Boxing's a young mans game

[Controversial]

What age do you think the average fighter tends to decline. Heavyweights go on longer than the smaller guys, probably because they don't have to make weight.

[BitPlayer]

I think It's because speed is one of the first things to go, and matters more at lighter weights.

Plus there's only a handful of talented modern superheavies, so if you slip a bit, there's not the depth of talent to find you out

[Contendeh]

30 if you’re a swarmer.
32-3 if you are a dancer.
If you have a really good punch you can fight into your 40s.

Ring smarts and taking care of yourself can extend many a career because you have taken less punishment over time and you have the intellegence to make your opponent help you.

[Ambling Alp II]

As a rule of thumb I would say 30 is when it starts. It usually doesn't happen over night. It is usually gradual. You probably won't notice a huge difference between say 31 and 30. However, compare most fighters from when they were 30 and when they were 35 and you will usually see a noticeable decline.
Of course there there are exceptions to this.

The amount of punishment that fighter takes is the X factor. If a fighter takes little punishment, he can last. If he fought tough opponents several times a year for several years than he will probably start to decline earlier.

[Contendeh]

Thought of something else:

I took this sites top 20 at super middleweight (seemed like a good average weight),
Threw out the oldest (45) and the youngest (21) added them all up and divided that number by 18 and I got...you guessed it...a little under 31.

For giggles,
I did the same thing at Heavy and it came out to 33.

Of course there’s always a chance my math is off. But it feels right.

I am willing to bet each number has gone up over the years because of fighters fighting less, staying in the amateurs longer and advances in the fields of nutrition and medicine.

[BitPlayer]

Thought of something else:

I took this sites top 20 at super middleweight (seemed like a good average weight),
Threw out the oldest (45) and the youngest (21) added them all up and divided that number by 18 and I got...you guessed it...a little under 31.

For giggles,
I did the same thing at Heavy and it came out to 33.

Of course there’s always a chance my math is off. But it feels right.

I am willing to bet each number has gone up over the years because of fighters fighting less, staying in the amateurs longer and advances in the fields of nutrition and medicine.

Of course because points tend to accumulate, and it's about what you've done, not what you could do, the ages may be skewed up a little. The other skew is people tend to move up weights.

I did the mean for top 50 P4P, and it was 30.22
Top 20
Heavy
32.8
Cruiser
32.4
L.Heavy
31.55
S.Middle
30.95
Middle
30.85
L.Middle
31.05
Welter
29.55
S.Light
29.7
Light
29.9
S.Feather
30.45
Feather
29.5 (Two Missing Values)
S.Bantam
26.79 (One Missing Value
Bantam
30 (One Missing Value)
S.Fly
29.05 (One Missing Value)
Fly
29.39 (Two Missing Values)
L.Fly
28.15
Straw
26.26 (One Missing Value)

More noise at lower weights, but interesting. Median would probably have been better to use, but slightly more effort, if anyone wants a go.

[APerno]

Sugar Ray Robinson: "You always say 'I'll quit when I start to slide', and then one morning you wake up and realize you've done slid."

[Caractacus]

I seem to remember decades ago,the mandatory age that you could still fight as a professional boxer was
not past 37 years of age.

[Caractacus]

I wonder how many famous boxers career resume would vastly improve if you then omitted any fights from the record that they had made after 37 years old.

[BitPlayer]

I wonder how many famous boxers career resume would vastly improve if you then omitted any fights from the record that they had made after 37 years old.

I don't think they tend to get held against them, especially if they have any impressive wins.

Plus what if you excluded any wins against anyone over 37?

[HomicideHenry]

Probably not much different than when men and women naturally decline. Hell I am 32 years old and I wish I was 29 again, because in just three years time I've heard more cracks and pops than anytime in my life, and I fatigue faster than I did in my 20s.

[Ambling Alp II]

Thought of something else:

I took this sites top 20 at super middleweight (seemed like a good average weight),
Threw out the oldest (45) and the youngest (21) added them all up and divided that number by 18 and I got...you guessed it...a little under 31.

For giggles,
I did the same thing at Heavy and it came out to 33.

Of course there’s always a chance my math is off. But it feels right.

I am willing to bet each number has gone up over the years because of fighters fighting less, staying in the amateurs longer and advances in the fields of nutrition and medicine.

Of course because points tend to accumulate, and it's about what you've done, not what you could do, the ages may be skewed up a little. The other skew is people tend to move up weights.

I did the mean for top 50 P4P, and it was 30.22
Top 20
Heavy
32.8
Cruiser
32.4
L.Heavy
31.55
S.Middle
30.95
Middle
30.85
L.Middle
31.05
Welter
29.55
S.Light
29.7
Light
29.9
S.Feather
30.45
Feather
29.5 (Two Missing Values)
S.Bantam
26.79 (One Missing Value
Bantam
30 (One Missing Value)
S.Fly
29.05 (One Missing Value)
Fly
29.39 (Two Missing Values)
L.Fly
28.15
Straw
26.26 (One Missing Value)

More noise at lower weights, but interesting. Median would probably have been better to use, but slightly more effort, if anyone wants a go.

That is pretty interesting. Good research!

There is a key factor to take into consideration. When rankings are made, they are really based on what a fighter has done in the past. The typical ranked fighter is much more likely to be past his personal best than not having reached it yet.
Therefore, a fighter's decline typically would have started a little earlier than the numbers would suggest.

[Kalan]

There's no set age or weight.... It's how good your skills are that determines how long you last.... Pep went to 46.

Bernard Hopkins was a Middleweight for many years and won a major World Title at 46 from somebody who took Chad Dawson's "O". He was a very good boxer who kept getting better til he was 39... Then held on to 70% of it for another 10.

Eder Jofre was the best Bantamweight... But I believe his 2 Harada fights he lost because he could no longer make weight... He came back as a Featheweight, winning his last 25 fights, becoming World Champ, and fighting til age 40.

Jack Johnson fought past 50... After tanking to Willard at 37 he won his next 13 bouts beating Pat Lester in 15 at 48.

Larry Holmes beat World Champ Ray Mercer at 42... At least Mercer won his 2 previous fights (World Title Fights) by KO.... Most people thought Holmes beat Oliver McCall at 45 as well... That should have been 2 World Titles right there.

Old fighters are very smart fighters... Foreman learned how to relax and let his opponent do the leading... When they needed to catch a breather he got them with punishing blows... He got his jab on people a lot better without as much effort... An old fighter is an alert fighter... He takes his time... doesn't waste any energy or punches... and finishes on his feet... Archie Moore was the prototype oldster who wouldn't throw for 30 seconds and then deck you with a blistering short one.

Fighters in their 40's are given more space... When Rigondeaux waits and waits people say they would rather watch paint dry and throw up... They start booing... When Hopkins waited he was a cagey old fox who was setting something up.

[Ambling Alp II]

Wait a minute. There are examples of fighters winning fights winning fights in their late 30s and 40s? I don't think anyone knew about this.

[Kalan]

Wait a minute. There are examples of fighters winning fights winning fights in their late 30s and 40s? I don't think anyone knew about this

Everyone was clued in about this fact except you Alp...

But my post was not about that... My post explains why SOME boxers can win at a much more advanced age than most can... It's cuz they grow so much in wisdom and technical expertise -- and learn so much about pace, patience, and timing that they turn what is normally a young man's game into a game that smart middle aged men can play.

Those observations always go over your head like Leon Spinks trying to grasp Astrophysics.

[Controversial]

There's no set age or weight.... It's how good your skills are that determines how long you last.... Pep went to 46.

There will always be exceptions but generally speaking most people start slowing down in their 30s, testosterone starts declining as you age too. Some styles are more conducive with lasting longer and of course cherry picking opponents that suit your style helps prolong things too. Fighters hanging about for too long skews things to, many don't know when to hang their gloves up.

[Caractacus]

Wait a minute. There are examples of fighters winning fights winning fights in their late 30s and 40s? I don't think anyone knew about this

Everyone was clued in about this fact except you Alp...

But my post was not about that... My post explains why SOME boxers can win at a much more advanced age than most can... It's cuz they grow so much in wisdom and technical expertise -- and learn so much about pace, patience, and timing that they turn what is normally a young man's game into a game that smart middle aged men can play.

Those observations always go over your head like Leon Spinks trying to grasp Astrophysics.

and some just didn't smoke or drink or whore around either.
( and therefore got to bed at a decent hour)

[gilgamesh]

What age do you think the average fighter tends to decline. Heavyweights go on longer than the smaller guys, probably because they don't have to make weight.

Making weight is probably part of it, but I think the Heavyweights tend to age better more because there's not as much of a reliance on speed in the higher weight classes. For the littlest fighters, Featherweight on down, being fast at least reasonably fast for the weight would be absolutely essential to succeeding in those weights I'd think. There's so many fighters with quick hands, and combinations in those weights that if you ain't one of 'em you ain't gonna last.

And obviously fast twitch muscle reaction tends to go down over time. Usually in your early to mid 30's. That's why I think those guys aren't as effective at a younger age than the bigger fighters.

Or at least that's a big part of it.

[Kalan]

Wait a minute. There are examples of fighters winning fights winning fights in their late 30s and 40s? I don't think anyone knew about this

Everyone was clued in about this fact except you Alp...

But my post was not about that... My post explains why SOME boxers can win at a much more advanced age than most can... It's cuz they grow so much in wisdom and technical expertise -- and learn so much about pace, patience, and timing that they turn what is normally a young man's game into a game that smart middle aged men can play.

Those observations always go over your head like Leon Spinks trying to grasp Astrophysics.

and some just didn't smoke or drink or whore around either.
( and therefore got to bed at a decent hour)

That is true as can be... Part of the wisdom that comes with age is knowing how to conduct your life in order to last the longest... They're married and settled down... They don't have to prove anything to anybody anymore... They're not anxious or upset by anything their opponent does anymore... They laugh at his goofy mental games.

They're relaxed... They know they can still use their skills to pull in substantial paychecks in their mid 40's with little risk to their health... Everybody is suggesting they don't quit because they're addicted to the limelight... That they don't quit because Boxing is all they know... Everybody has all kinds of reasons why older boxers keep going... The truth is: why get a 9 to 5 job when you can make as much or more boxing 3 or 4 times a year -- and training for 2 or 3 hours a day??

[Caractacus]

Wait a minute. There are examples of fighters winning fights winning fights in their late 30s and 40s? I don't think anyone knew about this

Everyone was clued in about this fact except you Alp...

But my post was not about that... My post explains why SOME boxers can win at a much more advanced age than most can... It's cuz they grow so much in wisdom and technical expertise -- and learn so much about pace, patience, and timing that they turn what is normally a young man's game into a game that smart middle aged men can play.

Those observations always go over your head like Leon Spinks trying to grasp Astrophysics.

and some just didn't smoke or drink or whore around either.
( and therefore got to bed at a decent hour)

Archie Moore referred to these bad habits as "Drugs,the Street and Whoremongering".

[Controversial]

After watching Haye at the weekend it shows how quick a fighter can decline

[Kalan]

Haye showed me he's like most guys.... He can't adjust his game to his age... Foreman noted that you can't play a young man's game when you're older... Moore told him to slow down and let the fight come to him... Patience is a virtue.

[Controversial]

Haye showed me he's like most guys.... He can't adjust his game to his age... Foreman noted that you can't play a young man's game when you're older... Moore told him to slow down and let the fight come to him... Patience is a virtue.

To be fair Haye was never a particularly technical or skilful fighter, he won most fights on speed and power. He doesn’t seem able to throw straight right hands anymore which I assume is down to the shoulder injury he had. Plus his legs are either shot or he still has an Achilles problem, whatever it is stopping him from getting his weight behind anything. I doubt a change in style or approach would make any difference to him.

[Kalan]

Yeah, you're right... Haye's legs are definitely shot... He can't get the old leverage on his present pins... And if he had to take 4 years off like Vitali did to rehab them he'd be done anyway... I hope he has sense enough to quit..