How good could have Joe Calzaghe been?

I'm not denying his greatness, but I've been watching some of his earlier work, and I can't help but think he could have been a lot better had he been taught by the right trainer. People can say its his unorthodox style that made him as good as he was, but I disagree I think a guy who is as competitive as him who trains as hard as he does, and who has his athletic ability would have been good regardless(very much like Manny Pacquiao). The reason why I think he would have been way more special is that he was a hard puncher when he was young, but he threw punches improperly, and still they would land so hard. I honestly think if he had one of the great coaches, they would have made him able to use his athleticism much better, he would have had all the things that make him great(Stamina, ability to step it up) but he would have been harder to hit, hit harder, and could fight with more variety. I also wonder if his puncher technique is partially why his hands are so bad. If he never learnt how to close them properly, or to throw from the right angles it puts a lot of stress on your hands.

i think he would of been alot better if he got tested more before he done in his left hand, either it was others not wanting to fight him or him not fancying it.

it hard to say if a super star trainer would of helped, in interviews joe has said about only his dad know how to get him working hard and how to deal with his moods.

Although perhaps limited in his ability enzo was perfect for joe because in their personal case the family feel within the camp was perfect and enzo was perhaps able to tell joe things other trainers would be a bit reserved about in case of damaging their working relationship.

Cant think of a single time any other trainers were brought in taken out of the camp and JC was just one of those guys who always rose to the occasion.

I don't think he could have been much better with a different trainer. In terms of getting into shape and having the gameplan to beat his opponents, Calzaghe never fell short. He has been a brilliant fighter, I don't see the point in saying that he was great but he could have been somewhat more great because of a different trainer. In fact I think the whole perception of the big name trainer making a significant difference is often incorrect anyway.

Calzaghe had something that worked, and he felt comfortable with it. To take him away from that would have been a pointless risk.

Joe liked to train at home aswell so not sure if taking him away from all that would be a good idear when he keeps winning anyway.

The only thing Calzaghe lacks is a KO punch. He has just about everything else. A good brain, footwork, great hand speed, excellent stanima and the ability to adapt.
If his bad hands were caused by poor coaching then it may have been benificial for him.

He used to be able to punch till his hands got bad!

He would of been a better fighter if he never had hand problems.

The poor guy finished his great career unbeaten and we still find faults LOL

I dont believe for one second that Joe is retired. How great could Joe have been? He's pretty great right now.

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Originally Posted by SteamBoat

i think he would of been alot better if he got tested more before he done in his left hand, either it was others not wanting to fight him or him not fancying it.

it hard to say if a super star trainer would of helped, in interviews joe has said about only his dad know how to get him working hard and how to deal with his moods.

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I agree, they had the right chemistry and when Enzo told him to get up he would. There are positives and negatives for any type of style. While his punches were incorrect and damaged his hands he was able to beat his opponent to the punch BECAUSE he didn't set them up properly just see an opening and hit it, contrast this with Pavlik at the weekend who has to have both feets in his position before throwing a shot. Of course fighters like PBF/Hop are always in position to fire due to their superior footwork, which would take more than just a big name trainer to instill in a fighter who has a decade of bad habits behind him.

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Originally Posted by robinswe01

The only thing Calzaghe lacks is a KO punch. He has just about everything else. A good brain, footwork, great hand speed, excellent stanima and the ability to adapt.
If his bad hands were caused by poor coaching then it may have been benificial for him.

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I think he lacked defensive skills that other guys had, he lacked punching technique which attributed to his lack of power. His balance was sometimes off so he couldn't get the right leverage on shots.

I don't get the sense Joe is somebody that needs somebody to push him out the door to run. I think he does it himself, and you see that in the ring. Some guys are just so motivated to win they will find any way to win.

I don't see how putting guy like Eddie Futch, Nazeem Richardson, Gil Clancy, Roach, FMSNR, type coach in there that it would make Calzaghe not better than being coached by somebody who has no boxing background.

IMO Calzaghe had just as much difficulty landing on Hopkins as Pavlik did, its just Hopkins executed a better game plan in that fight, and Pavlik doesn't have JOe's speed. I was quite astonished at how easily when Hopkins was fresh he could avoid Joe's flurries, and counter cleanly at will.

From what ive heard in interviews with Joe, his father and other people close it took his father to keep him as focused and hard working as he was in training and in fights. He may of took his foot off the pedal too many times if it had been somebosy else.

But the way i see it, if his hands had held up through the years and his promoter had balls and a love of the sport of boxing instead of a love for money his career could of took him to a level where his record would not be questioned by alot of people.

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Originally Posted by ukansodoff

From what ive heard in interviews with Joe, his father and other people close it took his father to keep him as focused and hard working as he was in training and in fights. He may of took his foot off the pedal too many times if it had been somebosy else.

But the way i see it, if his hands had held up through the years and his promoter had balls and a love of the sport of boxing instead of a love for money his career could of took him to a level where his record would not be questioned by alot of people.

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People don't give the great coaches enough credit for their ability to motivate fighters, and keep a good rapport with the guys they train. They know how to deal with egos, and probably because they have trained so many fighters they could possibly know Joe better than his dad in some ways.