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Revisiting Lacy and 7 Magic Words
MON March 13, BUSTER PARIS - Beaten - his very first loss as a professional prize fighter - face swollen, tired and so very far from home – Jeff “Left Hook” Lacy showed more than just good sportsmanship. He showed class, heart and the blood of a champion.
He spoke 7 words so sincerely and honestly that it changed my entire perception of him. 7 words from his champion heart that could, and I think will, change the course of his future in this game.
“Sometimes…you have to lose to gain.”
Losing to Joe Calzaghe on March 4 2006 is one of the best things to ever happen to Jeff Lacy.
Before I explain why - I want to thank all of you who took the time to write in and share your thoughts and opinions as well as asking questions. Your emails have given me a chance to really process what happened that night and to theorize about what’s next.
Henri C - an American living in Manchester, England wrote in - he was at the Calzaghe / Lacy fight and told me that most of the British pundits and commentators leading up to the bout believed Calzaghe would beat Lacy because of Jeff's lack of boxing skill.
This struck me as interesting because in the end it was 100% the case and got me thinking about how the business side of boxing was hurting Jeff Lacy.
I think here in the States we’ve fallen victim to Showtime’s hype and hoopla of Jeff Lacy. Jeff’s a good fighter and Showtime had us all convinced that he was the greatest fighter that ever lived. They turned on the marketing machine and no fault of his own turned Jeff into a wonderfully packaged product and, to be honest, I thought he suffered for that. I was sick of hearing how wonderful everything Jeff Lacy does is. I was sick of hearing how if he even sneezed in your direction his snot would cure whatever ails you. It was too much. Bottom line – no one likes the teacher’s pet.
Even right here on TalkingBoxing.com – we had it 7 to 3 that Lacy would beat Calzaghe – and 6 of those 7 had him winning by knockout.
I think this loss will make Jeff more human now and no longer the Messiah with a mouth guard and killer left hook that was being forced upon us. This loss and his incredible attitude of having been beaten show us more than Showtime’s marketing department could ever dream to. For once we got to witness Jeff’s likeability - and experience it rather than have it jammed down our throats.
I think a lot of what Henri says next is what most boxing fans are thinking and wondering about. Henri’s observations and questions really sum up the messages and themes of all the emails sent to me:
"Lacy has tremendous power and heart but the guy is hands down a very bad boxer."
Well, I don't think he's a very bad boxer - he just doesn't have the experience yet. He went from fighting not very good-to-mediocre fighters - to fighting the best in the division - that giant a leap was way too big for him.
His Robin Reid fight was a perfect example that Lacy just wasn't ready yet -- even though he won it (with a little help from awful refereeing) - he wasn't ready for the likes of Calzaghe.
"It makes me wonder what [trainer Dan] Birmingham has been doing with Lacy all these years. The kid couldn’t throw a jab or any semblance of a decent punch without telegraphing his shots."
I don't think that's exactly fair. Dan Birmingham's doing fine with Jeff. Lacy is young and raw and simply just needs more experience and to develop different tools - which I think he will now. I think he'll add the jab in - like he recently added in the upper cut...that didn't show up against Calzaghe...hmmm...you may have a point -
Jokes aside - the kid just needs time, experience and the “permission” to practice consistency. This loss will teach and drive him to be better than ever.
"Can he be taught to use a jab as his foremost weapon? Can he learn to throw punches from his shoulder rather than telegraphing/looping them from the side of his shoulder. Can he learn to use head and body movement, footwork? Can he learn to defend using gloves, and elbows? Can he learn to feint? Counter box?"
Simple answer -- yes -- absolutely -- I think it's in his nature and make up to be a better fighter and learn from his mistakes. He's had no reason to this point to do anything different. Everything he has done has been 100% effective. There’s an old saying “if it ain’t broke – don’t fix it” and up to this point there has been no reason to do anything other than what he’s been doing.
The sign of a great champion is what they do and learn coming from a loss and I think Lacy has the drive, courage, ambition and desire to add to his arsenal. It’s not a matter of going back to the drawing board – it’s a matter of addition.
If you look at Lacy’s natural disposition – he keeps coming. Watch this fight again. Jeff never gives up. He never let’s discouragement and frustration get in his way and never stops fighting. Every minute of every round Lacy shows up and gives it his all. It was beyond impressive.
I think that this will carry over into his training. The blow delivered by his first loss won’t discourage him. The stinging frustration of losing won’t get in his way. He’ll rise to his feet having fallen from Ring Magazines rating of #3 to #5 in the Super Middleweight division like he did when falling to the canvas for the first time a week ago.
In Jeff’s own words:
“Sometimes…you have to lose to gain.” – and - “…this was a learning experience for me.”
Having seen this fight, seen Lacy’s tremendous courage and having heard the genuineness and sincerity of his words - if anyone can come back from this type of loss better than ever it’s Jeff “Left Hook” Lacy.
Buster Paris can be reached at: bparis@talkingboxing.com - and always enjoys receiving your thoughts, comments and questions – keep them coming.
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