Springs Toledo
13 articles · The Sweet Science
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Canelo, Triple G, and What Boxing Lost
Some bum or bums broke into the International Boxing Hall of Fame?s Canastota headquarters and stole six championship belts. They did it during the early morning hours of November 5, when the…
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The Historic Fifth Crown: Mayweather vs. Pacquiao, 2015
In 1988, Sugar Ray Leonard defeated Donny Lalonde and was handed two world championships for the price of none. HBO?s Larry Merchant sniffed at this. After a post-fight studio discussion with Leonard,…
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Somebody Up There
I?m neither saint nor sinner. I?m a gladiator. ?Sugar Ray Robinson Two thousand years ago, the first bell summoning gladiators to ring center wasn't a bell at all. It was a long,…
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The Way of the Jackal: Reflections on Rigondeaux-Donaire
When Nonito Donaire left his corner to face Guillermo "El Chacal" Rigondeaux at the first bell, he took two steps forward and spread his legs. That was the first hint as to…
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WHY WLAD ISN’T KING
Wladimir Klitschko is the premiere heavyweight of this era. With a six-foot six-inch frame that looks like a replica of Bourdelle?s Hercules the Archer and a disposition that evokes Rodin?s The Thinker,…
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Small Consolation for Plant-Eaters
In the early nineties, I was one of a ragtag band of boxers who trained at the Boston YMCA on Huntington Avenue. Sparring matches were held on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings…
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UNPLUGGING PAC-MAN: SOLVING THE STYLE OF MANNY PACQUIAO
In 1965, Fighting Harada tore into the great Eder Jofre for fifteen rounds and toppled him from the bantamweight throne. From that high perch, Harada thrilled Japan with four successful title defenses.…
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Something To Cheer About…S
Erik ?El Terrible? Morales hasn't earned significant laurels since he handed Manny Pacquiao his first (and last) defeat on American shores. That was in 2005. Two years later he heard bells in…
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The Broken Man
When the Japanese mend broken objects, they aggrandize the damage by filling the cracks with gold. ~ Barbara Bloom By the time Sonny Liston became the Heavyweight Champion of the World, he…
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The Immortals: Jewish Fighters Ancient and Modern
[The Jew] has made a marvelous fight in this world, in all the ages; and had done it with his hands tied behind him? All things are mortal but the Jew. All…
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The Tenth God of War: Charley Burley
The evening sun is sinking over the Oakland section of Pittsburgh like a great red fist in protest of defeat. An elderly man sits in a wheelchair on a front porch. There’s…
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The Gods Of War: Series Introduction
“Deeds, not stones, are the true monuments of the great.” ~ John L. Motley Manny Pacquiao is knocking on the door of all-time distinction and the sages of the Sweet Science are…
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DECONSTRUCTING MANNY
Manny Pacquiao: I’m just [an] ordinary fighter... Freddie Roach (interrupting): –You’re not ordinary. Manny Pacquiao: Sorry about that, master. “He finds gaps,” said Emanuel Steward after Manny Pacquiao stopped Miguel Cotto in…
