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Stop Protecting the “0” In Your Fight Record! The Legends In the Sport of Boxing Never Did That…

boxingringheaderBy Joshua “City” Brewer

I’m a firm believer that fighters can’t solely be measured off of wins and losses though many arguments these days center around such. For one, most people don’t have the time or ability to watch every single fight a boxer is involved in. We often catch a sample of them once they’re well into their career as a prospect within the sport, though technology has made boxing more accessible these days. I can remember ESPN Friday Night Fights being the most prominent boxing staple in my life and my main source for action. It was great to see fighters launched from that platform, regardless of wins or losses. Anyway, back to my point, I don’t use wins and losses to solely dictate a fighter’s impact and standing within the sport.

It’s funny how some people view things in the present. Fighters maintaining their ‘0’ is a high priority and at times held to a higher standard than it should be. Don’t not get me wrong, being able to maintain an undefeated record through years of fighting is an impressive feat at face value. But with boxing it’s far deeper than that. Many of the all-time greats suffered defeats due to a number of things to include fighting a high level of competition by comparison to some eras. There were some who hung around long enough that eventually their physical parts couldn’t carry the burden.

Take Vasyl Lomachenko for example. At 10 fights in he’s fought the highest level of competition that would step in with him. He’s widely regarded as one of the top five boxers in the country. Regardless of the circumstances, he has a loss under his belt. The guy he lost to is a gutsy veteran that I have high respect for and consider a true ‘throwback’ fighter, Orlando Salido. Salido had 11 losses at the time. I’ve seen many boxing simpletons not giving Salido his proper due because of his records. Like many young boxers, Salido started out with poor management and suffered a lot of these losses early on. He wasn’t properly matched and pretty much had to learn on the job the hard way. This seasoned him and allowed him to see more success later in his career. Even at his current age he’s fighting at a high level and is one of the most exciting fighters in the sport.

If you look back into the early days of boxing you’ll see greats with 20 plus fights. That’s because they were fighting the same amount of times in a week that fighters of today fight in a year. Of course, there are reasons for this as back then many needed to fight that often for their livelihood and the paydays are way more significant these days. We seldom see fighters eclipse the 100 fight mark these days, but it was a regularly thing back then and many went way beyond the 100 or 200 fight mark. You can’t help but respect their status. If you can’t understand the magnitude of those feats and why such boxers suffered many defeats then you don’t understand boxing. Boxing has long been a gladiator sport. A fighter’s attributes could change the narrative of any fight at any moment. The thin line between victory and defeat is unlike any other sport because hopes and dreams can come crashing down with a single punch. The previous #1 pound for pound fighter recently lost a controversial decision that I for one believe he won. Should he be looked at any different?

There are many fighters out there today with that same mettle as the old school fighters to some extent. Many of them don’t get the spotlight they deserve. Some take the spotlight by knocking off overhyped prospects. Some promoters recognize these fighters more than others. Fighters willing to risk it all They deserve everything they get and then some. Most often times people complain about fights being boring, well those fighters that bring the action are right under your nose. You want to see better fights? Demand your favorite fighter take on someone who will bring it!

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