Comments Thread For: Billy Joe Saunders, Father Raising Hell Over Ring Size For Canelo Fight

[GBP4LIFE]

NO ONE CARES.. FIGHT OR DON’T FIGHT.. Canelo fans will not care at all

[jockpunk]

Saunders has always been a piece of trash *****. His whole family is garbage including his kid. I hope Canelo puts him into a coma.

[Monty Fisto]

Apparently, the contract said 20 and someone else said the ring in training was 18 that was to be used for fight night.

Also, note you can have a 20 ring and make it 18 with ropes. Apparently, Canelo vs Smith was 20.

Also apparently they were going for a spongy surface (see Fury vs Klitschko) and presumably tighten the ropes ;-)

This sounds like it has the ring (pardon the pun) of truth to it. In contract negotiations Canelo's team probably asked for 18' with 20' what they thought was the best they would actually get, BJS team asked for 24, with 22 what they thought they might get. Canelo as A side got his way and 20 is what they signed on. Then BJS team complain about 20 ft fing being rigged (pardon the pun) to be more like 18. Now see this as their opportunity to re-open the issue. Who knows who is telling the truth? Just get some third party that can be trusted as best as possible to verify actual ring size. It's not rocket science. It's tape measure science.

[chepboxingking]

Listen canelo is a great fighter BUT good on saunders for standing up to him. Canelo always dictates things like judges and weight rehyrdration clauses etc to his benefit. He is trying to take away billy's best attribute which is his movement. Good on billy it goes to show he plans to win. Not show up for a cheque like smith and fielding

All A sides do this. Canelo gave in Vs Mayweather and Cotto. Not a word from him, just fought. Now he's the A side and deserves this very standard demand.

[chepboxingking]

He's hoping to negotiate a bigger payday. Don't believe the hype.

[Oregonian]

The reason I bring this up is that Mayweather is his mentor and that is part of the playbook.

———————-
Floyd is 50-0 and was not the PPV star he became after he fought Oscar. That was when his record wad 38-0. After that Floyd had 12 fights.
So out of 50 fights, Floyd became the A side in 12 fights only. That’s a a little over 20%.
So, of those 12 fights which ones were “part of the playbook”?

[petegrif]

It sounds like BJS is just making a fuss. But he isn't. He has a legit point. Look at it this way.

Canelo definitely has a real advantage with the crowd and the judges. I don't think anyone seriously doubts that.
AND he's supposed to be the number 1 PPP.
So what's the big deal giving him a bigger ring?

IF Canelo thinks he's going to walk BJS down and kick his ass, what does another couple of feet in ring size matter?
Before all this blew up I don't remember a single person saying "Well, as long as the ring isn't bigger than 20 ft I'm sure C will kick his ass, but if it's 22 ft I'm not so sure. Maybe BJS will have a chance given those 2 extra feet?

NOBODY talked about ring size before. Why is that? Doesn't ring size matter? Maybe history can help us here.

For those who don't know ring has long been a point of negotiation with movers wanting bigger rings. "Leonard insisted on three conditions for the fight that would be crucial to his strategy; first the ring was to be 22x22ft instead of a smaller ring"

I think we can agree that Leonard wasn't a ***** but he wanted a bigger ring. He knew it mattered. And BJS knows it matters.

And Canelo knows it matters against BJS which is why he isn't just saying 'sure, whatever, 22 ft it is'. If C was really so confident he would just give him the 2 ft and prove he is the best.

So don't pretend ring size doesn't matter.

Canelo's still got the crowd and the judges in his pocket. Surely the PPP No. 1 doesn't have to load ALL the dice in his favor, or is that part of how you stay No 1 PPP?

Makes you think.

Surely you can respect Canelo without thinking he needs everything in his favor. Have a little faith in the guy. Let's create a setting that gives them both a chance to shine then let the best man win.

[NC Uppercut]

This is a rule straight from the British boxing board of control

3.4 All contests shall be decided in a four-rope ring not less than 16 foot nor more than 20 feet square and with the ropes joined together in the centre of each side. The bottom rope should not be more than 14 inches from the floor of the ring to the top of the bottom rope and ropes above this should be no more than 12 inches from centre to centre. The tension of the bottom rope should be considerably less than the tension of the top three. There must be at least an 18 inch margin of ring floor outside the ropes and the floor must be covered with canvas over a safety mat approved by the Board. Each corner should be padded from the top of the bottom rope with one whole length of padding not less than two inches thick and six inches wide.

Unfortunately the fight is state side, therefore the BBOC has no say in the size of the ring. That theory just flew off

[Mason Brown]

I don't think Tom Saunders's demands are a case of the B-side trying to be the A-side, I think he isn't confident his son will win, is concerned about him taking a bad beating, he's trying to take everything he can get. The ring size is important, no doubt about that, that would make it harder for the opponent to cut the ring off, a bigger ring might allow Saunders to delay Canelo's ring cutting, but if a fighter has the footwork to give a great fighter problems, he doesn't need a big ring, he has the technique and skill to make use of his feet by making small adjustments, positioning his feet to set up his shots, being just out of position to be hit, and those things are not often affected by the ring size. The ring size will only matter for as long as Saunders isn't on the ropes, Canelo is not only great at cutting off the ring, but he does a great job of keeping a fighter on the ropes, and that's another thing that's not affected by the size of the ring.

[petegrif]

All A sides do this. Canelo gave in Vs Mayweather and Cotto. Not a word from him, just fought. Now he's the A side and deserves this very standard demand.

Let's not confuse the power that comes from being the A side with what the A side deserves. Nobody deserves to have all the conditions of a fight loaded in their favor. It's the reality of the business, i get it, but they don't deserve it they just insist on it. Not the same thing.