Past Your Best.

[Master]

I think certain fighters go so far past their best that anything they do actually adds to their legacy for instance Duran was not expected to beat Moore or Barkley.

[THE THIRD MAN]

There are so many.

Johnson
Leonard
Armstrong
Robinson
Mosley
Hearns
Ali
Tyson
Louis
Comacho
Duran
Benitez

Roy Jones jr has embarrassed himself and when he lost to Danny Green i think it was one of the saddest moments i have seen in boxing.

Smokin' Joe Frazier should've retired after the Thriller In Manila, but he continues on and fights Foreman...again!

Maybe Hagler did the right thing and retired when he did? Maybe he thought he couldn't beat Leonard in a rematch? Think about that for a minute, if Hagler fights Leonard again and loses again his legacy is chopped in half instantly.

Aaron Pryor was crazy to fight again 1985

There are so many, but all fighters have huge ego's and they all think they can still do what they did at 24 or 25 years of age when they are 34 or 35 or pushing 40?

Most fighters are on the decline post 32 years, you do have exceptions, but the peak years are probably 25-30, it's all down hill after that.

We tend to forget that someone like Duran was already a 70+ fight veteran by the time he lost to Leonard in 'No Mas'. He was past his peak the moment the bell rang in Montreal!

That is a really good point although it was the first fight that was held in Montreal but nevertheless you can certainly make the case that he did start his decline during that six month period and two fights.

Yes, i believe the moment he beat Leonard in Montreal and that final bell sounded we had already seen the best of Roberto Duran, the rematch was too soon and he was never the same after No Mas. Duran was at his peak as a Lightweight, he gave us one last glimpse of his real greatness in that 1st Leonard fight, but after so many battles and a decade long career the truly great Roberto Duran was no more.

[Jerry Rice]

There are so many.

Johnson
Leonard
Armstrong
Robinson
Mosley
Hearns
Ali
Tyson
Louis
Comacho
Duran
Benitez

Roy Jones jr has embarrassed himself and when he lost to Danny Green i think it was one of the saddest moments i have seen in boxing.

Smokin' Joe Frazier should've retired after the Thriller In Manila, but he continues on and fights Foreman...again!

Maybe Hagler did the right thing and retired when he did? Maybe he thought he couldn't beat Leonard in a rematch? Think about that for a minute, if Hagler fights Leonard again and loses again his legacy is chopped in half instantly.

Aaron Pryor was crazy to fight again 1985

There are so many, but all fighters have huge ego's and they all think they can still do what they did at 24 or 25 years of age when they are 34 or 35 or pushing 40?

Most fighters are on the decline post 32 years, you do have exceptions, but the peak years are probably 25-30, it's all down hill after that.

We tend to forget that someone like Duran was already a 70+ fight veteran by the time he lost to Leonard in 'No Mas'. He was past his peak the moment the bell rang in Montreal!

That is a really good point although it was the first fight that was held in Montreal but nevertheless you can certainly make the case that he did start his decline during that six month period and two fights.

Yes, i believe the moment he beat Leonard in Montreal and that final bell sounded we had already seen the best of Roberto Duran, the rematch was too soon and he was never the same after No Mas. Duran was at his peak as a Lightweight, he gave us one last glimpse of his real greatness in that 1st Leonard fight, but after so many battles and a decade long career the truly great Roberto Duran was no more.

Do you give him a get out of jail freecard for losing to Leonard ?

[brocktonblockbust]

When fighter's just get beat, and we say past his best, Eubank, Benn, age to many hard
fights father time catching up with them.!
So many great fight never no when to just walk away,! do they damage there greatness,
in doing so, RJJ for instance.
Name me fighters you think, carried on to long fighting.

Probably a lot easier to name the ones who retired too soon...

Rocky Marciano, Ill go first. Sonofabitch shoulda fought Floyd Patterson in Summer, maybe June, 1956, then 1 more fight maybe Nino Valdez, as was planned, by maybe November '56 then called it quits 51-0 with 45 KOs.

[Kirkland Laing]

Apollo Creed .... Such a sad thing that crazy Russian did to him in the ring! Good job his mate trained all on his own in Siberia and avenged his defeat. Pure dedication considering it was against someone twice his size and it was Christmas Day and he left his son in America. Anyway that is how the Cold War ended!

The Cold War was ended when Rocky went into Burma and rescued those Christian Aid workers.

[Dia bando]

When fighter's just get beat, and we say past his best, Eubank, Benn, age to many hard
fights father time catching up with them.!
So many great fight never no when to just walk away,! do they damage there greatness,
in doing so, RJJ for instance.
Name me fighters you think, carried on to long fighting.

Probably a lot easier to name the ones who retired too soon...

Rocky Marciano, Ill go first. Sonofabitch shoulda fought Floyd Patterson in Summer, maybe June, 1956, then 1 more fight maybe Nino Valdez, as was planned, by maybe November '56 then called it quits 51-0 with 45 KOs.

I don't think he did,! remember that nose injury man that was sick if my nose was hang off,
like that I would have never boxed again.

[IamInuit]

The line seems so fine and so broad at the same time. Robinson carried Armstrong. That would have never happened earlier.

[Dia bando]

Calzaghe V RJJ I feel Joe carried Roy, after he was knocked down in the first round, he got up
and just gave Roy a panning, he did carry him he could have stopped Roy if he wished.

[Master]

Calzaghe V RJJ I feel Joe carried Roy, after he was knocked down in the first round, he got up
and just gave Roy a panning, he did carry him he could have stopped Roy if he wished.

If Joe could finish Roy he would have, his hands were very brittle by then and this was his last fight so he did go for it but Roy survived with just the beating.