To retire or not to retire???

[boozeboxer]

darnit... I knew if I used Floyd as the example it would turn into a thread purely about Floyd..


I'm wondering when YOU guys prefer/like to see a fighter to retire... There are plenty of threads that discuss whether Floyd is will be back or not...

And I agree with everyones comments on that subject.

Like Lennox Lewis. He is a perfect example of perfect timing.

[Dizaster]

darnit... I knew if I used Floyd as the example it would turn into a thread purely about Floyd..


I'm wondering when YOU guys prefer/like to see a fighter to retire... There are plenty of threads that discuss whether Floyd is will be back or not...

And I agree with everyones comments on that subject.

Like Lennox Lewis. He is a perfect example of perfect timing.

That's a good example.... I think there wasn't many more questions to be asked of Lennox, and that makes it a lot easier on fans I think...

I always think it's stupid how fighters say "I've got nothing more to prove in boxing".. Seriously, who gets in to boxing (or any sport) to "Prove" something??
Fighters continue on and take challenges, for the love of the sport.. Not to prove something

[Youngblood]

I think a fighter does owe something to his fans. To boxing fans in general. If he is driving a fancy car, and parks it in a big garage in a big house, who do you think helped make that happen?

When the issue gets brought into the topic of retirement, the line often becomes blurred, because as boxing fans it is hard to discern when is enough.

It is a tricky blend for the successful boxer to have both satisfied the fans and made his mark on the boxing world to the best of his ability, and being able to walk away gracefully. Why? Well, that is when it gets put back on us, the fan, and not so much the fighter. We ultimately will decide how we remember that person, their last fight, their last 4 fights, their beginning, and eventually their entire career. In this sport, one fight, on one night, can drastically change our perception. So we factor all of that in with the many other variables, how they conduct themselves etc, and we somehow need to ask ourselves, has it been enough? Am I okay with them saying, "Thanks fans, it's been great but I need to call it a day."

And so we count on the fighter making a decision that most of us will be okay with. Then if we can look at it objectively and honestly we won't ask more from our heros then what we are due. Then hopefully most of us will respect their decision.

This certainly isn't going to happen all the time, simply too many variables. But it is a thing of beauty when it does happen. And it is a big part I believe of why we are here, and we cheer our heros, and we argue, about who's better and why, and their legacies. We are all ultimately trying to sort it out for the history of our fighters, and the history of our sport.

That's my take on it, anyway.