boxer's prime?

[chern117]

skill and physical performance..
hopkins at 36 against trinidad
mayweather 34-36 cotto canelo guerrero
cotto smashing away at 33..
carl froch turns up his game at 36..
duran went to war at mid thirties..
golovkin knocking ppl out left n right at 32
there are so many great fighters who excel late...
so when exactly is a boxer's prime?

[ShamrockXpress]

Prime is subjective, there is physical prime and fighting prime.

Physical is the same for most people, mid 20s to early 30s, the body recovers quicker and is at its most efficient at this time. Fighters such as mike tyson and roy jones jr fall in to this category, they had a combination of speed, power and reflexes so far ahead of the competition that they could neglect their boxing skills and still win fights. What this meant was they started to lose and look 'shot' as their reflexes and speed diminished.

Fighting prime is when fighters improve with knowledge and boxing skill that makes up for a perceived diminishing of physical attributes. Bernard Hopkins is a prime example of this. Not blessed with the exceptional gifts of his peers, he learned to build his craft around intelligence and skill. Wladimir klitschko is another example, he was a much better athlete in his 20s but no where near the boxer he has become in his mid to late thirties. The same can be said for Lennox Lewis, vitali klitschko and to an extent even george foreman.

[soul_survivor]

skill and physical performance..
hopkins at 36 against trinidad
mayweather 34-36 cotto canelo guerrero
cotto smashing away at 33..
carl froch turns up his game at 36..
duran went to war at mid thirties..
golovkin knocking ppl out left n right at 32
there are so many great fighters who excel late...
so when exactly is a boxer's prime?

lol if you thikn Duran's prime was mid 30s

[Awesome-O]

skill and physical performance..
hopkins at 36 against trinidad
mayweather 34-36 cotto canelo guerrero
cotto smashing away at 33..
carl froch turns up his game at 36..
duran went to war at mid thirties..
golovkin knocking ppl out left n right at 32
there are so many great fighters who excel late...
so when exactly is a boxer's prime?

The majority of these guys named were past their primes here. Still performing at a high level doesn't really mean you are in your prime.

Everyone is different.

Meldrick Taylor peaked at 21-23, up until the first Chavez fight. He was a shot fighter by 26 when he fought Espana. Wilfred Benitez was a shot fighter by his mid to late 20s. Mike Tyson's peak was 21.

Duran was in his prime from about 1974-80, ages 23 to 29. The last couple of years were at 147, and he was better at 135, but he sure looked great in Montreal.

[Awesome-O]

lol if you thikn Duran's prime was mid 30s

Watching Dejesus 2 and 3, or Palomino and Leonard, the last thing one would say when watching Duran in the mid to late 80s would be "Duran is still in his prime!".