:good I disagree. The goal should be absolute fairness. Hits had his time, if he wants it back he should have to earn it. If Lewis came back tomorrow do you think it would be right to give him an immediate shot based on what he did 10 years ago?
I'm glad you brought up the great Joe Louis... Louis retired after beating Walcott in the rematch, defending his HW title. He came back after just less than 2 years and immediately fought for the HW title first fight back against Ezzard Charles. He didn't fight for the title again, making the Ezzard defeat his only loss in a world title fight. 25-1.
If Vitali came out of retirement in 14 months and wasn't granted an immediate shot at the title, given his greatness in the HW division, that would be extreme bias or favoritism, which you seem to think should be left out of sporting. Letting other fighters fight for the title would be your insinuation that they were better than Vitali, which shows your favoritism and bias... Hmm, interesting hypocrisy you have there.
Seriously I would have no problem with Lewis being granted an immediate shot if he were to return. If he was in shape and trained properly he'd probably beat whoever he faced. Many mandatory fights are garbage. Wlad's next WBO mandatory being a prime example. There are a lot of things the sanctioning bodies do wrong, this policy which is only a WBC policy is far down on that list.
His greatness in the heavyweight division? He's barely fought a handful of top 10 fighters if you go by a unified standing such as the ring. It has nothing to do with Vits though, it has to do with fighters being passed up who have worked their way into a position. Vits doesnt have to give up the position, he's choosing to.
I don't see the problem..... things happen in life... life can cause a champion to have to put his boxing career on hold...... why can't a respected champion be able to put his region on hold to deal with life issues so he can continue later..... here is an example...... you are respected executive in a corporation..... a family member dies and you need to take care of many issues that will require you to take a leave of absence...... the corporation should just say "sorry, if you leave, we are replacing you and when you come back you will have to start in the mail room to work your way back to the top"..... nonsense!!!
Do you think that same company is going to hold someones position for years? Theresa differencebetween that and a few day. Bad example. Bottom line, anf YOU should know this, most athletes have a very small window for success. Freezing some out because you're choosing to pusue another career just isnt fair. Nut this is on the WBC, not Vits.
Your analogy is flawed. When a corporation agrees to a sabbatical it is usually under the agreement that the employee will return after the agreed time and the employee cannot do paid work unless for a charity which not every employer will allow. Vitali is choosing a different career path which if successful will lead to a new career which will be paid, he is not taking a career break but making a change of career. In this situation it would be equivalent to an employee deciding to leave a company and try a new career which if he fails at or decides to return to his previous employer is legally entitled to his own job back at the same salary. No corporation would agree to such circumstances.
The truth is i did not bother to read 1 word of your typical whinning. All i see when your name comes up in a thread is :|:| and more :|:|
But somehow, something inside of you forces you to continually reply to me. Thats just brilliant!! :rofl