was shot, but he wasnt in his prime as well...so just reading that he won, I dismissed it. Good young fighter beats aging warrior...same old same old. This friend of mine tho, is a person who knows his **** when it comes to boxing, so...I decided to check it out. And I was glad I did. Instantly became a fan. Went and watched a few of his other fights...any I could get my hand on...and the more I saw, the more I liked. Went from a virtual unknown in my eyes, to one of my favorite fighters.

Time goes by and he fights Lacy (made me a good chunk of change on that fight BTW...which, OF COURSE made me a bigger fan LOL!)...the world takes notice. Now he is rightfully considered one of the best of this past era.

The speed, the adaptability (really among the best Ive ever seen), the effective awkwardness of it all...etc. Just a joy to watch.

Only problem is...especially on this site...he is sooooo grossly overrated by some, that the most of the rest grossly underrate him. I remember a post on here a few days back about the most underrated and the most overrated fighters on this site....I voted for Joe on both counts.

But like you said Walk with me...Props indeed to Joe Calzaghe.