YOUNGUNS WITH A CHANCE

I've blathered on and on about how the sport is aging like never before and how the younguns just aren't driving the old guys into retirement like they always have etc

But let's look at another question. What under 30's have a chance at greatness. I mean real, geeeze, ten years from now there will be a movement to put them In Ninja's Immortals greatness?

Here are some candidates in no order:

Yoriorkis Gamboa-WHY-Blazing handpseed, exceptional athleticism, unbridled confidence, a proven ability and willingness to learn and a division with 6-7 very good fighters to defeat. CHALLENGES-He is already 28 and hasn't done much by the standards of all-time greatness. He has awful reach which will limit him going heavier and his technique, though vastly improved, must develop further. MY GUESS-He'll have to keep fighting VERY frequently by today's standards. His next fight will be his first in six months. If he only has 10-12 fights over the next five years he probably can't get there. But if he keeps improving technically, fights 3-4 times a year so he has 20ish fights over the next five years and younguns like Mikey Garcia and Abner Mares and Wilfredo Vasquez Junior come along to provide the core of a next generation after Gamboa works his way through the present? It's possible. Going to be a lot of fun.

Timothy Bradley-WHY-Mostly attitude and the fighters around him. Bradley WANTS to be great and that counts for a lot. He is always in shape and seemingly tries to fight the best. CHALLENGES-I'm just not sure he is a special athlete. He LOOKS good, but he isn't explosive so if he gets behind it is hard to make up ground. It takes a VERY special boxer too succeed without an equalizer. MY GUESS-Bradley might already be as good as he is going to get. He will have a fine career but I am just not persuaded the guy is special.

Amir Kahn-WHY-I think this guy IS a special athlete and he has enough guys around him to build a hell of a resume. Freddie Roach gives him an enormous advantage. Another guy who has shown a willingness to work to improve. CHALLENGES-He is untested. What I mean by that is he's been in with guys he has physically overpowered, or he got flattened in one. He hasn't yet been in that grinding "Oh crap it's only the sixth round do I really want to go back out there" kind of fight. He seems to have learned to protect his chin, but one wonders whether that natural vulnerability will show itself again. MY GUESS-This is another guy who I think WANTS to be great. Being 23 he has perhaps ten good years in front of him or 25-30 fights to build a resume. One issue will be is are there a bunch of 17 year olds today who will become threatening 140's and 147's in five years to provide Kahn with the next generation of challenges. No real way to know. Keep an eye on this guy too.

Juan Manuel Lopez-WHY-Tough guy, good punch, already has a handful of quality wins and like Gamboa has a wealth of opportunity in and around the division. CHALLENGES-Man the guy gets hit A LOT and he seems to have plateaued technically. He may be another guy who is already as good as he is going to be. MY GUESS-JuanMa is going to be great fun as long as he lasts, I just wonder how long that will be the way the guy gets hit. In my view he will have to have a Chavez/Chuvalo/Fulmer kind of chin in order to sustain excellence long enough to earn ATG status. Now he's only 27. If he makes another technical jump defensively I could revise my opinion.

Andre Ward-WHY-Has made just gigantic leaps in the last year as a fighter. Confident, big for his division, excellent ring IQ and again, some good names around him to build a resume on. CHALLENGES-He has got to stay healthy and if the knee is a long term problem...He has a predatory instinct without the predator's big bite. He's only a good puncher. But he's a good enough boxer that I don't think that will limit him the way it will Tim Bradley. Will he fight often enough? MY GUESS-Andre Ward has a real chance to get there if he fights often enough. Like Amir Kahn, he needs there to be a series of 16-17 year olds who will grow into fine light heavyweights to provide competition for the latter part of his career.

Chad Dawson-WHY-It was only one fight. If Dawson learns from it he is by far the best athlete at 175. CHALLENGES-Attitude. Can he learn or is he what he is? We'll know in the next year. MY GUESS-I suspect the guy just isn't very smart in the ring. If I'm right it's a showstopper.

Nonito Donaire-WHY-Tall, long, powerful, skilled and surrounded by good fighters. CHALLENGES-Actually FIGHTING the good fighters. It has now been three freaking years since Vic Darchynian and he has done NOTHING to further himself since. MY GUESS-If he doesn't get there he will have no one to blame but himself. Cazares, Nashiro, Narvaez, Montiel, Moreno, Hawsegawa are all within three pounds of him. No excuses. Start knocking these guys off.
There are also some good young 112's who likely will grow into 115's for later.

Anselmo Moreno-WHY-Fleet afoot, agile and smooth. Lefty. Only 25 and already has a series of very good wins. He is in a loaded area in the sport and he will go ANYWHERE to fight. CHALLENGES-This guy is a bigger, less technically sound Iron Boy. He just doesn't punch at all and it is because he is always on his bike. MY GUESS-Just not enough firepower to hold off the true studs. He'd have to be another Sweet Pea.

I think one of the real challenges facing all these guys is a bunch of them have fewer fights than they are years old. If the pace falls soon to only 2 fights a year I think it becomes unlikely any of them can make it. I just don't think given today's overall lack of depth in the sport, one can put enough steam into a resume in 35-40 fights to become a Ninja Immortal.

So where am I wrong and who have I forgotten? Make a case!

Rather than commend you on the guys you included or offer other names, I would like to commend you on a guy you didn't include: ANDRE BERTO.

abner mares should be on that list too. i think that he will be pretty good in the future.

Andre Ward will be a HOFer 1 day.

hard for"young guns"nowadays to qualify for greatness.they don't fight often enough,too many titles mean they don't face the competition they need & probably most of all,as fans our expectations of what makes a fighter great,today,is diluted.adversity,coming back from defeat or the brink of,winning against the odds are all little things we consider,but more so today than before,titlists want negotions in their favour.ring size,gloves,time off weigh-in etc.in the"good ole days"money was main consideration.they fought to live & lived to fight.unlike today.....THUD(THAT'S JUST ME JUMPING OFF MY SOAPBOX!

Ward has the best chance but he has to get throught the rest of the super 6 then he has to beat Bute. WOW that is a tough tough road he has. Cant wait to see it.

captainanddew wrote:

Rather than commend you on the guys you included or offer other names, I would like to commend you on a guy you didn't include: ANDRE BERTO.

LOL (pats self on back)

soonermark890 wrote:

Ward has the best chance but he has to get throught the rest of the super 6 then he has to beat Bute. WOW that is a tough tough road he has. Cant wait to see it.

Kinda need that to reach the status I'm talking about. Man he and Bute would be fun, wouldn't it?

powerpuncher wrote:

abner mares should be on that list too. i think that he will be pretty good in the future.

I only left him off because I like him enough I didn't think I was being objective.

marbleheadmaui wrote:

soonermark890 wrote:

Ward has the best chance but he has to get throught the rest of the super 6 then he has to beat Bute. WOW that is a tough tough road he has. Cant wait to see it.

Kinda need that to reach the status I'm talking about. Man he and Bute would be fun, wouldn't it?

IMO its the biggest fight out there right now other than the obvious.

I think I agree with all of them you put. I do think Khan and Ward are the 2 to look at. Being from the St. Louis area, I would include Alexander. I believe he has the physical tools that Bradley seems to lack, is willing to fight the best and go out there and win the last round by digging deep. The challenge for him is to get MUCH better technically and fast. If he cant avoid the jab from Kotelnik, he will be in trouble against the superior athletes. I still think he gives Bradley a fight though because he will be the most talented guy Bradley stepped in there with. The next fight really does put Alexander on a path to greatness or a path to a fine but altogether not noteworthy career.

[quote="UBeeg9cats"]I think I agree with all of them you put. I do think Khan and Ward are the 2 to look at. Being from the St. Louis area, I would include Alexander. I believe he has the physical tools that Bradley seems to lack, is willing to fight the best and go out there and win the last round by digging deep. The challenge for him is to get MUCH better technically and fast. If he cant avoid the jab from Kotelnik, he will be in trouble against the superior athletes. I still think he gives Bradley a fight though because he will be the most talented guy Bradley stepped in there with. The next fight really does put Alexander on a path to greatness or a path to a fine but altogether not noteworthy career.[/quote]

Nice post and good point.

All about Andre Ward... but I'm biased being from the Bay Area.

Despite my bias, I just think he has the right attitude to be a great fighter. He works hard, lives a clean life, and gives his all inside the ring. I feel like Ward is a breath of fresh air for boxing. Gentleman outside the ring, and lets his fists do his talking inside the ring.

WARD NATION!!!!

marble well thought out..alexander has to be on the list and the bradley fight indeed is a test..theres much he needs to improve on though or his star could fade fast if improvements arent made.

alexander is a good one dmar. although i didnt think he looked great in his last fight, he is still a good young fighter.

Jorge Linares

Jose bevides

SlickMoneyXL wrote:

Jorge Linares

Good call! I'm not nearly as high on him as others but he's what 25-26 and there seem to be good guys around him.

hardcoreBEE24 wrote:

Jose bevides

That's the kid Roach has that guys are so high on?

marbleheadmaui wrote:

hardcoreBEE24 wrote:

Jose bevides

That's the kid Roach has that guys are so high on?

That's him. Excuse the spelling. Its Benevides. I also like Demitrius Andrade. These guys are prospects I know. They're the two who Im most excited about. Im going to check out Saddam Ali at his gym in Bay Ridge Bk. Ill give a full report on him. Im in Maui right now Btw.

hardcoreBEE24 wrote:

marbleheadmaui wrote:

hardcoreBEE24 wrote:

Jose bevides

That's the kid Roach has that guys are so high on?

That's him. Excuse the spelling. Its Benevides. I also like Demitrius Andrade. These guys are prospects I know. They're the two who Im most excited about. Im going to check out Saddam Ali at his gym in Bay Ridge Bk. Ill give a full report on him. Im in Maui right now Btw.

C'mon, where?

Maui ocean club in Lahaina. Just spent a week in Ko Olina Ohau. Literaly checked in a half hour ago. This place is beautiful.

hardcoreBEE24 wrote:

Maui ocean club in Lahaina. Just spent a week in Ko Olina Ohau. Literaly checked in a half hour ago. This place is beautiful.

I'm on the other side of the island. Hot enough for you up there?

marbleheadmaui wrote:

hardcoreBEE24 wrote:

Maui ocean club in Lahaina. Just spent a week in Ko Olina Ohau. Literaly checked in a half hour ago. This place is beautiful.

I'm on the other side of the island. Hot enough for you up there?

i love the heat better than rain. Im on the ocean. Gonna go eat with the wife and go swimming. Talk to you later.

I'm obligated to go Ward and Linares. I'm on the Benavidez bandwagon too (just too many tools and too good of a situation to not succeed).

I'll throw out Carlos Ivan Velasquez. He's my guy that no one else has claimed yet that will be a star.