Would this Max beat the Dustin that beat him in 2019? And is he a better than in 2019?

[Goat Poster]

I really don't think he would have beaten 2019 Dustin and I have big, big doubts that Max is better now.

Max was really close to go out inside 10. I think a 6 years younger Dustin would have taken him out...

I also doubt that Max is better. Probably has more power but besides the Ilia fight he was never as hurt as vs Dustin in 35 pro fights. The chin isn't "cracked" but it doesn't seem the same either. I didn't notice a loss of speed/reflexes but it doesn't mean there isn't some...
He does really seem to have more power and it really seems to be helping him so he may actually be better. I think it's just a different version though. Maybe now he does better vs a wrestler because he can put him out easier and the loss of chin doesn't matter as much...

 

[Kung Fu Kowboy]

Yep. BMF Max is undefeated.

 

[markg171]

Max's chin has gotten a little worse while his striking has gotten A LOT better.

How is this even a question

 

[BluntForceTrama]

This is my question and I’ve been waiting for this thread


He isn’t better than 2019. That’s nearly ludicrous. If he is it’s more marginal compared to the ass kicking he took in 2019

What’s the difference here? More preparation time and ability to better adjust to the weight differential

 

[rjmbrd]

Dustin looks old. He's moving old, he's moving slow.

Max is still maintaining his athleticism and speed. We saw these guys fight when they were both in their prime.

Despite Dustin appropriately retiring, Max was still saved by the bell in a thrilling round both guys had big knockdowns.

 

[Bork Neslar]

Why the hell do you ask if you already have an answer...

 

[markg171]

This is my question and I’ve been waiting for this thread


He isn’t better than 2019. That’s nearly ludicrous. If he is it’s more marginal compared to the ass kicking he took in 2019

What’s the difference here? More preparation time and ability to better adjust to the weight differential

Dustin looks old. He's moving old, he's moving slow.

Max is still maintaining his athleticism and speed. We saw these guys fight when they were both in their prime.

Despite Dustin appropriately retiring, Max was still saved by the bell in a thrilling round both guys had big knockdowns.

The actual difference is that Max evolved and now has a strong and diverse kicking game instead of just being a good boxer.

Dustin still just boxes and jumps for guillotines that go nowhere.

Dustin got left behind.

 

[Hymen Crusher]

No Dustin is a better fighter and that's been shown in the ring. Even old 1 foot out the door Dustin went 5 good ones. That dude retired 30 seconds later. Dustin is better then max head to head.

 

[RockyLockridge]

No Dustin is a better fighter and that's been shown in the ring. Even old 1 foot out the door Dustin went 5 good ones. That dude retired 30 seconds later. Dustin is better then max head to head.

LOL

Max is for sure a better fighter than dustin overall. He's accomplished WAY more has beaten far better fighters in much more impressive fashion.

 

[Hymen Crusher]

LOL

Max is for sure a better fighter than dustin overall. He's accomplished WAY more has beaten far better fighters in much more impressive fashion.

I agree but Dustin is a better then max if they fought 10x he wins 8. Max had a better career though

 

[BluntForceTrama]

Dustin looks old. He's moving old, he's moving slow.

Max is still maintaining his athleticism and speed. We saw these guys fight when they were both in their prime.

Despite Dustin appropriately retiring, Max was still saved by the bell in a thrilling round both guys had big knockdowns.

While I don’t exclude this I doubt it’s a major factor. They’ve both been degrading particularly Maxs chin.

Max got destroyed in 2019. Got put on to Queer Street quickly and seemingly easily
It’s not like his chin got stronger

He was depleted for 2019. Rushed into that fight This time he had time to adjust

 

[BluntForceTrama]

I agree but Dustin is a better then max if they fought 10x he wins 8. Max had a better career though

Why on earth would you make such a wild claim. It isn’t even close to being provable in the first place

 

[Hymen Crusher]

Why on earth would you make such a wild claim. It isn’t even close to being provable in the first place

That's what I think would happen. Most the shit we talk about isnt provable. Its the same with conor. Dustin is a better fighter but conor has a way better career. That's just the way it goes.

 

[nostradumbass]

He said before the Gaethje fight that he put on real weight to move up because he was planning to stay at LW and felt good, whereas the previous Dustin fight his coaches called him "muffin top Max" because he put on slop weight to move up quickly for 1 fight.

Offensively he's got more speed and power at LW, but he's always eaten a lot of shots and relied on his chin which seems to be diminishing a little. He was on 8 straight decisions before the Korean Zombie fight with no knockdows in the fights, to now being dropped himself in 3 straight fights, and dropping top strikers in both his last LW fights.

The shots Doostin landed on 2019 Max would have finished 2025 Max, but 2019 Max was just a FW fighting at LW whereas now he's an actual LW. Kind of makes you wish he had been the one to vacate his FW title and taken 6 months to move up permanently when his chin was still prime, though Khabib was champ then and he probably would have gottten ragdolled.

 

[GordoBarraBJJ]

Probably not.

We saw them fight closer to their primes and Dustin beat the fuck outta Max. Since then Max has retained more of his "youth" and Dustin got "Old" pretty quick.

 

[TheGreenMachine]

LOL

Max is for sure a better fighter than dustin overall. He's accomplished WAY more has beaten far better fighters in much more impressive fashion.

It's really a coin flip with Max and Dustin. Sure, Max actually won an undisputed title. But Dustin has fought way better fighters at 155 than Max ever did at 145. It's just a fact. Look at all the future Hall of Famers Dustin fought.

The main issue is that Dustin is a true 155er and moved up at the right time in his career years ago, and had to fight tougher competition at 155. Max probably would have been a true 155, but he had a big weight advantage fighting at 145 that Dustin gave up years ago.

Max is 33 and now just moving up to LW. I don't think we'll ever see what a real LW Max looks like because even though he's only 33, he's been in a ton of wars and has fought a long time. He's realistically closer to 35 or 36 age wise with all the damage, and probably doesn't have a ton of fights left.

When you think about it like that, Dustin is probably the better fighter because 155 was way more stacked when he competed in it compared to 145.

 

[rjmbrd]

The actual difference is that Max evolved and now has a strong and diverse kicking game instead of just being a good boxer.

Dustin still just boxes and jumps for guillotines that go nowhere.

Dustin got left behind.

Dustin isn't retiring because he hates money, he's retiring because he's slow and has aged out of the division.

This is setting aside the guy literally can't kick above his waist since hip surgery. He walks like an old cowhand rocking back and forth. No shit his kicking game isn't great lol. We saw these guys fight in their prime, it was fun but Max got hurt and was lucky to survive the fight.

You regularly have terrible / weird takes, but carry on

 

[Whitestallion]

At 155 Max ends Illia, he laned CLEAN on Illia at 145 but wasn't going for the kO

 

[BlackStrap]

That's what I think would happen. Most the shit we talk about isnt provable. Its the same with conor. Dustin is a better fighter but conor has a way better career. That's just the way it goes.

Dustin is not a better fighter than either Max or Conor, this is due to the fact that he has never been an undisputed champ.

Max was a dominant champ in his natural weight category. He legitimately ran through the division and reigned until Volk. He has been a bit spotty since Volk, but that spottiness still includes victories over Dustin, the Gaethje who beat Dustin, and a few ranked 145ers.

Yes, 2019 Dustin beat 145 Max, who jumped up in weight, for an interim title, but he has lost every big fight since, with the exception of shadow Conor. Save for shadow Conor, his two best wins since 145 Max have been Hooker and Chandler.

Shadow Conor lost to Dustin, but the Conor that went on a legendary run to become double champ would demolish any version of Poirier.

Back to the original question, 2019 Dustin beat Alvarez, Pettis, and Gathje before beating 145 Max. I think 155 Max beats all of them (in their 2019 condition), and therefore I believe this Max beats 2019 Dustin. That's why 2025 Dustin (intelligently) chose to hang on for dear life instead of swang and bang with 2025 Max.

 

[chinarice]

Dustin slowed down just enough for Max to finally be better than him. They fought when they were both in their primes and Dustin beat the shit out of Max, with Max's chin being the primary reason he didn't get absolutely wiped out in that fight. Win is a solid win but you have to look at the context, Dustin was KO'ed against Justin a couple years prior and went through a war against Islam and got finished again, in his fight right before this one.

Since we're all about using that context with Ilia's wins, I hope you guys will just keep that same logic for your boy.