What has Lucian Buté achieved that Jeff Lacy hasn't?

Not much.. but Andrade, Johnson, Bika are better than anyone Lacy has beaten.

Who are Lacy's best? An old Pemberton who had retired and even said that he only came back for one fight so he could buy a house for his mother? Or Manfredo? Lacy really has never beaten anyone.

But Lacy is not someone Bute should want to be compared to because Lacy was most likely the most 'made' hype-job in modern boxing history. H had beaten absolutely noone when he was supposed to beat Calzaghe.....

 

He's made 12 or 13 consecutive title defenses. That's 12 more top 15 SMW wins than Lacy had in his entire career.

 

I think Jeff Lacy was pretty good fighter prior to the Calzaghe fight, he was just limited in ability but able to make up with aggression and power. He fought often and he tried to fight the best available during a period of time when 168 was really sparse. It was after the Calzaghe fight when he fought Tyspko (who was a really good SMW) when Jeff tore his shoulder and was never the same.

That said, how Bute fights his limited opposition and how Jeff fought his are different. Jeff struggled with a some of his guys like Sheika, Vanderpool and Donnell Wiggins (what a war). He would get rocked, lose rounds. Bute just shuts out people, save the one round against Andrade, where he repayed the favor 10x.

 

Thread premise is hilarious.

 

Pemeberton was top 10 world rated at the time and had just scored 2 tough wins over frindge contender Sheika, even stopping Omar
1: Joe Calzaghe* (GB), 40-0, WBO

2: Jeff Lacy, 20-0-0-1, IBF/IBO

3: Mikkel Kessler (Denmark), 36-0, WBA

4: Markus Beyer* (Germany), 33-2, WBC

5: Danny Green (Australia), 19-2

6: Anthony Mundine (Australia), 24-3

7: Librado Andrade, 22-0

8: Scott Pemberton, 29-3-1


I agree Reid was faded but he wasnt shot. The journalists predicted a tough fight.
Reid had not many fights before looked unlucky against Ottke, who has a very good SMW resume and Reid ended the undefeated record of B Magee who is now WBA int champ and was only a point behind against Froch on 2 judges cards before being stopped.
1: Joe Calzaghe* (GB), 39-0, WBO

2: Mikkel Kessler (Denmark), 36-0, WBA

3: Jeff Lacy, 19-0-0-1, IBF

4: Markus Beyer* (Germany), 32-2, WBC

5: Danny Green (Australia), 19-2

6: Robin Reid (GB), 38-4-1, IBO

I agree Lacy was highly thought of for being American. I think alot of that has to do with the fact that America hadnt had much success at the weight.
The division was tough then. This is an old post so out of date, but read on


Just browsing the years and not looking closely, I can see several but 2005, clearly is stronger than today with
1. Calzaghe undefeated world champ
2. Kessler undefeated world champ (undefeated and not suffering double vision)
3. Lacy undefeated world champ (undefeated, and tell me an active American SMW with a better resume)
4. Beyer (3 time WBC champ)
5. Mundine (2 time WBA champ)
6. Danny Green now a world rated CW
7. Siaca (former world champ)
8. Grant (former WBO MW champ)
9. Reid (former world champ, and fighter that looked unlucky against Ottke)
10. Andrade (undefeated at this time and looked unlucky not to KO Bute years later)

I think that clearly proves a point when now in the top 10, you have Andrade still who has been beaten 3 times now, Magee who was put down 3 times and beaten by 2005 #9 Reid, Steiglitz who lost to Andrade, Arthur with limited SMW resume of Miranda and Taylor coming off a KO , Bika who lost to Soliman, Froch who was beaten by #2 of 2005, Dirrell who lost to Froch. Kessler of now who Ward beat and who beat Froch wasnt even well and suffering double vision, and Bute nearly KOd by already beaten 2005 #10.

Tsypko became a European champ, beat B Magee now WBA int champ, undefeated Adamu, Bozic

Calzaghe did ruin Lacy, but Lacy damaged his shoulder after Calzaghe and was never able to use his power shot like previously. Still Manfredo was a top 10 SMW. I think he got put in by The Ring, due to being American because there were many European SMWs with better resumes looking more impressive, but all the same Manfredo was a world rated SMW at the time

 

people think that smw is stronger than ever because of super6,in fact super6 was a joke,Taylor,Green,Abraham,Johnson not even rated in top 10 smw.please notice how 2 of that names even made it to the semifinal,a complete joke that tournament was.Another case is Andre Dirrell who people now rate in top 10 based on some sort of talent he might have but never seen by me or anyone else who have a clue...running is not boxing skill to be hones,and who beaten Victor Oganov for his best win.So we have Ward and Kessler who are proven to be world class fighters and Bute who might be world class but everyone is ducking so we don't know for sure.and there is Froch who is on border between world class and elite,and that's about it...this is smw division.

 

Those rankings are not from the Ring because Pemberton and Reid were not that high there. also Lacy was never higher than #3. That was why they had to make an exception to make the fight for the Ring belt.

Yes, Tsypko would have been his best win, but he did not win that fight. It was stopped on an injury early where Lacy definitely did not look good. Agaisnt Reid we saw one of the worst referreeing jobs ever in boxing and Reid was not even a contender at the time.

Mate, Lacy was probably the most carefully 'made' fighter - ever, perhaps. Old names coming out of retirement and other just about to retire.

Calzaghe is a great fighter, but don't let his glory rest on Lacy because that wont fly.