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The US mainstream sports media likes to proclaim certain athletes as good or bad ‘role models’, but they’re almost single minded in their obsession with winning. Great NBA players like John Stockton, or NFL players like Dan Marino are criticized for never having won ‘the big one’.

The mainstream sports media also likes to depict boxing as a repository of sleaze, but the reality is that more so than other sports ‘the sweet science’ cares about ‘how the game is played’. Boxing pundits place great emphasis on the competitive quality of a fight–great fights like the Morales-Barrera trilogy, Hagler-Hearns or Hagler-Leonard are considered such for the heart and resolve shown by the fighters, not because of who won. The 2004 fight between current ‘pound for pound’ king Manny Pacquaio and Juan Manuel Marquez is a perfect example–despite breathtaking action from start to finish the fight was ultimately ruled a draw.  Read more...

Vince Lombardi once said “Winning isn’t everything, its the only thing”. For most of the mainstream sports media, that couldn’t be more true. Countless hours on sports talk radio are spent deriding NBA players like Charles Barkley and NFL players like Dan Marino for never winning a championship. Simply stated, no one remembers the runner up and the mainstream sports media helps reinforce this ‘frontrunner’ mentality.

The mainstream sports media also likes to depict boxing as a repository of sleaze, but the reality is that more so than other sports ‘the sweet science’ cares about ‘how the game is played’. Boxing pundits place great emphasis on the competitive quality of a fight–great fights like the Morales-Barrera trilogy, Hagler-Hearns or Hagler-Leonard are considered such for the heart and resolve shown by the fighters, not because of who won. The 2004 fight between current ‘pound for pound’ king Manny Pacquaio and Juan Manuel Marquez is a perfect example–despite breathtaking action from start to finish the fight was ultimately ruled a draw.  Read more...