Successful Boxers who hated Boxing

G ene tunney didn't like the fight "crowd"....those people we see before the fight hanging out in the lobby, smoking cigars and talking out of the sides of their mouth and seemed to appear only at prize fights and vanishing until the next major match. they didn't like him either. same goes for the boxing writers. they thought of him as thinking he was "too good for them"....which he probably was.

ezzard charles had mixed feelings about boxing, even before he killed his opponent in the ring. before each fight, from the beginning, he insisted on being alone in his dressing room for five minutes before being called out to the walk down to the canvas. he never said why. he was a religious man, so he might have been praying, but that's only conjecture.

the comments i've made about tunney are just things i read over the years/]. The ones about charles i heard from members of his camp.

 

With the exception of the Tyson fight , Buster Douglas didn't look very openly interested in boxing..

Hey just seemed like a regular Joe six pack guy, who wears jeans everyday, and eats at Mcdonalds..

He did have one of the greatest nights in the history of boxing, THEREFORE i can only assume he was moderately successful..:huh

 

Sonny Liston said he didn't like boxing- didn't like getting hurt, but there was nothing else he knew how to do to make a living.

 

More likely "nothing else LEGAL that he knew how to do to make a living."

 

I think that Emile Griffith would have happily gone through the rest of his life making hats if Howie Albert hadn't goaded him into being a boxer.

 

Corrie Sanders preferred golf.

 

Though I've never heard or read anything about Michael Spink's feelings on the game, I've always wondered if he wasn't particularly thrilled with it. He did after all retire young and after only 32 fights.

 

I wouldn't call that hating boxing. Tyson clearly loved the sport, he is basically a walking encyclopedia of boxing knowledge. He was old, didn't want to train any more, and had no hunger the 2nd half of his career. He just didn't want to do it anymore because he couldn't doesn't mean he hates boxing. He shows up at pretty much every big fight, and trains little kids when he visits gyms.

 

Michael Spinks

 

Gerry ****ey?

 

First name that popped in by head

 

I think this is absolutely true. Many fighters, the vast majority even become totally disillusioned with PROFESIONAL boxing. But among them most enjoyed their Amateur careers at least to begin with. To develop ability most often it is a passion that drives it. After all as kids many travelled the world, representing neighbourhoods, clubs, nations even. They nearly all look back fondly at the beginning

.However I have known some who became good boxers having been forced to box by fathers and their anger taken out on opponents.

I believe the money side leaves a nasty taste. It becoming a job is that is nasty. The vast majority of pro boxers sacrifice themselves, their best years winding up making no more money overall than minimum wage. Even ones that were good amateurs.

Absolutely. Kids with low esteem finding male role models etc.

There are certainly some sadists out there but proportionally not that much greater represented within the boxing community than society itself. The hurting is a by product rather than the actual thrill for most. for the majority hurting is the goal not necessarily the glorry. Yes they are driven but would you say a soldier loves inflicting pain? In a round about way you can say the soldier does but it's really a by product of enjoying being good at your job.

A lot of them get tired of the pain and the idea of it once they can see it for what it is. They grow up.

 

I still don't think that any highly successful boxer could absolutely hate the sport, especially at the time he was active.

- Chuck Johnston

 

Where'd you hear that about Ezzard