BoxRec

Who are your fighters that maybe you once hated and now like, or used to like and now hate. Or just fighters you thought were no good but can now see they were better than you gave them credit for?

In more recent times I have yoyo'd in my opinion of Amir Khan, initially thought he was just an Olympic hype, then totally dismissed him when he got beat by Prescott, but then I came around to appreciating his ability when he beat Maidana. Even though I think his chin is, and will always be his downfall, I can now see he has good ability.

So who have you changed your mind on?

I really liked Wlad when he first came out, seek and destroy guy with beautiful combos and vicious power. Now....not.

Never used to like Chris Eubank or Naseem Hamed as a kid, but now appreciate how good they were. Especially the heary that Eubank had.

I always cheered against Ray Mancini. Now I find him to be greatly underrated.

Larry Holmes , I disliked him immensely as a kid but I have grow to realize Larry was one of The best heavies ever n would even give the Young Ali probs

Never liked DLH. Thought he was very overhyped and overrated when he was fighting. Now I think he was better than he was given credit for and I respect that he pretty much wasn't scared to fight anybody. There are only one or two fighters in his prime you can argue he was wary of fighting. And his left hook and jab were excellent.

James Toney used to be one of my most hated fighters, now he's one of my all time favorite fighters.

Carl Froch I didn't like much at all for the longest time, but I've come to respect him a great deal.

Oscar Larios. Rooted against him v. Jorrin I, but thought he got a raw deal in that fight. Became a fan for life in Vazquez II.
Calzaghe. Thought he was sheltered. Then he schooled Lacy.

Forgot Lewis. Wasn't big on him at first but grew to appreciate him as his reign went on.

Larry Holmes, Gene Tunney and Lennox Lewis

I was once convinced that Ed Mahone was going to storm to the top.

Did that ever happen? Is it going to happen? Maybe he'll make a comeback?

Well if not, then I've changed my mind on him.

Rover wrote: Calzaghe. Thought he was sheltered. Then he schooled Lacy.

He absolutely was sheltered, it just turned out he was easily good enough not to be.

HomicideHenry wrote:Gene Tunney

How so?

IKSRTFO wrote:Never liked DLH. Thought he was very overhyped and overrated when he was fighting. Now I think he was better than he was given credit for and I respect that he pretty much wasn't scared to fight anybody. There are only one or two fighters in his prime you can argue he was wary of fighting. And his left hook and jab were excellent.

Agree on all of this...

gilgamesh wrote:
Carl Froch I didn't like much at all for the longest time, but I've come to respect him a great deal.

First few times I saw him I thought...he doesn't hit as hard as he thinks and he's not that good...

From the Pascal fight onwards his achievements have been amazing.

Ezzard wrote:

gilgamesh wrote:
Carl Froch I didn't like much at all for the longest time, but I've come to respect him a great deal.

First few times I saw him I thought...he doesn't hit as hard as he thinks and he's not that good...

From the Pascal fight onwards his achievements have been amazing.

I still often wonder how he is where he is. He's stopped a couple of guys at the very top level, but not many. Anyway, I wasn't a big fan at all, seemed all mouth and no skills. But he's took on everyone and clearly loves a scrap. Hard to dislike, although I find it best if I avoid his interviews.

BoxBuzz wrote:I was once convinced that Ed Mahone was going to storm to the top.

Did that ever happen? Is it going to happen? Maybe he'll make a comeback?

Well if not, then I've changed my mind on him.

No, no, hopefully not.

SamWise72 wrote:

Rover wrote: Calzaghe. Thought he was sheltered. Then he schooled Lacy.

He absolutely was sheltered, it just turned out he was easily good enough not to be.

To clarify: I thought he was sheltered because he wasn't that good.

For me, Vernon "The Viper" Forrest. I did not pay much attention to him coming up and it seemed like he burst onto the scene. He had what, almost 40 fights before challenging Mosley? Anyways, I was a huge Mosley fan and thought he was damn near unbeatable after his decisive victory over De La Hoya. Mosley was so dominant at 135 and everything seemed to carry over to 147. Going into his fight his fight with Forrest I did not think much of the fact that Forrest beat Mosley in the amateurs, we all know there is a significant difference. After watching Forrest outbox Shane the way he did, I did not like him from then on. I was especially happy that he got KO`d by Mayorga.

Recently however, I have been watching his fights at 147 and I must say, he was very talented and had a style which would give many people problems. A 6`0" tall Welterweight with a solid amateur pedigree, good handspeed, a good jab, good power, a good chin, solid fundamentals, good defense, quick feet, can accurately gauge distance, and had an inside game to boot, is usually an ideal fighter for me. I wish he would have made a mark earlier but it seems like not many people wanted to risk fighting him.

Il Duce wrote:Hector Thompson,,,,,,,,,'The Brisbane Bomber'

When you look at his record, he defeated many World Class Fighters.

Too bad he came along when there was Roberto Duran and Antonio Cervantes.

Had he fought Ishimatsu 'Guts' Suzuki or Esteban De Jesus he may have won a Lightweight World Title,
or a Light-Welterweight Title had he fought Perico Fernandez.

Why, and when, did you not like Hector?