Boxing Shows Sportsmanship In a Time Others Don’t
by
Julius Stecker
11/23 - The month of November, 2004 is what the sport of boxing is all about and its not just the fact that we have an excellent fight card every weekend, which we do. The reasoning to me is simple, Sportsmanship. After the sad situation that unfolded this past Friday in Detroit, MI as part of the Indiana Pacer-Detroit Piston game fiasco, it's evident that boxing has a bit more class than we may think.
Sportsmanship in most sports seems to be going down
the tubes. Look at the madness that occurred in South
Carolina this past weekend, between the Gamecocks and
the Clemson Tigers in a college football game and
the NFL does not get off easy either as Cleveland Brown
running back William Green, and Pittsburgh Steeler
linebacker Joey Porter can attest to that with their
repulsive behavior a few weeks ago in a pre-game boxing match.
However, the sport that is bringing sportsmanship to light is our sport of Boxing.
Yes the same sport that some ignorant people clamor to
ban, and the one competition some people say is too
violent for their liking, but in the last few weeks
we saw the ultimate in what this sport is all about and that is simply, class.
“Sugar” Shane Mosley and Ronald “Winky” Wright went a
full 12 rounds of throwing punches with bad
attentions, giving each other the best they had to
offer. Yet in the end, there was no animosity, there
was just respect for one another’s effort. There was
an embrace, not a Ben Wallace shove in the face, to
end the evening and these same guys were beating
each other up just a few minutes ago in the most
combative of all sports. The same can be said the
week before in a Heavyweight Title bout between Jameel
McCline and Chris Byrd.
Byrd and McCline are good friends, but each gave each
other all they could handle in a tough scrap and once again in
the end, each still managed to commend each other on a
great effort. In fact, McCline’s wife, Tina, and
Chris’s wife, Tracy, walked into the ring together
after the fight to show their appreciation of their
friendship, and to show sportsmanship.
In the competitive world of sports, we sometimes
forget the little things. The things like respect for
the sport, and admiration for your opponent. While
you want to win, and show you are the best, it should
never be at the expense of compromising your
sportsmanship. What Mosley, Wright, McCline, and Byrd
did was natural, but should not be overlooked. They
encompass what athletic competition and
professionalism should be about. It isn’t about Ron
Artest running into the stands pounding on a fan.
Ironically it was the sport of Boxing; that showed us
what was right about professional athletics.
Winky Wright = Tom Brady
It is hard for me to think of a superlative to
describe Winky Wright. The guy is just a winner. He
has a certain sense of consistency that you don’t see
too often. He reminds me of New England Patriot
Quarterback Tom Brady. Everybody says that there a
lot of guys better then him, yet he is the one out
there winning the Super Bowls. Winky is the same in
that regard, except he just keeps winning titles, but
no one thinks he is the best fighter. He just may be
the best fighter in boxing pound for pound. A fight
against Felix Trinidad probably awaits him and it is a pick’em fight. The question would be before the bout is, "how would Winky react to the power that Trinidad
brings to the ring? It would be very exciting to see.
Mosley Not Done
I am sick and tired of reading and hearing people say Shane Mosley is
finished. I think he demonstrated in defeat that he
still is a viable fighter. In this viewer’s eye, I
saw a quicker more active Mosley. He just did not
have the size and style to beat Wright. But he sure
as heck made it close. I had it a close 115-113 in favor of Wright.
Don’t ever forget that another great Lightweight lost
a few fights after he left the division. His name was
Roberto Duran. There was a stretch in Roberto
Duran’s career, 1982-1986, when he lost to Marvin
Hagler, Thomas Hearns, Robbie Sims, Wilfred Benitez,
and Kirkland Laing. But just like a shot of lightning
he went on to beat Iran Barkey in 1989 to win the
World Middleweight Championship. And while Shane was
no Duran, he was still a top 15 Lightweight All-Time,
and their careers have striking parallels. So don’t
count out the Sugarman just yet.
Talkingboxing Chats and Give Away’s
Just a reminder, TalkingBoxing.com is having two
online chats in the next couple of weeks. We are going
to have Robert Guerrero on Dec 2nd at 9PM EST, and
Jose Celaya on Dec 9th at 9PM EST. Free Autographs
for all who show up, so there is nothing to lose.
There are no barriers; it is you and the fighters.
Just ask anybody who has shown up, all the chats have
been a major success.
Also don’t forget about our free autograph glove
giveaway. We are giving away a free autographed Mike
Stewart Glove, to whoever has the closest prediction
of Barrera-Morales III. Make your prediction HERE!
Any thoughts or questions email:
jstecker@talkingboxing.com
Julius Stecker is one of the founding fathers of TalkingBoxing.com and has a passion, commitment and work ethic unmatched in the game today! Make sure to check us out daily as Julius talks with boxing's best boxers and offers his insight in weekly articles and big fight breakdowns!
