This is going to be another one of those entries that I write that is along the lines of a commentary about some certain opinion I have. Ever since the Super Bowl a few weeks ago I have been thinking about the state of sports as they are and have been; forming an afterthought that I would like to share here. Whether it is the steroid issue in baseball, the spying accusations against the New England Patriots, the fall from grace for Marion Jones the exposure of cheating in sports is at an all time high. To be a child athlete nowadays must be rough; trying to find someone that you can look up to as a sports figure is challenging at it's best. I open this entry with that lead-in as I have been contemplating perfection in sports and what it means for the legacy of competition.
A few weeks ago (December 8, 2008) I watched a boxing match where two unbeatens faced off to have one of them leave the match with one loss. The Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Ricky Hatton fight was an interesting spectacle in that both fighters were meeting in the latter part of their careers and both had never been beaten. Mayweather was 38-0 and Hatton was 43-0 entering that fight; numbers that reflect that they have seen a slew of opponents, styles, and beatings in their professional career. It is not unheard of for boxers to be undefeated, but with that many wins under thier belt it is quite an accomplishment. Mayweather added another victory making his record 39-0; and the road to that record has been what is most impressive. Floyd Mayweather throughout his run has held title belts for five weight classes and have 25 knockouts in his 39 wins. He has given hope to the viability of boxing as he has broken records for Pay-Per-View numbers, set records for the most revenue from his fights and became something that no one since Sugar Ray Leonard has done; be a marketable boxer that crosses the lines of the sport to other genres. Two fights ago as he fought Oscar De La Hoya and beat him by split decision lasting the entire 12 rounds and is slated to rematch that fight this September. He has become something that no other team/athlete in recent memory has been; unequivocally perfect without accusation of cheating.
My afterthought is this: After his fight with Oscar De La Hoya he said he was going to retire. Ricky Hatton called him out so he came out of retirement to fight him. He said after the Hatton victory that he was retiring from the sport to focus on promoting boxing, where the real money is (side note: Mayweather took home about 25 million from the De La Hoya fight, and De La Hoya who was the promoter reportedly took home 180 million since his company, Golden Boy Promotions promoted the fight... WOW, not bad for a LOSS). This month Oscar came knocking again wanting a rematch so he is once again coming out of retirement to fight. Floyd Mayweather should stick with his original claim and remain retired. Boxing is one of the few sports where it is so highly regulated that it is near impossible to cheat. The athletes are tested for substances that could alter their ability to perform, they are required to maintain a weight that must fall within their class (a window of between 5-8 lbs. depending on their class) and on top of that, if they last the entire match with their opponent the fight is decided on who fought a better fight. To win in boxing there aren't many ways to do it other than to be better and want it more than your opponent. I say in our current state in sports where everything that we thought was good and fair has been exposed as a lie and cheat Floyd needs to save all of sports and give us something to see that is possible without cheating; perfection. Had the Patriots finished their run it wouldn’t be such a big deal but since they didn’t and their integrity is in question we are left to Floyd to save us…God help us.
There is a reason no boxer makes it their entire career without at least one loss. The lure of money, fame and then the constant nagging of their own ego telling them that no one can beat them ultimately catches up to them as youth beat them to a loss. Floyd will still fight I am sure of it and who knows, he still has the skills and talent to beat the best in his sport hence the reason for his undefeated record. His only real competition right now is a boxer named Miguel Cotto; he has an undefeated record of 31-0 currently but isn’t enough of a money draw for Floyd to waste his time fighting him. Hopefully for those of us that enjoy the history side of accomplishment in sports he will hang it up before he has a -1 on the end of his record.
Anyway, that’s it. Prescott out...
Anyway, that’s it. Prescott out...
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