When did it become alright for fighters to duck each other.

Floyd Mayweather invented the art and science of ducking. There were no duckers before Mayweather. Ali, Dempsey, Robinson, Leonard, Duran, Armstrong, Pep, Pacquiao. The were all EAGER to fight everyone. Leonard moved up in weight to fight Hagler after a 3 year retirement due to a detached retina whose cure he didn't feel totally confident in as shown by his poor showing against Kevin Howard 3 years before Hagler. Leonard moved up in weight against Hagler after 3 years of inactivity with no tune up fights. Hagler had just beaten John "the Beast" Mugabi and Tommy Hearns back to back when Leonard fought him.

In modern boxing Ducking is even more important than fighting. Ducking is an art.

Ray retired because of a detached retina for 3 years. The first fight he took in his return was against Hagler at Middleweight. No tuneups, no stories about why he couldn't fight. Answer to the OP's question is the rise of this man AKA Witness Protection: And you were doing so good till you deviated to the obscene ..... :chairshot What is called ducking today is the end-result of many variables, of which the most prominent is making the most coin while you can. Many fans seem to forget that this is prize fighting and all boxers want to reign in the most purse while they have the opportunity. And yes, it may seem like ducking to the untrained eye, but boxing is a business first and foremost. And promoters along with the boxers themselves have a lot invested into making a return on that investment. Legacy has always taken a back-seat to purse and rightfully so..........

Boxing needs a universal governing body, along with ridding tself of all the abc trinkets. With this step, I believe the ducking stops. No more hijacking belts and stupid c.w.

When it was discovered that fans will support bad fights regardless.

In recent years,its seems that fighters are becoming more and more creative,when it comes to excuses for not fighting another fighter that would pose a challenge. We've heard them all. different promoters purse splits opponent lacks fan base opponent isnt entertaining enough A side/b side debate catchweight requirements fighter refuses to fight out of hometown fighter prices themselves out Now i know that this isnt new in boxing,and has been going on for years. But when did it start,who have been the biggest duckers so far,why has it become acceptable,and is there any way that this could be fixed? this has always been thecase since the color line...only the reasons chage...if only we had a governeting body...

When you start looking like one http://i.imgur.com/qKd5bpK.png :lol1: I knew I've seen that lip somewhere before.

I didn't miss the agenda. Just showing that some of us have been watching and studying the sport for a long time. I lived through Ol Fish Eyes' (Frank Warren's) style of matching and promoting over here (UK) and seen a few before him pull some shenanigans. It's nothing new. Along came the internet........ Thank you for the input,and I really appreciate knowledge that is deeper than mine. I watched boxing as a casual up until 2002,when Oscar delahoya fought Fernando Vargas,so compared to most people on this forum,I'm still a relatively new fan. I actually like hearing from people that have been watching this sport,far longer than I have,because they can give the kind of background info,that looking up a fight on YouTube can't.

You missed his point (hidden agenda). He was waiting for you to say that while ducking was as old as the sport itself, it became the norm because of Mayweather. He was the epitome of modern ducking. Unless he is an idiot or young and don't really knew the history of the sport. I don't have a hidden agenda. I think it was pretty clear since the beginning,what this thread was about. If I wanted to make a thread about mayweather ducking,I would have done do,but I didn't. This thread is about ducking in the sport in general,from the past,to the present,and even into the future. If you personally think that mayweather is the biggest duck in history,then that's your opinion,but this thread is about the whole picture,not just one boxer.

He ducked Hearns for years after the 1st fight and Duran after No Mas until they slowed down. LMAO @ Duran being in the position for anyone to avoid post-New Orleans. Stick to battling P*ctards, because your grasp on boxing history is pitiful.

You missed his point (hidden agenda). He was waiting for you to say that while ducking was as old as the sport itself, it became the norm because of Mayweather. He was the epitome of modern ducking. Unless he is an idiot or young and don't really knew the history of the sport. I didn't miss the agenda. Just showing that some of us have been watching and studying the sport for a long time. I lived through Ol Fish Eyes' (Frank Warren's) style of matching and promoting over here (UK) and seen a few before him pull some shenanigans. It's nothing new. Along came the internet........

It became a common practice because fighters, managers and promoters realized they can make MILLIONS by building up a fighter, making him a staple name in the boxing world, and then let him fight sub-par competition all the while keeping a fighter's record intact(Undefeated) and "appealable" to casual fans whom are the majority of the people who buy PPV's. We have all heard it before again and again, boxing is sport but it is also a business. It is unfortunate that fans do not always get the fights they would like to see, but at the end of the day a fan's opinion of a fighter is just that, an opinion. What Al Haymon has done with his stable of fighters is very smart. He takes unknown fighters, builds their records slowly with so-so competition so the fighter has a good record(on paper). Then when the fighter is popular and known in the boxing world, he continues putting the fighter against low-level competition to keep the fighter looking strong, and capable. Once the fighter has enough stardom, he puts that fighter in as Free main events on Showtime or HBO, or co-mains of Mayweather fights. In order to attract more buyers. A good example of these type of fighters is Amir Khan and Danny Garcia as well as Deontay Wilder. All 3 of these fighters have been called cowards, cherry-pickers, in the past. Yet all 3 remain big names in boxing. Haymon built his fighters up using Golden Boy as a platform, then when they achieved the stardom and name-power. He pulled the plug and started his own show. You missed his point (hidden agenda). He was waiting for you to say that while ducking was as old as the sport itself, it became the norm because of Mayweather. He was the epitome of modern ducking. Unless he is an idiot or young and don't really knew the history of the sport.

People toss the word duck around too loosely. Nowadays people would say Sonny Liston was ducking Ali when Ali was calling him out at a young age. Hell Ali followed Liston half way across the country calling him out to his face.

When you start looking like one http://i.imgur.com/qKd5bpK.png

Ray Robinson ducked burley

Been going on for years.... I'm sure all boxers did it at least once. Some ducking stands out like a mother... Floyd ie

TS is exactly the type of moron fit for some "re-education".. It's been going on forever. SUGAR RAY ROBINSON- You don't get 200 fights by fighting top comp son, he ducked a host of fighters. Remember Charley Burley? JACK DEMPSEY- Flat out REFUSED to face a decent opponent much bigger than himself (bums only) and like many of the day and previous, ducked all black fighters! Truth is, nobody fights more quality opposition than modern boxers. Fact!

Two examples in the past: Riddick Bowe, led by Rock Newman, making ducking "cool" by dumping the WBC belt in the bin rather than face Lennox Lewis. Chicken Bowe never got the call out he deserved. Ricky Hatton going on and on about how the British, European and Commonwealth Champion, Junior Witter didn't deserve to fight him when clearly the likes of Wilfredo Vilches and Daniel Pederson did. And his fans constantly backed him up rather than wanting the biggest British rivalry since Benn/Eubank to be settled in the ring. Ducking has been going on almost as long as the sport.

If a fighter is not a champion he can duck who he wants.If he is a world champion he has an obligation to the title he holds and the fans and contenders for his title to fight good contenders twice a year and the #1 challenger once a year. Mayweather is not doing this at 154 and Cotto is not doing this at 160. Stevenson is ducking Kovalev clearly.

I'm too young to remember this but didn't Sugar Ray Leonard duck Hagler for years until he slowed down to finally fight him?Yes that is the truth. Leonard won the closest possible split decision that many thought he didn't deserve and he refused to rematch Hagler who never failed to do much better in rematches.