Was Joe Calzaghe a small super middleweight?

Calzaghe - King of the WBOgus was a large SMW. Not sure why you're nodding your head:huh

 

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"Who was going to pay a WBO champ of a weak SMW division, the 'Crown Jewels' to fight Roy?

The answer is - nobody was.

This was a built in excuse.

'If they pay me, I'll fight him'"

Jones behind the HW's during that time was a PPV draw. If Calzaghe vs Jones ever got made I'm sure Joe would want his fair share because it would be arguably the top two guys in their respective divisions going at it and it would have sold well.

Hopkins was offered $3million for the Joe fight so that tells me that fight would have been on PPV also. Joe was a name back then whether you want to admit it or not. Also, during the entire history of SMW the WBO belt has been the most sought after due to Eubank being the best in the division from 1990-1995
Joe's reign made the WBO belt the most relevant in the divisions history. You can deny that if you want. Jeff Lacy and Kessler disagree with you. Right now the belt is being held hostage in Germany. It will return to Britain in the near future when Callum Smith smashes AA. That fight will be made.


"But it was completely unrealistic. If he wanted to fight Roy in a huge fight for huge money, then he had to put himself in a position to make those things happen."
Joe wanted Hopkins. I think that's trying to put yourself in position.

"Collins? Get real. What on earth would Steve Collins have done with Roy in his 20's?"
Knock him the hell out. Has Jones ever faced somebody like Collins before at MW or SMW? I must have missed it if he did.
"Prime Hopkins and Toney" you're about to say?
Hopkins wasn't prime and was average back than. Toney was overrated & defensive.
Sanderline Williams has a draw with Toney FFS

"Roy didn't duck Dariusz, he just wouldn't go to Germany."
He stole DM's belts due to politics. And called himself the lineal champion. Hahah
Its customary for challenges to travel to other people's countries to win the titles. Same way Joe never had to leave Wales. He was recognised as the true champion at 168lbs after beating Eubank.
Its like if Wilder vs Wlad happened Tomorrow. Do you think Wilder has 1st dabs on location just because he's from America?
Boxing is a World Sport. A few organisations favour the Americans because they know they can make a lot of money(10% per fight) stripping legit title holders of their possessions and handing them to PPV draws(Jones)

If Kovalev fought out of Russia do you think Ward would travel there for a contest? Kovalev has the right to defend there if he chooses, same way DM defended his titles in Germany. Jones was never the man at LHW when DM was Champion. He was a belt holder, nothing more, nothing less.

 

would it hell, jones was certainly top of at least one division but joe was never top of his division until post Kessler fight, and then for only a very brief time and undefended.

The point as which joe said "I'm not chasing roy jones", joe was the possessor of the obscure unwanted wbo title and had fought nobody to get it, and would not win another title for another 7 years, when a smw title was held by the weakest smw titlist possible (jeff lacy).

 

He was average for the weight.

Stick Joe next to Kovalev or Cleverly and you'll see the difference.

http://cdn.c.photoshelter.com/img-get/I0000eoMsYliOIEg/s/750/750/Joe-Calzaghe-Nathan-Cleverly-2.jpg

 

the OP just said he was small, so you are actually also contradicting the OP (hans).

 

Yeah, average sized LHW , not SMW.

 

I'm not contradicting nobody.
I'm just stating facts using my eyes, and pretty much the mean/average height at 168lbs being 5'11

Joe at the weight is average, not small.
Same way GGG is average at MW.

If Joe moved up he'd be at a disadvantage, same way if GGG moves up he'll be at a disadvantage.

LHW average height is 6'0(Ward's height)
CW 6'2
HW 6'4+

 

u r contradicting him since he said he was small, you said he was medium ie NOT SMALL.

small and medium are contradictive words of different meaning, which I am sure you know. forgiveness if English isn't your first language though.

 

https://beatsboxingmayhem.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/kovalev_cleverly.jpg

Roughly the same height.
Joe would be a small LHW if he moved up.
http://www.fighthubtv.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/cleverly-vs-kovalev-face-off-.jpg

 

You put Joe against Clev who is a big LHW.

Krusher is a huge LHW and Clev is bigger than him

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/08/14/article-2393192-1B4AAD5F000005DC-225_634x424.jpg

Ive seen Joe in the flesh and he isn't 5'11. He is easily 6 '0"

 

5 feet 11 is perfectly acceptable for a small to medium LHW.

Anyway joe onmly fought former MW /LMWs at LHW so he was big enough next to them, especially given that they were 40somethings.


its pretty good for a SMW.

 

Kovalev is 6'0
Kovalev is taller than Joe.
http://www.boxingnewsonline.net/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/KovalevPascal.jpg

Pascal is 5'11

 

Ilikeboxing,

It's not about Joe wanting huge money. Of course he would have wanted huge money. Any elite fighter would have. I'd have wanted it if I'd have been a fighter. The point is, it was completely unrealistic. Because at the time, he was a relatively unknown, European WBO champ in a different division. It wouldn't have sold well.

Joe wasn't really a name back then. He'd hardly had any U.S. exposure back then, and his first fights that were shown were against Thornberry and Starie, which were criticised at the time.

The WBO wasn't respected when Joe had the belt. It wasn't needed to unify a division, and it wasn't rated by the likes of the Ring magazine. The WBO also became a laughing stock back in the early 00's, for moving a fighter up the rankings, after he'd DIED.

But what did he do when he couldn't get that fight? Go and have a look.

I think you're dreaming.

Steve Collins would have knocked Roy out?

You can't be serious?

Roy would have beaten him easily. A great chin and determination can only take you so far. Collins lost his big fights when he was young, and his claim to fame was beating faded versions of Eubank and Benn. Did you see those fights? Did you see Eubank drop him? Roy would have had a birthday. Too much speed, power, skill etc. What on earth makes you think that Collins would have knocked him out?

Hopkins wasn't average back then.

Toney had weight issues, and he was prone to having off nights in a hectic schedule like Eubank. But he'd also beaten some great fighters. He was classed as one of the best fighters in the world in 1994, no. 2 by the Ring I believe.

How did he steal his belts? What happened to Dariusz had nothing to do with Roy. He beat Del Valle and Johnson for those belts, after Johnson had beaten Guthrie.

It all depends on what the circumstances are.

Of course Joe had to leave Wales. The champs and the big money fights weren't going to go to him. It was he who had to chase the fights down. Do you think Hatton would have fought Floyd and Manny, if he'd have stayed in Britain with Frank?

Wlad vs Wilder has nothing to with anything. Again, it depends what the circumstances are. Wlad's currently in a position where he can dictate terms. He's 'The Man' with all of the other main belts. He can stay in Germany for the rest of his career if he wishes. But he had to fight in the U.S. when he was younger.

You could say that Dariusz was the lineal champ at LHW. But Roy crushed the guy who he beat to be lineal, he was more dominant, he had a better resume, and he was classed as the best fighter on the planet at the time.


:good

 

He was 6ft, with a walking around weight of 192-196 pounds. He had to work extremely hard to hit the weight.