Seems that their is a sudden spike in boxing related brain dammage injuries recently. After Abusalamov, Arce opponent is said to be in very bad shape after getting koed and some guy on the Tua-Ustinove undercard had to undergo a brain surgery following his fight. They say he's already talking and should recover but recover is a pretty misleading word, I mean, Paul Ingle is said to have recovered too but it's obvious he's not the man he used to be and by quite a long shot. I love boxing but more and more, I understand why some want it banned. Most of these guy's dedicate their life to it and all they get is some meager money and brain injuries when they retire. Basically only some meat for someone to beat on. Just read the David Reid article someone posted here not to long ago, and that's someone who made millions of dollars in his career.
There are some ideas on the table to make the sport safer, but nobody does shit. The government don't want to intervene, the promoters don't care and the athletic commissions just do whatever the promoters want.
Lots of things are needing fixed. Repeated blows either concussive or sub-concussive will eventually cause brain damage or other issues, the key is to try and lessen these blows, but getting punched is what boxing is all about, so really hard to change this, but things have to be tried. Another thing that is happening just now is guys are frequently coming in overweight, weigh ins should be on the day of the fight then we will get guys fighting in the correct weight class instead of guys putting on 20lb after the weigh in. I know why the weigh ins are two days before, but guys just explout this now with the hydration techniques available.
The only thing that can make it safer is when the fighters, corners, and most importantly us as a viewing public stops this fight to the death nonsense. A fighter who decides has had enough should not be treated like a pussy and a quitter. They're the ones putting their lives on the lines, not us. They should not feel obliged to fight to the very end just because of the peer pressure.
Four things I'd change to make it safer or less dangerous: 1) Decrease glove size: It takes less punches to knock out an opponent with a smaller glove (MMA) and it decreases the amount of punches taken through 12 long rounds. 2) Eliminate weight classes: If they keep the original weight classes and eliminate the new in-between weights, fighters are pushed into fighting in their natural weight class, no need to starve and dehydrate to make weight. 3) Same day weigh-in: Beefcake explained it above. 4) Less belts: This ridiculous fad of pseudo-belts is creating more grueling 12 round fights. We need shorter fights, more 10 rounders. I think it makes for more exciting fights.
Same day weight-in were cancelled because fighter didn't have enough time to rehydrate completelly, which increase exponentielly the risk of brain injury. Reinstating them would in no way reduce brain injury. I do like the idea of reducing meaningless belt, and making motre 10 rounders
I know, it's almost utopian. Like asking government to eliminate sales tax, but there's no other way unless they decide to use mandatory headgear.
The Biggest UNSPOKEN Factor Contributing to Head Injuries is SPARRING...Even an Elite Level Guy, Fighting Only 2-3 Times a Year will Spar HUNDREDS of Rounds In Preparation...Sparring Doesn't Count On the Fighters RECORD, but it Certainly Adds Up in TRAUMA to the Head...
That SOUNDS Good, but @ the End of the Day we ALL ADMIRE the Guy that Goes Out on his Shield MUCH More than we Do the Quitter...Always HAVE, Always WILL...The Very Nature of Boxing FANDOM is Watching Guys Do Something You're NOT Prone to Do Yourself...ANYBODY On Fightbeat Can QUIT in a Bout, but How Many of Us Would Go Through a Corrales-Castillo I Type of 2-Way Slugfest & RELISH it the Way Chico Did???....
Mandatory headgear pretty much reintroduces the problem you spoke about as your number one rule change. It just increases the amount of punches a guy is going to take and makes the fight last longer.
Headgear Gives a Fighter a FALSE Sense of Security... For 1, the Extra Padding Makes it HARDER to Move your Head Out of the Way of Incoming Blows, but for the Margarita's & Brandon Rios' of the World, it Gives them the IMPRESSION they're Somehow PROTECTED, when they Aren't...As a Result, they Readily EAT the Shots, FOOLISHLY Thinking they CAN'T Be Harmed.... @ the End of the Day, Your Brain is STILL Being RATTLED AROUND when you're Hit Upside the Head, Even Whilst Rocking Headgear... REED Knows a Couple Local Guys that Wear the CATCHERS MASK Styled Headgear, that Covers the FACE as Well...It's Given Both of them MORE Confidence when they Spar, yet's it's Ultimately HURT them in Pro Bouts, Because they've Now NEGLECTED Head Movement Altogether, Due to the FALSE Sense of Security they've Received... REED:nono:
