Is it beneficial anymore for young fighters to fight established fighters?

[Kirkland Laing]

My old man raised us with a phrase repeated at the dinner table. 'Adversity builds character'. I think it's also some of a generational thing in the big picture. 20's through maybe 50's 60's ish lets face it we were a tougher meat and potato lot. A lot of fighters were raised and trained in the circumstance and while it sounds like an over simplification, fighting regularly was a way..a necessity..of life and career. Sure you had your playboys and exceptions but in large part you had to scrape and claw for your notoriety and week to week month to month opportunity. As such it was understood and a given that it just won't be your night sometimes. They weren't feverishly 'devastated' and dismissed as a loss and more often than not wanted and needed to do it again making a rivalry. You do learn when you are denied and have to recommit. Today guys are anointed with a single KO or how many followers they have on social media ffs . We're just a different breed. There were high stakes then and huge investment in fighters but today promotion and company has regrettably come level with the fighter. Fighters are faces and force of franchise. I've always thought numbers seriously overrated and misleading. We're constantly bludgeoned with 'the 0'. Be it undefeated or a massive KO percentage. Both are only as impressive as who and the circumstances they came against.

Jake LaMotta fighting SRR twice in three weeks. Back then every week there was a fight that wasn't even a title eliminator which was a better matchup than ninety percent of the alphabet belt fights we get these days. Now we've got Gary Russell Junior fighting hasbeens and neverwases once a year for an alphabet belt for more money than old time fighters could ever dream of.

[Baal]

Japanese young fighters match tough early in their career

[powerpuncher]

Japanese young fighters match tough early in their career

Good point. Probably because Japanese culture is different.

[Spicoli]

My old man raised us with a phrase repeated at the dinner table. 'Adversity builds character'. I think it's also some of a generational thing in the big picture. 20's through maybe 50's 60's ish lets face it we were a tougher meat and potato lot. A lot of fighters were raised and trained in the circumstance and while it sounds like an over simplification, fighting regularly was a way..a necessity..of life and career. Sure you had your playboys and exceptions but in large part you had to scrape and claw for your notoriety and week to week month to month opportunity. As such it was understood and a given that it just won't be your night sometimes. They weren't feverishly 'devastated' and dismissed as a loss and more often than not wanted and needed to do it again making a rivalry. You do learn when you are denied and have to recommit. Today guys are anointed with a single KO or how many followers they have on social media ffs . We're just a different breed. There were high stakes then and huge investment in fighters but today promotion and company has regrettably come level with the fighter. Fighters are faces and force of franchise. I've always thought numbers seriously overrated and misleading. We're constantly bludgeoned with 'the 0'. Be it undefeated or a massive KO percentage. Both are only as impressive as who and the circumstances they came against.

Jake LaMotta fighting SRR twice in three weeks. Back then every week there was a fight that wasn't even a title eliminator which was a better matchup than ninety percent of the alphabet belt fights we get these days. Now we've got Gary Russell Junior fighting hasbeens and neverwases once a year for an alphabet belt for more money than old time fighters could ever dream of.

Russell really ended up a shame. Started with massive promise and talent and now seems to focus on boxing with the frequency of a total lunar eclipse. Yeh and consider LaMotta v Fritzie Zivic, a series of four fights within six months..and both with 'tune ups' in between. Surprised LaMotta still had his eyesight . And the generational thing then Zivic joins the U.S Army a couple months later.