Good article, a few opinionated points, but good, solid and well rounded piece.
Props!
http://www.fighthype.com/pages/conte...5b26851a2cfcf3
DESPITE THE HATE, SHOULD MAYWEATHER'S RETURN CONCERN PACQUIAO?
By Ryan Kennedy | June 27, 2011
This week kicks off the press tour for the Mayweather vs. Ortiz welterweight showdown as the boxing world prepares to celebrate the return of Floyd Mayweather Jr. to the sport's landscape this September. And yes, make no mistake, we are celebrating because love him or hate him, you can't deny the fact that Floyd Mayweather makes boxing far more interesting. In fact, to the general American public, Floyd is one half of their entire interest in the sport.
Boxing is not dead, mind you; far from it. The Klitchkos can regularly sell out stadiums in Germany. Tomaz Adamek sells out arenas on his Polish fanbase alone. Mikkel Kessler can do the same in Denmark. David Haye and Carl Froch are just as popular in England. Even an up-and-comer like Saul "Canelo" Alvarez can sell just as well in Mexico, his last fight bringing in 36 million viewers. Boxing is dead? I don't think so. Boxing simply appears to be dead in America because the marquee division - the heavyweights - no longer draw the most talented big athletes in the world, who instead choose other sports with more lucrative potential for men of their size. We may never see the heavyweight division as popular as it was decades ago for that very reason, but in the meantime, we at least have two superstars in Floyd Maweather and Manny Pacquiao who regularly bring in more viewers than the last star of the sport, Oscar de la Hoya, did in his prime. For as rare as these stars are, we have to be thankful that a personality like Floyd Mayweather exists.
It truly is personality and charisma that makes Floyd the star that he is. Over the course of his career, Floyd has brilliantly managed to craft an image that is a bigger-than-life characature of himself so as to become the ultimate villain in boxing, one we haven't seen since Muhamud Ali. When he broke into the mainstream on HBO's 24/7, the world got a look at an athlete who, despite being an absolute genius in the ring, often came off in the real world as an obnoxious, childish, foul-mouthed braggart, flaunting his earnings, mocking his opponents, and repeatedly reminding us of his flawless record in each new episode.
It's because of that behavior that such a large proportion of the sport's public both can't stand him and can't stand not to watch him fight.
Will this be the one where he finally gets knocked out? Will this be the one where he finally eats his humble pie?
Props!
http://www.fighthype.com/pages/conte...5b26851a2cfcf3
DESPITE THE HATE, SHOULD MAYWEATHER'S RETURN CONCERN PACQUIAO?
By Ryan Kennedy | June 27, 2011
This week kicks off the press tour for the Mayweather vs. Ortiz welterweight showdown as the boxing world prepares to celebrate the return of Floyd Mayweather Jr. to the sport's landscape this September. And yes, make no mistake, we are celebrating because love him or hate him, you can't deny the fact that Floyd Mayweather makes boxing far more interesting. In fact, to the general American public, Floyd is one half of their entire interest in the sport.
Boxing is not dead, mind you; far from it. The Klitchkos can regularly sell out stadiums in Germany. Tomaz Adamek sells out arenas on his Polish fanbase alone. Mikkel Kessler can do the same in Denmark. David Haye and Carl Froch are just as popular in England. Even an up-and-comer like Saul "Canelo" Alvarez can sell just as well in Mexico, his last fight bringing in 36 million viewers. Boxing is dead? I don't think so. Boxing simply appears to be dead in America because the marquee division - the heavyweights - no longer draw the most talented big athletes in the world, who instead choose other sports with more lucrative potential for men of their size. We may never see the heavyweight division as popular as it was decades ago for that very reason, but in the meantime, we at least have two superstars in Floyd Maweather and Manny Pacquiao who regularly bring in more viewers than the last star of the sport, Oscar de la Hoya, did in his prime. For as rare as these stars are, we have to be thankful that a personality like Floyd Mayweather exists.
It truly is personality and charisma that makes Floyd the star that he is. Over the course of his career, Floyd has brilliantly managed to craft an image that is a bigger-than-life characature of himself so as to become the ultimate villain in boxing, one we haven't seen since Muhamud Ali. When he broke into the mainstream on HBO's 24/7, the world got a look at an athlete who, despite being an absolute genius in the ring, often came off in the real world as an obnoxious, childish, foul-mouthed braggart, flaunting his earnings, mocking his opponents, and repeatedly reminding us of his flawless record in each new episode.
It's because of that behavior that such a large proportion of the sport's public both can't stand him and can't stand not to watch him fight.
Will this be the one where he finally gets knocked out? Will this be the one where he finally eats his humble pie?
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