Thinking about the Gonzalez-Estrada match and the super flyweights, including SSR, all three are the wrong side of 30 and significantly so in Gonzalez and SSR's cases. So is this a reflection of the sport in general and that careers go on longer (in age terms) than in the past? And if so, why is that? Most lighter weight (featherweight down) fighters I think of from the past were usually on the slide in the second half of their 20s and often done by their mid-20s. What do you think are the reasons fighters in the lower weight classes are still fighting at a high level into their 30s?
Less fights, better drugs would be my guess (though in their specific cases, Choco and SSR have a lot of fights)
Less activity, mainly. Big events are extremely periodised nowadays, so it easier for bigger names to recover, is my guess. Also, guys like Choco are elite and would still beat good challengers even way past prime, so class counts.
