It came nearly 24 hours after 40-year-old Glen Johnson easily picked up a win over Daniel Judah, keeping the Road Warrior in the mix at the top of the light heavyweight division. Johnson sits at No. 3 at 175 pounds, behind fellow quadragenarian Bernard Hopkins and the 26-year-old Chad Dawson, to whom he lost a close and disputed decision last April.
Hopkins, apparently a freak of nature at 44, has his sights set on the sturdy and severely underrated RING cruiserweight champion Tomasz Adamek. Who would deny B-Hop could handle his own? The Executioner battered RING middleweight champ Kelly Pavlik, 26, from pillar to post in an October light heavyweight bout.
Let's not forget about top welterweight Shane Mosley, who looked as sweet as ever in his ninth-round knockout of the iron-chinned Antonio Margarito in January amid controversy of Margs' corner cheating. At 37, Mosley has six years on the Tijuana Tornado.
It appeared 40 was the new 25.
But for every Marquez, there is a Marco Antonio Barrera; every Johnson, a Roy Jones Jr.; every Hopkins or Mosley, an Oscar De La Hoya.
Barrera, despite his warrior spirit, proved he was a shell of his former self last Saturday against Amir Khan. The Baby-Faced Assassin met a far fresher face in Khan, who caused Barrera's mug to bleed profusely. The match was called after the fifth round with Khan conquering the former champion by technical decision. Barrera lost every round on all three official scorecards.
Jones -- who has lost four of his last eight and been the recipient of beatdowns at the hands of Johnson, Antonio Tarver and Joe Calzaghe -- is scheduled to fight Omar Sheika in Jones' hometown of Pensacola on a split boxing/MMA card. Problems: Though innovative, fans of neither sport seem interested in the pay-per-view; and Jones is as clueless and delusional about promotion as he is about having a future in the sport.
Then there's De La Hoya, who will likely never accumulate the success his Golden Boy partners (Hopkins, Mosley) have in boxing's golden years. To his credit, he hasn't retired only to return to the ring, but after Manny Pacquiao came up two weight classes to brutalize him it seems like the logical option. We'll see a farewell fight, but it will be meaningless in terms of the grand scope of the fight game.
At 35, 40 and 36, respectively, these former stars' careers have stalled. Running on fumes isn't beneficial to their health or the state of boxing. It's time to pack it in and call it a career before further damage is done.
Though Marquez, Johnson, Hopkins and Mosley have a few more good fights left in them, this is a young man's game. Tarnishing legacies and well-being won't win over potential viewers and isn't impressing the present fan base.
A friend once commented on Kevin Kelley's persistence to fight on. The Flushing Flash, who will be 42 in June, is 13-8 since December 1997 and has next to zero chance fighting for -- let alone winning -- a title. He began his career 47-1-2.
The paraphrased quip: How long before Kelley trades in his mouthpiece for dentures?
That sums up a collective response to boxers pressing on beyond their primes. Families and fans could use far less onsets of physical and psychological damage.
Death speculations correlated: As a student of journalism and a fan of boxing, I have to constantly hear of the demises of both newspapers and the sport I love.
Kevin Iole wrote a great column connecting the two. I encourage all to read it, consider how to improve the situations and become activists for keeping each alive and thriving.
"The rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated." -- Mark Twain
The Sweet Science is as everlasting as the written word.
2 comments:
Yet another great piece of writting Joe. Its quite an amazing feat these older boxers have been able to pull off lately. Whether it be for money, belts, or one last ride off into the sunset, guys like Hopkins, Marquez, etc. have shown the ability to reach back and grab hold of the fountain of youth while teaching the next generation of fighters what it means to be a true champion.
The only negative side I can see other than what you mention is that younger fighters may eventually battle on for too long trying to become the next De La Hoya or Mosely. All it will take is for one guy to hang on too long going after that last championship, a la Evander Holyfield, to end up tragically injured or worse in the ring. At that moment every boxing hater will put in their two cents about how boxing is dead or should be abolished.
I look forward to seeing the "old guys" get in the ring and fight again, but I hope they know when their time has come to step back and teach the next wave of talent one final lesson... how to walk away while on top of their sport and not on top of some list of guys who couldn't.
I agree that it takes only one tragedy for the general public to desecrate the sport. Could you imagine having age limits and such? That's what it would come down to if anything happened to a guy of Holyfield's popularity.
Everyone is built differently. That's why Hopkins can beat guys nearly two decades younger. That's why Jones is dominated by men his age. Sometimes it comes down to the difference between technique (B-Hop) and skill (RJJ).
I didn't intend this to be an ageist post. I enjoy watching Mosley as much as I like seeing Victor Ortiz. I just wanted to make the point that when your time's up, go out with all your facilities. Whether it's an Archie Moore or a Fernando Vargas, age is just a number. What's important is how a boxer's body holds up through the years.
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