Comments Thread For: For St. Patrick's Day Weekend, Ranking Ireland's Greatest Boxers

[theface07]

Boricua181, the names you mentioned are excluded because they weren’t born in Ireland. Jim Driscoll, benny Lynch and Tyson Fury are excluded for the same reason. Bob Fitzsimmons was no more Irish than Dillian Whyte

Exactly. It's like when people from Boston say they are Irish. The large majority of them may be of Irish descent but they're not Irish! I was born in Newfoundland, Canada and I'm of English and Irish descent but I don't go around saying I'm English or Irish!

[Smash]

benny says hes mexican and noone questions him

[Sid-Knee]

They are of Irish decent, they came from Ireland, they just didn't sprout up on American soil, as for Fitzimmons, he's half Irish, and half British!

And the Irish are descended from elsewhere which must mean none of them are Irish?

You have to be born and raised to be from a country. Otherwise it means very little. All their conditioning will have come from the US and the UK. Not from Ireland.

Apart from Fitzsimmons, they did just sprout up on US soil as they were all born and raised there. They never came from Ireland. How can you come from a place you weren't born in?

[Boricua181]

And the Irish are descended from elsewhere which must mean none of them are Irish?

You have to be born and raised to be from a country. Otherwise it means very little. All their conditioning will have come from the US and the UK. Not from Ireland.

Apart from Fitzsimmons, they did just sprout up on US soil as they were all born and raised there. They never came from Ireland. How can you come from a place you weren't born in?

There is a lot of validity in your statement, and before Ireland the Irish can be traced back to Scandinavia, Northern Europe, and the Mediterranean.
I also couldn't swear on a bible that the fighters I mentioned were born in Ireland, but their boxing profiles state that they're Irish.
So although they became American's by birth or immigrated, if you ask the Irish where they're from, they'll (usually) reply proudly I'm Irish, or from Ireland.
Because of their unique culture, and ancestry from the emerald isle. Even if you pointed out the facts that you've stated, again they'll usually say that they are Irish, or American of Irish ancestry.
When the Irish are rooting for one of their fighters in a boxing match, it's the flag of Ireland that they're waving in the crowd, not the Us flag, or any other flag for that matter.

[Boricua181]

benny says hes mexican and noone questions him

You tell'em Smash! Canelo says he's Mexican, and few have questioned him. As a matter of fact a smaller Mexican fighter made the mistake of telling Canelo he wasn't Mexican, and Canelo broke some of his bones. Canelo is of Mexican (mom), and Irish (dad) ancestry, but I don't ever remember him ever stating that he's part Irish. Probably because his dad walked out on them, which understandably causes a lot, of pain, and hardship. Duran is part Mexican, but he's always proudly proclaimed that he's Panamanian! Who would've dared questioned Hands of Stone, in his heyday? No one that's who!

[Sid-Knee]

There is a lot of validity in your statement, and before Ireland the Irish can be traced back to Scandinavia, Northern Europe, and the Mediterranean.
I also couldn't swear on a bible that the fighters I mentioned were born in Ireland, but their boxing profiles state that they're Irish.
So although they became American's by birth or immigrated, if you ask the Irish where they're from, they'll (usually) reply proudly I'm Irish, or from Ireland.
Because of their unique culture, and ancestry from the emerald isle. Even if you pointed out the facts that you've stated, again they'll usually say that they are Irish, or American of Irish ancestry.
When the Irish are rooting for one of their fighters in a boxing match, it's the flag of Ireland that they're waving in the crowd, not the Us flag, or any other flag for that matter.

Trust me, they were all born and raised in the US.

They would say they're from Irish descent. That's fine. But they are American.

Why would the Irish wave any other flag other than the Irish one when supporting their fighters?

[Boricua181]

Trust me, they were all born and raised in the US.

They would say they're from Irish descent. That's fine. But they are American.

Why would the Irish wave any other flag other than the Irish one when supporting their fighters?

Why? Because according to you their fighter's are American, and not Irish, therefore they should be waving the American Flag!
They wave the Irish flag, and not the American flag, because because of their Irish heritage, pride, and culture.
That's why all of the different ethnic group's always state the land of their decent first Irish American, Mexican American etc., and so forth.
I believe that I've made my point here with this final explanation, and I'm not going to respond to any further message on this subject Sid-Knee.

[Marchegiano]

Why? Because according to you their fighter's are American, and not Irish, therefore they should be waving the American Flag!
They wave the Irish flag, and not the American flag, because because of their Irish heritage, pride, and culture.
That's why all of the different ethnic group's always state the land of their decent first Irish American, Mexican American etc., and so forth.
I believe that I've made my point here with this final explanation, and I'm not going to respond to any further message on this subject Sid-Knee.

It's fair enough bro, we knew TF you meant, you knew TF he meant, I'm glad one of youse was man enough to just end it because it was about to get ****ing ******.






Just a point of fact for any reader on this thread who does not know, Corbett announced his retirement from boxing in 1895, nominating Steve O'Donnell as his successor. O'Donnell was matched against Peter Maher on November 11, 1895, at Maspeth, New York. Maher won via first-round knockout.

Gunnode, Tuam, County Galway, Ireland.

[Sid-Knee]

Why? Because according to you their fighter's are American, and not Irish, therefore they should be waving the American Flag!
They wave the Irish flag, and not the American flag, because because of their Irish heritage, pride, and culture.
That's why all of the different ethnic group's always state the land of their decent first Irish American, Mexican American etc., and so forth.
I believe that I've made my point here with this final explanation, and I'm not going to respond to any further message on this subject Sid-Knee.

I think you've got it confused with who is waiving what flag. Actual Irish people would wave an Irish flag when supporting actual Irish fighters who are born and raised in Ireland. Why, where have you seen actual born and raised Irish people waving an Irish flag when it's an American born and raised fighter in the US? You may see Americans born and raised who have Irish descent waive the Irish flag towards Americans born and raised who have Irish descent. But you don't see actual Irish people doing that.

I never said they should be waiving American flags or even insinuated they should.