Tweet
By Arben Paloka
When Jeff Lacy stopped Scott Pemberton in the second round in Reno, Nevada this past weekend, men across the country were saying, “I could have went in there and done better.” I have had friends that said that, and I’m sure you have friends who have done the same.
Those of us who are considered “hardcore boxing fans” hate it when someone says that. We feel that it’s a discredit to our sport. “Who is this guy to say that he can do better a professional who has boxed for a decade and trained just for this fight for two months?” we think to ourselves. But sometimes, we “hardcore fans” even make the mistake of saying they can do better than a particular boxer.
A few months ago, I came into contact with James Huey, an everyday man who had his first professional fight. As an amateur trainer, his dream was to have one professional fight. As a cable guy, he yearned for some glory in his life.
Here is the story of an everyday man like us, saying, “I can do that.” and actually doing it.
[NOTE: This letter was edited for clarity and space reasons]
I had my pro debut Saturday at the emerald queen casino, in Tacoma Washington. I fought a very game Jose Martinez who, by his own admission, had 7 pro fights in Mexico. Not sure of his record but he was tough.
I knocked him down in the first round but he got up and I lost focus. I am a better boxer then puncher, and the plan was to outbox him. But after I knocked him down, the crowd was on its feet, and all I could think of was getting a knockout; I just got caught up in the hype and the excitement. Jose felt my pressure; did his best to make me respect his power it turned into a slugfest. Every punch I threw was meant to take him out. I had my flurries and relaxed a little later, but when I felt his power, I tried to match it. He broke my nose in the second round, and I was worried the doctor might stop the fight, so I did my best to conceal the blood by wiping it away with my gloves. We traded punches for the rest of the fight, and at the end of the third I was hit in the ear. All I heard was a ringing, and as I write this now I still can’t hear out of it. I went to the hospital Sunday night and it turned out to be a torn ear drum. We beat the crap out of each other for four rounds, but it was worth every bit of it. I won by split decision in a close and tough fight.
I am an average Joe, I work for the cable company full time. I am the dude who fixes your cable TV at three in the morning after an outage.
Boxing to me was more then a fight with Jose Martinez, it was a fight with myself. That was the biggest challenge. Opening the fridge and starring at a cold beer and ice cream, and fighting off the urge to eat it, waking up early before work and running 4 miles, or going to the gym, sparring pros with 10 or more fights in a small ring and getting hit with hard punches over and over again for month after month.
My ear should be fine, but if for some reason I never hear out of it again, I wouldn’t trade my experience.
James Huey did not fight Jeff Lacy. He fought a fighter that nobody knew, and will probably never know. This fight had no importance to the sport of boxing. Despite all that, he fractured his nose and gave up hearing in one ear. All for one professional fight where he made enough to tattoo boxing gloves on his arm.
The next time you think about saying, “I can do better than that guy.” you should think about what James went through to fight one of “those guys.” It will probably make you appreciate a “guy” like Scott Pemberton who went through so much more only to get knocked out in two rounds.
When Jeff Lacy stopped Scott Pemberton in the second round in Reno, Nevada this past weekend, men across the country were saying, “I could have went in there and done better.” I have had friends that said that, and I’m sure you have friends who have done the same.
Those of us who are considered “hardcore boxing fans” hate it when someone says that. We feel that it’s a discredit to our sport. “Who is this guy to say that he can do better a professional who has boxed for a decade and trained just for this fight for two months?” we think to ourselves. But sometimes, we “hardcore fans” even make the mistake of saying they can do better than a particular boxer.
A few months ago, I came into contact with James Huey, an everyday man who had his first professional fight. As an amateur trainer, his dream was to have one professional fight. As a cable guy, he yearned for some glory in his life.
Here is the story of an everyday man like us, saying, “I can do that.” and actually doing it.
[NOTE: This letter was edited for clarity and space reasons]
I had my pro debut Saturday at the emerald queen casino, in Tacoma Washington. I fought a very game Jose Martinez who, by his own admission, had 7 pro fights in Mexico. Not sure of his record but he was tough.
I knocked him down in the first round but he got up and I lost focus. I am a better boxer then puncher, and the plan was to outbox him. But after I knocked him down, the crowd was on its feet, and all I could think of was getting a knockout; I just got caught up in the hype and the excitement. Jose felt my pressure; did his best to make me respect his power it turned into a slugfest. Every punch I threw was meant to take him out. I had my flurries and relaxed a little later, but when I felt his power, I tried to match it. He broke my nose in the second round, and I was worried the doctor might stop the fight, so I did my best to conceal the blood by wiping it away with my gloves. We traded punches for the rest of the fight, and at the end of the third I was hit in the ear. All I heard was a ringing, and as I write this now I still can’t hear out of it. I went to the hospital Sunday night and it turned out to be a torn ear drum. We beat the crap out of each other for four rounds, but it was worth every bit of it. I won by split decision in a close and tough fight.
I am an average Joe, I work for the cable company full time. I am the dude who fixes your cable TV at three in the morning after an outage.
Boxing to me was more then a fight with Jose Martinez, it was a fight with myself. That was the biggest challenge. Opening the fridge and starring at a cold beer and ice cream, and fighting off the urge to eat it, waking up early before work and running 4 miles, or going to the gym, sparring pros with 10 or more fights in a small ring and getting hit with hard punches over and over again for month after month.
My ear should be fine, but if for some reason I never hear out of it again, I wouldn’t trade my experience.
James Huey did not fight Jeff Lacy. He fought a fighter that nobody knew, and will probably never know. This fight had no importance to the sport of boxing. Despite all that, he fractured his nose and gave up hearing in one ear. All for one professional fight where he made enough to tattoo boxing gloves on his arm.
The next time you think about saying, “I can do better than that guy.” you should think about what James went through to fight one of “those guys.” It will probably make you appreciate a “guy” like Scott Pemberton who went through so much more only to get knocked out in two rounds.
Gran Campeon
Comment