Will Price retire or not?

SteveDow · Post by **SteveDow** » 22 Jul 2015, 05:47

Obviously last Friday was a complete disaster for Price and was by far the worst of his 3 losses so far. He had no excuses this time about being hit with an awkward shot around the ear or about overtraining. He said he was in peak condition for this one and got blown away in 2 rounds by a decent but certainly not world class fighter.

So where do we think he will go from here? People talk about retirement but I cannot imagine he has earned enough to be in a position to do this comfortably and he does have a young family to look after. On the other hand if his confidence is so totally shot that he no longer feels comfortable stepping into the ring then for his own health he should retire regardless of financial issues.

The first thing I think he needs to do if he does carry on is to ditch Franny Smith for good. He had done this after the second Thompson loss and had skirted between different trainers including Adam Booth and Tommy Brooks. I'm not sure of the ins and outs of the trainer situation but it did baffle me that he has not decided to work with one of those rather than Franny Smith. Smith may be a decent amateur trainer but he has done nothing for Price's defence or it would seem mental state. Lennox Lewis alluded on twitter to Price not being willing to sacrifice enough to become a world class fighter. I am not sure exactly what he meant by that but it is likely that he meant that Price was not willing to take himself out of his comfort zone and base himself away from home for long enough to get genuine results. If this is true then Price only has himself to blame for the position he is in.

The other issue if he decides to carry on of course is how he can plot a realistic route back to Euro/world level. It is clear that they are not going to be able to put him in with a big puncher any time soon so what fights does he go for to get to where he wants to go? Would a stint in the USA help him as he may be able to get better quality sparring there and work on his defence? If he stays in Britain he is a bit betwixt and between as he is probably too good for fighters like McDermott, Sexton, Cornish etc but then likely not good enough for Joshua and Fury. Maybe a fight with Chisora to try to cash out a bit? Alternatively does he just become cannon fodder for up and coming British fighters like Joshua?

Lots for him to ponder.

Controversial · Post by **Controversial** » 22 Jul 2015, 05:58

I think he should retire, his punch resistence is atrocious. You can't train someone to have a good chin, its something you have or don't have, Price simply doesn't have a good one. He may well continue because of the money but he will end up getting hurt or just being a stepping stone for others.

jamesmcdonnell · Post by **jamesmcdonnell** » 22 Jul 2015, 06:00

Agreed, he just cannot take a shot - and if anything his punch resistance has worsened. There's no sense in continuing.

johnswan1 · Post by **johnswan1** » 22 Jul 2015, 06:02

He should probably retire for the sake of his health. I think he is a big enough name in that he will struggle to put bums on seats if he is fighting… well, bums. But I expect each time he steps up against a puncher he will be put to sleep again. He has a glass chin and questionable stamina – the two worst traits a heavyweight could have.

Rather than rebuild again, if he really wants to continue he needs to get a proper world class trainer, take some time to get quality sparring done behind closed doors, and then come back against a decent opponent. Who would be interested in seeing him blowing away more stiffs as he has spent the last couple of years doing. It won’t do anything for him when he steps up his opposition level and no amount of confidence will help him carry a punch.

Why did he leave Booth? Something about wanting to be close to his Nan if I remember correctly. If you’re not prepared to leave your home town to get the best training and are not a big enough name for the best to come to you, then you can’t expect to be the best outside of your home town.

What I like about Price is that he seems a really good guy and when he fights there are usually fireworks. I would love to see him in with Fury or Chisora. I think if he didn’t get one of them out of there early they’d both end up outlasting him. AJ would blow him away, but he should be able to get to the halfway point against Fury/Chisora.

Pricey will never be a world champ, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be in some fun fights against the best of Britain if he is willing to lower his ambitions and start taking control of his own Twitter account rather than have somebody else do it, as if he’s too big of a star to do it himself.

Gazmac81 · Post by **Gazmac81** » 22 Jul 2015, 06:02

it really depends if he enjoys boxing or not , if he still enjoys it then he should get targeting the British title get a good few pays doing that ( if someone is willing to promote him that is) and then maybe in couple years if he's been winning then take chance on big fight again , there's always Prize-fighter as well if that comes round again.

Career very much going like Audley harrisons , good earning potential but people slating you.

Good luck to him he seems a genuine guy

Controversial · Post by **Controversial** » 22 Jul 2015, 06:04

jamesmcdonnell wrote:Agreed, he just cannot take a shot - and if anything his punch resistance has worsened. There's no sense in continuing.

His confidence looks shot too, and it will be even worse now. When unbeaten he probably looked quite intimidating to opponents because of his sheer size and KO record, now he seems to fall over at the slightest punch his opponents will all fancy their chances against him.

Boxerbeetle · Post by **Boxerbeetle** » 22 Jul 2015, 06:10

He should definitely retire. The left hook from Teper didn't look particularly powerful, but still had him flat on his back for a few minutes. If Price isn't able to control the distance with his jab - which he's never been able to do as a pro - he's virtually guaranteed a ko loss anytime he faces even B level fighters.

SteveDow · Post by **SteveDow** » 22 Jul 2015, 06:19

Controversial wrote:I think he should retire, his punch resistence is atrocious. You can't train someone to have a good chin, its something you have or don't have, Price simply doesn't have a good one. He may well continue because of the money but he will end up getting hurt or just being a stepping stone for others.

Other fighters have had poor chins and bad defeats though and come back to have success. Enzo Maccarinelli is one who after numerous KO losses looked finished and that had a bit of a revival recently including a world title shot. Amir Khan was written off after the Prescott loss and came back to win a world title (I appreciate his skill set is better than Price's). Even Audley won a European title and got a world title shot.

keirw · Post by **keirw** » 22 Jul 2015, 06:42

If he is willing to change trainer and learn how to jab properly and to pace himself over twelve rounds he may get himself back into contention for another EBU shot in 12-18 months time.
But if he isn't willing to make the necessary changes, he will have to accept that he is domestic level.

After all that's happened over the past few years, I wouldn't be surprised if he is sick of the sport and knocks it on the head and looks for other forms of income.

Fuzzy Warbles · Post by **Fuzzy Warbles** » 22 Jul 2015, 07:40

jamesmcdonnell wrote:Agreed, he just cannot take a shot .

He caught a few good cracks in the first and managed to stay upright so I don't think his chin is THAT bad. His biggest mistake on Friday was not throwing anything back to get the Teper's respect. If Price had thrown a decent jab (WHY is his jab so sh*te?) and whacked a few rights to the body (you could have parked a car in the space under Teper's elbows) Teper wouldn't have been able to get in range as easily and the outcome could have been completely different.

forcefraser · Post by **forcefraser** » 22 Jul 2015, 07:59

A heavyweight with a total Lock of self confidence in his own ability is not a good thing.

As others have mentioned, his jab is just a paw thrown out With no intent or malice. He fights Down to his opponents height instead of using his advantages to keep them at arms length.

He can certainly bang, but let`s be honest, he doesn`t have it in him to mix it with roughouses as a pro.

Nice fella from what i have seen in interviews. I`d like to see him Call it a day.

jamesmcdonnell · Post by **jamesmcdonnell** » 22 Jul 2015, 08:07

Fuzzy Warbles wrote:
jamesmcdonnell wrote:Agreed, he just cannot take a shot .
He caught a few good cracks in the first and managed to stay upright so I don't think his chin is THAT bad. His biggest mistake on Friday was not throwing anything back to get the Teper's respect. If Price had thrown a decent jab (WHY is his jab so sh*te?) and whacked a few rights to the body (you could have parked a car in the space under Teper's elbows) Teper wouldn't have been able to get in range as easily and the outcome could have been completely different.

They were arm punches he caught early on - he shouldn't be going over from those. The one which put him over was hardly a howitzer was it?

I think Price is too tentative to extend the jab fully - it looks frigging stupid a man that size pawing away like a bear in a tickling contest.

Fuzzy Warbles · Post by **Fuzzy Warbles** » 22 Jul 2015, 08:11

Frustrates the hell out of me, he must have an 80" reach and going by how hard he punches with the right his jab could be/should be really powerful one, total waste.

bripez · Post by **bripez** » 22 Jul 2015, 08:23

SteveDow wrote:
Controversial wrote:I think he should retire, his punch resistence is atrocious. You can't train someone to have a good chin, its something you have or don't have, Price simply doesn't have a good one. He may well continue because of the money but he will end up getting hurt or just being a stepping stone for others.
Other fighters have had poor chins and bad defeats though and come back to have success. Enzo Maccarinelli is one who after numerous KO losses looked finished and that had a bit of a revival recently including a world title shot. Amir Khan was written off after the Prescott loss and came back to win a world title (I appreciate his skill set is better than Price's). Even Audley won a European title and got a world title shot.

The difference is that Enzo and Khan can both give it and take it. they both like a row and can come back in a see-saw fight.

The problem is that Price just doesn't like getting hit. Every fight where he has been put under pressure he folds and gets knocked out.

Regarding the Audley comment, don't believe the spin - his European title was against Sprott and was effectively a Southern Area title fight, and his World title was against Haye in effectively a British title fight.

Stuarty · Post by **Stuarty** » 22 Jul 2015, 08:28

I read somewhere he has a trade. He's probably got more than enough cash to start up a wee business and earn some money doing punditry for someone. I'd hate to see him get hurt proper. He's in fantastic shape and it's obviously a mental barrier with him so unless he can get that rectified them he has to hang em up.

palooka · Post by **palooka** » 22 Jul 2015, 08:33

He's kind of a heavyweight Paul Ryan, very powerful but just not got the punch resistance. Like Ryan, Price could continue and clean up on people at area level but anyone better will just know that they're in with a good shout. He could retire while he's had little damage but iif he continues I can't see him losing any bout on points, he'll win 2 or 3 then get chinned again.

Mimmy · Post by **Mimmy** » 22 Jul 2015, 08:33

David Price found his level pretty quickly and really imo he maybe should have not rematched Johnson in his very next fight after getting beat by him. That should have told him he moved up too quickly. Wins against Fraudley and Skelton where not tough fights and that opposition was many rungs below Johnson. The rematch was way too soon as there was obviously confidence issues and I think thats whats been the downfall, confidence. He also has a poor chin it seems so I cannot see him profressing to the top if he cannot withstand a punch.

I think he should retire as there is no where upwards to go. Why bother boing back down the hill to start from the beginning if he cant take a punch.

SteveDow · Post by **SteveDow** » 22 Jul 2015, 08:56

bripez wrote:
SteveDow wrote:
Controversial wrote:I think he should retire, his punch resistence is atrocious. You can't train someone to have a good chin, its something you have or don't have, Price simply doesn't have a good one. He may well continue because of the money but he will end up getting hurt or just being a stepping stone for others.
Other fighters have had poor chins and bad defeats though and come back to have success. Enzo Maccarinelli is one who after numerous KO losses looked finished and that had a bit of a revival recently including a world title shot. Amir Khan was written off after the Prescott loss and came back to win a world title (I appreciate his skill set is better than Price's). Even Audley won a European title and got a world title shot.
The difference is that Enzo and Khan can both give it and take it. they both like a row and can come back in a see-saw fight.

The problem is that Price just doesn't like getting hit. Every fight where he has been put under pressure he folds and gets knocked out.

Regarding the Audley comment, don't believe the spin - his European title was against Sprott and was effectively a Southern Area title fight, and his World title was against Haye in effectively a British title fight.

That's why he needs to improve his defence to prevent him taking so much. My point was more that just having a poor chin is not of itself an absolute disaster. You just need to learn how to protect it better.

Finn · Post by **Finn** » 22 Jul 2015, 09:13

Saw the Ifilm London post klitschko v fury press conference interview with Tyson fury where they asked him about David price. He showed quite a lot of humility and said the stuff on Facebook that has been posted from his account was someone who has access to it and he doesn't post on there anymore as its effectively been hacked - he went on to say he just felt sorry for price. Which I think is how most feel about him.

The reality is he isn't going to make at a high level so may as well retire.

TopGun · Post by **TopGun** » 22 Jul 2015, 09:15

No chance of him retiring. Realistically what will he do? He cannot become a journeyman/gatekeeper as he is still too dangerous. He will want to rebuild and give it another shot. I still think he can get better with the right guidance.

danamba7 · Post by **danamba7** » 22 Jul 2015, 09:28

I think he probably should retire. It's not just his chin, it's his defense and his confidence is completely shot so his offence doesn't seem what it once was. At 32, there just seems to be too many problems to fix.

Controversial · Post by **Controversial** » 22 Jul 2015, 09:41

SteveDow wrote:
Controversial wrote:I think he should retire, his punch resistence is atrocious. You can't train someone to have a good chin, its something you have or don't have, Price simply doesn't have a good one. He may well continue because of the money but he will end up getting hurt or just being a stepping stone for others.
Other fighters have had poor chins and bad defeats though and come back to have success. Enzo Maccarinelli is one who after numerous KO losses looked finished and that had a bit of a revival recently including a world title shot. Amir Khan was written off after the Prescott loss and came back to win a world title (I appreciate his skill set is better than Price's). Even Audley won a European title and got a world title shot.

HIs chin is worse than those two, all Price's defeats have been pretty poor to be honest and more importantly he just lacks others things too like confidence and stamina.

rhino222 · Post by **rhino222** » 22 Jul 2015, 10:00

Hang em up David....please

leejonesjnr · Post by **leejonesjnr** » 22 Jul 2015, 10:18

I think he will either drop down a few levels and take another run or possibly take one last fight against Fury, assuming that Fury loses to Wlad (which I believe is as certain as can be in boxing).

danamba7 · Post by **danamba7** » 22 Jul 2015, 10:20

leejonesjnr wrote:I think he will either drop down a few levels and take another run or possibly take one last fight against Fury, assuming that Fury loses to Wlad (which I believe is as certain as can be in boxing).

Crazy to think pre Thompson, this fight would have been 60/40 in Price's favour in terms of fan predictions. If it happened now it would be more like 95/5 in Furys favour with the 5% being Price's big right hand.