Is boxing becoming the new WWE?

First topic message reminder :

I've been pondering this a while now. We're all aware that the entire sport is dominated by a relatively small number of key figures. Since the inception of gloved boxing promoters have been responsible for carving out the careers of legends. To a historian they're perhaps the modern-day equivalents of Richard Neville, the 16th Earl of Warwick: 'the Kingmaker'. We've had Rickard and Kearns; the pioneers. The sixties saw the emergence of Don King and Bob Arum, who between them are responsible for more classic fights than I know of, or would care to list. Other noted names are instantly recognisable to a good many on here: De La Hoya, DiBella, Duva, Goossen, Sauerland, Shaw, Warren. In addition to the promoters we have the likes of Jose Sulaiman, the WBC president who seems to possess more than a passing interest in the continued perceived success of boxers from a particular Spanish-speaking nation. In more recent years King's influence has diminished, and while to a certain degree many of the younger promoters have scurried to fill the relative void left by King's decline, none (barring perhaps the Golden Boy) have reached the level of Bob Arum, a man whose own influence shows few signs of abating.

Arum's mercenary business practices are well-documented (in Tex Cobb's case hilariously so), and in recent years his name has become synonymous with greedy, cynical match-making. He's increasingly turning to in-house fights in order to maximise his profits, to the extent that it's in danger of becoming a serious detriment to the well-being of the sport. The most high-profile instances of this involve a certain Filipino who shall not be named here, but one other incident which has imprinted into my recent memory is his handling of Cotto and Margarito, in particular the way in which the two have been carefully steered towards a rematch built around animosity and controversy. In a move which echoed nothing so much as the pantomime which is WWE, Margarito was shamelessly paraded onstage at the post-presser for a fight he'd not been any part of:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dL1cQ-V8f5o&feature=youtube_gdata_player#t=7m40s

This brings me to the crux of my argument: Is Boxing, through the actions of Arum and others like him, slowly becoming a charade of a sport?

We're seeing fights made depending more on the name of the promoters than on the desire of the fans or the prestige of the match-up. We're seeing boxers given opportunities they ill deserve. We're seeing rightful champions stripped of titles at the whim of withered old men. Most of all though, there seems to be a emergent feeling that the sport isn't being run in accordance with any kind of 'sporting' spirit, but merely to satisfy a script. Am I a pessimist beyond redemption, or are my concerns justifiably founded?

Thanks for reading this far. I don't doubt I've missed details or specifics, so I apologise in advance for any omissions.

prettyboykev wrote:

King Beer wrote:

Union Cane wrote:You can press your johnson up against the images in a mag though, I suppose you can on the internet but I wouldn't recommend it.

If you wrap it round your johnson........

Papercut

Xhamster is the place to go it has porn for all kinds of pervs.

I found that last night, heard a rumour the girls from T.A.T.U had made a vid, turns out it was just a few topless shots in a music vid.

King Beer wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

King Beer wrote:

Union Cane wrote:You can press your johnson up against the images in a mag though, I suppose you can on the internet but I wouldn't recommend it.

If you wrap it round your johnson........

Papercut

Xhamster is the place to go it has porn for all kinds of pervs.

I found that last night, heard a rumour the girls from T.A.T.U had made a vid, turns out it was just a few topless shots in a music vid.

Topless shots, you say?

BALTIMORA wrote:

King Beer wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

King Beer wrote:

Union Cane wrote:You can press your johnson up against the images in a mag though, I suppose you can on the internet but I wouldn't recommend it.

If you wrap it round your johnson........

Papercut

Xhamster is the place to go it has porn for all kinds of pervs.

I found that last night, heard a rumour the girls from T.A.T.U had made a vid, turns out it was just a few topless shots in a music vid.

Topless shots, you say?

Yep, both looking seriously hot.

Google: TATU White Robe Uncut

Ding dong.

You're welcome.

That's another one ticked off the list.

Good man. I also managed to tick Holly Valance off my list after finding her getting banged and topless in an Entourage ep.

Union Cane wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

Union Cane wrote:There's a slight resemblence?

http://www.discogs.com/viewimages?release=97695

They 2 should have been hung for crimes against music if that's what it's called.

Disagree. They did a set of all their own stuff mashed up on dubplates at The Pleasuredome in about 1997/1998, and it absolutely blew the roof off.

Happy days.

Remember both from my younger days at the Rhythm Station in Aldershot. Back then we knew how to cope with a crap financial situation, none of this rioting and looting, just vast quantities drugs and the sort of music that only sounds good after vast quantities of drugs.

BALTIMORA wrote:That's another one ticked off the list.

You mean 'flicked off the wrist'?

huw wrote:

Union Cane wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

Union Cane wrote:There's a slight resemblence?

http://www.discogs.com/viewimages?release=97695

They 2 should have been hung for crimes against music if that's what it's called.

Disagree. They did a set of all their own stuff mashed up on dubplates at The Pleasuredome in about 1997/1998, and it absolutely blew the roof off.

Happy days.

Remember both from my younger days at the Rhythm Station in Aldershot. Back then we knew how to cope with a crap financial situation, none of this rioting and looting, just vast quantities drugs and the sort of music that only sounds good after vast quantities of drugs.

Bob Marley?

King Beer wrote:Good man. I also managed to tick Holly Valance off my list after finding her getting banged and topless in an Entourage ep.

I'd never heard of this happening..........

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNNE-E93L1I

I need a dark room

KB-you know Holly Valance is apparently related to Benny Hill?

coxy0001 wrote:

King Beer wrote:Good man. I also managed to tick Holly Valance off my list after finding her getting banged and topless in an Entourage ep.

I'd never heard of this happening..........

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNNE-E93L1I

I need a dark room

There's also a scene for Dead or Alive where she takes out a load of police whilst trying to put a bra on.

coxy0001 wrote:

King Beer wrote:Good man. I also managed to tick Holly Valance off my list after finding her getting banged and topless in an Entourage ep.

I'd never heard of this happening..........

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNNE-E93L1I

I need a dark room

Coxy where is the rest I was about to get going their. I've got bog roll in my left hand!!!!

prettyboykev wrote:

huw wrote:

Union Cane wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

Union Cane wrote:There's a slight resemblence?

http://www.discogs.com/viewimages?release=97695

They 2 should have been hung for crimes against music if that's what it's called.

Disagree. They did a set of all their own stuff mashed up on dubplates at The Pleasuredome in about 1997/1998, and it absolutely blew the roof off.

Happy days.

Remember both from my younger days at the Rhythm Station in Aldershot. Back then we knew how to cope with a crap financial situation, none of this rioting and looting, just vast quantities drugs and the sort of music that only sounds good after vast quantities of drugs.

Bob Marley?

Bob Marley only sounds good in sunshine drugs or not, in order to listen to some of the old 'hardcore' when it changed from a breakbeat to the 'techno' beat you need to ensure your heart is pumping at the same speed as the music. Listen to some of that stuff now and wonder what I was on, then I get a weird flashback of tablets with pictures indented on them and I remember pretty much nothing else.

I can't see this at work (for obvious reasons), but is there really one of Holly Valance getting banged? If so I may have to develop a migraine so i can make it home before the missus.

Ps Any of Susan Kennedy?

huw wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

huw wrote:

Union Cane wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

Union Cane wrote:There's a slight resemblence?

http://www.discogs.com/viewimages?release=97695

They 2 should have been hung for crimes against music if that's what it's called.

Disagree. They did a set of all their own stuff mashed up on dubplates at The Pleasuredome in about 1997/1998, and it absolutely blew the roof off.

Happy days.

Remember both from my younger days at the Rhythm Station in Aldershot. Back then we knew how to cope with a crap financial situation, none of this rioting and looting, just vast quantities drugs and the sort of music that only sounds good after vast quantities of drugs.

Bob Marley?

Bob Marley only sounds good in sunshine drugs or not, in order to listen to some of the old 'hardcore' when it changed from a breakbeat to the 'techno' beat you need to ensure your heart is pumping at the same speed as the music. Listen to some of that stuff now and wonder what I was on, then I get a weird flashback of tablets with pictures indented on them and I remember pretty much nothing else.

Never been my thing mate I was more into the mellow stuff although I tried acid once and was freaked out. Thought I was talking to Chewbacca in my mates toilet turned out to be a drying rack with a few towels on it.

Michaels, Sean wrote:I can't see this at work (for obvious reasons), but is there really one of Holly Valance getting banged? If so I may have to develop a migraine so i can make it home before the missus.

Ps Any of Susan Kennedy?

Coxy has the info. That link is for a 40 second video that ends when she says "I've never met a guy who didn't want to feck me in the morning" and she takes her top off.

Michaels, Sean wrote:I can't see this at work (for obvious reasons), but is there really one of Holly Valance getting banged? If so I may have to develop a migraine so i can make it home before the missus.

Ps Any of Susan Kennedy?

It's not overly graphic, but you see enough!

prettyboykev wrote:

huw wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

huw wrote:

Union Cane wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

Union Cane wrote:There's a slight resemblence?

http://www.discogs.com/viewimages?release=97695

They 2 should have been hung for crimes against music if that's what it's called.

Disagree. They did a set of all their own stuff mashed up on dubplates at The Pleasuredome in about 1997/1998, and it absolutely blew the roof off.

Happy days.

Remember both from my younger days at the Rhythm Station in Aldershot. Back then we knew how to cope with a crap financial situation, none of this rioting and looting, just vast quantities drugs and the sort of music that only sounds good after vast quantities of drugs.

Bob Marley?

Bob Marley only sounds good in sunshine drugs or not, in order to listen to some of the old 'hardcore' when it changed from a breakbeat to the 'techno' beat you need to ensure your heart is pumping at the same speed as the music. Listen to some of that stuff now and wonder what I was on, then I get a weird flashback of tablets with pictures indented on them and I remember pretty much nothing else.

Never been my thing mate I was more into the mellow stuff although I tried acid once and was freaked out. Thought I was talking to Chewbacca in my mates toilet turned out to be a drying rack with a few towels on it.

Brilliant, isn't it?

BALTIMORA wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

huw wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

huw wrote:

Union Cane wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:

Union Cane wrote:There's a slight resemblence?

http://www.discogs.com/viewimages?release=97695

They 2 should have been hung for crimes against music if that's what it's called.

Disagree. They did a set of all their own stuff mashed up on dubplates at The Pleasuredome in about 1997/1998, and it absolutely blew the roof off.

Happy days.

Remember both from my younger days at the Rhythm Station in Aldershot. Back then we knew how to cope with a crap financial situation, none of this rioting and looting, just vast quantities drugs and the sort of music that only sounds good after vast quantities of drugs.

Bob Marley?

Bob Marley only sounds good in sunshine drugs or not, in order to listen to some of the old 'hardcore' when it changed from a breakbeat to the 'techno' beat you need to ensure your heart is pumping at the same speed as the music. Listen to some of that stuff now and wonder what I was on, then I get a weird flashback of tablets with pictures indented on them and I remember pretty much nothing else.

Never been my thing mate I was more into the mellow stuff although I tried acid once and was freaked out. Thought I was talking to Chewbacca in my mates toilet turned out to be a drying rack with a few towels on it.

Brilliant, isn't it?

It was good but I'm more of a herb man myself.

prettyboykev wrote:


Never been my thing mate I was more into the mellow stuff although I tried acid once and was freaked out. Thought I was talking to Chewbacca in my mates toilet turned out to be a drying rack with a few towels on it.

Brilliant, isn't it?[/quote]

It was good but I'm more of a herb man myself.[/quote]

Last time I did acid was when Princess Di died, French roads are scary at the best of times.

huw wrote:

prettyboykev wrote:


Never been my thing mate I was more into the mellow stuff although I tried acid once and was freaked out. Thought I was talking to Chewbacca in my mates toilet turned out to be a drying rack with a few towels on it.

Brilliant, isn't it?

It was good but I'm more of a herb man myself.[/quote]

Last time I did acid was when Princess Di died, French roads are scary at the best of times.

[/quote]

Most and hardest I've ever laughed is while watching 'Downfall' on acid. Excellent evening. Me and my mates used to go buy mushrooms from a shop in Brum before they were made illegal. Great fun, but tastes like dirt. I never understood why the government made them illegal though. The only harm comes from eating the wrong ones. That's like making vodka illegal because it looks like turps.

How the hell is this thread still up?

Union Cane wrote:How the hell is this thread still up?

Primetime likes his class a's

Union Cane wrote:How the hell is this thread still up?

It's all good-natured. I always thought it bizarre when Tyson had one of his fights declared a No Contest because afterwards he tested positive for marijuana. I think it was a quick stoppage win. If he'd been on PCP then fair enough, but on marijuana?!? He should've been given a medal. I'd have been stricken with lethargy and the mega munchies.

BALTIMORA wrote:

Union Cane wrote:How the hell is this thread still up?

It's all good-natured. I always thought it bizarre when Tyson had one of his fights declared a No Contest because afterwards he tested positive for marijuana. I think it was a quick stoppage win. If he'd been on PCP then fair enough, but on marijuana?!? He should've been given a medal. I'd have been stricken with lethargy and the mega munchies.

It was strange weed wouldn't have benefited Tyson in anyway in the ring. If he had any pains before or after the fight it could have helped with that.

Tyson in the ring on PCP would have been awesome. Would have been like a weekend away with the Mayweather bro's.

Tyson on PCP is a scary thought. Even if he'd used it for pain relief, it's hardly a performance enhancer.

BALTIMORA wrote:Most and hardest I've ever laughed is while watching 'Downfall' on acid. Excellent evening. Me and my mates used to go buy mushrooms from a shop in Brum before they were made illegal. Great fun, but tastes like dirt. I never understood why the government made them illegal though. The only harm comes from eating the wrong ones. That's like making vodka illegal because it looks like turps.

I remember a night of mushrooms, much nicer than acid. Was staying at the ex's house and she had been decorating, baically had just stripped all the wall paper back in the front room. We had a nice 'brew' and tried to watch the Simpsons, after about 15 minutes of non stop laughing I realised that I was in fact just laughing at the wall as I hadn't been watching the telly at all. Same night we went out for a walk and anything that looked nice or made a nice sound I picked up and took home, next morning I had a vast collection of twigs, tin cans and a pen lid. There was also half a tree, apparently I had found a skunk plant on our travels, turned out it was just a normal tree.

The dog also fished the mushrooms out of the bin and nearly died that night, would only calm down with cheese, very weird night.

Huw that really made me chuckle. Brings back some great memories. I spent a night drawing on the wall, annotating a conversation the walls were having, before spending fifteen minutes in the empty bath, taking photos of the wall because it was so mesmerising. Needless to say the next day I had a selection of photos of a bathroom wall.

Another time a mate and I watched The Mist after partaking. I thought it was three separate films, and the ending left me feeling like someone had removed my soul. Great times.

No drugs or pharmaceuticals, cos the body ain't suitable. - Massive Attack.

Just Say No - The Kids from Grange Hill

Smoke weed every day - Dr Dre

BALTIMORA wrote:Huw that really made me chuckle. Brings back some great memories. I spent a night drawing on the wall, annotating a conversation the walls were having, before spending fifteen minutes in the empty bath, taking photos of the wall because it was so mesmerising. Needless to say the next day I had a selection of photos of a bathroom wall.

Another time a mate and I watched The Mist after partaking. I thought it was three separate films, and the ending left me feeling like someone had removed my soul. Great times.

Nice, what is it with walls?

They would probably make prison seem quite good fun, well appart from when someone was bum sexing you, that would be pretty bad.

King Beer wrote:

coxy0001 wrote:

King Beer wrote:Good man. I also managed to tick Holly Valance off my list after finding her getting banged and topless in an Entourage ep.

I'd never heard of this happening..........

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNNE-E93L1I

I need a dark room

There's also a scene for Dead or Alive where she takes out a load of police whilst trying to put a bra on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QF8phUPyIAo

I want the drugs - The Supersuckers.

Given a choice between the kids from Grange Hill or some "Doctor" who holds neither a PhD or is a trained medical practitioner I know who I am going to listen to

rowley wrote:Given a choice between the kids from Grange Hill or some "Doctor" who holds neither a PhD or is a trained medical practitioner I know who I am going to listen to

Dre every time?

huw wrote:

BALTIMORA wrote:Huw that really made me chuckle. Brings back some great memories. I spent a night drawing on the wall, annotating a conversation the walls were having, before spending fifteen minutes in the empty bath, taking photos of the wall because it was so mesmerising. Needless to say the next day I had a selection of photos of a bathroom wall.

Another time a mate and I watched The Mist after partaking. I thought it was three separate films, and the ending left me feeling like someone had removed my soul. Great times.

Nice, what is it with walls?

They would probably make prison seem quite good fun, well appart from when someone was bum sexing you, that would be pretty bad.

Jesus, it was bad enough when I had to ask a friend if I'd stopped urinating.

rowley wrote:Given a choice between the kids from Grange Hill or some "Doctor" who holds neither a PhD or is a trained medical practitioner I know who I am going to listen to

Plenty of doctors in California think it's fine and is a cure for certain pains and aches.

huw wrote:

rowley wrote:Given a choice between the kids from Grange Hill or some "Doctor" who holds neither a PhD or is a trained medical practitioner I know who I am going to listen to

Dre every time?

Sorry Huw can't trust anyone who lies about their qualifications, the man is no better than Dr Gillian McKeith, Doctor Fox or Professor Green, charlatans the lot of em.

BALTIMORA wrote:

huw wrote:

BALTIMORA wrote:Huw that really made me chuckle. Brings back some great memories. I spent a night drawing on the wall, annotating a conversation the walls were having, before spending fifteen minutes in the empty bath, taking photos of the wall because it was so mesmerising. Needless to say the next day I had a selection of photos of a bathroom wall.

Another time a mate and I watched The Mist after partaking. I thought it was three separate films, and the ending left me feeling like someone had removed my soul. Great times.

Nice, what is it with walls?

They would probably make prison seem quite good fun, well appart from when someone was bum sexing you, that would be pretty bad.

Jesus, it was bad enough when I had to ask a friend if I'd stopped urinating.

Haha, ever get to the stage where you are taking a pee and suddenly have a 'moment' where you think - I really hope I'm in the toilet right now, did this again when staying with the same ex's who still lived with her parents, her Dad was a big scary scouser and I was half way though the pee when I suddenly thought I was peeing on his telly, luckily I was peeing in the toilet but judging by how that relationship went it would have probably been better all round if I had pee'd on the telly!

rowley wrote:

huw wrote:

rowley wrote:Given a choice between the kids from Grange Hill or some "Doctor" who holds neither a PhD or is a trained medical practitioner I know who I am going to listen to

Dre every time?

Sorry Huw can't trust anyone who lies about their qualifications, the man is no better than Dr Gillian McKeith, Doctor Fox or Professor Green, charlatans the lot of em.

Doc Kearns?

Another who shouldn't be trusted Balti, but as he is perilously close to sending this into yet another Dempsey thread probably better to move on.

Most boxers nicknames are utterly untrue. Least they don't rifle through strangers poo though like the McKeith creature.

How can Dre be a real doctor?

He openly admits to - get my drink on, get my smoke on, go home with something to poke on.

No mention of patches, units of alcohol or contraception.

rowley wrote:

huw wrote:

rowley wrote:Given a choice between the kids from Grange Hill or some "Doctor" who holds neither a PhD or is a trained medical practitioner I know who I am going to listen to

Dre every time?

Sorry Huw can't trust anyone who lies about their qualifications, the man is no better than Dr Gillian McKeith, Doctor Fox or Professor Green, charlatans the lot of em.

Doctor Who? Not only does he pretend to be a Doctor, he is also a time traveller. So a lying gypsy then.

I guess that this makes him similar to Tyson Fury, except for the Dr and lying bit. Not sure Tyson Fury has ever claimed to be a Doctor.

huw wrote:Haha, ever get to the stage where you are taking a pee and suddenly have a 'moment' where you think - I really hope I'm in the toilet right now, did this again when staying with the same ex's who still lived with her parents, her Dad was a big scary scouser and I was half way though the pee when I suddenly thought I was peeing on his telly, luckily I was peeing in the toilet but judging by how that relationship went it would have probably been better all round if I had pee'd on the telly!

Reminds me of a time I had crashed at a mates house, I got up in the night, went upstairs (the toilet was downstairs), went into his spare bedroom and started to pee out of the window, without opening it. It soon filled up the windowsill and the sound if it dripping onto the carpet woke me up.

I turned, and I ran.