By Charlie Knoxville
Got an Opinion? Submit Your Article to Nowboxing.com
I wrote an article about Manny Pacquiao vs. Zab Judah, a match I would love to see, it would be a great style match up with guaranteed excitement. Zab would be a live dog in that fight because he is a strong, fast, powerful southpaw something Pacman has yet to face.
Sadly, the fans would complain about that match up, because Zab Judah has losses on his record and hasn’t looked the best in recent outings. It seems the fans have forgotten the great upsets in boxing history, from Braddock vs. Baer, Buster Douglas vs. Mike Tyson, to Hasim Rahman vs. Lennox Lewis, all guys who were frowned upon and given no shot at all, but pulled off the upset.
The problem is boxing has become more about being undefeated or not having many losses to be relevant. Zab Judah has lost some but he is still a credible opponent. Years back the boxing fans didn’t really care if a fighter had some losses they were willing to give that fighter a chance and knew that in the sport of boxing anything can happen.
Look at the resumes of some of the legendary boxers of our time, they have losses and Roberto Duran who said “No Mas” against Sugar Ray Leonard was able to bounce back from a string of defeats and recapture the imagination of the boxing public when Duran at 32 years of age knocked out the younger and highly touted undefeated Davey Moore in Madison Square Garden.
The fans are claiming Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto are all washed up fighters now, but their only losses were to the best guys in boxing, Hatton lost to Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, and Cotto lost to Antonio Margarito and Manny Pacquiao.
On February 5, 2010, ESPN Friday Night Fights, Glen Johnson at the age of 41, defeated and stopped Yusaf Mack. Johnson came off a disappointing loss to Chad Dawson but was able to bounce back with an impressive stoppage win over the younger fighter. Glen Johnson has 13 losses on his record, many of them controversial, but even at his age he is still competitive. Johnson showed that having losses doesn’t always mean you suck or you’re a washed up fighter.
Records can be deceiving. There are guys who have impressive records but are untested, and guys who are considered journey men who have losses but would put up a far more tougher challenge than the undefeated fighter. Like Emanuel Augustus who Floyd Mayweather Jr. to this day says is his toughest fight, and Augustus had 16 losses before he fought Mayweather.
Some people are saying the Pacquiao vs. Joshua Clottey fight is a meaningless fight. I beg to differ, I believe it’s a great test for Manny because Clottey is no push over he is a legit big welterweight with good defense, Shane Mosley opted not to fight him, same with Paul Williams, plus the guy has never been dominated in a fight. Clottey’s only losses are questionable ones, he was disqualified against Carlos Baldomir because of a headbutt, he was beating Antonio Margarito before his hands broke and Margarito could of been using his illegal hand wraps in that fight, you could also make a case that he beat Miguel Cotto.
Today, if a fighter loses he is already washed up or damaged goods in the eyes of the new generation fight fans. This is why some people are so fixated with Floyd Mayweather Jr. and his undefeated record. Many of these people who idolize Mayweather Jr. don’t really know much about boxing, they are just fascinated with his unblemished record, his bling and his attitude.
Manny Pacquiao on the other hand doesn’t have a flawless record, he has some losses and some draws, but what makes him so special is he doesn’t care if he loses, his main goal is to try and fight his heart out for his country, for the boxing fans and to win the fight at all costs even if it means taking his opponents hardest shots just to get his five punch flurries in.
I really get tired of Floyd Mayweather Jr. discrediting every single fighter in history who is ranked above him, his main reason for discrediting them is mainly because they have losses on their record and he doesn’t. Floyd doesn’t have losses on his record because he hand picks his opponents, the guys back then fought the toughest guys to prove they were the king of the hill, they were real men back then, not pretty boys.
If people fought the way Mayweather Jr. fought, no one would have losses, he fights not to get hit, and he doesn’t engage much. Floyd is a safety first fighter, he doesn’t like to get hit or take chances. Boxing is the sport of hit and not get hit, but no one is telling Floyd to brawl it out, fans just want to see him live up to his potential and take chances in the ring even if it means the chance of losing.
(Please refrain from leaving any Vulgar, Racist comments or they will be removed, Thank You)
Post your Comments in the Now Boxing Forum (membership is FREE)
I am an avid fan of boxing and video games. My first fight of memory was watching Prince Naseem Hamed destroy Kevin Kelly. I enjoy all aspects of the sport. My favorite current boxer is Manny “Pacman” Pacquiao. My favorite boxing match is Diego Corrales vs. Jose Luis Castillo 1. I love watching boxing on Pay-Per-View more than being there live because you can really enjoy and watch the action from the best view.