By Gerardo Granados: What is the meaning of traditions in pro boxing? Are we as fight fans willing to accept drastic changes in the attitude of prize fighters? Are we the older fight fans condemn to only have nostalgic memories of past brave sons of boxing?
By now, all boxing fans must know that Canelo Alvarez vacated his WBC middle strap. Yeah sure, Saul stated that he did it to help out with the negotiations, because a dead line was affecting them, later on he also stated he would fight Golovkin but only under his terms. Wasn’t Alvarez given many extensions by the WBC to fight Golovkin and as a result, he got the chance to fight against Amir Khan with the mere promise to fight Golovkin next?
The WBC has accepted Canelo´s vacancy of the title and informed that now Golovkin is their middleweight champion. By the way social media behaved I can tell many fight fans were disappointed but not as much as when Peter Quillin or Danny Garcia vacated their belts.
Once upon a time fighters showed an arrogant macho attitude inside and outside the ring and if the reader is old enough then you will be able to clearly understand what I am saying.
When you remember the Arturo Gatti versus Micky Ward trilogy, you will never think about how much money did that trilogy made. I bet all we the fight fans can think about is to remember the savage bloody epic battle those fine sons of boxing gave to all of us, and I am certain no one will ever forget it, just as the Thrilla in Manila epic battle of Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali.
The essence of prize fighting isn’t limited to epic battles it is also intimately related to the bravado macho attitude of the prize fighters. From bare knuckle fighting until today modern boxing, in all corners of the world we can see how fighters show their pride inside and outside the ring.
Did unbeaten Carlos Zarate move up to the super bantam division to challenge Wilfredo Gomez? Did Wilfred Benitez avoid Sugar Ray Leonard? Did Julio Cesar Chavez avoid unifying against Meldrick Taylor? Did Joe Frazier avoid the dangerous puncher George Foreman?
Did Wilfredo Gomez take the risk to move up to the featherweight division to challenge Salvador Sanchez? Did Pipino Cuevas avoid a dangerous hungry young lion named Thomas Hearns?
Even if trainer Cus D´Amato was reluctant to let Floyd Patterson to fight Sonny Liston, did the youngest ever undisputed heavyweight champion of the world vacate his title to avoid the dangerous contender? Patterson end up losing by KO1 to Liston, but Floyd did the right thing not avoiding Sonny.
If a big name will be allowed to dictate all the terms to fight a new comer, then how will we see the rise of new boxing stars? I believe that Canelo didn’t vacate to help with the negotiations; no he did it to help his promoter to impose his conditions. By avoiding the purse bid he guarantees he will still be in total control. No other promoter than his can get control and the WBC has any power to force him to fight Golovkin. From a business point of view, it was like castling on chess, but from the point of view of a savage blood thirsty fight fan it was shameful.
Perhaps if Canelo Alvarez does not fight Gennady Golovkin next it might hurt his fan base. Maybe he is not the one to blame and we should fully blame his promoter Oscar Dela Hoya instead. But for sure, if Canelo avoids GGG, after Gennady previously allowed him to fight Amir Khan to supposedly get ready for him, it will make me not to ever want to see Alvarez fight again. Because, it isn’t only not Mexican Style at all, it is simply against prize fighting traditions.
Is vacating titles the beginning of a shameful new traditional style in modern prizefighting?