It's been a bad week for the old guys - first John McCain, and now Roy Jones Jr. In both cases, you didn't have to be Nostradamus to predict the result.
What did the fight at Madison Square Garden in the early hours of Sunday morning prove? That Joe Calzaghe is one of the greatest fighters Britain has ever produced and that Jones' best days are long behind him. But then most of us knew that already.
What it did reveal is that the pride of Newbridge, still blowing like a whirlwind at the age of 36, has got plenty left in the tank. What price a swansong at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium next summer? I'll lay you 2-1.
Calzaghe said in his autobiography that he thought Jones was "washed up" three years ago after shocking knockout defeats to Antonio Tarver (twice) and Glen Johnson. He revised his opinion in the build-up to this fight. But he was right first time.
For the first four rounds some journalists ringside thought they might be witnessing a Garden classic, to rank alongside Robinson-LaMotta and Ali-Frazier. But from the sixth round on Jones was just another Garden ghost. As Jones said later, "Joe's pitter-pats were harder than I thought".
However gratifying it was to see Calzaghe put in a virtuoso performance at the "mecca of boxing", you'd be a hard-hearted fight fan not to feel sad at seeing the once untouchable Jones lumbering forward with hands held high, bloodied, just waiting for the final bell to toll.
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