Sunday Sermon: Fury Defeats His Demons; Judges Defeat Fury
“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, but finds none. Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds the house empty, swept, and put in order. Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there, and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So also will it be with this evil generation.” – Matthew 12:43-45
Boxing is still one of the most corrupt sports in the world. Which is the biggest reason as to why, once one of Americas most popular and prideful pastimes, it is a dying sport among all major sporting events.
And that hurts to write as a passionate, loving, boxing fan because the atmosphere for last night’s main event matched any Super Bowl, World Series or Kentucky Derby in recent memory.
Let’s move past the blatant robbery and onto the fighters. Regardless of the outcome, both fighters brought their ‘A’ game and put their bodies on the line. Yes, that was Wilder’s ‘A’ game, even if you don’t respect his overall skill, his power is nothing to fuck with.
You just can’t ignore the fact that Fury fought a nearly perfect fight and had to settle for a draw.
The build up painted Fury as a past his prime fighter with no hope in winning while annotating Wilder as too powerful and demonstrative for Fury. They played up the three year hiatus of Fury that was filled with sex, drugs and Rock & Roll. And rightfully so. However, what everyone forgot was that Fury was a pure, educated boxer and a proven winner.
Fury won that fight, easily. There isn’t a valid argument known to man that could sway my ‘opinion’. I’m no expert by any means and my resume in the boxing game probably doesn’t mean shit to anyone but my momma. But I’m not blind and neither are the 90 percent of boxing enthusiasts expressing their heartfelt thoughts for Fury on social media.
Yes, I know, don’t believe everything you read on the internet, especially social media. However, there are people who still believe in Donald Trump so believing Fury won the fight hands down has to have some truth to it, right?
And to put my personal feelings aside for Wilder for the moment, the man never quit. There were plenty of moments where he looked lost, frustrated and could have mentally exited the fight and took his L. But he didn’t, he kept looking and maneuvering in hopes of finding a way, a way to where he was in position to land his equalizer.
And he did it.
The first knockdown wasn’t much, more of a punch behind the head causing Fury’s equilibrium to malfunction for a moment.
The second knockout though, monstrous baby. Fury was out cold, stretched across the canvas. Who, or what, woke him up will never be revealed, but the giant Gypsy muthafucker pulled his big ass up off the canvas in time to beat the count.
What Tyson Fury accomplished last night pales in comparison to how he not only resurrected his career, but most importantly, his life. He’s a winner regardless of the scorecards. He proved that your story isn’t over until you put down the pen and close the book.
Wilder will never be mistaken for Ali but you cannot discredit his accomplishments. His ability to destroy or hurt every opponent he’s ever faced with a single punch, is unheard of in the sport. Take him for what he is worth, an exciting, highlight reel, knockout artist.
I highly doubt an immediate rematch will take place. I’d go as far as to say both fighters will fight another opponent before discussing the rematch. Which ultimately means, seeing either fighter face Anthony Joshua before 2020, is a pipe dream.
Judging will never be fixed, as human error will always play a role in the outcome of a fight. There are plenty of ways to fix it though. Adding an extra round after the scores are completed could work. Adding more judges, maybe a 5 man/women panel, but that means Wilder could have won a horrendous decision if the other two judges scored it just as bad as Alejandro Rochin. I’m in favor of putting them in a room, away from ringside where they cannot be swayed by the crowd and their views aren’t obstructed from the fighters, refs and ropes.
Every sport has its issues but in boxing you literally have one night. There is no next week or tomorrow for Fury. Fury will probably wait 3-6 months before he sets foot in a ring for fight night. And that draw will always remain on his record. Boxing is one of only a few sports where your win/loss/draw record really defines your career, and Fury deserved all the credit in the world for his victory last night.
Photos courtesy of Esther Lin/Showtime
