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Comments Thread For: “Fighting Words” — Jeff Lacy and the Writing on the Wall

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    Comments Thread For: “Fighting Words” — Jeff Lacy and the Writing on the Wall

    by David P. Greisman - Jeff Lacy stood in a dimly lit room in Connecticut the day before his most recent fight, a long time separated from the years that made his name, a name that had long since diminished in value.

    “I’m still here,” Lacy told an interviewer from the EsNews video channel, railing against the doubters and critics who he said had no idea what fighters like him go through.

    “I’m not going back to where I was,” he said at another point. “I’m going to make it better than ever.”

    He was asked about the next evening, about his bout with undefeated light heavyweight Sullivan Barrera.

    “You’re going to see the best of me that I can give you tomorrow night,” he said.

    Lacy was knocked down in the first round and battered for much of the 11 minutes it took until the fight came to an end in the fourth.

    The saddest part is that Lacy was right. That is pretty much the best he can give anymore.

    He is now fodder for prospects, a former titleholder whose past accomplishments, however distant, somehow add value to the records of the men who beat him. It is why he was on the undercard of a Fox Sports 1 broadcast last year, lasting barely five minutes with Umberto Savigne. And it is why he was on the undercard of ESPN2’s “Friday Night Fights” last week against Barrera, a prospect promoted by Main Events.

    A press release Main Events put out prior to the broadcast included the kind of language that tends to be used to describe opponents who are expected to lose.

    “Undefeated Cuban Sensation Sullivan Barrera Takes on Veteran Jeff Lacy,” read the headline within.

    “Lacy, 37, made his professional debut in 2001 and remained undefeated for over five years,” read part of the press release, glossing over the precipitous decline that had taken place in the eight and a half years since he suffered his first loss. The only one of Lacy’s fights since then to merit mention was a decision last December over Timothy Hall Jr. There was no context given, nothing saying that Hall was just 9-18. Context is not the job of a promoter. [Click Here To Read More]

    #2
    Sad situation....unfortunately Lacy isn't the only person employed in a dangerous line of work for low pay...

    Comment


      #3
      Lacy's last two fights, both early knockout losses, were both shown on ESPN2...Teddy can shout as much as he wants, but his network keeps buying Lacy's fights, a shame

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        #4
        I was wrong, apparently his previous fight was on Fox, but you know what I mean

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          #5
          Sad man. Dude was on top of the world at one point. Boxing has heard this same sad story more than once.

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            #6
            What happened to him? Calzaghe took his soul? Work ethic? Technique?

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              #7
              The article states that Calzaghe won 11 of 12 rounds over Lacy on the cards, but in reality he easily won all 12 rounds.

              Joe was deducted a point in the 11th, that accounts for the "119" scores.

              Nelson Vazquez 119-105
              Roy Francis 119-107
              Adalaide Byrd 119-107




              Dan Rafael wrote after the fight:

              "As for Lacy, he needs a long rest after taking such brutal punishment. He might never be the same."

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                #8
                Lacey was never the same after Calzaghe whupped him.

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                  #9
                  there's a thin line between being an elite boxer and a punching bag, but I'm not sure why these guys continue to get beat up after they cross the line. what's his financial plan when he's 60? It's better to just give up and learn a trade.

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                    #10
                    Jeff Lacy was on the road to ruin before he ever stepped in the ring with Joe Calzaghe. He made a habit of walking through bombs. Watch his early fight with Donnell Wiggins, that was a war against a bigger man and Jeff took too much punishment in stopping Wiggins. Then later against Omar Sheika he was getting caught by an experienced boxer with decent pop and getting stunned.

                    I forget when it was that he left Rodger Bloodworth to go train under Freddy Roach at the Wildcard, but it was reported by Doug Fischer that he got hurt pretty bad and had blurred vision for a month. After it cleared up he left Roach and moved back to Florida to reunite with Birmingham and won his title.

                    I think his end came after the Calzaghe fight when he had his rematch with Tyspko. Jeff tore his left shoulder, that forever impaired his money punch, guys never fully recover from a torn shoulder, just like Forrest was never the same fighter.

                    Comment

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