Can Quitters Ever Be Forgiven Or Is It "Once a Quitter Always A Quitter"?

Quitting during a boxing match is generally considered taboo and usually frowned upon by the audience, the critics and even the boxers own team. It is a decision which often lingers with a fighter for much, if not all, of his career. A few examples include Devon Alexander who quit against Bradley, Vitali Klitschko who quit against Byrd, Chad Dawson quitting against Ward and, perhaps the most prolific in recent times, Victor Ortiz quitting against Maidana. The list goes on, quitting isn't the most uncommon act in the ring, this is a brutal sport. But can quitters ever be forgiven and can they eradicate the label of being a "quitter" or is it something that is permanently engraved onto their legacy and in fact has a direct impact when considering that fighters resume and historical status? Is it "Once a quitter, always a quitter" or do certain fighters remove the "quitter" label through their subsequent achievements? First of all, watching the sport as long as I have and I'm sure many other members here have, we know what boxers go through, in fact I've seen their training regiments first hand. I watched Benn go through hell for Eubank and I saw the great Leonard struggling to get into his best shape for Camacho. Being a boxer is hell, it's solitary and when you win everyone basks in the glory, when you lose, you are on your own. Quitting, giving up, stepping back when the going gets too tough happens in all sports, we've seen it in football and we've seen it very recently in cricket. In fact, we see failure or momentary loss of motivation in everyday life...in boxing, the manliest and more brutal of sports, it is amplified a thousand times. Giving in is seen as absurd, even though it may be the most logical thing under the circumstances. How many men can truly fight with a broken jaw? A broken hand? A broken nose? I've been in my fair share of what yanks call "bar room brawls" and breaking a nose is not a pleasant experience. There are instances when a fighter quits and it leaves a bad taste in the mouth, a young Ortiz in a war against Maidana, Duran against Leonard and for intents and purposes, Harrison not turning up against Haye. They were all quits in the worst sense of the word but of all those names, Duran acquitted himself, Ortiz fell further into the well of irrelevance and Harrison hung around like a bad smell. Some can be forgiven, most can not. I have never believed a fighter who is legitimately injured and suffering greatly from a break or dislocation, who decides to stop fighting, should ever be labeled a quitter. It isn't fair, Vitali tore his rotator cuff, how is that a quit? That is in complete contrast to Alexander who, although cut was not badly injured or hurt yet he just didn't want to fight and seemed ready to quit 2 rounds before he actually did. There is a difference and we has fans must learn to recognise it.

Retire is not quiting! Dawson tried his best to get on track and be competitive but he had nothing to give! He retired! Cotto also, theres a time to loose the fight but try and come back to right the wrong. I agree what someone else said about people here getting in the ring and actually experiencing when things turn "red" and your breathing is interupted and your arms become heavy beyond belief! This sport isn't soccer or tennis the consequences in boxing are life threatening! Ray How many fights did you have?

99.9% of the people who criticize "quitting" would have quit in the 1st training session. And if they would have made it through the training camp , they would have quit after the 1st punch or 1st round. So why take their opinion seriously in the first place. It's them who go up in the ring. I believe every fighter has confidence until they get hit or see something we don't see once they are in the ring. The word quitting makes it seem like something to be ashamed of. I like to think of it as a realization , accepting reality. If they can't go on or feel they can't win then it's their decision.

You can change that perception but it isn't easy. Everyone has quit at least once in their life. It isn't fair or responsible to judge someone for one isolated event. Of course, as with anything else, there are exceptions, i.e. Ortiz.

Retire is not quiting! Dawson tried his best to get on track and be competitive but he had nothing to give! He retired! Cotto also, theres a time to loose the fight but try and come back to right the wrong. I agree what someone else said about people here getting in the ring and actually experiencing when things turn "red" and your breathing is interupted and your arms become heavy beyond belief! This sport isn't soccer or tennis the consequences in boxing are life threatening! Ray This. There sometimes comes a point of such exhaustion that you literally cannot even lift your arms to defend yourself, let alone throw a punch. In these instances calling it quits is the only thing you can do, really. No matter how tough minded you are, your body can and will give up on you at some point. I don't think people who've been in the ring for many rounds quite understand how difficult it is to just stand and breathe after a while, especially if you're poorly conditioned or have overexerted yourself early.

The word quit is thrown around to cavalierly. When you are getting battered, calling an end to the fight isn't quitting. Quitting is when you are not hurt and you choose to stop (Tor Hamer, Facelube) I agree with this which is why I chose it depends why they quit. I've had the **** kicked out of me in the ring before and it's very humbling so I don't fault guys who decide they've had enough. There's more to life than the moment. However, I don't quite have the same sympathy for the guys who show up for the payday and quit/take dives, etc.

I didn't like what Tor Hamer did but I try my best not to criticize guys who put their life on the line in the ring. Some people aren't cut out for boxing but just giving it a try means you have guts. I don't criticize guys like Alvarado or Angulo at all. I still consider them tough fighters.

I found another one of your pics online. You can use it when battling Klitschko fans on this site. http://dustinstockton.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/internet-tough-guy.jpg Im talking about boxing. If you wish to attack me personally you should take it to the dome.

Forgiven by who, the mighty lardarse boxing public? A lot of fans probably quit halfway up a flight of stairs, so i don't think athletes involved in brutal sports have a lot to answer for really.

Depends on the situation, If you have no chance of winning and are being beat to death its understandable. Most other scenarios are pretty unacceptable to fans and other boxers themselves. This is supposed to be a sport of warriors, not nancy boys complaining because they can't hit the other guy. I found another one of your pics online. You can use it when battling Klitschko fans on this site. http://dustinstockton.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/internet-tough-guy.jpg

Depends on the situation, If you have no chance of winning and are being beat to death its understandable. Most other scenarios are pretty unacceptable to fans and other boxers themselves. This is supposed to be a sport of warriors, not nancy boys complaining because they can't hit the other guy.

Some fighters look for a way ouy when the going gets tough. Look at Gonzalez against Ricky Burns. Burns took everything he had and fired back, and Gonzalez wanted none of it. Burns, in his next fight fought for 10 rounds with a broken jaw. The thought of quitting never crossed his mind. A fighting man.

Ummm Ortiz quit in Maidana fight then he totally redeemed himself in the Berto fight fight

I'm sure fighters don't worry about whether or not NSB keyboard warriors can forgive them.

Depends on what the agenda of the poster is.

Retire is not quiting! Dawson tried his best to get on track and be competitive but he had nothing to give! He retired! Cotto also, theres a time to loose the fight but try and come back to right the wrong. I agree what someone else said about people here getting in the ring and actually experiencing when things turn "red" and your breathing is interupted and your arms become heavy beyond belief! This sport isn't soccer or tennis the consequences in boxing are life threatening! Ray

The word quit is thrown around to cavalierly. When you are getting battered, calling an end to the fight isn't quitting. Quitting is when you are not hurt and you choose to stop (Tor Hamer, Facelube) It's still quitting but that's a different debate, it's just that it's different levels to it, you can justifiably quit and unjustifiably. The issue here is that quitting is quickly seen as something negative when that's not always the case.

Nothing wrong with holding your hands up and admitting that you have been bested by a better man on the night. Didnt do Duran's legacy any harm.

The word quit is thrown around to cavalierly. When you are getting battered, calling an end to the fight isn't quitting. Quitting is when you are not hurt and you choose to stop (Tor Hamer, Facelube)

Quitting during a boxing match is generally considered taboo and usually frowned upon by the audience, the critics and even the boxers own team. It is a decision which often lingers with a fighter for much, if not all, of his career. A few examples include Devon Alexander who quit against Bradley, Vitali Klitschko who quit against Byrd, Chad Dawson quitting against Ward and, perhaps the most prolific in recent times, Victor Ortiz quitting against Maidana. The list goes on, quitting isn't the most uncommon act in the ring, this is a brutal sport. But can quitters ever be forgiven and can they eradicate the label of being a "quitter" or is it something that is permanently engraved onto their legacy and in fact has a direct impact when considering that fighters resume and historical status? Is it "Once a quitter, always a quitter" or do certain fighters remove the "quitter" label through their subsequent achievements? I respect a fighters decision if he goes that route... they have families too... also, who are we to judge another human being... I would like to see the keyboard warriors here get into the ring & start feeling some real pain than typing in the comforts of their home.