Quote Originally Posted by Memphis View Post
Im with Ron on this one. A few years back Enzo Calzaghe knew what he was doing but that was built on Joe's success who lets be honest would have been brilliant if he were trained by a blind chimp! Success breeds success and he also had Enzo Mac and Rees as 'World' Champions.

I think you often have to look behind the trainer to see where the real brains of the outfit lies.
Freddie Roach is the obvious perfect example. Manny goes on a tear and Freddie is trainer of the year, Manny gets put to sleep and Freddie isn't? The implication is Freddie didn't train as well that year, it's nonsense. Emmanuel Stewart became a great trainer when Tommy Hearns walked into his gym, Lennox Lewis goes to him and Manny is great again, then Wlad. The common denominator is great fighters making trainers. Dundee can teach you more from beyond the grave than Freddie Roach will. If a fighter clicks with a trainer he's a great trainer. Their job is to get the best out of the fighter, it's in the job description that the fighter decides "greatness". All the celebrity trainers are overrated. They use that celebrity to pick and choose fighters. If better fighters means better trainers in the eyes of the public, and we know it does, then they have an unfair advantage. The best trainers are amateur trainers. They can't choose the right fighters with the right styles and right temperaments. They get what they get and have to adapt themselves and the fighter. That's far far more impressive. As the pool of boxing participants shrinks the pool of great trainers shrinks, the eras of great trainers is gone. Probably never to return. There are good trainers out there with great fighters and people will make lists based on who had more great fighters.