Watched the Mosley-Wright second bout last night, great fight, right decision.

Though what did detract for me was Larry Merchant interviewing both fighters at the end.

Larry's brusque, curmugeonly attitude can be funny at times - I loved him giving Lennox stick after the Klitschko bout - but here he was just downright rude and abrasive. Is it just me or does he come off as a little bit of a bigot?

No he does...After the Hopkins DLH fight he seemed to be pushing the point that the only reason Hopkins won was the size difference, not mentioning skill or talent

That old drunk has always been saucy when interviews the fighters after the bouts, but i too think in the last few interviews i've seen him do he's downright disrespectful. Old Larry's been hittin the bourbon too hard these days

thats why they keep him around though

and he knows this



the "rude old man bit" is very funny so

he does it because he gets a paycheck then

its no less then a fighter fighting a bum to get paid.

Hes a smart ass and a bigot but it was always fun with him and foreman going back and forth.

merchant needs to get backhanded for him to learn.

Yeah, I did used to find it amusing but I think he's crossing the line now. There's a difference between saucy and just downright ignorant.

I'm actually from the UK so I never get to hear his commentaries - what was it between him and George?

Watched the Mosley-Wright second bout last night, great fight, right decision.

Though what did detract for me was Larry Merchant interviewing both fighters at the end.

Larry's brusque, curmugeonly attitude can be funny at times - I loved him giving Lennox stick after the Klitschko bout - but here he was just downright rude and abrasive. Is it just me or does he come off as a little bit of a bigot?

I saw the interviews but what exactly did you find offensive?

Yeah, I did used to find it amusing but I think he's crossing the line now. There's a difference between saucy and just downright ignorant.

I'm actually from the UK so I never get to hear his commentaries - what was it between him and George?

they used to bicker back and forth. it was kinda funny when one would shut the other down. if i was george i would have slammed my fist into his face

Watched the Mosley-Wright second bout last night, great fight, right decision.

Though what did detract for me was Larry Merchant interviewing both fighters at the end.

Larry's brusque, curmugeonly attitude can be funny at times - I loved him giving Lennox stick after the Klitschko bout - but here he was just downright rude and abrasive. Is it just me or does he come off as a little bit of a bigot?

Merchant makes the fighters give answers right away, no getting to put loopholes on answers, etc. Somtimes fighters live in a world all their own, and Merchant brings them back down to earth.

hey man, I see you like Cobra. A great movie, been watching it since I was only six. Nice to see another fellow fan.

Merchant will ask the questions you'd never think he'd dare to ask or will put it in a way that you don't expect. I do think that sometimes he is disrespectfull and crosses the line.

Watched the Mosley-Wright second bout last night, great fight, right decision.

Though what did detract for me was Larry Merchant interviewing both fighters at the end.

Larry's brusque, curmugeonly attitude can be funny at times - I loved him giving Lennox stick after the Klitschko bout - but here he was just downright rude and abrasive. Is it just me or does he come off as a little bit of a bigot?
So why is he a bigot? Thats like sayin Bryant Gumbleis a rapists cause he was abbrassive with a female athelete. You need to qualify the bigot statement. Larry Merchant to my knowledge acts that wayat all his interviews!

Mosley-Wright second ,I feel Mosley'S dint less than Wright.and Winky Wright's bulwark is very successful .power shots fast .

http://www.elpanamaamerica.com.pa/archive/03312003/imagenes/sports21.jpg

The whole point of Larry Merchant is exactly this, he polarises opinion and has shock value to make you sit up and pay atention, that is exactly what the network wants, hence why we are having this discussion and hence why he has the job.

i love the old bastard......did u here him interview judah after his last fight........

he's a drunk...( like me ) but he's surly, and closed minded. i saw him at a bar in THe HoTeL at mandalay after the fight. he was having some ****tails and checking out some braods, with some younger dudes.... but anywho, that aint the first time i've ever seen him up in a bar, before or after a fight here in vegas. i know the man get's he's drink on, then he says what he feels, sometimes it's funny and sometimes it's complete drunken close minded his opinion BS, but he is pretty curt with people in general and that to me makes him a dick.......among other things...

i'd love to have his job though, lucky bastard!!!!

i think they should keep larry. it just cracks me the hell up when he acts like he knows what the hell he's talking about and the fighter in the ring just proves him wrong. i think the reason he is that much of a jerk in the post fight interview is so that everyone will forget about all the dumb things he said during the fight that were way off.

Merchant irritates me occasionally but he is a pretty funny guy as well. In some instances, he is downright insightful, IMHO.

Larry Merchant can be a fool sometimes. The lack of respect he has shown towards Bernard Hopkins and Lennox Lewis irritates me. As a commentator he should not act bias. TRY BEEN MORE PROFESSIONAL LARRY.

he does'nt try to hide his bias towards certain fighters, which i dont like about him. he seemed happy when forrest was ko'd against mayorga, he was also gitty when jones got ko'd the first time. his smart ass comments get on my nerves to.

Why should Merchant have to be objective?- he's an analyst, as so called "resident expert," not a blow-by-blow man actually calling the fight. He has never claimed to be anything other than that. Of course it is perfectly appropiate for him to be bias or to believe this or that. One just needs to keep that in mind when listening to him.

Larry annoyed me because he couldn't even be slightly happy for Bernard when he beat Oscar. Bernard was happy and he ignored that stupid arrogant tone and expression Larry was giving him. If i would have been Bernard i would have told him to stick his interview up his butt or i would have been arrested for assault.

Bernard seems pretty amused by Larry most of the time. Did you see the interview after the Allen fight? Bernard was hilarious.

Having said that, the whole HBO crew was rooting for DLH that night and it was disgraceful. I also remember Larry saying something about how southpaws should basically all be killed which seemed pretty wacko.

They'll keep because look at this thread right now three pages.
He's contreversial i dont like him but i listen neway.
I think he does be disrespectful alot especially to mosley after the defeat he said he should practically go down a weight because he keeps getting beat at light middle.
I think he was right in that ocasion but it was how he said it.
If Mosley laid of the protein shakes and cut down on the weight training he could make 147 easily without losing the power. He fought a good fight against Wright if he just won those two or three rounds more. I like him as a fighter he's good. HOF for sure.

He wasn't too amused with Merchant after the Hakkar fight. But that time Merchant had a point, I believe he said something like, "It must be pretty embarrassing for boxing fans to see the undisputed middle-weight champion of the world calling out junior-middleweights for his next title defence."

Merchant.......He doesn't bother me.
I'm just glad Foreman is gone. He said some of the dumbest, most baseless **** ever said by an "analyst".
He made stuff up, & made me wonder how someone could spend so much time, so close-up, to the sport....yet be so clueless.

Merchant.......He doesn't bother me.
I'm just glad Foreman is gone. He said some of the dumbest, most baseless **** ever said by an "analyst".
He made stuff up, & made me wonder how someone could spend so much time, so close-up, to the sport....yet be so clueless.

I usually only noticed him being wrong when he tried to predict how another fighter was feeling. He would make good points when it came to "how to do this.." or "how to do that.." but I would pick him over Roy Jones Jr. I guess I just got use to him..

I usually only noticed him being wrong when he tried to predict how another fighter was feeling. He would make good points when it came to "how to do this.." or "how to do that.." but I would pick him over Roy Jones Jr. I guess I just got use to him..

naw you didn't just get used to him. he made more sense than most of the other guys. and his "how to do this" was usually right on. and he gave excellent explanations. big george did make some crazy comments from time to time....but that was usually when it directed towards my fighter.

Mosley-Wright second ,I feel Mosley'S dint less than Wright.and Winky Wright's bulwark is very successful .power shots fast .
Uh, TB, your random word generator is malfunctioning. Either that or please lay off the doobie before you post. ;)

Anyhow, even though I kinda like Merchant, and I'd miss him if he left, I find his interviewing is becoming more irritating and less informing than ever. Post fight interviews are rarely going to reveal any insights anyhow (the fighters are always on a post-fight rush, they never give straight answers: "Did he hurt you with that right hand?" "No, not at all, I just come to fight, line em up, I'll knock em down... bla, bla...".). So having Larry come in there, with his big agenda (usually because he has a rather biased view of the fight), and persistently pushing the same question at a fighter as if he's expecting to get a truthful answer is not only futile, but it comes across as insensitive and irritating. But anyhow, I still like his commentary, because he does usually have a bias, and I find it pretty entertaining.

naw you didn't just get used to him. he made more sense than most of the other guys. and his "how to do this" was usually right on. and he gave excellent explanations. big george did make some crazy comments from time to time....but that was usually when it directed towards my fighter.

Who is your fighter? Tito Trinidad?

but you know, i think many fighters are at their most honest right after a fight, heck sometimes they don't have the energy to give BS answers. Of course, some of htem are so high on adrenaline and so pumped they'll continue spouting crap. But I think the former is the case in the majority of the cases. Sometimes I feel Larry, and it's not his fault, should interview both fighters and giving them an equal landscape. In some recent fights, this has been lacking.

"he made more sense than most of the other guys. and his "how to do this" was usually right on. and he gave excellent explanations."

Ray Leonard, Manny Steward, & Roy Jones....they all are better analysts, & make far better points than George ever has.....minus the RIDICULOUS observations like, how one fighter's COLORFUL TRUNKS can "freak out" the opponent, or the way to fight a taller fighter is to "close your eyes, & swing up."
There would be a whole lot of DEAD young boxers if they listened to what George said, & applied it..


George offered few keen insights, & lots of jibberish.

He wasn't too amused with Merchant after the Hakkar fight. But that time Merchant had a point, I believe he said something like, "It must be pretty embarrassing for boxing fans to see the undisputed middle-weight champion of the world calling out junior-middleweights for his next title defence."

That was a real lowpoint in Bernard's career. I can understand Merchant calling him on it, as well as Bernard being ticked off that he did.

seriously, the guy knows his stuff but he seems out of touch. should get a younger dude in there to liven up the broadcast

To restate this thread from my point of view, I'm only basing it on Larry's post-fight interviews. The commentary I get to hear during fights is from a UK team.

I have heard a snatch of Larry and RJJ, during which RJJ sounded very insightful... I'd love to hear more about George. (There's an idea for a thread).

To clarify the "bigot" remark, I've only ever seen him post-interview two white guys (Vitali and DLH) and the difference in respect he showed to both of them compared to their opponents (LL and Hopkins) was absolutely staggering. Coincidence? Maybe. I also get the feeling that Larry has no time for "jive", which is fair enough to an extent, but...

The thing about this particular fight was just his curt attitude. But don't get me wrong, sometimes he can be very funny...

Having heard more of his commentaries and seen him being interviewed I like Larry more and more... weird, as after the Morales-Pac fight his stock seems to have dropped even further.

He's a silly ass, but very funny.

It's interesting that you should make that bigot comment - i'm not trying to label him as one, since i can't point to anything conclusive, but i must admit that i have gotten that vague impression about him every once in awhile, when listening to his commentary...

On the other hand since i grew up in the united states during the 1990s my "Politically Correct" radar is way too active - i don't know the guy so i won't jump to any conclusions.

It is odd, though, when he does things like compare Gerry Cooney to Jackie Robinson lol - even though he wasn't saying that they are equivalent, you really just can't compare blacks being barred from participating in baseball with there simply being almost no elite white fighters (at least in the 1980s).

To restate this thread from my point of view, I'm only basing it on Larry's post-fight interviews. The commentary I get to hear during fights is from a UK team.

I have heard a snatch of Larry and RJJ, during which RJJ sounded very insightful... I'd love to hear more about George. (There's an idea for a thread).

To clarify the "bigot" remark, I've only ever seen him post-interview two white guys (Vitali and DLH) and the difference in respect he showed to both of them compared to their opponents (LL and Hopkins) was absolutely staggering. Coincidence? Maybe. I also get the feeling that Larry has no time for "jive", which is fair enough to an extent, but...

The thing about this particular fight was just his curt attitude. But don't get me wrong, sometimes he can be very funny...


De La Hoya isn't white, he's a Mexican. His skin is close to white, but he's not a caucasian. Your point is kind of lost by mentioning De La Hoya.

De La Hoya isn't white, he's a Mexican. His skin is close to white, but he's not a caucasian. Your point is kind of lost by mentioning De La Hoya.
Yeah, you have a point there. Though it's from the same basic genetic type, though, isn't it? (Going by the old way of breaking the human race down into four basic racial origins)

Boy, if I was a fighter and that old fox would behave like a jurk in a post-fight interview I would smacked that old grumpy. It suprised me so far that none of a fighter have insulted that grumpy so far. He is crossing a line.

I have to say MERCHAND IS A DINGBAT! I am a PACFAN and do admit his defeat but MERCHANT wouldn't stop with the crap ass possible reasons that may have detered PAC from winning the fight. You can totally sense his one sided bias in the side of PAC. There was no reason to mention any of those things in the interview.

I liked how him and ROY sort of went at it as well after the mid rounds.

To be honest I've seen ROY comment/analyze a few times and find it really insightful. He really does notice things happening in the fight way before any of the other guys do.

I have to say MERCHAND IS A DINGBAT! I am a PACFAN and do admit his defeat but MERCHANT wouldn't stop with the crap ass possible reasons that may have detered PAC from winning the fight. You can totally sense his one sided bias in the side of PAC. There was no reason to mention any of those things in the interview.

I liked how him and ROY sort of went at it as well after the mid rounds.

To be honest I've seen ROY comment/analyze a few times and find it really insightful. He really does notice things happening in the fight way before any of the other guys do.

cuz roy is a boxer he knows things lamp and merchant dont... and yes i am a pac fan too and a proud filipino... it was a great fight one of my favorite... but once i did hear about the gloves and **** like that... too bias... he didnt give morales any credit...

I never liked larry merchant, his comments are usually very disrespectfull and seem more personnal than professional, when foreman and he are commenting together, merchant gets a little rude with him..if somebody wants proof of that watch the kevin kelley and naz fight and hear larry's comments on that one and also hear his comments during the naz vs. sanchez, he was being very onesided and calling naz a big mouth when he was clearing destroying his opponents.

I just thought of something - i wonder if some of Larry Merchant's abrasiveness isn't intentional... maybe they've set up a certain dynamic amongst the commentators on purpose: the nice guy who everyone likes, the harsh guy who pisses people off, and the old pro (foreman and now jones)...

also notice how merchant never clashes with lampley - he only argues and challenges foreman (and now jones)... that could be an intentional pattern, the guys on the flanks providing tension and disagreement and lampley in the center holding it together and making things run smoothly.

wow i spent way too much time thinking about that.

xrhythmxnxbluesx: Who is that in your avatar, and what fight is that from?

I can't stand Larry Merchant, or Ledderman. Ledderman put's De la Hoya ahead of Hopkins, when Hopkins was clearly winning, and so did Merchant. They both piss me off. Merchant is such a dick, too. He acts like he's some know-it-all boxing analyst and he's not.