Being Macho: Great In The Ring, If Not Out

Duran, Monzon, Cuevas, Chavez, Trinidad... the list could go on and on. When you think of these great Latin fighters, and many others, one word comes to mind: macho. 

What is it in Latin culture that produces fighters with this i'm-going-to-meet-you-head-on-and-not-take-a-backward-step mentality? It's a mindset that thinks admission of pain is unacceptable and defense is somehow unmanly. 

Machoism is men acting like men. Or bulls. Or lions. It says men should fight and drink while women should look pretty. It might not spell equality. But, between the ropes - wow.

Will David Finally Get His Goliath?

After he pulled out of his fight with Wladimir Klitschko, Haye looked to have given himself a much tougher job by tackling Vitali. To be frank, it looked like a sure beating for the ambitious Brit. But now Haye is due to meet the biggest of the lot. Valuev may be a hairy man monster, but he's also the most beatable of the Eastern Bloc giants. 

If the fight goes ahead, we'll see one of the smallest heavyweights having a good old go at the very biggest. It could look a bit like a big Victorian freak show; and like one, it'll be hard to take your eyes off.

 

How Does a Fighter Lose His Chin?

Welcome to The Random Boxing Blog. 

I was bored last night so I watched Pacquaio vs. Hatton again. What a dramatic fight that was. 

The funny thing is: people in the post-fight analysis kept referring to how Hatton can no longer absorb a punch. Whilst it's true that in the Tsyzu fight, Hatton did walk through some bombs, the idea that a fighter's jaw can suddenly desert him is a strange one. Normally a fighter's chin is something referred to us a natural born gift; something you can't train or "put muscles on". 

So how is it that it can suddenly become more china-like? Or put another way: could Ricky Hatton in 2005 really take a better shot than Ricky Hatton in 2009?