Should Errol Spence Jr's Recent Bizarre Blipped Out Lapses In Concentration, Be Of Greater Concern?

We all wondered after the horrific accident that Spence was involved in, if there would be any lingering after effects once he got back in the ring. Thus far, since returning from it, he's fought twice, and while he won both matches with relative ease. Two incidents that happened during them, that his fans seem to be in denial of, really bothered me a great deal. While sure, I've never been the biggest fan of Spence, he's still a father and seems like a really good guy, so I do not want to see him hurt at all. But his fans and fans in general really should be paying far closer attention to the spells he had in both of those matches, where he he seemed to get his bell rung, by both Danny and Ugas, then froze up, seems to short circuit and forgets where he is, and wanders off, looking at the canvas. While I tried to shrug it off, and hoped nothing was wrong, the recent tragic passing of Simiso Buthelezi really bothered me, the images of him punching an opponent that wasn't there, were absolutely haunting. And immediately I thought of what happened with Spence, in two matches, back to back, after he in all likelihood, suffered some form of TBI, in his car accident. The similarities are very hard to ignore. I hope it's nothing, I hope it's just a coincidence, I hope nothing is wrong with him. But I'm also not naive, and seeing several people who've suffered TBI up close in my personal life. I can't help but think there's something wrong. Because, while the damage doesn't appear on an MRI, and while the person manages to pass most tests, their cognitive abilities and reaction time erode over time. So the idea that someone who gets punched in the head for a living, that suffered severe damage to his head in that accident, might be starting to show the after effects a year or two later, is not far fetched.

So, do you think that PBC should be more forthcoming about his test results? Should they be far more concerned for their fighter? Sure, he's been cleared, but as we all know, some doctors are far more lenient than others. Hell, Margarito and countless other boxers who show the negative side effects in their slowed response time and slurred speech, are allowed to continue fighting on. Jermain Taylor was allowed to continue boxing, even after suffering a minor brain bleed, which is utterly appalling. So let's be honest, promoters don't always have the best interest of their fighter in mind, they have the profit they can make off of said fighter, as their primary concern. So while I know, it's the dream match everyone wants to see, but the fact of the matter is, Terence Crawford hits a hell of a lot harder than Ugas and Garcia, and he's a hell of a lot more accurate, with a genuine sadistic streak. He's going to mercilessly punish Spence when they get in the ring together. So, in light of recent events, and what happened in those two matches, Should the testing be far more stringent and far more thorough before they allow this potential matchup against a very dangerous spiteful fighter, to take place?

Here's the episodes I was referring to, timestamped.

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I'm not buying that, even remotely. That happens after a fighter gets dropped and needs to buy some time. Spence isn't an idiot, or a dumb fighter, and in both of those cases, the ref could've easily waved the matches off, because he turned his back on the action. That's a very dangerous position to put yourself in, both from the ref's perspective, and from the opponent's, who could've easily capitalized, and looped a punch around, and hit him in the jaw as he was walking away. Protect yourself at all times. He seemed to lose track of what he was doing and that he was even in a match. Those were moments of genuine confusion.

 

Definitely, I've never seen anything like that happen, usually when someone gets hurt, they panic, grab onto an opponent or start running. They don't look away, zone out, and look like a deer in the headlights by way of a lost puppy dog. Yet this strange occurrence has happened to Spence in back to back matches. It actually shocks me that people aren't more bothered by it.