I'm a casual boxing fan as well. Which of the brothers was whupping Lennox Lewis until the fight was stopped due to a cut and which one has the glass chin? Or is that all the brother who isn't fighting tomorrow? I'm confused. Honestly, I don't even bother to watch the HW's these days.

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It's ALL about the bike!

Chris Byrd is the best heavyweight going. He fights opponents who would b 2-3 weight classes up in any other division. Pretty impressive stuff, in a VERY weak division - the worst in boxing.

Good athletes who would be heavyweights don't box. Young natural athletes - especially big ones - play football, basketball; something glamorous, and with what they perceive to be a future. Less true in the lower weight divisions, where scrawny scrapper kids can develop into world-class fighters. It (boxing) is still a gateway sport for these kids.

Imagine an athlete like Ray Lewis or Tim Duncan in the ring... Now that would be something...

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
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I will agree that the HW division is a joke at this time. These guys just dont want to be in shape for a fight anymore. It will take a decade to turn that division around. However I think that you would be more correct to state that "Ali was the greatest of his era". Otherwise some white dude is going to bring up Marciano. Those Ali/Fraser fights are still painful to watch. For the mean time I'll stick to watching - Barrera vs Morales 1,2, or 3!!!!

I remember watching the "Kevin Pompey vs Tyrone Trice" fight when I was kid, hooked ever since.

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Brady O'Hare
Softride Inc.
brady.ohare@softride.com

I think that you would be more correct to state that "Ali was the greatest of his era". Otherwise some white dude is going to bring up Marciano.

Ali was amazing. I've always been a bigger fan of Joe Louis, though.

As for white dudes, I don't think Marciano is the standard. Jack Sullivan.

I can't bear to watch boxing anymore. I don't think I've ever seen a sport decline so pathetically, and I'm talking about the whole sport. The hw division is the worst, but it's all bad these days.

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"People think it must be fun to be a super genius, but they don't realize how hard it is to put up with all the idiots in the world."

Boxing certainly was the greatest of sports, sad to see where the pro ranks have gone. For a brilliant book on boxing read "The Ghosts of Manilla". I cant remember who it was by but it is the best work on Ali I have ever read. It isn't just myth building hero worship but a superb peice of sports writing that gets behind the hype and analyses what was really there.

You are correct Kiltschko wil beat him and beat him early unless the fix is in.

One of the best fights ever... "Jeff Fenech and Azuma Nelson I" I think it was an undercard for a Tyson fight. It was a slugfest. Anyone remember this fight?

I loved that series of fights with Morales and Barrera. I recall watching the first Gatti-Ward bloodbath very clearly. I dig Ironman, Eco-Challenge, and all other mega-endurance sports, but what Ward and Gatti did to each other in that fight (not to mention the 2nd and 3rd fights) was super-human. How either one of them survived is still amazing to me.

And Lampley's call of that fight was classic! No one else, not even Howard Cossell could have done it better, because Lampley knew when to shut-up and just let the camera roll.

Now my adrenaline is up! Where are my DVDs of those fights???

Ali was the greatest...draft dodger that is!

If you can't use knees and elbows than it isn't real fighting!!!! All those "hands only" guys are a bunch of wimps in my book! Muay thai for real men- and women!

I attended a few Thai fights years ago. The last fight on the card was a full Thai fight with elbows, knees and throws. Both fighters were from Thailand and it was a championship fight. The sound of an elbow hitting a jaw is a lot different that a glove. After watching that fight I then understood why the fighters are considered over the hill once the reach to ripe old age of 21.

Also, most fighters start competing at the age of 8 so by 21 they have 13 years of fighting. Actually, though, many go into their late 20's/early 30's. As strange as this sounds, you don't take as many direct head shots in Muay Thai, more blows to the body, so fighters don't have as many health problems as boxers do.

"One of the best fights ever..."

Three of the best fights I can think of were Gatti vs Ward. Can't believe they slugged it out for a total of 36 rounds.

"Chris Byrd is the best heavyweight going."

Chris who? You're not really serious?

Vitali Klitschko was beating him on every score card until he ruptured his biceps tendon. Little brother Wlad then easily beat Byrd on a decision after decking him a couple of times.

I like Chris as a nice decent guy which is unusual in boxing, but either Klitschko can beat him. If he fights Vitali again it'll be an early "say goodnight Chris."

Byrd is a good fighter, and very awkward, but can't really 'take a shot', as they say in the game. No chin.

Of course, the sick irony is that the hard guys, the guys who can really take a shot, end up completely f**** because their brains turn to jelly with all the punishment, over the years. Much better in the long run to go down when hit hard - that way the hitting stops.

Cheery topic, boxing.

BTW, Klitschko is a beast. Classy fighter, tough, power in both hands, heart of an ox.

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kiwipat

per ardua ad astra

"BTW, Klitschko is a beast. Classy fighter, tough, power in both hands, heart of an ox. "

What's truly unique about the Klit bros is that they both have PHD's. That's unprecedented in boxing. Let's hope they're both smart enough to get out when they're on top. Too many boxers have a tendency to hang around past their prime and pay for it in brain damage.

Couldn't agree more.

Total opposite of triathlon, where we really admire those that hang around and keep doing the sport (a la Molina et al), with old boxers it just gets sadder and sadder.

I've seen a lot of it and it is truly tragic.

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kiwipat

per ardua ad astra

So how come I couldn't an answwer on the day of fight 3? Not one response. Did you see it? Awesome fight but what was said when they were awaiting the result? Barrera walked over to wish Morales well and Morales reacted to his comment and tried to go after him. I would love to know what, was anything published on it?

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"How bad can it be?" - SimpleS

I didn't catch the comment, but considering the way Morales was talking before the fight, he was most likely just frustrated. Before the fight he had said the Barrera shouldn't even be in the same ring with him. Obviously Barrera had much more to prove in this fight and Morales didn't want to be there. Maybe Barrera called him a "Uncle Tom"?

Tyrone Trice

Heh heh. I have the fight that he lost to Simon Brown on tape. He talked his usuall stuff, then Brown threw a left hook from the cheap seats and Trice went night-night.

Vitus ... I don't think Marciano is the standard

He suffered the same disease as Larry Holmes ... no other good heavyweights to build legend on. There was a reason marciano was 49-0 and it wasn't because he was THAT good. Don't get me wrong, great heavyweight ... but put him the 70s and he's got a few losses.

Drock ... Jeff Fenech and Azuma Nelson

We could always reflect back to the Troy Dorsey v. Greg Haugen bloodbaths. For me, Holfield-Bowe 1, especially round 10 is the fight for me ... even better than Hagler-Hearns. I still break out with Leonard-hagler. I like both guys, but the comeback Sugar did in this fight is awesome. I love watching Hagler beat the snot out of Hamsho and Mugabi. hagler is how every fighter should be ... relentless and amde of granite.

Astrotri ... what Ward and Gatti did to each other in that fight

One of my favorite moments in boxing ... when Gatti hurt his hand (3rd fight, I believe), and didn't punch with it, until he was getting pummelled. Then, he started throwing bombs with it. I remember coming off the couch yelling at the tv when he did that. Impressive. Another fav moment for me is when Vargas came back against Trinadad after that devestating knockdown in the 1st couple rounds (I still have no idea how he got up). Vargas knocked Tito down later in the fight. That fight was PPV, and thought it was gonna be another $34.99 for a 2-round fight. Luckily, vargas had some uhhhh ... guts.

M'Trois ... Ali was the greatest...draft dodger that is!

I admire his boxing skills, but I cannot root for him for how he treated Joe Louis after Joe bent over backwards for him. Ali's painting Louis as an Uncle Tom while Louis is helping fund Ali's training, etc is just ridiculous. I have very little respect for Ali as a man. As for the draft dodging ... heard it put best this way "He won't fight for his country, but he will fight for money".

TriKitty ... Muay thai

Hey, that's my favorite mixed drink. ;)

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The heavyweight division stinks because the trend has gone from making up for skill with pure size. IMO, boxing doesn't get any better than the welterweight through middleweight division of the 80s. Guys moving up, moving down, moving all over just to fight each other. It's like the heavyweight division was in the 70s ... only more stars.

I prefer middleweights. They're strong enough to have power, small enough to have speed, and just right for sustained attacking. Complete fighters. heavyweight has become too much "2 bombs and some dancing(clinching)".

Gave up HBO and PPV, so I'm pretty much out of the loop. Last fight I saw was Lewis and Vitaly. If Vitaly is as good as the heavy's have, I'm not missing much. More awkward than Ivan Drago.

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-- Every morning brings opportunity;
Each evening offers judgement. --

I love boxing and it's a shame but Robin Givens ruined heavyweight boxing. If it hadn't been for her, Iron Mike may not have gone so crazy. I also remember the glory days of Sugar Ray, Marvelous Marvin, Tommy Hearns....sigh, now you have the same boxers fighting each other over and over again.

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If it hadn't been for her, Iron Mike may not have gone so crazy.

Iron Mike has been a thug basically since birth. I remember seeing an interview with one of Tyson's "buddies" describing them robbing old ladies on the street the DAY AFTER Mike won his first title (v. Trevor Berbick). Tyson was destined for prison his whole life it seems like. Once Cus D'Amato died, the truth came out (via Teddy Atlas, Kevin Rooney, etc) about all the stuff that Cus ignored because Mike was simply a mega-star waiting to be unleashed.

No big surprise, Tyson has always had problems with women. I don't think he raped Desiree washington or whatever her name was, but Tyson has always been a piece of "Crap" person. Note: I truly feel for Mike. I really do. I always felt that if he had "one true friend" that loved him unconditionally and could see more than just "The Beast", that Mike would have settled into more of a normal life. He never got that friend.

What ruined Tyson, as a boxer, was getting rid of the guys that would tell him the stuff that he didn't want to hear. Tyson got too smart for his own good, because he fought a bunch of guys that were scared of him.

Tyson has fought 3 fights against people equally as good as him ... and he lost all 3 (Holy 2, Lewis 1). Put Tyson in against Pinklon Thomas, Tony Tubbs, Terrell Biggs, etc and he looks great. Put him in against somebody that "punches back" like Holyfield, Lewis, and even Tony Tucker and Mitch "Blood" Green, and he doesn't look as menacing. It would have been cool to see what would have happened had Bowe had the guts to fight Tyson. Talk about a let-down of potential. Bowe was the guy "experts" said had everything to beat Tyson ... Strong Jab, Heavy right hand, height, size, etc.

Man, I really do like talking boxing. =)

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-- Every morning brings opportunity;
Each evening offers judgement. --

"Robin Givens ruined heavyweight boxing. "

TCM,

Not quite sure what you mean by that. She was no angel but Mike was always just a thug with some deep rooted psychological problems. I don't think anybody can understand what his second wife Monica Turner ever saw in Tyson. She was a pediatrician and she had in him the biggest child of them all. Never understood why a highly educated woman like her would ever want to be with Mike Tyson unless it was for the money. And once that was gone, she left.

Tyson is a tragic case. He made so much money and is now broke and washed up. There are still fans that wishfully believe in him but it's a pipe dream that he'll make a come back. He's 38 now, which is ancient for a HW contender and was knocked out in his last fight. He's not that marketable any more beyond maybe one last over hyped fight. He just recently almost got in more trouble with the law for jumping up and down on some guy's car hood after an argument in the bar. What a loser.

If I were to blame anybody for the demise of HW boxing, IMO most of it goes to Don King with a little help from Bob Arum.

I miss the days when there was only one genuine HW champ instead of the four we now have, three of them owned by Don King. It's become a bit of a carnival act.