I'm not sure if there are many boxing fans here on MoFo, but figured this site needed a thread on boxing. It's my favourite sport to watch. I also like watching football, cycling, tennis and other combat sports (K1, MMA primarily) but none of those can hold a candle to my love for boxing.
It's basically a survival of the fittest. Unlike in football or cycling, you don't have anyone to rely on in that ring but yourself. To step into a ring and face another man who is trained to destroy you physically, is not something that is laid out for everyone. There are MUCH better ways of making a living where you don't end up risking permanent brain damage.
But to my mind, there is no purer sport than boxing. Boxing is not a game. You don't "play" boxing, unlike playing baseball, basketball or football. In the ring, there are no excuses, no teammates, no luck involved. You have to factor in so many variables while at the same time knowing yourself extremely well so that you can somehow get that win behind your name.
And it's extremely demanding of your body. I don't know if anyone here has ever spent time in a ring, but I guarantee you it takes a LOT out of you. You're constantly moving around while throwing punches and studying your opponent. You have to be in great shape to do 12 rounds of boxing at a high level. I doubt if there's any sport that is so physically demanding than boxing. Perhaps triathlon, but I'm not sure. To be a true great in boxing, you have to be in a superb condition.
Unfortunately, the sport of boxing itself is fading a bit. The Golden Era of boxing is long past and new combat sports are rising to the throne, most notably of course MMA. Boxing still has its big stars though. I'm sure many people that are interested in sports know who Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather and Wladimir Klitschko are. These guys are still selling out entire football stadiums while also being huge PPV draws. But below that top echelon of PPV draws, there is an increasingly big emptiness. We have few real stars left like Ali, Tyson, Sugar Ray Robinson, the Fab Four or Roy Jones Jr.
Still, that doesn't bother me too much. As long as I can still see the craft applied at the highest level, I am more than satisfied. And luckily, it is still on display today in all its glory...
Anyway, this thread is to discuss (future) fights and fighters of today and the past in general. Again, not sure if there will be much interest for this, but I guess we'll find out soon enough.
It's basically a survival of the fittest. Unlike in football or cycling, you don't have anyone to rely on in that ring but yourself. To step into a ring and face another man who is trained to destroy you physically, is not something that is laid out for everyone. There are MUCH better ways of making a living where you don't end up risking permanent brain damage.
But to my mind, there is no purer sport than boxing. Boxing is not a game. You don't "play" boxing, unlike playing baseball, basketball or football. In the ring, there are no excuses, no teammates, no luck involved. You have to factor in so many variables while at the same time knowing yourself extremely well so that you can somehow get that win behind your name.
And it's extremely demanding of your body. I don't know if anyone here has ever spent time in a ring, but I guarantee you it takes a LOT out of you. You're constantly moving around while throwing punches and studying your opponent. You have to be in great shape to do 12 rounds of boxing at a high level. I doubt if there's any sport that is so physically demanding than boxing. Perhaps triathlon, but I'm not sure. To be a true great in boxing, you have to be in a superb condition.
Unfortunately, the sport of boxing itself is fading a bit. The Golden Era of boxing is long past and new combat sports are rising to the throne, most notably of course MMA. Boxing still has its big stars though. I'm sure many people that are interested in sports know who Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather and Wladimir Klitschko are. These guys are still selling out entire football stadiums while also being huge PPV draws. But below that top echelon of PPV draws, there is an increasingly big emptiness. We have few real stars left like Ali, Tyson, Sugar Ray Robinson, the Fab Four or Roy Jones Jr.
Still, that doesn't bother me too much. As long as I can still see the craft applied at the highest level, I am more than satisfied. And luckily, it is still on display today in all its glory...
Anyway, this thread is to discuss (future) fights and fighters of today and the past in general. Again, not sure if there will be much interest for this, but I guess we'll find out soon enough.