Steve Cofield of ESPN 1100 in Las Vegas, Nevada recently caught up with boxer Jeff Lacy in the wake of news he is likely fighting Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz. Lacy talks about Diaz's mindset, or rather, how he's confused about Diaz's motivations. He also says he loves MMA before he demeans the skills required to fight professionally in it. To wit:
Jeff Lacy On MMA Striking: It’s A Toughman Contest
"It's a 'Toughman' contest when they're striking. Two fighters standing up going blow for blow. That's not boxing. Boxing is not Toughman. You're using skill, dancing around what you can see, but can't hit."
Lacy got testy when he was told the pressure's on him.
"How would you figure the pressure's on me when this is something I've been doing all my life? It's somehting I can close my eyes and do," Lacy said. "There pressure's on him to step over, just like the pressure was on James [Toney] to step over to something he's never done before."
Lacy doesn't think Diaz can box with him.
"This is something I love to do, and I've dealt with way better technical fighters than this guy Diaz, is gonna present to me," Lacy said. "I've dealt with a lot of different styles. He's stepping into my ring, but it's gonna be tougher for me? I don't think so."
Ordinarily, I’d pick any decent pro boxer to defeat any high-level MMA fighter in pure boxing contests, but Lacy is acting as if he hasn’t fallen on the lowest of low times. Keep in mind Lacy’s last fight was a loss to journeyman Dhafir Smith. Here’s how Eastside Boxing characterized Lacy’s boxing future after that 2010 loss:
It is tough to see where Lacy goes from here, even if he does manage to overturn the loss in a rematch. It’s also hard for some younger fans to realise how big a deal Lacy was back in 2004/2005. Back then, with wins under his belt over good men like Omar Sheika, Robin Reid and Scott Pemberton, "Left Hook" was looked at as a future megastar. But then, in March of 2006, in a fight many good judges expected him to win, Lacy was brutalised for 12 long rounds by Welshman Joe Calzaghe.
It seems this painful loss (that should have been stopped well before the final bell) pretty much ruined Lacy, and he was never able to look like the powerful sensation he had resembled previously. After the Calzaghe loss Lacy captured three decent wins, but then suffered heavy defeats against Jermain Taylor and, in his only stoppage defeat to date, Roy Jones Junior.
Now, in losing to a man with 19 pro losses, Lacy looks finished, despite having had just 30 pro bouts. A good guy, it is hoped Lacy can move on and find things other than boxing to occupy his time.
Like boxing MMA fighters. It’s not inconceivable at all that Diaz wins this fight if it happens.
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