I ask this because I've seen a lot of people trash the IBHOF on this forum at several points. It seems like it's a very divisive to me. What do y'all think?
You have to understand how halls of fame work to judge something like ‘Stribling is in but this more recent guy isn’t.’ How long did it take Stribling to get in? Maybe when that amount of time has passed Michalczewski will be in too. They have an old-timers category where you get later bites at the apple if you’re passed over on first tries when you’re eligible. So a lot of the guys that, say, Greb fought who were ‘hall of Famers’ are in there as old-timers who weren’t selected when they were first on the ballot. Eventually most top fighters will get in. Everybody points to Gatti and I get it, but he got in as much on sentimentality as accomplishment and that’s going to happen from time to time in any Hall of Fame — quarterback Kenny Stabler didn’t get in on first blush but when he died they voted him in (he may have gotten in eventually anyway but that hastened it). And Gatti was a championship-level guy … and it’s a hall of FAME, not a hall of GREATNESS, and he was famous for his wars. He was a top attraction. Also you see people complain about Sylvester Stallone, who had a lot to do with boxing’s popularity and revival in the mid-1970s and kept the sport in the pop culture lexicon with his Rocky movies. He’s not in there as a fighter, but as someone who contributed to the sport … and I think that’s undeniable. It’s the International BoxING Hall of Fame, not the International BoxER Hall of Fame. I don’t know of any hall of fame that doesn’t recognize people who contribute who weren’t actual athletes or performers. It’s to recognize the entire sport and if someone contributed who wasn’t a boxer, well, good on the hall for recognizing that. I can look at what we’re doing here with our own Hall of Fame and there are key nominees missing so every such endeavor has its flaws.
It’s awful. I was in the BWAA for a bit and there were guys who literally didn’t know who some of the nominees are who also voted on their induction.
I know several people who have been and none have ever reported any disappointment — in fact, all of them loved it and have either gone back or planned to. Especially for induction weekend. Appreciate it for what it is. No hall of fame is ever going to be all things to all people. But it’s the No. 1 shrine to boxing in the world, most likely, and that’s worthwhile.
It was once hallowed but the Brophy family are leeches and now its a joke designed to make them money.
It’s a joke now. I’ve got a long lengthy detailed story about disrespect shown to former fighters and inductees. Multiple, in fact. It’s a business and Brophy is a businessman first, second, and third. Many voters aren’t really qualified either. From my understanding, Baseball has a strict voting system and if three guys don’t deserve it that year, there’s no induction but boxing has become so niche that now they’ve lowered it to three years to cash in on recency which shows the “business first” angle and/or a struggling business. But that’s just part of the problem. Of course there’s the “missing” belts controversy which is ridiculous.
