Was the hype behind prince naseem fake?

[piojo del norte]

If that wasn't the best Hamed then who was the best Hamed? It doesn't get better than undefeated......

Did Barrera face the best Hamed? I don't think so, that Hamed retired so soon after due to hand problems tells its own story.

[Barry Halls]

He didn't beat anybody... Doesn't mean he wasn't talented, but the hype was definitely way out of proportion. Dude lost to the only great fighter he ever faced.

This is kind of ridiculous. He beat 10 former or to be titlists. He was the lineal champ.

He beat Vasquez and Kelley. Those are high quality wins.

Overall he's definitely HOF worthy.

Overhyped? Yeah i'd say so. Just like with Tyson people enjoyed his style and showmanship.

[Weebler I]

If that wasn't the best Hamed then who was the best Hamed? It doesn't get better than undefeated......

The one that wasn't blowing up in weight between fights and who was training properly.

Yet the Kelley fight also provided vivid evidence that The Prince was entering what was to become a steady decline. The reflexes that had carried him through numerous battles over the years were slipping and he was becoming ever more easy to hit. This was partly due to the fact that as the knockouts mounted Hamed began to approach each fight as if a stoppage was inevitable. In doing so he neglected his skills and eventually allowed them to atrophy. By the time he faced Marco Antonio Barrera in 2001 he had become something of a one-dimensional puncher. The grace and fluidity of his early ring outings was now little more than a distant memory. Combinations became less frequent as Hamed became a stalking puncher obsessed with landing the big left hand. His fight against the hard-hitting Augie Sanchez, 26-1, provided further evidence of Hamed’s, by now, one-track approach. Both fighters were stunned in a wildly exciting slugfest before Hamed found the punches to stop the American in the fourth; it was to be his last successful defence; a life and death struggle against an opponent he would have dissected a few years previously. At the age of twenty-seven Hamed, by now a millionaire husband and father had fallen out of love with the sport. The contentment of his home life proved ever harder to abandon for the Spartan rigours of camp and he became an increasingly reluctant trainer. These chickens came home to roost against Barrera, who boxed smartly to soundly outpoint a strangely plodding and distracted Hamed and in doing so handed him his one and only defeat.

Not saying Hamed would have won previously, but he was well on the slide by the time he fought Barrera.

[Snake...]

This is kind of ridiculous. He beat 10 former or to be titlists. He was the lineal champ.

He beat Vasquez and Kelley. Those are high quality wins.

Overall he's definitely HOF worthy.

Overhyped? Yeah i'd say so. Just like with Tyson people enjoyed his style and showmanship.

Vasquez was washed up when hamed beat him

[Targaryen]

He gets judged harshly because he peaked a short while before the likes Pacquiao, Barrera and Morales appeared on the scene. The Marquez fight might've happened, for some reason didn't, but Hamed was still beating top 10 ranked contenders and other belt holders/former belt holders.

[UTEP]

Hell no it wasn't fake!!! Hamed's win's over Kevin Kelly, Wayne McCullough, and Augie Sanchez were very impressive at the time, not to mention all the other title defences in between. Naseem Hamed's resume was very legit when he faced Barrera.


Oh and @ Morales being scared of "the prince"

[Barry Halls]

Vasquez was washed up when hamed beat him

Slipping but absolutely not washed up.

I'd say he was at the same place in his career as Tszyu was when Hatton beat him.

Tszyu a better fighter though. Not trying to say anything else.

[ItsTrue]

I think the hand issues combined with his lack of atg dedication and all the work and miles and training is why he cant be considered an ATG.

I think the backlash towards Muslims after 9-11 also kind of just killed his will to want to keep going. Im curious to what his ratings did post 9-11 were I know he was ratings gold early hence the big paydays but I can guarantee you they plummeted after.

[MoneyKing]

Naseem hamed was a bum fighter - he was clueless in the Barrera fight
and his brothers got involved in business which Frank Warren didn't like.


he never beat anyone special

[Mato o Muero]

This is kind of ridiculous. He beat 10 former or to be titlists. He was the lineal champ.

He beat Vasquez and Kelley. Those are high quality wins.

Overall he's definitely HOF worthy.

Overhyped? Yeah i'd say so. Just like with Tyson people enjoyed his style and showmanship.

10 former or to be titlists, so what? Being a titlist doesn't mean much I'm sorry. Vazquez was almost 40 when Hamed beat him. Kelley was his best win. I'm not saying Hamed was a bum but he isn't HOF worthy.