Origins -- The golden age -- The incredible shrinking sport -- Paying their dues -- Cooking the books : boxing's nutty knockout numbers -- Where have you gone charlie goldman? -- Boxing's missing links -- The good, the bad, and the inconsistent -- Fistic forensics : two fights analyzed -- Too much amateur -- The dominance factor, part one: roy jones, jr. and bernard hopkins -- The dominance factor, part two: roberto duran, pernell whitaker, floyd mayweather, jr -- The bigger they are-the harder they fall -- Boxing's snake oil salesmen -- Boxing's death by alphabet -- Epilogue.;"Boxing historians discuss the socioeconomic and demographic changes that have affected the quality, prominence and popularity of the sport over the past century. Chapters cover such topics as the ongoing deterioration of boxers' skills, their endurance, the decline in the number of fights and the psychological readiness of championship-caliber boxers"--Provided by publisher