At the age of 41, Erislandy Lara is well beyond what is often considered a boxer’s prime years. He’s even past the age that almost every fighter of note hangs up his gloves.
But Lara’s trainer says the WBA middleweight titleholder is still able to perform at a high level.
“He is rejuvenated,” Ismael Salas said in a recent interview with ProBox TV. “Every time we work with him, he looks much better.” (Full disclosure: ProBox owns BoxingScene.com.)
Lara (30-3-3, 18 KOs) will defend his title against Danny Garcia (37-3, 21 KOs) this Saturday on the pay-per-view undercard of Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga. The pay-per-view is available on Amazon’s Prime Video, DAZN, PPV.com and via traditional cable and satellite outlets.
Garcia is the former lineal junior welterweight champion and a former welterweight titleholder who has fought only once above 147 pounds, defeating Jose Benavidez Jr. in a junior middleweight bout in 2022. Lara vs. Garcia will be held at a contractual catchweight of 157 pounds, rather than the usual middleweight limit of 160.
Salas observed that the first thing to go in an aging fighter is his legs.
“That is the first sign that when a fighter is already knocking on the door, that coordination of legs and arms is broken,” Salas said. “And, well, luckily, we have an Erislandy Lara who has very good coordination.”
But there’s still a difference between the Lara of old and this older Lara, the trainer said.
“He has changed his style,” Salas said. “He moves less and hits more and with more force.”
Lara emphasized movement in his debated split decision loss to Canelo in 2013. And while there were fights in the years since in which Lara dished out power rather than preferring to box, he also had a number of aesthetically displeasing performances.
“He is sitting more on his blows,” Salas said “He is no longer the Erislandy Lara that was wasting movement.”
That’s not to say Lara doesn’t still utilize defense. But it’s how he defends himself – Salas says there’s less of Lara moving his legs, more of Lara moving his waist and blocking punches with his arms and gloves.
Lara will need to remain savvy on defense, while also interesting on offense, if he is to continue on in boxing. And that is the plan, despite his advancing age.
“We’ve had several conversations about his future,” Salas said. “And one of the things that Lara has told me is that, unfortunately and fortunately, fighters live from boxing. He says that as long as his health keeps him training and fighting, he’s going to continue.”
David Greisman, who has covered boxing since 2004, is on Twitter @FightingWords2. He is the co-host of the United Boxing Podcast. David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” is available on Amazon.
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