he only really left himself open as it appears in some of the clips in the vids when he already had the guys hurt but was so quick with reflexes he could be out of the pocket within a blink of an eye. basically, he knew against who he could get away with that type of stuff who he needed to be more cautious against.
I heard throught the rumor mil that Roy Jones and SRL had got into a good sparring match when Jones was Olympian ..Too bad there is no footage of that ..
I meant to say that hes technically not a great defensive fighter, he relied on incredible reflexes. Great fighters had he fought more would have checked that chin one way or the other. I wished McCallum was a natural MW and prime when he fought him, thats a guy that catches up to you sooner or later ala Tito.
:rofl So, you really can't differentiate between incredible talent combined with athleticism vis-a-vis the merely "good". When two old, old fighters easily drop you in the 1st round and you struggle against ALL of the old decent fighters you face in your career you are clearly not as good as they are - merely fresher. Joe struggled with many average guys. And, as even Chris Eubank recapped: "Listen, Calzaghe is easy to hit with right hands. He's busy enough, fast handed southpaw but he's a bit European, quite square and rigid, you know? He's far from unhittable, in fact he's easy to hit with the right (hand). Just a basic, straight right hand lead he doesn't seem to see, but of course, you have to have a bit of speed .... "I also found him (Calzaghe) fairly easy to hit with body shots."
Look Im first to laugh at some folks here when bringin up Joe before, but I watched Joe/Hop 5 times.. he changed my mind. I tell you, I saw something..Cal disrupts you, he adjusts in the ring better than anyone in this era. BTW Calzaghe is old as well, he slaps. Im thinking man, had this guy had some power..its limitless with his output. Then I rewatched the Eubank fight, and Chris was near the end but he frustrated Eubank, who made a career frustrating people Chris can be outskilled, outmuscled but he doesnt get flustered...but Joe did...and you tie that into the Hop fight, another awkward fighter who does the frustrating (see PAvlik) Joe is unique. not as gifted as Jones but just as formidable. BTW that was an forearm shot by Jones
Joe has untangibles that no one realises until they're in the ring with him. You think he's a slapper yet people like Eubank and Mitchell both said he was one of the hardest punchers they had ever faced. His handspeed is rated, but his footwork never gets the credit it deserves. It allows him to get into positions you don't expect a southpaw to punch from. The down side of this is that he is often squared up and put off balance, especially early in fights when he hasn't adapted. But then there is another under-rated facet of his style, he adapts to a level that I'm not even sure Floyd Mayweather Jr can claim. The longer the fight goes, the more effective Calzaghe gets. Calzaghe has always been a hittable fighter, but it comes with a cast iron jawline and an incredible supply of stamina which generally means he can weather the storm long enough to pick the weapons of his opponent and neutralise them. All in all, you're looking at a guy that P4P wise, has ATG Stamina, Chin, Footwork, Adaptibility and Ring Generalship, then you add to that solid handspeed, ability to box or brawl depending on the situation and an ability to finish fights and you'll see why Calzaghe gets the rating he does from people like Sugar Ray Leonard - "Would have competed with any of the greats from 160 to 175 and probably beaten them" or Manny Steward "One of the greatest performances I've seen by a fighter who potentially can not lose" following the Kessler performance. You can hate all you want, but it's pointless - same situation as Floyd Mayweather Jr or even RJJ himself - there are ALWAYS more people you wished they would have faced, but based on the competition he faced and how he dealt with it, I don't think anything is certain in a H2H fight against him. This coming from someone who has said many times that absolutely no one would beat RJJ in his prime from 154 through to 175.
Roy was very, very gifted, and unbelievably athletic; but the most naturally gifted fighter from MW upwards form the last 20 years is James Toney. Toney never came close to Roys athleticism though. The most gifted fighter P4P from the last 20 years is Pernell Whitaker imo
Probably the most gifted fighter thats ever lived. I would say his opposition level is at A......missing A+....needed one or 2 more BIG names to get to that level. Top 15.....ATG without doubt. I think people discredit him when they said he relies on NAtural athletic ability more than boxing skill. It took HOURS+ Years of punishment from big Roy to become that good...a lot of investment in time....time only a FATHER could dedicate to his son.....the same reason why you see fighters like Mayweather Excel , Mosley and even lesser human being like Calzaghe.