Rupert Pupkin wrote:
He is not in the same league as some of the real greats, just because he is unbeaten and been champion for such a long period, doesn't to me say he is a great(I know that sounds a bit daft). To me he has always faced people at the right times e.g Eubank(was past his best), never really taken anybody on during their peak. Dodged alot of good fighters unlike Clinton Woods who has been in with some of the best around. Now it looks like he could be fighting Roy Jones, how many years to later? Jones would have murdered him in his peak! He did a good number Lacy and beat a poor champion in Kessler in recent times and has now beaten a 43 year old man. Just my opinion.
You could use the same argument for Roy Jones. He fought a weight-drained James Toney and avoided a lot of good fighters (including Michalczewski) on his way up to Heavyweight. At HW he took on the weakest champion (Ruiz) and when he came back down he was KTFO twice.
You're can't seriously suggest RJJ is NOT an all-time great.
Apart from Sven Ottke (against whom it's impossible to get a decision by judge) I suppose, Calzaghe has ducked nobody.
He's the undisputed SMW and Ring Magazine LHW champion. At SMW he's reigned for 10 years, which makes him the longest reigning titlist of any weight class in boxing. He is in the top 5 list of longest reigning champions full stop. He is almost universally regarded as being at #2 or #3 in the P4P list (behind Mayweather and - perhaps - Pacquiao).
Whilst his list of opponents doesn't include the stellar names found in ... say ... Hopkins' or RJJ's - he has fought a far greater number of good (Robin Reid, Brewer, Lacy), very good (Eubank and Kessler) and excellent (Hopkins) fighters.
After RJJ moved up from MW he consistently sought low risk opponents (probably because his chin is extremely suspect above MW).
Kessler is NOT a poor champion. He is an enormous SMW who has bludgeoned pretty much every rival he's faced. Certainly a big step up from the one-dimensional Lacy.
Calzaghe's legacy is recognised by boxing experts accross the globe. Bert Sugar said his performance against Lacy was one of the greatest he's ever seen (and he's seen more than most). Emmanuel Stewart regards Calzaghe as one of the finest champions in boxing. Even Roy Jones - who is a great student of the sport - recognises Calzaghe's worth.
Joe has nothing left to prove.
TBH, I think the time to quit is now. A fight against RJJ SHOULDN'T be too difficult (these days Roy tends to do a lot of fighting against the ropes, which is where Calzaghe is at his strongest) but you never know. Roy is a harder puncher and better finisher than the over-cautious Hopkins. He's also retained a good bit of speed. And he seems to be on a bit of a roll.
Regarding the Hopkins fight, I thought it was close to a draw. But Joe was the aggressor and Vegas judges are known to favour such.
