Comments Thread For: Fighting Words - Russian Roulette: Mago’s too-brave stand

[Ulver]

I'm sure Kellerman didn't mean that boxers should fight with such reckless abandon that they end up in medically or punch-induced comas. Rather, his comment was in reference to the abysmal performance that Vladmir put on in the fight with Povetkin. Let's face it, if most or even half of Vlad's previous fights featured the kind of overt appearance of cowardice displayed in the Povetkin fight, he would not be the star that he is today. Holding is a foul, and Klitschko held all night! Leaning on the opponent's back and neck, and pushing him down after landing a shot are also fouls. He was afraid that Alexander would catch him on the inside on his glass jaw, so he held him whenever he got close. He leaned on him and pushed him down to cause fatigue. Fighting is a brutal sport. Nobody knows that better than the fighters themselves. I don't want to see anyone get seriously hurt or killed as a result of a boxing match. However, if a fighter gets in the ring but decides not to actually fight, maybe it's time to re-think his or her chosen profession.

You can blame Wlad for a poor performance, but Povetkin was at least as much to blame. With the same referee he had when he should have lost to Huck (Luis Pabon), he did the same thing he did against Huck, that Huck correctly complained about after the fight: consistently come in so low that the only available place to punch him was on the back of the skull. And just like the Huck fight, he received no warning from the referee.

So while maybe Wlad didn't handle it as well as he should have, Povetkin is far from blameless if HBO didn't like the fight.

As for Kellerman, he has shown his vicarious thirst for bloodshed in the past, so I take him at his word. What he likes is two big guys with only rudimentary defensive skills bashing each other's skulls in until one of them drops. That's fine, I guess, if that's your idea of boxing.

The Wlad-Povetkin fight is no excuse for what happened to Mago. The man looked bewildered and kept asking questions as to what was wrong with him between rounds. That should have been the end of the fight for that night. Kellerman was only a cheerleader, I'm not blaming him for throwing Mago back out there. But somebody surely let the Russian fighter down badly.

[GlasJaw17]

It depresses me to hear what some boxers make for their efforts. Fighters just don't get paid enough. I get mad when I think about how much the networks, promoters, etc make off of the fighters. It's really not fair. These guys are the ones that are putting themselves at serious risk. On top of that some are so quick to criticize them when they are not willing to go out on their shield. Blood clots, brain bleeds, and brain damage are very real. That's not even considering the long term effects of constant body shots. The average Joe has better health insurance than these guys and he isn't taking the chance of ending up in a hospital, in a coma, facial scars, concussions, becoming punch drunk, or cutting years off his life. Mago, I pray for a speedy and full recovery.

[GlasJaw17]

You can blame Wlad for a poor performance, but Povetkin was at least as much to blame. With the same referee he had when he should have lost to Huck (Pabon), he did the same thing he did against Huck, that Huck correctly complained about after the fight: consistently come in so low that the only available place to punch him was on the back of the skull. And just like the Huck fight, he received no warning from the referee.

So while maybe Wlad didn't handle it as well as he should have, Povetkin is far from blameless if HBO didn't like the fight.

As for Kellerman, he has shown his vicarious thirst for bloodshed in the past, so I take him at his word. What he likes is two big guys with only rudimentary defensive skills bashing each other's skulls in until one of them drops. That's fine, I guess, if that's your idea of boxing.

The Wlad-Povetkin fight is no excuse for what happened to Mago. The man looked bewildered and kept asking questions as to what was wrong with him between rounds. That should have been the end of the fight for that night. Kellerman was only a cheerleader, I'm not blaming him for throwing Mago back out there. But somebody surely let the Russian fighter down badly.

I wonder how much of the commentary is actually Maxs fault. I know he knows better and I know he knows and loves boxing. The man is a true historian of the sport. He really knows it. I used to watch him on ESPN, where he would rant about certain aspects of the sport and praise the well deserved fighters. Not just the brawlers, he had an infectious enthusiasm for the game and all its nuances. He changed when he signed with HBO. I think to make the bread he has to do what the network tells him to. He is forced to push HBOs agenda. The same reason Steward and Jones didn't always speak up. Sometimes you can tell Roy is biting his lip.

[Ulver]

I wonder how much of the commentary is actually Maxs fault. I know he knows better and I know he knows and loves boxing. The man is a true historian of the sport. He really knows it. I used to watch him on ESPN, where he would rant about certain aspects of the sport and praise the well deserved fighters. Not just the brawlers, he had an infectious enthusiasm for the game and all its nuances. He changed when he signed with HBO. I think to make the bread he has to do what the network tells him to. He is forced to push HBOs agenda. The same reason Steward and Jones didn't always speak up. Sometimes you can tell Roy is biting his lip.

No doubt there is pressure being brought by the HBO bosses on these guys as to how to push a certain agenda. And like I said, Max is only a cheerleader -- he didn't push Mago back out there when something was wrong. But I was surprised that the HBO crew wasn't more vocal about the fight being stopped. I think it was an over-reaction to the perceived problems with the Wlad vs Povetkin fight. In another context, more might have been said.

[SUBZER0ED]

Good post.

I remember everybody was all over Victor Ortiz for "quitting" against Lopez.

Then the x-rays that showed his jaw was broken clean through came out.

Oops.

Mago knew something was wrong, but they kept shoving him back out there.

Hey, if he dies, who next, right?

HBO will have a 10 count and then move right along.

Ortiz quit in his mind before Lopez broke his jaw. He tried to bully Lopez, but when Josesito stood up to him and fought harder, Victor began to back down. He's not the first fighter to suffer a broken jaw. Ali and Abraham fought on with broken jaws. Ortiz also quit when he fought Marcos Maidana. His jaw wasn't broken then, but his will was. It's unfortunate that Abdusalamov was willing to suffer great damage to further his career, but this is the fight game. Every fighter is aware of the risk involved. They risk their lives for fame and fortune. The fighters' corners, the doctor and the ref are all there to protect the fighters from excessive harm. They usually do a decent job of realizing when a fighter is taking too much damage. They missed it this time. Ortiz quit rather than wait for his corner, the doc or ref to stop two of his fights. Sure, it can be said that he lives to fight another day, but his career has tanked since.

[PAC-BOY]

damn...they got paid 70k between the two of them. And it was a great fight. Action packed HW fight that we havent seen in a loooong time. Giving hope to the HW division. Finally

Damn 70k. Floyd got paid 40 mil and could never produce the action these two guys did the other night. I love the hungry weights!

[SUBZER0ED]

No doubt there is pressure being brought by the HBO bosses on these guys as to how to push a certain agenda. And like I said, Max is only a cheerleader -- he didn't push Mago back out there when something was wrong. But I was surprised that the HBO crew wasn't more vocal about the fight being stopped. I think it was an over-reaction to the perceived problems with the Wlad vs Povetkin fight. In another context, more might have been said.

I think that the discussion concerning how Mago should not have been allowed to continue to fight is based on the result after the fight, more so than how he looked during the fight. Sure his face was swollen, and he asked about it because he could feel it, but he kept going out there. He fought spiritedly throughout the fight, and only looked seriously hurt once to me. If you recall, he landed some tremendous shots on Perez and seemed one or two punches away from scoring a possible knockout. Those factors, plus not wanting to give in himself, which would have erased his lossless streak, along with the apparent desire to show the world that he is a viable heavyweight boxer, likely kept Mago fighting on. Many spectators, including his corner and the commentators, were likely on the edge of their seats, wondering if one of those monsters would finally get the better of the other and win by K.O. In the height of such excitement, it was largely overlooked (and unknown) that Mago was really being hurt seriously. We are fans of a brutal sport, which happens to have a potentially horrible down side. This time, it reared its ugly head and caught us off guard.