Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Strange Famous
Will this spark more debate about safety in boxing, or the acceptability of the sport itself?
Anyway, first and foremost thoughst should be with his family. RIP.
|
This is very sad.
As for the safety of boxing, I just don't think anything can be done to make punching people in the face safe, unless they don headgear such as in the amatuers. This, of course, will never happen.
As for the acceptability of the sport itself, boxing has been around longer than television, and it isn't going to dissapear, regardless of isolated incidents such as this one. People have also died playing football and hockey and those sports aren't going away either.
As for Leavander Johnson, his pride probably helped with his demise. After absorbing all kinds of punishment and being dominated the entire fight, his corner decided to stop the fight and he told them not to, that he'd been saving his energy for the later rounds and was wearing his opponent down. At the opening of the very next round, he was hit with a barrage of 10 - 15 unanswered power punches before the ref stepped in and stopped the fight.
After the fight he said he was fine, but his brain was already swelling, and by the time he reached the dressing room he couldn't walk right and quickly passed out.
His corner should have threw in the towell, no matter what the fighter told them.