I was really excited about Jeff Lacy and was shocked at what Calzaghe did to him. I didn't know about his injury when he fought Vitali, but I thought he didn't look like the same fighter. When in the fight did the injury occur?

I have to agree with VD he's a bit one dimensional. That doesn't mean he couldn't be successful, but since his strengths are his strength and power, he drops way down ineffectiveness if the injury takes some of that power away.

The other factor that a fighter like Lacy needs is the absolute belief that he's the baddest MoFo on the planet. Calzaghe crushed a lot of that out of him. IMO he didn't look like he had an unshaken belief in his badness in his last fight.

If he has recovered physically, I think Manfredo might be the perfect opponent for him now, to see where he is mentally. Manfredo is still a name that will draw attention, and it's the perfect chance for him to feel powerful again. Plus if he demolishes Peter, maybe Peter will finally fade into the sunset. If he struggles or gets beat, then we'll know a lot about how poor his future prospects are.

I also agree that Manfredo is above journeyman level and is capable of exposing a weakness in Lacy, if it exists. In other words, pre or close to pre-Calzaghe Lacy should do well. A physically weakened Lacy will have problems. A mentally shaky, but physically healthy Lacy could get back on track with this fight.

Incidentally, I see a lot of parallels with Berto here. He seems of similar ilk to me, and shouldn't be rushed along to fast.