Weighing In

In a recent interview, former UFC champion Daniel Cormier laid out his perspective on the Ngannou-Fury fight and how the result reflects on boxing as a sport. As I’ve mentioned in my posts about that fight, it’s no longer debatable whether Fury is one of the greatest heavyweights of all time, and because Fury was the sport’s most lauded champion, the incident exposed much more than a singular athlete, rather, it laid bare the vulnerabilities of the entire division. As a dedicated MMA fighter, Cormier’s assessment was even less generous. He emphasized that Fury was beaten by an amateur, which is mostly true. Even though Ngannou was an experienced fighter, he had never been in a professional boxing match. And even though Fury had his hand raised at the end of the contest, it’s hard to see the decision as a meaningful victory.

I wouldn’t go so far as to say that the authority of the discipline or the draw of the sport have been diminished by this embarrassment, though. The puncher’s chance, as many MMA fans and analysts have themselves observed, is most potent at heavyweight. The other divisions would be less accessible for an inexperienced fighter, and so would champions who routinely come into the ring in shape rather than sporting a spare tire over the top of their trunks. The fighters I’ve mentioned previously are a great representation of that premise: Teofimo Lopez, Vasyl Lomachenko, and Terence Crawford would all give any UFC fighter fits, and likely would win their (boxing) fights against anyone in their weight division. They might even have the talent to crossover and be successful in a lower level MMA fight, given their exceptional athleticism.

Cormier made another observation, though, about the relative danger of the two sports. In general, I’m of the opinion that UFC fights are more immediately dangerous (to your appearance, motor function and joint function), whereas boxing may be worse for head trauma. There is a variety of reasons behind the comparison: use of headgear in training, concentration on hitting the head, glove size and weight, and the most obvious reason–there’s no kicking in boxing. Cormier made a compelling argument, though, in that UFC fights are stopped as soon as someone loses consciousness, whereas in boxing, fighters have ten seconds to recover, and ten seconds to reconsider their condition.

Ostensibly, this allowance should give the referee, the corner team and the fighter themselves a chance to assess damage based on physical mobility and attention to instructions. But what about the underlying principle in any combat sport, the golden rule every fighter is taught in every discipline: keep fighting. Anyone training to their best ability should be experiencing frequent urges to shy away from the punishment they’re putting themselves through, and they have to ignore those instincts as a matter of course. Especially when your thinking is compromised (by one or more concussions), you rely on foundational principles more than any factual assessment. In other words, if all else fails, you stand up and put your hands up. This conditioning is both necessary for adequate training and also extremely dangerous in how it affects a fighter’s decision to continue when hurt.

To be fair, in the UFC, an unconscious fighter might be choked, kicked or punched for a relatively extended period as the referee takes time determining the fighter’s condition. That’s very unusual in boxing. They’re also allowed to attack with parts of the body that can do much more damage than a gloved hand, such as knees and elbows. At the very least, the reduction of the count is worth considering. Maybe 9 seconds of recovery time is too much for any fighter to safely continue after sustaining damage that left them unable to rise for that amount of time.

On a lighter note, the recent announcement that Showtime is getting out of the game is music to my ears. Today, PBC, one of the most significant promotional banners in the sport, announced a new partnership with a new platform. Thankfully, it’s not DAZN. Amazon has taken the reins for the next 12-14 fights from PBC, and there’s even speculation that they’ll host pay-per-view events (though these will also be sold through cable providers). Aside from the inevitability of assembling a commentary team superior to Showtime’s, the potential for more reliable, accessible (and maybe affordable?) broadcasts is mouth watering for any true boxing fan.

The sport is going through big changes, and with such changes comes opportunity. Let’s hope the powers that be will seize this one.