JAMES DEGALE will prove he is one of Britain's top fighters if he schools slick Swede Badou Jack in New York. But, for me, he still has a long way to go to overtake Joe Calzaghe as the best super-middleweight from these shores. Would he have beaten Carl Froch too? I don't know but he has a good chin and has an awkward style that is hard to beat even if he tends to lose concentration in the middle of fights. Click Here To Read More]
Can't argue with that, all fights i would have loved to have seen. But the guy was at the very end of his career and the Jones fight obviously meant more for him and his bank balance than the other fights could muster. As i say jones had been beaten before, by KO, but never so emphatically clowned and outclassed.
We saw what happened to both Pavlik and Dawson when they got their chances, not too far removed from Lacey. If those fights had happened and we were remembering them now... well i imagine due credit would be in just as short a supply as the Lacey fight now gets ;)
What the hell are you talking about?
Roy didn't win a round off of Glen Johnson, before he was knocked cold.
Fighting Roy had nothing to do with his bank balance. It was just a cheap way to get a legend on the end of his resume.
He split everything 50/50 with Roy, and the fight bombed on PPV.
I've no doubt that he'd have made more against Pavlik.
It had been five years since Jones's last meaningful win when he fought Calzaghe, and then one year later he was stopped in one round by Danny Green
It was so stupid for Calzaghe to take that fight when he could've taken Pavlik or Dawson fights - both of which were high in demand at the time - and given the American audience a real glimpse of his ability and a real reason to celebrate him. I guarantee he'd much more fondly remembered now if he, instead of Hopkins, had been the one to expose Pavlik. Let's not forget how that win totally transformed the perception of B-Hop's career. It was only then that he finally started getting a bit of respect
Great post.
Joe wanted nothing to do with Tarver, Pavlik or Dawson, saying:
"They don't excite me"
"I don't rate them"
"They've done nothing to warrant a fight"
Before going on to fight guys like:
Manfredo
Bika
The shell of Roy Jones
He deserves all of the criticism that he receives.
I can't count the Calzaghe-Jones fight as meaningless. Yes Jones wasn't as good as he once was and had lost the aura of invincibility. However he had never and still has never been as comprehensively outboxed, totally clowned and beaten up. You can't say age was an issue as they were both getting on and both had relied on their speed throughout their careers, speed which was diminishing. Power is the last thing you lose though and nobody but Calzaghe has given Jones free shots and laughed back in his face.
It was a meaningless fight despite the ring title, an exhibition at most and not too dissimilar to Hagler-Leonard... but what an exhibition it was.
I can't help thinking Calzaghes biggest enemy was Sky Sports. Boxing was no longer free to air while Sky and subscription satellite tv still a relatively new thing without the viewership it enjoys today. It took him years to start generating the money and interest needed to put himself in contention for the top fights. Unfortunately they were the same years most boxers hit their peak and he was essentially left treading water.
In his physical prime the only opportunities he got to go against the other title holders were immediately after they had lost theirs. A shame really as a super six style tourney back then could have been incredible.
A terrible post.
Jones wasn't as good as he once was?
No sh*t!
He was 3-3 in his previous 6, and he hadn't had a top level win for 5 years.
He wasn't even half of the fighter he'd been in his prime.
Glen Johnson had bullied him and knocked him cold over 4 years earlier.
You can't say age was an issue?
Are you for real?
Roy was 2 months away from his 40th birthday.
Although Joe was 36, he was still an elite fighter, coming off of 2 of his best wins.
Man, posts like these kill me.
Joe was nothing but a scavenger.
He wanted NOTHING to do with Roy, when Roy was anywhere near his best, but he was happy to fight him when he knew he was finished.
Pathetic.
Here's an excerpt from his 2007 autobiography:
"A fight with Jones would now be pointless. He's no longer a great fighter. And neither is Tarver. Tarver only beat him when he was shot, and Johnson did the same"
Nobody out boxed him like Joe?
You mean other than Tarver and Johnson years earlier?
A prime version of Roy would have ruined Joe. Which is why Joe defended a lightly regarded WBO belt in a relatively weak division for 10 years.
What an exhibition it was?
Clowning a guy who he wouldn't have dared to fight when he was prime?
Sort yourself out.
Joe's biggest enemy wasn't Sky.
It was himself.
Again, he defended a lightly regarded WBO belt 21 times, with only 6/7 of those defences being mandatories. He sometimes starved himself to make weight, even though he couldn't unify with Ottke, and there was nothing on the horizon at the time. He wouldn't fight in the U.S. or at LHW until he was 36, and he was more than happy to fight the guys who Frank W put in front of him.
He needs to beat Jack, move up to LHW and beat Ward, Kovalev and Stevenson, or at least go 2-1 against those 3, or 2-0 (just fight 2 of them) to tie Calzaghe. If he goes 2-0 against them, then beats Barrera, Beterbiev, Smith Jr, Cleverly he surpasses Calzaghe. He needs to catch the winner of the supposed Ward-Kovalev rematch right after it because they will be worn out from going 24 rounds with each other but the easier fight to make in the meantime is Stevenson because he's a Haymon fighter. DeGale getting Ward on his resume as a win is key to tying Calzaghe.
This is absolute nonsense.
If James beat Ward, Kovalev and Stevenson at LHW, his resume would be light years ahead.
If he beat any of those 2, especially Ward, it would be.
He wouldn't also need to beat Beterbiev to surpass him.
You've got to be joking.
Joe's biggest win was against Kessler, and he only moved up to LHW when Bernard and Roy were faded.
Joe would NEVER have fought guys like Ward and Kovalev in their prime. Not a chance.
He needs to beat Jack, move up to LHW and beat Ward, Kovalev and Stevenson, or at least go 2-1 against those 3, or 2-0 (just fight 2 of them) to tie Calzaghe. If he goes 2-0 against them, then beats Barrera, Beterbiev, Smith Jr, Cleverly he surpasses Calzaghe. He needs to catch the winner of the supposed Ward-Kovalev rematch right after it because they will be worn out from going 24 rounds with each other but the easier fight to make in the meantime is Stevenson because he's a Haymon fighter. DeGale getting Ward on his resume as a win is key to tying Calzaghe.
So Degale has to go and have amazing wins to tie with a guy who's resume is garbage?
Degale's resume isn't that far from Calzaghe's as it stands let alone if he were to beat the Andre Ward's and Serghey Kovalev's of the world.
Captain obvious !
Joe was a one off , underated and underestimated
One the best British fighters of all time . Not that he will ever get credit for that ... but he was
Crazy thing is, besides Hopkins, the other 3 were very winnable fights for Calzaghe and would've been looked at as better wins than a shot Roy Jones.
Can't argue with that, all fights i would have loved to have seen. But the guy was at the very end of his career and the Jones fight obviously meant more for him and his bank balance than the other fights could muster. As i say jones had been beaten before, by KO, but never so emphatically clowned and outclassed.
We saw what happened to both Pavlik and Dawson when they got their chances, not too far removed from Lacey. If those fights had happened and we were remembering them now... well i imagine due credit would be in just as short a supply as the Lacey fight now gets ;)
Shouldn't be mentioned in the same breath Joe was a very special fighter he had movement , stamina, chin and a decent dig and rare ability of throwing confusing punchers from all angles at speed ....a fighters nightmare Calzaghe would have stood his own in any era.James is good but seemed to go to sleep mid fight against Dirrell , Jack although not great would make him pay for a similar mistake he has good work rate.James has lots of work to do to get anywhere close to Joe's level , I doubt he can.
It had been five years since Jones's last meaningful win when he fought Calzaghe, and then one year later he was stopped in one round by Danny Green
It was so stupid for Calzaghe to take that fight when he could've taken Pavlik or Dawson fights - both of which were high in demand at the time - and given the American audience a real glimpse of his ability and a real reason to celebrate him. I guarantee he'd much more fondly remembered now if he, instead of Hopkins, had been the one to expose Pavlik. Let's not forget how that win totally transformed the perception of B-Hop's career. It was only then that he finally started getting a bit of respect
Yep Pavlik, Hopkins, Dawson and Johnson were all calling him out. Dawson made a public letter to Calzaghe after the Hopkins win and his Johnson win. Pavlik wanted to come up for Calzaghe, JC was straight up scared. Johnson was calling him out too. Instead he ducked all 4, Hopkins accepted the Pavlik challenge, and Dawson fought Tarver for the first time. Johnson ended up fighting journeyman Aaron Norwood. Crazy thing is, besides Hopkins, the other 3 were very winnable fights for Calzaghe and would've been looked at as better wins than a shot Roy Jones.
Sorry but Degale already lost to Groves & Jack lost to a bum. Calzaghe v undefeated Kessler was a bigger fight and both are better fighters. Degales best win is Direll LOL Bute is ruined and nearly beat him..
JC>>>Degale.
One loss doesn't eliminate a fighter from being better than someone else.
Jones, Hopkins, Pacquiao, Marquez, Barrera, Morales just to name a few 1990s-2000s boxers who have losses and are greater than Calzaghe.
Even if you say it's who the loss was to, Pac lost to two complete no names who did nothing significant. MAB lost to Junior Jones. Morales lost to David Diaz and Zahir Raheem. Marquez lost his very first fight, so did Hopkins.
I can't count the Calzaghe-Jones fight as meaningless. Yes Jones wasn't as good as he once was and had lost the aura of invincibility. However he had never and still has never been as comprehensively outboxed, totally clowned and beaten up. You can't say age was an issue as they were both getting on and both had relied on their speed throughout their careers, speed which was diminishing. Power is the last thing you lose though and nobody but Calzaghe has given Jones free shots and laughed back in his face.
It was a meaningless fight despite the ring title, an exhibition at most and not too dissimilar to Hagler-Leonard... but what an exhibition it was.
It had been five years since Jones's last meaningful win when he fought Calzaghe, and then one year later he was stopped in one round by Danny Green
It was so stupid for Calzaghe to take that fight when he could've taken Pavlik or Dawson fights - both of which were high in demand at the time - and given the American audience a real glimpse of his ability and a real reason to celebrate him. I guarantee he'd much more fondly remembered now if he, instead of Hopkins, had been the one to expose Pavlik. Let's not forget how that win totally transformed the perception of B-Hop's career. It was only then that he finally started getting a bit of respect
I can't count the Calzaghe-Jones fight as meaningless. Yes Jones wasn't as good as he once was and had lost the aura of invincibility. However he had never and still has never been as comprehensively outboxed, totally clowned and beaten up. You can't say age was an issue as they were both getting on and both had relied on their speed throughout their careers, speed which was diminishing. Power is the last thing you lose though and nobody but Calzaghe has given Jones free shots and laughed back in his face.
It was a meaningless fight despite the ring title, an exhibition at most and not too dissimilar to Hagler-Leonard... but what an exhibition it was.
I can't help thinking Calzaghes biggest enemy was Sky Sports. Boxing was no longer free to air while Sky and subscription satellite tv still a relatively new thing without the viewership it enjoys today. It took him years to start generating the money and interest needed to put himself in contention for the top fights. Unfortunately they were the same years most boxers hit their peak and he was essentially left treading water.
In his physical prime the only opportunities he got to go against the other title holders were immediately after they had lost theirs. A shame really as a super six style tourney back then could have been incredible.
I'd say the opposite. Hindsight is a much better vantage point to judge a win from than to just go by hype, which only really serves to obscure the facts and is fleeting
Maybe so, but then it could be argued that it was Calzaghe that destroyed Lacy as a fighter and he was never the same, we'll ever know for sure. I think it was still a pretty good win when you consider a lot of people picked Lacy to win.
I'd say the Kessler win was Joe's only genuine win against a real prime top notch fighter, and i say that as a fan of Joe.
Bute, Jack and Dirrell are probably better than nearly all of Calzaghe's resume apart from a few.
Sorry but Degale already lost to Groves & Jack lost to a bum. Calzaghe v undefeated Kessler was a bigger fight and both are better fighters. Degales best win is Direll LOL Bute is ruined and nearly beat him..
JC>>>Degale.
9y ago
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