Haye vs. Chisora: better than an apology

By Boxing News - 02/23/2012 - Comments

Image: Haye vs. Chisora: better than an apologyBy Rimar Cry: What originally seemed like a relatively trivial matter now has the complexion of something more serious, with talk of lifetime bans, huge fines and even the possibility of prison. At the very least the BBBoC should hand down a temporary ban to Chisora who was largely responsible for what transpired.

I say trivial because, media hype aside, the ruck between the two marginal boxers wasn’t actually that serious. It was more about posturing, vying for a meaningful fight with one of the genuine champions. Unfortunately, neither Haye nor Chisora can claim to be a bona fide & legitimate contender based solely on boxing merit & recent performances, so working the media machine is how they try to sell their product. I’m sure Haye could get himself into the position of #1 mandatory contender, but that would mean proving himself first – something he steadfastly refuses to do.

So, what are they guilty of that has the media so worked up? I mean, we are boxing fans after all, so the idea that we deplore and denounce violence is a bit shallow to say the least. Personally I was quite excited by the brawl – it seemed a much better matchup than Delboy & Vitali.

The most common accusations are bringing the sport into disrepute, and a catastrophic failure to be role models for “the kids”.

With hindsight both Chisora and Haye have issued public statements claiming to be sorry for bringing the sport into disrepute, but one can’t help feel this is a weak PR exercise to smooth over the consequences rather than genuine embarrassment or regret.

Whether they signed up for it or not, professional athletes are role models for children and in particular those with underprivileged backgrounds. On this count both men have dropped the ball fairly significantly by displaying the greed & cynicism associated with trying to shortcut their way to the top.

What I’d like to see…

Rather than the penalties already mentioned, I’d like to see more constructive punishment. The BBBoC should give the boxers a choice: either pay significant fines and be sidelined for a year; or, in lieu of a fine, fight each other at Wembley for a significantly reduced purse. 50% of all proceeds could be given to children’s charities, putting right the claimed damage the fighters have created.

It makes a lot of sense. The fight would be huge, so both fighters even with a 50% reduction would be well compensated. It sets an interesting president for the way people are punished – something positive rather than relatively meaningless wrist slapping. Finally, we the boxing fans get to see a competitive heavy weight fight, because the Klitschko fights are certainly not competitive.



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