By Gav Duthie: Boxing is undoubtedly a game of skill but to get to the top you need so much more, as saw in the David Price vs. Christian Hammer heavyweight fight last Saturday night. It’s very rare for any fighter to become great without relentless stamina and a great chin. I would take that over speed or power any day of the week. These attributes can take your far but a mental and physical toughness is what you need to get you through the hard moments.
Price has all the skills, he is big, strong, powerful, has a good jab and the technical qualities which were all on show against Christian Hammer but the German based Romanian had the will over the skill and the stamina to keep going. Many are calling for the big man to retire after his 4th defeat and there is a compelling argument to agree but if he does he can finish achieving more than most will dream of. If he continues he needs to get past a lot of obstacles that will be difficult to overcome.
To be or not to be?
Boxing is about levels and maybe Price has found his. At a quick glance he is ranked #50 of 1,280 on boxrec for heavyweights. Should the 1,275 boxers behind him retire also? Price is not Audley Harrison, He never built himself up, he never made sweeping statements he is a normal guy who boxes for a living and given nothing but his best. He is an Olympic bronze medalist as well as former British and Commonwealth champion. I found it hard to give Hammer a round in their fight last week but every time Hammer landed Price looked in trouble. In between rounds he looked knackered every time even after the first round. This is more the issue than his ability. Of his 4 losses two were one punch knockouts and the others he was physically exhausted. All boxers wish they could be a Carl Froch walking onto shots and not feeling them but its no skill its just luck. You can’t do anything about your chin but surely you can improve stamina.
Criticism
Price also employed a physiologist following his losses to Tony Thompson so he probably doesn’t fully believe in himself. The criticism he is receiving on Twitter is pathetic from the usual keyboard warriors. If Price can’t ignore this though he has no chance to recover.
The future
I think he probably owes it to himself to have one last go. He can drop down to British level and face the likes of Gary Cornish and Dave Allen. At the very least he could go out with a few wins but if his stamina doesn’t improve and he loses at that level its fair to say that he will have given his all and went as far as he can go.