The True Legacy of Andrew Golota

An Olympic Medal is the pinnacle of the career of every athlete from all sports around the the globe. It is something that your name will forever be attached with. George Foreman, Joe Frazier, Floyd Patterson, and Michael Spinks cited their Olympic Medal as either the biggest achievement or highlight of their entire careers.

You clearly are ignorant to fighters' feats. Very disrespectful.

 

Tyson's punches are not the whole story of this one. Tyson cheated in this fight by smoking marijuana prior to the bout for which he was rightly fined. The result was changed to a No Contest. "Iron Mike" clearly had an unfair advantage because the marijuana practically made him be numb to Golota's punches and therefore not feel them. Further, he headbutted Andrew which gave the latter a concussion (another unfair ploy by Tyson).

Golota had a fractured cheekbone and a herniated disk between the fourth and fifth cervical vertebrae. These injuries could not have all been caused from Mike's punches especially considering Andrew got right back up following being knocked down. Yet Golota's injuries were no laughing matter and between rounds 1 and 2 as well as 2 and 3 he already felt these injuries and sensed an urgency that something was seriously wrong with his health. He was right. But his trainer Al Certo and his whole corner were trying to literally force him in there. Ridiculous and out of place. It gave viewers the wrong impression of what was really going on. Golota didn't bother specifically complaining about his injuries to his corner between rounds because he knew a temperamental fanatic like Certo was not going to listen anyway. The Pole's corner that night at the Palace was one of the most non-loyal fight corners I have ever seen in boxing. They were clearly only in it for the money and nothing else.

Other well-known fighters also quit in boxing matches including Roberto Duran, Oliver McCall, Vitali Klitschko, Julio Cesar Chavez, Michael Gomez, Victor Ortiz, and Daniel Geale. Andrew quitting was not an anomaly in the sport. Andrew can't take all the flack for simply quitting.

 

Well for me, Golota had a better second round and besides the knockdown at the very end of the first, it wasn't a bad showing on his part. But Tyson took the first stanza while some observers felt Andy had done enough to take round two. It's safe to say we have ourselves an even fight (one round to one) going into the third stanza which never happened. I wrote in a previous post about the real reason he quit in this bout. The concussion which the Pole sustained from Tyson's headbutt instigated a series of injuries later confirmed by a neurosurgeon which prove Golota was right for "throwing in the towel." I wish people would at least consider that this time, the Pole legitimately quit and, we were not watching a repeat of what unfolded in the ring with Michael Grant almost a year earlier.

 

Being known for losing efforts is not always the worst thing in the world of boxing. Sometimes a loss can be more valuable than multiple victories (depending on quality of opponent).

Golota is a national hero (I know you feel this is nothing big because it's exclusive to one region, but that's fine; we have different opinions and that's what's so great about boxing – the sport would be boring if we all shared the same views). But to me, any national hero is significant because think about it, who wouldn't want to be loved?! If you had the choice of becoming a national hero or a world champ, which would you choose? I know that for me, the answer is hero. Although hero status does not strengthen a boxer's resume per se, I do believe people will forget some of the losses and only remember the great victories. In Golota's case, the passage of time will help fans erase some of the losses from their minds IMO.

It's the boxers we're debating about who poured their blood, sweat, and tears in the ring. Let's show each fighter regardless of who he is some respect. Each fighter deserves it.

Look, I'm not criticizing you so please don't criticize me. This forum is meant for us fans to express our theories, beliefs, and opinions. Let's do so in a respectful manner.