Successful boxers with no amateur background?

[HelpYouFall]

I'm not sure and I'm too lazy to Google, but didn't Algieri have a kickboxing instead of an amateur background?

 

[Deleted member 363827]

Basically almost all Thai ATGs.

Khaosai Galaxy
Veeraphol Sahaprom
Samart Payakaroon
Srisaket Sor Rungvisai
Saensak Muangsurin
etc

 

[Woldog]

Gabe Rosado only had 11 amateur fights before he went pro.

 

[treelo]

Tyson went to the olympics. Less than 40 or not, that's a big ammy experience

Tyson got beat at the qualifiers by Biggs i believe, so never went near the olympics

 

[Queen B]

i think tyson had less than 40, liston had limited experience too i've heard. It seems to have mixed results, Liston never was taught a lot of things, experience itself is so important, not skillwise, situation wise. I was watching a bit of the davey moore/duran fight the other day and I thought of how full of confidence Moore looked, and he always looked that way before the duran fight and after it he was shot. He had talent of course, just not enough seasoning or experience to deal with Duran who happened to put on one of his best performances. Usually doesn't work to cut corners like that, moore had like 9 fights before he won the title, leon spinks was also not served by making a name for himself with such limited pro experience, he became a stepping stone after the second ali fight.

Tyson never did Olympics, but 40 fights is a lot of fights for a heavyweight

 

[Queen B]

Basically almost all Thai ATGs.

Khaosai Galaxy
Veeraphol Sahaprom
Samart Payakaroon
Srisaket Sor Rungvisai
Saensak Muangsurin
etc

That's only because there's no real amateur fighting in Thailand. That's why you hear or muay Thai guys with 250+ pro fights

 

[Deleted member 363827]

That's only because there's no real amateur fighting in Thailand. That's why you hear or muay Thai guys with 250+ pro fights

That is just plain wrong. Thailand consistently produced top amateurs since early 1960s, culminating in their boxers winning olympics medals since the 1976 Olympics.
Notable medalists who went to win world title include the like of Payao Poonrat and Amnat Ruenrong.

Even in muay thai, Thailand amateur scene is flourishing especially for female fighters.

 

[mozfonky]

Tyson went to the olympics. Less than 40 or not, that's a big ammy experience

it was natural talent, so much talent that he missed a lot of the dings and bumps that all fighters get, that came back to haunt him later. People forget but holyfield admitted to biting someone as an ammie because he was losing, that's the place to make those kinds of mistakes, not the pros. Tyson was still a freak of nature and one of the great natural talents, sometimes prodigies have problems the average eye would miss.

 

[mozfonky]

That is just plain wrong. Thailand consistently produced top amateurs since early 1960s, culminating in their boxers winning olympics medals since the 1976 Olympics.
Notable medalists who went to win world title include the like of Payao Poonrat and Amnat Ruenrong.

Even in muay thai, Thailand amateur scene is flourishing especially for female fighters.

as brutal as the sport is, i can't see 250 real fights at least not the kind i've seen. maybe the most brutal fighting sport in the world, a place where life is cheap and no one cares, kind of like the us maybe a hundred years ago.

 

[Deleted member 363827]

as brutal as the sport is, i can't see 250 real fights at least not the kind i've seen. maybe the most brutal fighting sport in the world, a place where life is cheap and no one cares, kind of like the us maybe a hundred years ago.

It is more like Golden Age of boxing from 1920s to 1950s that we love. The era that everyone fights everyone
on weekly basis without ducking along a racial line.

 

[mozfonky]

It is more like Golden Age of boxing from 1920s to 1950s that we love. The era that everyone fights everyone
on weekly basis without ducking along a racial line.

i don't know, accounts of 50 rounds, barenuckles, make todays guys all look like babies but the sport ain't never been easy.

 

[Yodsanan]

as brutal as the sport is, i can't see 250 real fights at least not the kind i've seen.

starting fighting professional when you are 10 years old also helps racking up 250+ fights.

 

[mozfonky]

starting fighting professional when you are 10 years old also helps racking up 250+ fights.

you're missing my point, the brutality of fighting, a sport where one fight leaves many men shot, i just don't see how something as physical as muay thai would be done. I'm not saying it doesn't happen but those guys must live short lives afterwards.

 

[aries]

you're missing my point, the brutality of fighting, a sport where one fight leaves many men shot, i just don't see how something as physical as muay thai would be done. I'm not saying it doesn't happen but those guys must live short lives afterwards.

A lot of Muay Thai fighters are shot when they retire in their early twenties. It takes it's toll on their bodies. Some of the big names keep going until they hit their 30's but they are pretty rare.

 

[Yodsanan]

you're missing my point, the brutality of fighting, a sport where one fight leaves many men shot, i just don't see how something as physical as muay thai would be done. I'm not saying it doesn't happen but those guys must live short lives afterwards.

most thais retire when they are 25-30, and most seem to do quite fine afterwards.

 

[mozfonky]

most thais retire when they are 25-30, and most seem to do quite fine afterwards.

i really wouldn't know, not a huge fan, what i've seen it's about the most brutal fighting sport and that's saying a lot because they all are brutal in their own ways. I've also heard stories about things in asia for fighters, even in the onefc stuff that sound like fighters are easy to exploit without any of the checks and balances we have.

 

[mozfonky]

A lot of Muay Thai fighters are shot when they retire in their early twenties. It takes it's toll on their bodies. Some of the big names keep going until they hit their 30's but they are pretty rare.

if you've never taken a full on kick to the thigh or a shin to the face, you won't really have any inkling of how destructive the sport can be. and, i use a lot of the techniques, have used them in real fights, i'm a little guy but i've brought down some big guys with knees and elbows, i actually thought i killed someone once, the shit is truly deadly which is good or bad depending how you want to look at it but the point of sport isn't to killl intentionally, it's to maybe imitate or mimick death but not really be death. Defeat/death,winning/life.

 

[TankAbbott4Eva]

Larry Holmes was a sparring partner with Ali and I want to say Foreman and maybe Frazier. Ali I know for sure. Larry Holmes was very cognizant of his talents before he won a championship belt. In interviews, he has said that he just had to wait for the top guys just to slip a little and he would be the champion.

My favorite story about Holmes sparring is that one day Larry was getting all righteous and talking about how he should be the champ since he was getting the best of Ali in sparring. Ali hearing this took sparring to the next level against the wide eyed young Holmes and showed him who was the champ.

From video I have seen, I think almost anyone of note would dominate Ali in sparring. It is like he couldn't be bothered to get worked up and was content with lesser fighters putting leather on him.

I think that may be the case with a few great fighters, from MMA Jon Jones is like this apparently, looks average in the gym but is more or less GOAT on the main stage.

 

[Yodsanan]

i really wouldn't know, not a huge fan, what i've seen it's about the most brutal fighting sport and that's saying a lot because they all are brutal in their own ways. I've also heard stories about things in asia for fighters, even in the onefc stuff that sound like fighters are easy to exploit without any of the checks and balances we have.

subjective. Many top fighters are muay fimeus. Technical evasive fighters that don't take much dmg. Saenchai for example has only been knocked out once in 360 fights. also head hunting isn't as prevalent as in mma and boxing, and fighters seem to get less punch drunk.

 

[ironfist05]

That's only because there's no real amateur fighting in Thailand. That's why you hear or muay Thai guys with 250+ pro fights

Ichibang has it covered, but that's not at all true. Thailand has more medals than Ukraine and Uzbekistan, and more golds than South Korea (which used to be a figurative amateur boxing heavyweight)