The Gallantry of Getting Up

[Gandalf]

Joe Galzaghe had to do it a couple of time late in his career and so had B Hop. Tyson was the type of fighter once he went down he stayed down. Lewis got up, if a bit wobbly on his feet but always learned from the defeats and beat them back.

Calzaghe nearly gave me a heart attack in those last two fights, but he is one of the most brilliant examples of gallantry. A man in need of a noble steed if ever there was one.

I tend to be pretty hard on Calzaghe for his list of foes. But I am utterly convinced he was a genuinely tough man, even by boxing standards.

Yeah, too many easy opponents. But whenever called into question Calzaghe performed. Calzaghe's best perfomances were like ballet. Just beautiful to watch. Calzaghe/Lacy is a butchering, but in terms of movement and grace it is artistry.

Calzaghe is a cocksucker. Jones and B-hop woulda killed him in their primes.

Joe was a good fighter, but not a great one in my book. He certainly shocked a lot of people when he destroyed Lacy and handily beat Kessler. I'll hand it to him there.

Jones perhaps, Hopkins probably not.

We have to consider that Calzaghe was not in his prime when he fought them too. He was 36 and for a fighter who relies on output and speed and had lost his power through injuries, he was using a lot of savvy to stay competitive himself.

He was an intelligent boxer and a bit like Hopkins in that he learned to evolve. Something someone like Jones was never able to do.