The Decline of Boxing

It sucks compared to boxing Flea and you know it.

 

Indeed Red....we'd be talking at length about the Fischer-Spassky staredown....how unfortunate for the colorless Karpov to have to labor in the shadow of Bobby Fischer....and yes,...i was indeed a big Fischer fan...:deal

 

There's more of a rivalry between boxing and mma....the upstarts need to be slapped down....but I put female mma on a pedestal...and I have no regard at all for women boxers.

 

I am not a blinkered old curmudgeon so no, I don't think it sucks compared to boxing because I don't compare it to boxing.

 

I do and I like them both. Simply put I enjoy contact sports.

 

Are you going to tell me that a one-eyed Harry Greb fighting for the 20th time a year, with a poorly healed broken arm, various unhealed lesser maladies, against an opponent he has never seen, after riding the rails for 15 hours and not having even a basic training camp… that this presented the public with the best possible product? Is that your misty eyed nostalgic estimation?

Sorry but boxers are still athletes. It is impossible to be at ones athletic peak more than a handful times a year. It requires base preparation, general strength conditioning and routines which bring the athlete to a peak for a short window. Injuries need to heal, basic and specific cardio routines need to be returned to, strength base training needs to be returned to (during which flexibility and form are usually compromised)… all this needs to be done in the proper order so that a peak performance can be achieved in a small window.

Merely barnstorming around the country via rail or car, taking guys on a couple weeks notice, can in no way offer the public a prime athletic performance.

 

it's true. Boxing's dead. it's why I dont follow the sport anymore. and it's true, UFC is what's watched today. boxing's been in steep decline since the late 80s because the sport is without integrity

 

Beterbeiv is actually better and would beat kovalev

Been saying this for ages I'd bet my house on it

 

No, but it's possible that Harry Greb and his sixty bazillion fights against unfamiliar, often experienced opponents (not to mention the constant sparring) was more skilled than today's fighters.*

Rather like 100-ish fight Thai kickboxers today are generally more skilled than their 20-40 fight, physically superior Western counterparts.

And since fantasy matchups are peak vs peak, Greb would get enough time to deload / actively recover before starting his training camp against a modern opponent.



* I concede that today's larger amateur programs reduce the disparity somewhat, but on the flipside, (1) we don't have a lot of the amateur records from back in the day, and (2) amateur boxing has picked up its own quirky differences from the professional game.

 

My concise answer : Yes. Yes, and Yes...In anyone's lifetime there rises an unusual man like an Einstein, Winston Churchill, Babe Ruth, etc who transcends their fellow men with unusual talents. Such a man was Harry Greb in boxing. Because Greb fought so damn often beating just about everyone and anyone, you to prove a point S, disparage him for mastering, yes
MASTERING a certain style of boxing that made him the greatest fighter of all most likely, by saying he was a defective fighter because he fought everyone with little rest in between to nurse his possible injuries, with one eye to boot, but still had enough in the tank to lick a Gene Tunney, Tommy Gibbons, Maxie Rosenbloom, Tommy Loughran, Jack Dillon, Kid Norfolk,
Jimmy Slattery, and at the age of 31, and past his peak gave
the great peak Mickey Walker a shellacking in 1925, one year before he died...So my question to you is how did this injury defective Harry Greb accomplish all this while in your esteemed eyes, Greb was an "ambulance" case for fighting so often ?
Did all these worthies above "lay down" for Greb who beat all of them while usually many pounds lighter ? And take Sugar Ray Robinson who had over 200 bouts against the best of his times, whom I was fortunate to see in his WW prime and after...How did
this "banged up" Robinson accomplish what he did in his remarkable career averaging 15 or more fights against the best of his day do this ? I'll tell you why : Because they WERE GREAT fighters who fought in an era where there were 5 times more licensed pro fighters than today, fighting often in hundreds of fight arenas scattered all over the USA and Britain, who rose to greatness by becoming the best at their trade fighting and beating a rich pool of contenders...Instead of lauding the Harry Greb;s, Mickey Walkers, Henry Armstrong;s, Ray Robinson's, Archie Moore's of boxing who fought hundreds of fights giving thrills to innumerable boxing fans, you favor a Floyd Mayweather, Andre Ward type of Christmas fighters, boxing hand picked fighters once a year...Well S, I'll stick to my "banged" up fighters like Greb, Walker, Armstrong, Robinson, Moore, guys who had
experience and cujones...Thank you...

 

For the umpteenth time you have completely missed the point of one of my posts.

And though I really don't mean to disrespect you, I am curious if you are just stupid, senile or purposely avoiding the point of what I wrote?

 

Sir, you ask me if I am senile? And you say you "don't mean to disrespect me". I hope for your sake S, that you if you ever reach my age, you will be as aware of reality as I am in this harsh world. And yes, I get your point as it is posted above in plain sight in your post...
P.S. If I am senile S, what does it make you ?

 

Well, at least for once you displayed a basic comprehension of one of my posts.

 

Have some respect, friend.