It’s the 12th round of a world championship boxing match. On the red corner, the challenger’s face is beaten to a bloody pulp and he can barely see. His left eye has been brutalized by the laser-like right cross served gladly by the sharp and nimble champion. The orbital bone of the challenger is most likely badly damaged as well. He almost quits on his stool, until his crying supporters become visible in his right eye’s peripheral vision.
Take a look on the other corner, and we see a man looking fresh and confident. It’s just another day in the office for him. He wonders why his opponent on the red corner was even considered to be a top contender in his division, let alone continue the fight with the state that he’s in. It doesn’t matter anyway, he smiles and clenches his fists, ready to continue the methodical beat down.
Badly hurt but not beaten, the man whose face is likened to an abstract painting at that point in the fight stands up and resumes the long day in the office. The referee orders them to fight and they both gladly oblige; both trade shots, the champion getting the better of the exchanges as he lands the cleaner blows. The challenger nods his head in approval of his opponent’s technique, but he fights on. In his mind, backing down is not an option. Five months of painstaking preparation will not be in vain. He goes for the gusto.
His punches barely touch the champion’s face. The champion has been known to be a great defensive artist as well as a technically sound boxer. But, the worthy challenger remains unfazed, unflappable. His heart couldn’t be measured.
In the dying seconds of the final round, the champion decides to show the world why he is the man. A barrage of lightning quick punches pepper the challenger’s face and body, but it’s not enough to knock the man out. The referee closes in but thinks twice about stopping the fight; he must have seen some form of resilience in the challenger’s eyes.
The champion smirks and decides to continue the bludgeoning. Treading with reckless abandon, the champion corners the man who looks hopeless in the eyes of thousands in attendance and millions at home watching on television. He finally decides to throw his swift, patented right cross. Someway, somehow, before his fists collide with the challenger’s facial muscles and in a matter of split seconds, an overhand right connects perfectly on his jaw. A match made in heaven and sparks suddenly fly. The champion’s brain starts to bounce back-and-forth inside his cranium which in turn shuts his body down. Then, his lips firmly kiss the cold canvass.
He wakes up a few minutes later knowing the reason why the man he faced was a top contender to his crown.
They shake hands and trade smile and you can tell that both would gladly do it again.
Such is the beauty of boxing.
Some call it brutal, some call it boring, and some call it an art. You can name it whatever you want, but one thing is for sure, it reveals a person’s soul. Boxing is all about the little things. It is what you don’t see that counts and sometimes it can even knock you out. The art of hitting and not getting hit is not as simple as everybody may think and it is rather more complex than you might have ever imagined. To truly master the art is nearly impossible.
Techniques like parrying the jab, clinching, shoulder roll, different types of guards and proper distance, are some of the fundamentals that many novices and even professionals often overlook. To truly master the game is to master the fundamentals. Little things are all things in the sport of boxing.
The likes of Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, Sugar Ray Robinson, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather and Mike Tyson are just some of the most popular names in boxing, thanks in part to superior marketing and handlers. A true boxing fan knows the likes of George Benton, Willie Pep, Wilfred Benitez, and Niccolino Locche, some of the greatest to have ever laced gloves because of their mastery of control and technique.
Boxing is not all macho and power; rather it is a game of control and set-up. Call it high speed chess if you will. Like in life, it is essential to focus on the small things first for progress. Men must be in search of the better things and not just the presumed benefits. Challenge yourself today; it does not have to be in the form of lacing on a pair of gloves and boxing, just push yourself to the limit and test yourself because life is meant to be lived.
Doesn’t it just make you smile to see two combatants personify sportsmanship, shaking hands after a hard fought bout, knowing that nothing is truly personal in the sport. It’s just business. Behind the façade of trash talk and bravado are human beings just enjoying the sheer excitement of fighting and pushing their bodies to the limit. After it is all said and done, boxing remains a sport, and sport is unity, not discord.
Mutual respect, class, perseverance, determination, and will are just some of the things men and women of all ages can learn from the magnificent art of the sweet science known as boxing.
Remember, simply stepping inside the squared circle is already an accomplishment. It doesn’t matter if you win or lose; what truly matters is that you are there and ready for battle. If there is no enemy within, the enemy outside cannot do us harm.
