True story, both fighters fighting past prime could in fact end up being a much better fight.
People need to stop with this s**t......
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No way man. I'm sorry, I'm a big Bradley fan. But he won about 2-3 clear rounds, and there were a couple quiet rounds.
Manny won the fight. He landed more and landed the harder punches consistently. The only way Bradley even got a few rounds was the last 4 rounds. There were 2 rounds that were close and Bradley clearly won 2 as well. Take that into account, the first round was pretty close as well, it was a slow round. Manny won rounds 2-8 clearly I thought.Last edited by Doctor_Tenma; 11-26-2012, 09:52 PM.Comment
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Like I said already, I do expect Floyd to decline much more gradually than Manny. But that said, the guy still does rely on his reflexes and explosiveness to a large degree. How long past the age of 35 is he going to maintain those attributes as a WW/JMW?
I definitely thought was feeling the pace a bit against Cotto too, as Cotto's determination to cut off the ring and force him onto the ropes was taking a lot out of both of them. As the fight went on he recovered brilliantly and was clearly the stronger man going down the stretch.
He often controls such fights, where he's faced with an intelligent aggressor, with his footwork though. And I think part of the reason he ended up in uncomfortable situations against Cotto was because he wasn't quite sharp enough on his toes to wrong-foot Cotto and keep bringing the fight to where he wanted it. Again, that's understandable for a 35 year old.
Not taking any of the credit away from Cotto btw, he fought a smart and exceptionally disciplined fight on the night. But nevertheless there were little signs here and there that Floyd might not be quite as invincible as he once was.
A funny thing about sport is that a lot of the time, no one sees the end coming for great athletes and great teams. Sometimes a guy looks on top of the world and at that point in time, it can be almost impossible to believe that they would never be that good again. That's how it happens though, and the signs of deterioration can often only be detected with the benefit of hindsight.
I'm not saying Floyd is at that point yet, but you just never know. And as athletes get into their late 30s, the statistical likelihood of that abrupt fall from grace increases all the time.
About the Cotto fight 2 things happened 1) Floyd was under the weather, that is what got said and guys like Rafael and Mulvaney who have no reason to lie said Floyd was clearly not sounding like himself and 2) Cotto and Floyd favor the same pace, both want a measured slow pace and Cotto has a lot of talent so in a fight to his liking that he was able to get some stuff done is not that shocking. The other fights Cotto lost he got forced out of his pace. I don't think that fight really screams Floyd decline but he is declining and a year is a long time in boxing especially when you consider he did a stretch during that year, so that can't be good for an aging champion.
Also Floyd is not a 154 pound fighter, his career will go down faster if he keeps fighting there.Last edited by The Gambler1981; 11-26-2012, 10:07 PM.Comment
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It's not even comparable, except in the fact that it was long overdue. Mayweather and Pacquiao are still better then Lennox and Tyson were at that time.Comment
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Have much respect for you but you'd have to be blind to see Bradley winning six clear rounds. I don't think the fight was a robbery but (with the exception of the last 3 rounds) the rounds Bradley won could have gone the other way.Comment
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Yes, I've seen this argument from you before. That doesn't mean they aren't past prime. Hardcore fans are losing interest. Casual fans will treat it exactly like Tyson-Lewis. Hence, my comparison.Comment
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