By Robert “Big Moe” Elmore: I can’t speak for anyone else, but I have thoroughly enjoyed the fights that 2014 gave us. There were a few stinkers and a few that I thought that were not pay per view worthy. Nonetheless, they happened and I look forward to 2015. There were those who lost their lives in the ring and some were hospitalized this year. It has to be a little disheartening to those families who support their husbands, sit ring side, let them go off for weeks on end only to see their hard work and dedication be shattered with a series of punches or a single punch.
Along those same lines, we have seen fighters train hard; put the time in only to be cheated by the judges. This is why I would never call any boxer a coward or greedy for trying to get the most money possible every time they fight.
No fighter steps in the ring and says “I want to get brain damage or I want my face to look like the meat that Rocky Balboa punched”. But sometimes that is the end result. Some fans like all out action while others enjoy watching a good technical fight. Each style though comes with consequences. The all out rock em sock style fights brings the fans out, but those type of fights are more likely to have long term effects and thus shorten a career.
Whereas the technical style don’t quite fill seats (unless you’re Floyd Mayweather or Wladimir Klitschko where they can fight on their turf, fight their style and make tons of cash doing it) but their careers last a little longer. Still some are never satisfied, fickle and can turn on a fighter in a second. Take the Keith Thurman/ Leonard Bindu fight. Thurman is a knockout artist yet he was booed during that fight and received more boos during his interview. Every fight can’t be a knockout. In my eyes, Thurman took was given to him and did the best he could. He was patient and was given a chance to work on a few things. I tend to think that fighters learn more when they go the distance rather than score a quick knockout every time out. 2014 also gave me more of a chance to understand business decisions in boxing.
It’s easy for fans to spew venom from their laptops when a boxer makes a decision that is not popular. What is humorous is that those same fans will “make decisions that are best for their families” while completely ignoring what relatives or anybody has to say. Let’s face it. Every decision is not going to please everybody. And if one chooses not to drop money on a ticket or pay per view, they are replaced by somebody who will. I have a few things I want to see happen in 2015.
One of them is to see Andre Ward back in the ring. It pains me see a man so talented, gifted, and could make more noise in boxing, sit on the sidelines in the prime of his career. I have stated to many that Ward must know something we don’t and has a lot of cash stored away to sit so long. But again, that’s one of those decisions that he’s decided to make. Obviously, I want to Floyd and Pac fight. BOTH men need this fight and there is no better time to do it. Pac cannot fight Jessie Vargas and Floyd can’t fight Amir Khan as both events will suffer greatly.
I want to see how Al Haymon bringing his fighters to regular TV works out. Haymon is often called bad for the sport yet boxers continue to sign with him. Hopefully, the Julio Cesar Chavez situation gets resolved with Top Rank and Chavez becomes more disciplined in and out the ring.
Gennady Golovkin (GGG aka The Tripster as I call him) should get a few more fights at 160, namely Andy Lee, and then move up. Miguel Cotto, Peter Quillin, and Jermaine Taylor are not looking in his direction so what’s the use of sticking around a division where the top guys won’t fight him? There are a few more but I will end here. My prayer is that boxing fans, regardless of race, background etc, has a great rest of 2014; that you have a prosperous and blessed 2015. Peace to all.
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