Tweet
by David P. Greisman - It is enough to have two steel-chinned, stone-fisted men slugging bombs at each other for 12 rounds or less.
It is not enough, but it is not everything.
An abundance of action can be amplified by a dose of drama.
A sprinkling of storyline can take a boxing match and transcend it beyond a cookie-cutter popcorn flick and turn it into a can’t-miss prizefight.
Character development can establish reason to root for heroes and against villains, and it can ensure that the principal players are not nameless, interchangeable rock ‘em, sock ‘em robots.
And plot twists can bring a bout from competitive to compelling.
The fight between Juan Manuel Marquez and Michael Katsidis had all of this, providing precisely what its potential had promised.
Marquez is a technician, 37 years old, a pro for 17 years, a man who has prolonged his career by incorporating his technique into a relatively new mindset of allowing himself to go to war.
Katsidis is a warrior, 30 years old, a pro for nine years, a man who has prolonged his career by incorporating his warrior ways into a relatively new mindset of allowing himself to use more technique.
Marquez has accuracy and an advanced arsenal, an ability to land seemingly anything from anywhere at any time. Katsidis has one-punch power and one method of delivering it, coming forward and walking through fire in order to bring his own heat.
Marquez, with his Hall of Fame talent, is a formidable opponent. Katsidis was facing an even greater challenge, however.
Katsidis’ brother, Stathi, had died some 40 days beforehand. Stathi was 31, as close to Michael in age as they had been in life. The death had come while Michael Katsidis was training to face Marquez, and he chose to continue on with the fight despite the loss of his brother, or perhaps in dedication to him.
“Stathi is inside me!” Katsidis had said in a statement shortly after his brother’s death. “We will fight this fight together. I know this is what he wants.”
The traditional sports story about an athlete or a team overcoming the odds is a story relating to succeeding despite injuries, to coming out victorious in the face of competitive disadvantages. [Click Here To Read More]
It is not enough, but it is not everything.
An abundance of action can be amplified by a dose of drama.
A sprinkling of storyline can take a boxing match and transcend it beyond a cookie-cutter popcorn flick and turn it into a can’t-miss prizefight.
Character development can establish reason to root for heroes and against villains, and it can ensure that the principal players are not nameless, interchangeable rock ‘em, sock ‘em robots.
And plot twists can bring a bout from competitive to compelling.
The fight between Juan Manuel Marquez and Michael Katsidis had all of this, providing precisely what its potential had promised.
Marquez is a technician, 37 years old, a pro for 17 years, a man who has prolonged his career by incorporating his technique into a relatively new mindset of allowing himself to go to war.
Katsidis is a warrior, 30 years old, a pro for nine years, a man who has prolonged his career by incorporating his warrior ways into a relatively new mindset of allowing himself to use more technique.
Marquez has accuracy and an advanced arsenal, an ability to land seemingly anything from anywhere at any time. Katsidis has one-punch power and one method of delivering it, coming forward and walking through fire in order to bring his own heat.
Marquez, with his Hall of Fame talent, is a formidable opponent. Katsidis was facing an even greater challenge, however.
Katsidis’ brother, Stathi, had died some 40 days beforehand. Stathi was 31, as close to Michael in age as they had been in life. The death had come while Michael Katsidis was training to face Marquez, and he chose to continue on with the fight despite the loss of his brother, or perhaps in dedication to him.
“Stathi is inside me!” Katsidis had said in a statement shortly after his brother’s death. “We will fight this fight together. I know this is what he wants.”
The traditional sports story about an athlete or a team overcoming the odds is a story relating to succeeding despite injuries, to coming out victorious in the face of competitive disadvantages. [Click Here To Read More]
Comment