Why did America lose heavyweight dominance

He means at the current moment, dummy.

It's the breaking down of the American system, the poosyfication of the country. The country is $17 trillion in debt and there's no way to pay it back. So what happens? The system proves a failure at the end.

 

Getting punched in the face is a different thing. A man needs an appetite for that kind of thing. Obviously grit, determination, athletic ability is extremely important but getting beat up is something else.

 

Still love Duran's quote

" Any prize fighter who says he fights for glory is either a liar, or an idiot. "

 

Other countries started to produce fighters, countries that were not involved in pro boxing in the past.

Tbh, USA produces a lot of fighters in the LHW and even at CW (guys like Cunningham), that would be HWs in other eras.

Andre Ward could be a Heavyweight back in the day. Chad Dawson would have been a heavy.

 

Oh yeah, my mistake. Its been so long since you had one, it's quite easily forgotten. And I suspect the one you've got will be just as forgettable.

 

Not involved in pro boxing in name only. We all know that particularly in Eastern Europe all these guys did was train as boxers every day, and were given " work " that allowed them to do so. Hence the levels of success they have achieved in a relatively short time, since their freedom to fight for money arose.

 

Probably aptitude rather than appetite for violence is a better word. A supreme athlete might not take a shot to the chin. And regardless of being a great competitor in another sport he may lack the stomach for the actual give and take of professional violence as such. A bit like how some marksmen are less of a shot against a live target. Stage fright for a track event is one thing, stage fright against a guy who will give you a beating us another thing.

 

Two factors:

1) Other American sports draining the talent away
2) The East bloc coming to party

Those factors combined have killed the chances of the dominance that the US used to have.

 

Thorpe was a great football player, the best of his era,

but as a major league baseball player he was ordinary.

Interestingly, baseball was the most popular American sport at the time and I would presume the one with the hardest competition.

 

There are probably many reasons why the US lost it's HW dominance over the years. The game just isn't the same now. Multiple champions, Eastern bloc emergence, the allure of other high paying sports, the lack of fan and media interest etc..There was a time when being the HW champion of the world meant something. Young fighters wanted to be the next Joe Louis or Rocky Marciano or Jack Dempsey or Ali. Those fighters were put on a pedestal and they were the only champions that reigned. It's all watered down today. Multiple champions in 1 weight division is a joke. So are twenty something weight divisions today instead of the original 8. Plus its the mentality of todays athelete. How many want to put up with the work that goes into being a champion today. Shoot hoops for a living or get punched in the face? Mmmmm. It's a different time. Cyclical perhaps. maybe it'll come around again but boxing has to get it's act together and stop bowing down to the almighty dollar and regain it's status in the sports world. maybe then we'll see a reemergence of the American HW champ.