How important is ring age

[Jc8804]

Whats your opinion on ring age

[soul_survivor]

If by ring age you mean the amount of punishment a guy has taken in the ring and how many fights he has had, then yes, ring age is very, very important. Ali, by the age of 30 had been in a career shortening war with Frazier and had tough, tough nights against Norton and Chuvalo. He was further down the slope of his peak than other fighters at 30, for example Calzaghe, Mayweather or Hopkins to name a few.

There are some, who can, somehow, extend their ring age carry on fighting at a very high level even as they have gone through several wars. Again Ali is a good example but Foreman and Moore may be even better examples. A lot of this then, comes down to conditioning, effective training and determination.

[Divine Hammer]

it's very important. fighters are done by their early thirties if they take too much punishment and/or have been in pro boxing for too long. unless ur fighting style is based on taking the least amount of punishment and taking the least amount of risk then you can continue fighting into your 40s or maybe even 50s (especially with the right "conditioning" and "nutrients"). also if u take "vacations" and only fight once a year while ur competition beat eachother to a pulp multiple times a year, is another good way to maintain ur prime longer than the rest.

for example, floyd strategically took many "vacations" to avoid threats and let them duke it out with each other or move up in weight class. cotto became a viable opponent for floyd after cotto was pretty much way past his prime after sustaining two devastating beatings against margarito and pac. pac became a more viable opponent after sustaining a devastating career ending life changing KO loss to marquez, and after sustaining so much wear and tear from 60+ fights. floyd knows all about ring age, and he uses it to his advantage when cherrypicking his fights. floyd might be older than the rest, but the simple fact he took these "vacations", he fought only once a year, and avoids taking punishment, has ensured he is still in his prime.

[boliodogs]

I don't think the number of years A boxer has been fighting ages him prematurely. Very hard fights in which he takes lots punishment have a bad effect. Regular fights give him experience. A boxer's actual age is important because the natural aging process slowly but surely takes away his skills. His speed, power, reaction time, and stamina all diminish bit by bit, year by year even if he takes the best possible care of his body.