BOXING: The Good In Boxing

By Rusty Rubin

The good in boxing

by Rusty Rubin, managing editor Ring Sports Magazine

The next time someone asks you how you can enjoy a brutal sport like boxing, please feel free to respond, as I have below.

Recently, upon request of Larry Henry, editor of the Reno News and Review, I wrote an article for them about what’s positive about our sport which I would like to share with our readers.“Through the years, boxing has had it’s share of problems and disreputable characters. You may say what you will about the Don King’s and the Mike Tyson’s, but are they any worse then the Albert Belles’ and Marge Shott’s in baseball, or Latrell Sprewell and Charles Barkley in basketball? Every sport has it’s good and bad aspects, boxing no more or less than others, so why should the fight game be singled out?And, like other sports, boxing has their outstanding spokesmen as well. Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, Roy Jones Jr. and Oscar de la Hoya are just a few of the class acts that give back to the sport everything they have taken from it and more.

Fixed fights? Haven’t we had a corruption problem in almost all other sports, most recently the Olympic Games? Even college basketball and football had it’s point shaving scandals over the years. Horse racing has also been known for having had races fixed. Where there’s money to be made, there will always be shady characters to take advantage of it, and the more money, the more the chance of dishonesty increases.Boxing promotes competitiveness and builds self confidence. It is a true one – one competition.

When the bell rings it’s only you and your opponent.But boxing does much more. It helps get our youth off the street corners and into the gym and helps to keep them out of trouble. And boxing promotes a healthy outlet for the frustrations of many angry young men.

Boxing teaches hard work and discipline, something these young men need to help them become better citizens. You cannot take drugs and expect to be a champion, because there are no team mates to bail you out if you screw up. Dangerous? There are ten sports more dangerous then boxing. The original premise of the sport was to hit and not be hit and to out-point your opponent. The knockouts and sometimes brain damage, unfortunately come with the territory. And, because of insufficient control, unreported injuries can take place in the gym, which can have devastating consequences on the fighters. The trainers of today rarely teach defense. The fighters rarely want to learn defense. And the fans certainly don’t want to see defense. They enjoy and support the non-stop action and the possibility of a KO when they turn around or blink.

Boxing is singled out as being very dangerous because when a fighter is badly hurt, the fight is over, and that’s what stands out in people’s minds. This is unlike team sports, which actually are more dangerous, because in team sports the injured person is replaced and the game goes on. It does not stand out in the mind of the fans as it does in boxing and is only remembered when a player suffers an injury that prevents him from playing for the rest of his life, or occurs with a popular player at a conspicuous position.For example, in football, a concussion suffered by a quarterback or a season or career ending leg injury to a popular running back from an illegal chop block. But again, that player gets carried off the field and the game continues. When he returns to play, as fortunately most do, the fans tend to forget about his injury.

Also keep in mind that people pay good money to see sporting events. Most sports are played until time expires. In boxing, the fans may be paying top dollar for a sixty second or less fight. There is never a guarantee in boxing that you will spend a stipulated amount of time watching the events.

In boxing when someone is injured, and must spend the rest of his life paralyzed or in a coma, people remember. Watching and listening to the great Muhammad Ali serves as a constant reminder to the cruelty of the sport. Yet, no one can prove beyond any shadow of doubt that this was a result of an injury suffered in the boxing ring. But there is yet another very positive aspect of the sport of boxing. Boxing people, as a group, are the finest bunch of individuals in the world.

Recently, a very close friend of mine was diagnosed with cancer. I asked my many boxing friends to send get well cards and say prayers for a complete recovery. The response was unbelievable, and from various parts of the World. Few, if any, of these people had ever met my friend, yet some went to the extra expense of sending flowers and gifts. Their attitude was, ‘you’re a boxing guy, so your friends are our friends. We have to look out for each other’.

So you see, it’s not very hard to show the positive aspects of our sport.

Can anything in the world be more positive then this?

Article courtesy of Boxinginsider.com