Are There Any Fighters Who Don't Cheat?

[Richard Hamilton]

None of that is cheating. It's a fight you *****.

[The Problem Child]

Gennady is the ONLY clean athlete that I know of. He is one of the few using VADA, the non corrupt best doping agency in the planet with the best and most advanced testing technology. And Lemieux I guess but from the top fighters in history, Gennady is the only clean one thats proven.

[Larry the boss]

Thats like asking has an NBA player never traveled

[Eff Pandas]

I thought that the definition of cheating was breaking the rules. Obviously biting a man's ear off is breaking the rules. Of course, Holyfield head butted plenty of people, including Tyson. So he was no angel either. PEDs or biting, the point being that even he cheated.

Cheat
CHēt
verb
act dishonestly or unfairly in order to gain an advantage, especially in a game or examination.

Tyson was just trying to get that fight over by any means necessary (imo). I don't think he was doing it to gain an advantage or to win.

[Jsmooth9876]

Yes, apparently all the ones that get tested by USADA...

[Tony Trick-Pony]

Tyson was just trying to get that fight over by any means necessary (imo). I don't think he was doing it to gain an advantage or to win.

Good point.

I guess Terry Norris hitting a fighter when he is down is not cheating, since after all, he got DQ'd from fights he would have won anyway.

I don't know if I can go with poor sportsmanship, though. These acts are wrong either way you look at it. I'd say meanness might be a better term.

[Tony Trick-Pony]

None of that is cheating. It's a fight you *****.

Haha. Well, the next time your favorite fighter gets elbowed, rabbit punched, hit when he's down, low blowed, head butted, kicked, stabbed, shot... don't complain. Anarchy boxing! Where rules don't matter. And neither do fans since you won't have any.

[Tony Trick-Pony]

Thats like asking has an NBA player never traveled

Of course, they are usually called on traveling by the referees. Benn hit Barkley when he was down and got no punishment for it at all. Hopkins used plenty of head butts and never got penalized. It's a lot easier to cheat and get away with it in boxing than in the NBA. And often times, it goes unpunished and let's face it, the cheaters get the advantage and ultimately the glory over others who followed the rules. I know we don't live in a perfect world. At the same time, I don't believe in honoring the cheating either or saying well, that's just boxing and let it go. When it happens to your fighter, you complain. It is wrong no matter who is doing it. I am a big fan of Wlad, but his actions in the Povetkin fight should have been punished much more and it might have been a different fight.

[soul_survivor]

Terry Norris enjoyed punching fighters who were down and after the bell.

Nigel Benn hit Barkley when he was down, like three times and landed many rabbit punches in the McClellan fight.

Andre Ward clinched Kessler to no end in their fight.

Wlad clinched and wrestled Povetkin to insane levels.

Mayweather used elbows and pushing often.

Trinidad would go below the belt often.

Thomas Hearns held opponents' heads down on more than a few occasions.

Chavez, Sr. landed his share of low blows.

Barrera blatantly hit Morales with rabbit punches.

Duran kneed Buchanan below the belt.

Hopkins landed plenty of head butts that were intentional.

Holyfield was the head butt king.

Tyson loved to nibble on an ear or two.

I have heard Ali had the ropes loosened for his fight with Foreman.

Foreman himself pushed a lot.

A sport of cheaters!! Haha

You can make such lists in just about any sport. Guys in football diving to the ground just to get free kicks and penalties, feigning injury to break up attacking moves etc etc. I could go on with sports like cricket or rugby and so on.

That's not strictly cheating, it's bending the rules imo. Unless it becomes far too excessive or outright damages the opponent, for example, Ward's elbows and headbutts, the same can be said of someone like Hopkins or Holyfield. Or excessive rabbit punches, even after warnings.

But the odd incident, here and there, that happens. It's like all of us in day to day life, we may not outright break the law but we might do a few things to get a step up.

Also, Ali's team never had the ropes loosened, none of them had planned for the rope-a-dope and Angelo Dundee actually went on record to get the ropes tightened.

[Tony Trick-Pony]

You can make such lists in just about any sport. Guys in football diving to the ground just to get free kicks and penalties, feigning injury to break up attacking moves etc etc. I could go on with sports like cricket or rugby and so on.

That's not strictly cheating, it's bending the rules imo. Unless it becomes far too excessive or outright damages the opponent, for example, Ward's elbows and headbutts, the same can be said of someone like Hopkins or Holyfield. Or excessive rabbit punches, even after warnings.

But the odd incident, here and there, that happens. It's like all of us in day to day life, we may not outright break the law but we might do a few things to get a step up.

Also, Ali's team never had the ropes loosened, none of them had planned for the rope-a-dope and Angelo Dundee actually went on record to get the ropes tightened.

It seems like a fine line. You are saying that excessive breaking of rules is cheating. The one time events are just going to happen. I can go with that. But I do think warnings should be given the first time and sometimes they are, but in other cases, they are not. I don't think a point should be deducted right off the bat, but when a boxer clinches or head butts or rabbit punches excessively and the ref does nothing, then the ref needs to be fined and suspended.