What does it mean when they say a fighter "ruined" another fighter?

No I'm definitely not saying that the Calzaghe fight will always be in his head but the man took far too much damage and was TOTALLY outclassed that his fights after the Calzaghe fight were obviously too poor compared to ones before that fight. A loss like that can be lethal to some fighters, Mike Tyson for instance doesn't seem to be affected. After the Douglas fight he came in the same way as it was during and before that fight, but to some fighters it can be the case.

The Taylor/Pavlik fight is a perfect example. Taylor comes in for the first fight full of confidence, lands HUGE bombs and looks to trade from time to time, drops Pavlik and then runs out of gas and gets KO'd BRUTALLY. Then he comes for the rematch TOO cautious, tries to avoid getting hit to the point where he sometimes prefers not to land anything and give away rounds. You know someone got affected from a recent loss when his performance and confidence in the ring changes.

 

It was a physical beating though. Calzaghe isn't a puncher, but that just made it worse in the end because Lacy didn't get knocked out, he was constantly on the brink. Flush shot after flush shot...

I still think its more mental than physical for him, but the picture is made somewhat cloudy by his injuries and operations. We don't know how much of a factor that is in his recent struggles

He wouldn't be thinking specifically of the beating by Calzaghe. But he hasn't got that confidence in his own ability he once had. He would have felt like he's unbeatable when he still had his 0, and was knocking out all comers. The aura has gone. Some guys are stronger than others mentally too.

 

One thing you guys are forgetting is that when is knocked out his chin becomes exposed. Kinda like a quarterback that gets a concussion is more prone to having that happen again. The more you get beat up the weaker your body becomes over time. Thats why guys with great chins are usually getting ko'ed at the end of their careers when all the punches have accumulated over their career.

 

How many times are you going to bring up the Calzaghe - Lacy fight? Damn, I think that was the greatest night of your life, you obviously were suprised yourself.

 

Since you've taken such an interest in my ramblings, perhaps you'd like to check my previous 100 posts and see how many times I talked about Calzaghe - Lacy

And no, I was one of the few that wasn't suprised one iota whilst I read these forums and many Americans were absolutely cocksure :deal

 

I think both a physical and mental standpoint. Taylor was beaten brutaly for sure, he was pissing blood for days after that fight. But to be beaten so savagely also greatly affects the mental capacity of a fighter. I think that is the definitive sign of a fighter being "ruined".
Roberto Duran suffered a few brutal beatings (Hearns, Hagler) and still showed great heart in later fights of his career(Barkley). For whatever reason, Duran was able to mentaly get over the beatings he took. So the mental aspect is a major factor in a fighter being ruined.

 

Riddick Bowe would be a good example..

 

Another great example right there. Mayorga after Trinidad is a good example too.

 

He hardly looked great doing so and Vargas was coming off a brutal KO loss so both were in the same page, he's not a perfect example as I said, just a good example and could be wrong.

 

Calzaghe ruined Jeff Lacy. He has not been the same since.

 

It was the greatest night for all boxing fans - wouldn't you agree? A strong fighter prophecied to destroy Calzaghe, got humiliated in front of thousands of viewers, who thought Euros can't box.

Furthermore, its a good example of one being seemingly destroyed mentally after a fight. How else can you explain that Lacy went from B-lvl to C-lvl after one given fight?

 

As Cautious as Taylor was in the second fight by the 11th and 12th rounds Taylor still ran out of gas. If he had been less cautious then its likely he would have run out of gas earlier and been the victim of another KO. I think he made the right move. It just wasn't enough. The problem for Taylor is that Pavlik's workrate and stanima are Pavlik's greatest strengths while lack of stanima is Taylor's biggest weakness. That's an incredibly tough hurdle to overcome and though Taylor came in with a good plan he just didn't have what it took to carry it out.

I'm not sure if Miranda was "ruined" by Pavlik. Neither Porras nor Banks have a rep as a decent puncher so Miranda's chin was effectively untested between the Pavlik fight and the Abraham rematch. But I don't think this was the case. Miranda lost because his defensive skills just haven't improved since Pavlik. There are few fighters that could have taken those shots and stayed vertical, but there a number of them whose defensive skills would have allowed them to dodge, block, or weaken those shots.

I think a better example may be Zertuche. He took a year off after being knocked unconscious while standing by Pavlik, ( it took him several minutes to stand back up and then they wisked him right off to the hospital ) and then put forth a rather lackluster effort against Marco Rubio.

 

I think some of you are mistaking ruin for expose.

Fighters have been ruined in fights they won. When I saw an interview with Bowe after the Holyfield fight and heard him speak I knew he was never going to be the same.