"Real" Boxing Fans?

[mathed]

"Real" Boxing Fans?

What exactly are they?

Boxing fans surprise me. In a sport mainly based on primitive violence that many would class as thuggish and neanderthal, it's strange to see stuck-up, snobby attitudes held by people who appear to have some kind of superiority complex. If you have been following the sport for only 3 weeks, apparently you are not a "real" boxing fan, you might possibly be spoken to as though you are worthless scum. If you have been a fan of the sport for 30 years, yet you support a fighter who someone else doesn't, apparently you are not a "real" boxing fan. If you have only 10 posts on a forum and joined yesterday, apparently you don't know anything about the sport and your opinion is irrelevant. You may support the world's #1 boxer, acknowledge his accomplishments, the fact that he is one of the greatest fighters who ever lived, and feel blessed that you are witnessing something special that only comes around once in every lifetime.... no, you're not a "real" boxing fan.

Anyone who tells someone else they are not a "real" boxing fan without really knowing anything about them, in my opinion, truly isn't a real boxing fan.

Let's say you like watching Floyd Mayweather. If you do, you might feel as though those who don't particularly like him are not "real" boxing fans. Even if you appreciate the skill level but don't actually enjoy watching his style, to some this is simply unacceptable.

Does it really matter how long someone has been a fan, or what/who attracted them to the sport in the first place? Should we not welcome anyone, no matter who they are, and if they show ignorance, try to educate them?


My view on it is like this:

Boxing is not a special club where only one type of fighter and one type of fan is welcome. Boxing is made up of many different types of fighter. It needs it's face-first brawlers, it's slick counter-punchers, boxer/punchers, unorthodox fighters, journeymen, "bums" (note: I will never use this word to describe a man who puts his life on the line to feed his family and keep a roof over his head), and everything else in between. Boxing is a much bigger picture than many people here seem to think. Just like anything else in life, be it cars, clothes, the people we sleep with, the music we listen to... everyone has different taste and different reasons as to why they support their fighters. To me, anyone who thinks boxing should be one way and everything else is wrong, is a *******. I'm sure everyone can agree that the world would be incredibly boring if we all thought the same. Forums for discussion would be pointless because we would all be saying the same thing, and all fights would look the same, with both fighters using the same style on each other and basically getting nowhere, there would be no excitement. You wouldn't see a wicked leaping left-hook from the legendary Roy Jones Jr. that makes you say "damn! where did that come from?", because it's not "real" boxing, it's too unorthodox.

Just to make it clear, this post is not an attempt to **** on any one particular fighter or his fans, although I myself have been told several times that I'm not a "real" boxing fan, and since it came from Mayweather fans, I am using them as an example. The fact that I first watched boxing as a little kid in the late 70's (Ali) and have followed it through until now, it's just not good enough for some people. Regardless of the fact that some of these people are teenagers who have been following the sport for one tenth of the time I have, they get on their high horses and tell me I know nothing.

Well, I never claimed to be a know-it-all. I wouldn't even want to be, because if I knew it all my level of interest would decrease. I would rather keep learning. Nobody really likes a know-it-all anyway.

This isn't about me, though, so I'll wrap it up. I just needed to get this off my chest. It'd be nice if we could be a little more accepting of others and welcome them as a supporter of the sport we love. Share the knowledge. Next time you accuse someone of not being a "real" boxing fan, just stop and think for a second. 99% of the people on this forum don't really know anything about each other. For all we know, Floyd Mayweather himself could have written a post or two, shared his opinion, and been told he knows nothing. The most technically slick fighter in the world was just told he knows nothing about the sport? Yes, it's very possible.

Guys, let's cut the bull****. We really need some changes around here because the forum is constantly being flooded with garbage by people who think they know better than you.

You and me are not really better than the next man just for the fact that we like a particular style or support a particular fighter. That's all there is to it.

Damn you hater, you are not a real fan.


Kidding of course, nice post. You said a lot of what happens here and boxing needs diversity or else it would be boring as heck. Not everyone sees the bigger picture though

[Thread Stealer]

There's people who love the sport of boxing and others who just love certain fighters.

You got people who seemed to be happy when Mayweather and Pacquiao didn't fight and they didn't want the fight to happen. The thought of their man-crush losing a fight hurt them too much, so they'd rather talk about a hypothetical win for their fighter and how the other "ducked" him rather than seeing something that would be great for the sport. They're all happy, going "haha, I told you he was a coward, he ducked my boyfriend, etc..."

I wouldn't be surprised if Mayweather got murdered by some guy sporting a Manny Pacquiao t-shirt with a copy of Catcher in the Rye in his back pocket.

[B.U.R.N.E.R]

There's people who love the sport of boxing and others who just love certain fighters.

You got people who seemed to be happy when Mayweather and Pacquiao didn't fight and didn't want the fight to happen. The thought of their man-crush losing a fight hurt them too much, so they'd rather talk about a hypothetical win for their fighter and how the other "ducked" him rather than seeing something that would be great for the sport.

I wouldn't be surprised if Mayweather got murdered by some guy sporting a Manny Pacquiao t-shirt with a copy of Catcher in the Rye in his back pocket.

That drove me insane. All his fans said his legacy was sealed and there was no need to fight and Im like are you serious? Its the biggest fightin the sport.

[Lucky Luciano]

That drove me insane. All his fans said his legacy was sealed and there was no need to fight and Im like are you serious? Its the biggest fightin the sport.

That's because they're afraid of what might happen. And if their favorite fighter is beaten, they have no one else to be a fan of. Those are the ones who started following the sport when he (Pac) became dominant/popular. Real boxing fans want this fight. It'll get sooo much attention, which is good for the sport.

[Tamis!]

Been watching boxing since a little kid
Exactly when i saw Sugar Ray Leonard the first time
He was beating up poor Donnie Lalonde
That made me a fan
Hagler, Hearns, them mean fighters left me in awe
Then came life's demanding passages that required me to focus on it
Boxing took a backseat, but never was lost
Saw UNO MAS with another idol Duran
I've watched Tito and DLH fight at it
Buster giving Tyson the storybook
Then Manny Pacquiao came like a freak of nature
Saw Floyd Mayweather Jr. beat Baldomir and DLH
Then these upstarts of today it's just glorious to live by this generation

You are a fan if you believe in your idol no matter what *******s or *****s or anyone say about you and your chosen one...

I just don't get some die-hard FMJ fans that say when Pacquiao retires this so-called site will be glorious again, and Pacquiao fans are not really boxing fans. What are they then?

And I just don't get the other side of the fence either. Pacquiao fans overlook the fact that Manny's being manipulated by a higher greedy one (ARUM) and (not all) fans of him exalt and patronize him that he is like a god indeed but neglect the numerous minor slip-ups that tend to be blown up mainly because of the biggest fight of a generation blown up to smithereens, so can't blame *****s on that, yet they do the same thing with their idol...

Scumbag, good guy, dork, name your idol and exalt them, and if you can stick with him throughout everything, then you are a fan!

[The Great Shark]

Rest in peace

[Kris Silver]

Aren't you the same girl that's going around posting how "Mayweather is scum" like you know him? And now you're running out of your own thread because you know you're going to get ****ed after your skirt gets pulled? Just stop, Samantha. I used to believe you when you said you watched boxing back in the 70's (in spite of your obvious lack of any tangible boxing knowledge) but now I'm convinced you're a 20-something year old girl.

Dude I think I do like you but why do you always have to be so obstinate?

Here we have one of the more positive ends of the spectrum in terms of posts and threads without really mentioning biases or boxers at all within and you still feel the need to open up with insults, accusations, hate, prejudice and worthless negative ranting.

If you don't see that, and if we don't see that, then ****'s worse then was already outlined. Don't get me wrong my man I'm a cynic too at times but it needs to be applied well and with some positiveness, otherwise perhaps it shows more grief within ourselves more than anything, right?

**** me, why do some folk love to put the other man down so much? That's the real reason so many peeps are being moody wankers. Let's blame the recession shall we?

I think Clottey Pacman is going to be a frigging majorly good fight. It's stoopit how little there is on that. Pac by late TKO, and NSB by NC by 2011 at this rate.

[mathed]

TLDR.

Another thread trying to distinguish yourself from the *******s. Fail.

A thread that truly epitomizes neutrality and a topic that should really be free of both Pac and Floyd and then there's your post. Who is failing here?

[El Jesus]

Dude I think I do like you but why do you always have to be so obstinate?

Here we have one of the more positive ends of the spectrum in terms of posts and threads without really mentioning biases or boxers at all within and you still feel the need to open up with insults, accusations, hate, prejudice and worthless negative ranting.

If you don't see that, and if we don't see that, then ****'s worse then was already outlined. Don't get me wrong my man I'm a cynic too at times but it needs to be applied well and with some positiveness, otherwise perhaps it shows more grief within ourselves more than anything, right?

**** me, why do some folk love to put the other man down so much? That's the real reason so many peeps are being moody wankers. Let's blame the recession shall we?

I think Clottey Pacman is going to be a frigging majorly good fight. It's stoopit how little there is on that. Pac by late TKO, and NSB by NC by 2011 at this rate.

I feel where hes coming from though. All day some of these people, like the TS who started this ****ing topic, literally everyday go into a thread that involves something to do with mayweather, like his press conference or a topic and find some way to trash him. Its redundant. The idea of SAMURAI being some kind of barometer for a "real boxing fan" is why IMDAZED said what he said.

This whole board, these topics, its just a circus, i used to enjoy fight buildups on this board because a fighter would get hot and it would go away. But im gonna ****ing say it and i dont give a ****, pac fans outnumber everyone, and they literally spend more time talking about floyd than anyone else in the history of this board.

If its not articles, its examiner blogs, if its not that its biased bull****, if its not that its rehashed garbage. YOu see the same avatars, the same screenames and the same people. Its tiring, and i hate to say it, but im just sick of this place and its regime of idiocy. All day the same people doing the same people. And they get away with it because there are enough dumbasses who agree with them to legitimize their endless stream of hate.

"oh mayweather made fun of a girl who fainted!" "filipino journalists couldnt interview floyd"

this trash is all over the place and its pathetic. This board has never been more classless.

[EL_cano]

BTW, I won't be replying nor even visiting this thread again, I've said my piece.

Boxing at its finest. You learn something new everyday.