Yesterday at www.jabandgrapple.com we asked “Does Jeff Lacy Still Have It?” and last night on ESPN2’s Wednesday Night Fights we got a resounding answer: not at all. Lacy’s (24-1-0) majority decision victory over Epifanio Mendoza (28-6-1) was due in equal parts to Mendoza’s lack of a finishing instinct and dubious ringside judging.

Mendoza had Lacy hurt in the second (video below), sixth, and eighth and should have finished the job in at least one of those rounds. In the second Mendoza had Lacy staggering but quickly outpunched himself going for the knockout and couldn’t sustain any meaningful blows.

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Jeff Lacy was a rising super middleweight star prior to his March 4, 2006 demolition at the hands of Joe Calzaghe. Since then things haven’t been the same for the 2000 U.S. Olympian.

In December of 2006 Lacy staggered to a razor thin majority decision of Ukrainian Vitali Tsypko although few ringside observers felt Lacy had done enough to win. His next fight came a year later in December 2007 against The Contender favorite Peter Manfredo, Jr., a fight that appeared on the Ricky Hatton - Floyd Mayweather, Jr. undercard. Left Hook Lacy was again underwhelming in victory.

Tonight Lacy fights journeyman Columbian Epifanio Mendoza on ESPN2’s Wednesday Night Fights in only his third bout since Calzaghe and the first not seen on HBO. The fight is unlikely to answer questions about Lacy’s diminishing skills — Mendoza should give him little trouble — but it will be nice to see the consensus #5 super middleweight on free T.V. A convincing win might even solidify a fight against America’s other top ten super middle: Jermain Taylor.