Which Boxers did you change your mind about?

[reggaereggae]

Boxers (past and present) that you changed your mind about - I mean liking or disliking....or learnt to appreciate their style.

Some fighters you loved from the first site and some you changed or even change dependent on the mood. My List:

Always liked (never changed)

- Nigel Benn - style, never in a bad fight. So exciting and controversial
- Marvin Hagler - so tough, so committed, and so comfortable in retirement

Changed (permanently)

- Rocky Marciano - used to think he was a dirty, bruising, bully.... but then his weight and his late start to boxing turned me.
- Roberto Duran - also thought he was a dirty bully... then learnt to apprecitae his skills and rise in weight

Change (often)

- Chris Eubank - often frustrating esp against lesser fighters, but rose when it was important. Can seem a tool but can also seem unique.
- Naseem Hamed - so exciting, so entertaining, but also a bit of a rude and arrogant tool. Sometimes I wanted him to sparkle, in the later years to get KO'd

Undecided

- Jonny Nelson - dreadful 2 attempts at cruiser title. yet went abroad to fight top heavyweights like corrie sanders
- Sugar Ray Leonard - when I was young I thought he was amazing..... then kind of cooled on him

Odd Ones Out

- Jake La Motta - great film, ridiculously tough, yet also admitted to some horrible misdemeanours

Don't Like

- Floyd Mayweather - just too dislikeable in attitude

[AlexY2K4]

Joe Calzaghe was definitely one boxer who went up in my estimation.

Initially, I couldn't get behind him and felt he didn't have the balls to face a top fighter in his prime.

My opinion of him changed ever since his demolition of Jeff Lacy and found a new sense of respect for him, especially as he went on to face Mikkel Kessler and Bernard Hopkins. I was disappointed that he took on a washed up version of Roy Jones, but apart from that, I gained nothing but admiration for him.

[gibbo]

khan after he took the midarna fight. still dont like the way he interviews. but seem to do alot for the community

[reggaereggae]

oh yeah Khan is a good one - his early form led me to believe he waas just hype and was gonna get chinned when he stepped up............ when Prescott did him I thought it was the end of the hype machine


But all respect he came back and proved himself and has eraned my respect (no that he cares I'm sure!)

Apparently he's very accessible to fans also

[zero]

I used to like Khan although after Barrera and his MASSIVE ego I hope he gets battered soon, also his tantrum with Sky really annoyed me.

Wladimir K after his Sky interviews I have really warmed to him simply because he seems a decent fellow.

[mickey1975]

I have really gone off Haye. Had me sat like a clown pissed up in Hamburg while he was waving his little toe around. All this only two years after costing me a fortune because of his bad back. I just dont believe a word he says.

[Ketchel]

I have really gone off Haye. Had me sat like a clown pissed up in Hamburg while he was waving his little toe around. All this only two years after costing me a fortune because of his bad back. I just dont believe a word he says.

I agree on Haye. I watched him in Belfast in the World Amateurs in 2001 where he and Jean Pascal for me were the 2 guys that stood out most. I followed his pro career from the start and he was a breath of fresh air doing exactly what he said he would do. However it appears that once he got the taste for fame his talent and boxing skills were left behind the silk pyjamas syndrome took over. Total turn off now.

I met Khan once during his early pro career at an Amateur event and he and his father were perfect gentlemen. No big egos whatsoever. His father took the time to speak to me introducing me to all of Khan's team when he didn't have to. All I took away from the meeting was the huge pride they all had for Amir.

Maybe that has changed but the guy has shown some balls proving doubters wrong and turning things around.

[Chambers2]

Hatton when it became clear to me he wasn't going to give Witter his shot and the British fans their fight

[Old bones Ian]

If you gave any of us £10 Million , how many of us wouldn't turn a bit arrogant and self centred?
We would all like to think we wouldn't, but i bet alot of people would .

Thats how i look at Naz and Haye.

[youngrell]

For me there's a list of recent retired fighters who I hated when they were active but have grown to admire since they left.

Eubank - couldn't stand his arrogance, this coupled with the fact Benn is one of my favourite fighters of all time

Naz - again couldn't stand his arrogance and loved nothing more than watching his defeat and humbling by Barrera, but damn do I miss his entertainment. Nobody has lit up boxing like that since and personalities like him are greatly missed

Lewis - always rooted against him as I found his jab, jab, jab style boring, but he left a gaping hole in the HW division and boxing in general, I'd give anything for someone like Lewis to be here to fight the Klitchko's. I also greatly under-appreciated his skills

[Chambers2]

If you gave any of us £10 Million , how many of us wouldn't turn a bit arrogant and self centred?

I'm like that and I'm skint

[Lightsoot]

Amir Khan - never thought he'd compete at world level after the Limond scare and Prescott annihilation.

[LeedsLad]

Believe it or not I used to be a big Haye fan.

Since the move up to HW he's been awful, both in and out of the ring. From a (supposedly) fight anyone warrior with an entertaining style, into a pathetic, media whore who's fights could put a glass eye to sleep.

[Old bones Ian]

I wasn't a fan of Carl Froch when he started out, I certainly am now.

[Tommy Gunn13]

I wasn't a fan of Carl Froch when he started out, I certainly am now.

x2
I couldnt stand him for years&it all stems from a interview he done in the Amatuers on BBC when he won a medal at the Worlds&he came across as a cocky c*nt&i wanted him to get beaten!! It wasnt until the Pascal fight that i started cheering for him

[Counter-puncher]

I wasn't a fan of Carl Froch when he started out, I certainly am now.

kinda same here, though i ended up paying to go to a few of his fights, i like him a lot more now he's managed to shut his gob about Calzaghe

[Gazmac81]

you dont appreciate what you got till its gone

i love lsiting to Eubank now and Lewis
Lewis i quite funny when hes getting interviewed , hes in agood place

Naz juts makes me laugh still spiting out the old chants when he was getting interviewed on the Sky fight nights last year and before.

Would like to see Eubank on Ringside

For me there's a list of recent retired fighters who I hated when they were active but have grown to admire since they left.

Eubank - couldn't stand his arrogance, this coupled with the fact Benn is one of my favourite fighters of all time

Naz - again couldn't stand his arrogance and loved nothing more than watching his defeat and humbling by Barrera, but damn do I miss his entertainment. Nobody has lit up boxing like that since and personalities like him are greatly missed

Lewis - always rooted against him as I found his jab, jab, jab style boring, but he left a gaping hole in the HW division and boxing in general, I'd give anything for someone like Lewis to be here to fight the Klitchko's. I also greatly under-appreciated his skills

[hitman_hatton1]

Hatton when it became clear to me he wasn't going to give Witter his shot and the British fans their fight

[Cyclops]

Mine are pretty much the same as everyone else but I'm going to post them anyway.

Froch: wasn't that impressed with his wins over Pascal and Taylor at the time. I hadn't really heard of Pascal and thought Froch ate too much leather, and I thought he was being handily beaten by Taylor before he pulled out the KO. I just thought he wasn't that good, and that he seemed really boring when interviewed. He's since proved me wrong and won me over so much that he's my favorite British fighter. Which used to be...

Haye: I LOVED David Haye when he was at Cruiserweight, went to watch him fight at some big shows. Thought he was the bees knees. Gradually my respect for him slipped although I was out down the pub with an army of mates (most of whom didn't know anything about boxing and had been excited by the build up) to watch the Klitschko fight. The fight was so bad. The f*cking toe. And I was sort of still a fan until I read Four Kings and found out Tommy Hearns broke his hand in the 1st against Hagler and still pulled out one the best fights ever, even though he lost. And then refused to tell anybody about it after the fight for ages because he didn't want to detract from Hagler's victory. That's class isn't it? After that I thought: F*ck David Haye! Money grabbing bullshitting c*nt. That said, if he pulls out some sort of redeeming performance against Vitali I might like him again. But PAY for it? I wonder who's more disliked now? Haye or Audley?

Khan: embarrassed to admit I totally wrote him off after he got beat by Prescott. I think he's a good lad who gets far too much stick and showed real balls in his fight with Maidana (who I'm also a big fan of, by the way.) Still a bit disappointed he never re-matched Prescott though. Why not?!

Hopkins: disliked him for the Calzaghe fight: the white boy stuff, the fake low blows, the lack of respect in defeat despite Calzaghe being initially very respectful at the post fight press conference. Then me and a mate stayed up and watched the Pavlik fight and I was amazed. Completely dominated an unbeaten fighter who was just using him as a stepping stone to Calzaghe. The ending when he stared out the press and almost cried. Great drama! I couldn't NOT like him. His subsequent win against Pascal and having watched lots of his old fights now, I think he's great.

Hatton: I really liked him when he first started to get big, almost welled up when he beat Kostya tszyu, but went off him a little bit when he became more famous. I never understood how he got such a free pass from people for being a huge, vocal Bernard Manning fan. Manning is a horrible, racist bigot and I don't like racists. If Hatton's such a big fan then that makes me think he's a bit iffy. At least he didn't say he liked Jim Davidson. Is Davidson dead yet? He's a HORRIBLE man. Worse than Don King and Bob Arum combined. I'd still shake his hand if I met him in the street though (Hatton not Davidson, who I'd chin no hesitation), and I respect his achievements and desire to fight the best, even in defeat.

[Khaosai-Galaxy]

Hatton when it became clear to me he wasn't going to give Witter his shot and the British fans their fight

Oh Chambers, you sweetheart!


Hatton - Witter? still???

have a spliff and a wank and forget about it.

[mickey1975]

Agree with everyone about Froch. Did not like him, but, he backed up his boasts.... Khan too....

[Speed997]

If you gave any of us £10 Million , how many of us wouldn't turn a bit arrogant and self centred?

I'm like that and I'm skint

No, you are just a ginger tosser.

[ThereByTheGrace]

Good way

I changed my mind about Wlad Klitschko - his vulnerable days are so so far behind him and he is a great champion.

Maybe be too soo but also Tyson Fury - I always thought he was full of it but the tougher the test the better he has performed.

Kevin Mitchell I always thought was well protected and covered but his comeback against Murray has me fully behind him.

Bad Way

Alex Arthur - Promised so much but really provided so little.

Mike Tyson - coming out of jail - just a money making hype machine - a lot to do with whats wrong with boxing nowadays (late 90s hype combined with embarrassing episodes).

Naseem Hamed - Just wasnt interested after losing a fight - not a great champion.

[LeedsLad]

Alex Arthur is a good shout, he's turning into a really bitter old man despite only being in his only 30's.

Fury is one that I don't get the dislike for, sure he's a Pikey and has had questionable dedication, but he's done everything that has been asked of him and more in his career thus far. In the days of British prospects being fed opponents in their first half dozen that would struggle to beat a fairly tough rugby player, I think his record is excellent.

There's obviously a few questionable names, and obviously the first McDermott fight (which I had level) but generally it's a good slate, he dominated Page, who schooled Dallas, and was a clear winner over Chisora.

He'll never be everyone's cup of tea for a variety of reasons, but I think we should all be glad that we've a couple of good young heavies that can mount a challenge to the increasing eastern block dominance.

[Cyclops]

Alex Arthur is a good shout, he's turning into a really bitter old man despite only being in his only 30's.

Fury is one that I don't get the dislike for, sure he's a Pikey and has had questionable dedication, but he's done everything that has been asked of him and more in his career thus far. In the days of British prospects being fed opponents in their first half dozen that would struggle to beat a fairly tough rugby player, I think his record is excellent.

There's obviously a few questionable names, and obviously the first McDermott fight (which I had level) but generally it's a good slate, he dominated Page, who schooled Dallas, and was a clear winner over Chisora.

He'll never be everyone's cup of tea for a variety of reasons, but I think we should all be glad that we've a couple of good young heavies that can mount a challenge to the increasing eastern block dominance.

Actually I'm going to chime in with Fury, too. Was really excited by him when he was still an amateur, and then when he turned pro I was initially well behind him. Then I thought he was too cocky, didn't like his old man, was fat and out of shape and was being fed a load of undersized bums. I thought he clearly lost the first McDermott fight and was an overrated hype job. Now he's starting to grow on me again, good performance against Chisora, absolutely LOVES fighting (you can see he's so happy in there and I really warm to that), seems keen to fight just about anybody and is even coming across alright in his recent interviews. If he starts coming in really in shape I'm actually starting to think he COULD do something in the division. He is very young.