Quote Originally Posted by mikeeod View Post
Was reading an article on Buddy McGirt and in it he spoke about Vernon, which got me thinking on his career. I was a huge Forrest fan and thought he would go on to be the dominant welterweight once he started fighting the big names. After watching him dominate Mosely (I won good money on Forrest), I was sure I was right.

Needless to say, I was SHOCKED when he lost to Mayorga, and even more shocked when his career fell apart after. I know he had shoulder surgery and that may have limited his use of his jab/hook, but I just can't figure out how a guy with so much promise didn't last longer at the top. Interested in everyone's thoughts/theories on Vernon, and what went wrong with his career.

On a side note, he was a great guy who went out of his way to help sick kids, especially in his native Atlanta. It was a horrible loss for the sport when he was murdered, and I understand that that incident impacted his ability to reclaim his previous glory/stature. What I'm specifically asking about, is what went wrong post Shane, or do you think he was overrated even prior to fighting Mosely?

I don't understand your reason for being shocked that he lost to Mayorga. The scoring of blows in combat sports happens in exchanges and the prime version of Mayorga was no slouch. He was good puncher that ended up at the highest levels of his sport and that did not happen by accident. Mayorga probably also beat Spinks as well at the height of his career, though I have to review that fight before I can confirm that. I actually think Mayorga did not come close to his potential as a fighter due to a lack of world class professional training and his lack of discipline. In my opinion he left more raw potential and talent in the bag than Forrest. So we should switch your question to how good could've Mayorga been if he had the same type of trainers, facilities and management as Vernon Forrest or Shane Mosley?