Which boxing greats have suffered from Dementia pugilistica?

['Sugar' Freddi]

Do you guys know any boxing greats that have suffered from Dementia pugilistica? I know Joe Louis suffered from it, but it is said that it was genetic, Floyd Patterson, Meldrick Tayler, and Robinson. It's really sad how the consequences can catch up with you after a legendary career.

[Method Checker]

Willie Pep suffered from it, too.

[Suckmedry]

A great number, some to different degrees.

[JAB5239]

Willie Pep suffered from it, too.

I met Pep at a Vinny Pazienza fight at Foxwoods casino in about 2000. He seemed to have all his wits at the time and even sat and joked with us for about 10 minutes. I never knew he had dementia. There must be widely varying degree's of this disease because he seemed to be pretty fit to me, nothing like a Benitez, Chacon or Quarry.

[Method Checker]

I met Pep at a Vinny Pazienza fight at Foxwoods casino in about 2000. He seemed to have all his wits at the time and even sat and joked with us for about 10 minutes. I never knew he had dementia. There must be widely varying degree's of this disease because he seemed to be pretty fit to me, nothing like a Benitez, Chacon or Quarry.

I think it was around his last few years.

['Sugar' Freddi]

I met Pep at a Vinny Pazienza fight at Foxwoods casino in about 2000. He seemed to have all his wits at the time and even sat and joked with us for about 10 minutes. I never knew he had dementia. There must be widely varying degree's of this disease because he seemed to be pretty fit to me, nothing like a Benitez, Chacon or Quarry.

So nothing wrong with his speech or anything?

[Method Checker]

So nothing wrong with his speech or anything?

I don't believe it kicked in, at the time.

I read that while he was living at an old folks home, in the last few years of his life, he suffered from it. He died in 2006.

[JAB5239]

So nothing wrong with his speech or anything?

None that I noticed. He just seemed like a really cool old man. He didn't talk much about boxing and we didn't press him on it. He asked if we were enjoying ourselves, where we were from, what we did for a living and things like that. He cracked a couple of small jokes. I had later mentioned the meeting to John Scully on another board and he said Pep was always pretty laid back like that.

[Suckmedry]

Pretty much every career pro with more than 20 or so fights experiences mental decline to some degree as a consequence of Boxing. Obviously not everyone is a wreck like Taylor or Benitez but there is definitely changes in speech patterns, just a slight drop in sharpness of the mind etc

Taylor is actually one of the worst cases I have seen, the man was slurring very very badly by age 35 or 36, 35 is not old at all, you are still relatively young in the real world at 35, and here Meldrick was sounding like an old drunk.

Benitez is pretty bad too, he was shot by the time he was 25 and was a pro since 15 so he would have been showing serious signs probably by his late 20's even.

That's why I don't like disrespecting fighters a lot on here, they put a lot on the line in this sport.

[JAB5239]

Pretty much every career pro with more than 20 or so fights experiences mental decline to some degree as a consequence of Boxing. Obviously not everyone is a wreck like Taylor or Benitez but there is definitely changes in speech patterns, just a slight drop in sharpness of the mind etc

Taylor is actually one of the worst cases I have seen, the man was slurring very very badly by age 35 or 36, 35 is not old at all, you are still relatively young in the real world at 35, and here Meldrick was sounding like an old drunk.

Benitez is pretty bad too, he was shot by the time he was 25 and was a pro since 15 so he would have been showing serious signs probably by his late 20's even.

That's why I don't like disrespecting fighters a lot on here, they put a lot on the line in this sport.

Make you wonder how many trail horses and journeyman have ended up with this disease. We only hear about the high profile fighters who have it, imagine how many guys who never made peanuts in their careers have ended up like this? I didn't see Jason Litzau's last fight but I heard he was slurring his words terribly afterwards. 15 years from now he'll be forgotten by most but could possibly end up with this disease as the only thing he has left from boxing, much the same as Taylor but with out the fame and glory Meldrick was able to achieve.