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Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 18 Feb 2023, 12:48
by goose 5
Benitez was sparring with grown men from the time he was 13 years old and didn't have great defense at that stage so he took beatings. The famed matchmaker Johnny Bos used to say it's no surprise at all that Benitez became so damaged.
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 18 Feb 2023, 20:02
by hhaehre
goose 5 wrote: ↑18 Feb 2023, 12:48
Benitez was sparring with grown men from the time he was 13 years old and didn't have great defense at that stage so he took beatings. The famed matchmaker Johnny Bos used to say it's no surprise at all that Benitez became so damaged.
It's also a misconception that you don't take punches if you have a great defence. All the amateur fights, all the sparring and then the pro fights against some of the best fighters in the world, it all adds up.
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 18 Feb 2023, 21:02
by margaret thatcher
ya true, even defensive geniuses will get hit with dozens of punches in most bouts, they may not be homeruns but they add up
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 15 Mar 2023, 16:58
by Riddick Bowie
Has everyone forgot Benitez boxing years after his prime and suffering hideous KOs against the likes of Matthew Hilton?
I'm surprised how many people are blaming boxing for Bugner's dementia. He boxed till 50 and showed literally no ill effects from fighting. You can see him interviewed at nearly 70 and he's a huge, upright, cogent and clear-eyed brute with not even a hint of a slur. George Chuvalo was a powerhouse through his 70s and has only declined since turning 80. 80!! You would have thought brain damage would have showed up a little earlier, no? At what point does it simply become old age? There's plenty of people in their 70s and 80s with dementia who never took a punch.
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 15 Mar 2023, 17:04
by margaret thatcher
it doesn't surprise me in the slightest people would connect his career of being punched in the head thousands of times to him developing dementia. boxing is awful for the brain
although he is at an age where you start to see it in people who havent boxed at all
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 15 Mar 2023, 18:14
by Riddick Bowie
Those of us capable of noticing patterns notice that boxers damaged by boxing tend to show evidence of damage decades before they turn 70 or 80.
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 15 Mar 2023, 18:18
by margaret thatcher
well you'd also think someone so capable of noticing patterns would also notice the pattern of many people instantly connecting boxing/being punches thousands of times in the head with brain injuries and ailments, then it would be no surprise at all that it's being raised in this case too
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 15 Mar 2023, 18:26
by Riddick Bowie
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 15 Mar 2023, 21:06
by franciscojavier
writehooks wrote: ↑12 Feb 2023, 15:42
George Chuvalo is in the same situation in a Toronto nursing home. The Canadian icon, who turned 85 last September, has no recollection of who he is or what he accomplished. While no longer able to walk more than a few steps at a time, he's relatively content in a facility where he's well cared for and the staff absolutely adores him.
It’s really sad to hear about things like that, especially fighters who well into their 60’s and 70’s were known for retaining their mental sharpness declining suddenly all at once. I read a book last month that mentioned something similar happened to Floyd Patterson. Boxers risk the ultimate price everytime they step in the ring and that’s why I show them all the respect in the world.
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 16 Mar 2023, 09:53
by pound per pound
Says good bye to a good contender
May the last days of his life be joyful.
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 20 Mar 2023, 05:57
by gp.
Billy Tully wrote: ↑15 Mar 2023, 16:58
Has everyone forgot Benitez boxing years after his prime and suffering hideous KOs against the likes of Matthew Hilton?
I'm surprised how many people are blaming boxing for Bugner's dementia. He boxed till 50 and showed literally no ill effects from fighting. You can see him interviewed at nearly 70 and he's a huge, upright, cogent and clear-eyed brute with not even a hint of a slur. George Chuvalo was a powerhouse through his 70s and has only declined since turning 80. 80!! You would have thought brain damage would have showed up a little earlier, no? At what point does it simply become old age? There's plenty of people in their 70s and 80s with dementia who never took a punch.
The other argument is, even if it is due to boxing, is it worth that price? What would Joe Bugner or Chuvalo's life have been like without being boxers? They got their 70 or 80 years without problems, which is as much as many people get anyway. Is losing a few years in your 80s in exchange for an enhanced life up to that point really so much of a downside that it shouldnt be a choice for the individual? I know which way I would go.
Re: Joe Bugner in care home
Posted: 20 Mar 2023, 08:23
by Controversial
gp. wrote: ↑20 Mar 2023, 05:57
Billy Tully wrote: ↑15 Mar 2023, 16:58
Has everyone forgot Benitez boxing years after his prime and suffering hideous KOs against the likes of Matthew Hilton?
I'm surprised how many people are blaming boxing for Bugner's dementia. He boxed till 50 and showed literally no ill effects from fighting. You can see him interviewed at nearly 70 and he's a huge, upright, cogent and clear-eyed brute with not even a hint of a slur. George Chuvalo was a powerhouse through his 70s and has only declined since turning 80. 80!! You would have thought brain damage would have showed up a little earlier, no? At what point does it simply become old age? There's plenty of people in their 70s and 80s with dementia who never took a punch.
The other argument is, even if it is due to boxing, is it worth that price? What would Joe Bugner or Chuvalo's life have been like without being boxers? They got their 70 or 80 years without problems, which is as much as many people get anyway. Is losing a few years in your 80s in exchange for an enhanced life up to that point really so much of a downside that it shouldnt be a choice for the individual? I know which way I would go.
You could argue that. Remember though some fighters start suffering a lot younger than 70 or 80. The problem is you don't hear about many of these guys after they've retired but their lives go into a downward spiral with things likely linked to brain trauma, fighters like Riddick Bowe, Meldrick Taylor and Jermaine Taylor. We have Herol Graham really suffering with mental health issues now, these guys were relatively young. Some of these issues are there but minor to start with, it can take years for them to get bad, it can be a slow decline.
