Did Stepping Through the Ropes Change Your Appreciation of Boxing?

In a recent episode of Fight Quest, an MMA fighter and an Iraq war veteran travelled to Mexico to learn and compete in boxing. Despite having martial arts backgrounds, both men had trouble dealing with the movement and speed of the Mexican fighters. So impressed was the veteran that, after his experience, he said how he’d grown to love the sport.

This got me thinking about boxing fans in general. A proportion of those would have direct experience of boxing, whilst the others – perhaps the majority – would never have stepped inside a boxing ring. I fall into this latter category. Whilst, like many, I can appreciate the skills of the slick fighter and the sheer grit and determination of the brawler, my lack of immediate experience probably denies me the full appreciation of what boxing is all about.

So this is what I’d like to ask:

Being a fan of boxing, have you ever ventured to step through the ropes?
If so, did this change your view of the sport and your appreciation of it?

I started boxing about 3 weeks ago after being a massive fan of the sports for years. Started a bit late (I'm 25) but have gotten stuck right in to it. The physical demands the sport places on the body is immense. Just being on your toes and bouncing around takes it out of you yet most guys in shape can easily go 12 rounds and then some.

All the footwork and movement you see from boxers on TV looks so easy, but doing it is difficult...and its even more difficult to do it while throwing punches and at the same time avoiding them. Its made me really appreciate what these guys put their bodies through in order to fight, and the level of dedication that is required to get to the highest level.

I started boxing from about 13 and i didn't watch much boxing until i was about 16. Have a much greater respect for just how tough and fit you need to be, to see fighters going at it in the 11th and 12th round is special. God knows how they used to go 15 at a pace. The shots fighters take would make most people crumble.

I've been boxing for about 3 years and it really has made me appreciate more just how much of a technical skillful craft it is not to mention the physical attributes that are needed

Even boxers that are described as brawlers are extremely technically gifted

I box and fight MMA and as above, the biggest thing for me is the appreciation of the fitness of the guys that go hard for 12 rounds

i'm glad ive read some of these posts.
a lot of brawlers get a slagging off, but they are incredibly gifted athletes or you wouldn't have even heard of them in the first place.

i think this film gives an insight in to the training of a boxer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgM-p68_maM

Brilliantly directed as well....

Iv never been in the ring but im sure if I had I would have been a legend of the sport. I guess Jab Machine is the most experienced boxer on here having sparred with top fighters and that

I boxed in my youth and seriously appreciate what all boxers have to put themselves through prior and during any fight. I irks me when some boxers are described as cowards by people who have never set foot in a gym. It takes immense bravery even to spar. Someone once said that the loneliest place is in a boxing ring. It sure is especially when you're getting your rear end handed to you.

I'll give my two cents:

I'll never forget the first time I walked into St. Josephs ABC a number of years ago. Blood on the ceiling, basic weight training materials at the back a single radio and just the sound of the pads being hit in the ring.

There was something different about that sort of place compared to a regular "pay monthly clean as a whistle gym"... the guys in there loved the sport just as much or more than you, but no one was out to prove anything, they were there to train rather than look good in a mirror and pose.

I remember how easy guys like Eubank, Calzaghe, Naz and Lewis made it look. As a complete novice I didn't know what to expect, but the first time you ever train a decent circuit you realise just how tough the sport is and the level of dedication it takes to get in the ring.

I think the feeling of stepping OUT of the ring made me appreciate the sport more as after only 3 rounds of pad work and movement (after 45 minutes of heavy bags and cadio) I honestly thought I was going to die, I also appreciated cold water a lot more afterwards.

The level of fitness needed to be a boxer is incredible, but that will only get you so far. Hand-eye co-ordination, mental preperation and determination and of course the love of the sport itself carries you further.

No doubt MMA is a tough sport that takes the same level of fitness and love for the sport, but boxing? That's another level in my eyes.

School Project wrote:I'll give my two cents:

I'll never forget the first time I walked into St. Josephs ABC a number of years ago. Blood on the ceiling, basic weight training materials at the back a single radio and just the sound of the pads being hit in the ring.

There was something different about that sort of place compared to a regular "pay monthly clean as a whistle gym"... the guys in there loved the sport just as much or more than you, but no one was out to prove anything, they were there to train rather than look good in a mirror and pose.

I remember how easy guys like Eubank, Calzaghe, Naz and Lewis made it look. As a complete novice I didn't know what to expect, but the first time you ever train a decent circuit you realise just how tough the sport is and the level of dedication it takes to get in the ring.

I think the feeling of stepping OUT of the ring made me appreciate the sport more as after only 3 rounds of pad work and movement (after 45 minutes of heavy bags and cadio) I honestly thought I was going to die, I also appreciated cold water a lot more afterwards.

The level of fitness needed to be a boxer is incredible, but that will only get you so far. Hand-eye co-ordination, mental preperation and determination and of course the love of the sport itself carries you further.

No doubt MMA is a tough sport that takes the same level of fitness and love for the sport, but boxing? That's another level in my eyes.

great post and something i related to.

i remember walking into the gym - on the 3rd floor of an old run down mill. it was a health and safety hazard which i'm guessing is why they shut it down. everything was either crumbling stone walls or rotting wood. in places the floor boards had rotted and broke away leaving big holes so you could potentially fall to the floor 12 foot below.

there was a ring (i use the term loosely, the ropes were held together with tape), a mirrored area for shadow boxing and skipping. plenty of bags and some very old weights. it was great though, the circuits of bag work and actual circuit training was hard but great fun.

in the corner was a pile of old gloves that you wore if you forgot or didnt have your own. the main thing i remember about the gym was smell. and if you wore the gloves your hands smelled horrible for the rest of the day no matter how many times you washed them. good times though.

One gym I train it is pretty much as described. I'm 100% certain no H&S inspector has every visited or it would be shut down instantly.

I was thinking about this thread last night when I was sparring and another thing jumped into my head. Climbing through the ropes gives you a massive appreciation for the amount of different styles there are. I sparred with about half a dozen different opponents last night and no two were the same. One guy was so easy to counter and I could see his shots coming a mile off. Every time he stepped in I would counter him and he hardly touched me. He was a decent puncher but he was a stand up brawler. Skip to the next opponent and I couldn't get near him and he boxed my ears off but didn't hit anywhere near as hard as the previous guy.

Thanks for the first hand accounts. They’re all really interesting.

Very much as school project and the group cpt put it.

Run down, no thrills, blood on the ring, the ridiculous smell of the communal gloves on your hands for a day after you have worn them. All of that applies in the gym I box at.

I've done a bit of sparring, not a great deal, but it doesn't half make you aware of just how tough a sport it is. Not just in cardio, which is incredibly intense, but in terms of defence (bloody difficult), keeping balanced at all times etc.

I salute them all.

The first time I went into a boxing gym the first thing I realised was just how bad I was. I've seen few/no less natural boxers than myself. Seeing the workrate throughout training that the competitors kept up was encouraging though, and the feeling of marked improvement after sweating and trying for weeks/months was incredibly rewarding.

Having been a fan for afew years previously I watched plenty of classic fights, high activity wars. The likes of Leonard v Duran, Ali v Frazier etc. How they managed to do that just astounded me, especially when a particularly heavy handed sparring partner managed to leave a massive bruise on my shoulder through 16oz gloves! I'm pretty sure he didn't hit half as hard as Leonard or Duran and was wearing much bigger gloves. The ability they (and I mean slick boxers too, not just brawlers) have to absorb punishment seemed super human.

After a while the punches don't land as clean, you start to do things naturally, without even thinking about it, to stop the punch from getting through. Then when, inevitably, a gut buster gets through those ab workouts pay off, because you can still breath after taking it.

Short answer: Yup, I already appreciated it but my respect for fighters of any level quadrupled several times.

Never stepped in a ring but have been using a heavy bag and pads at home and would agree the level of fitness these guys have is incredible.

Also I've had a friend battering me with the pads as I try to defend and how much that takes out of you on its own was incredible to me!

When you see boxers of old still going at it hell for leather in the 15th round you have to appreciate that conditioning. Hope to get in a ring soon and have been told its a lot bigger than you imagine once your in there!

certainly something to look forward to!

I wouldnt say it changed my outlook on boxing as i boxed from age 16-23 and i dont remember much about watching boxing before i steped into the ring (other than that i thought Mike Tyson, Chris Eubank, Naz were the greatest fighters of all time)

I think without ever having stepped into a ring you can only have a certain level of knowledge. You may be able to see everything on the TV, spot weakness's / flaws in fighters and critiscize but until you have laced up the gloves and been in the ring you will never really understand what it is like or how quickly (irrelevant of level) things happen!!!

I remember my 1st sparring session, i was about 16 and would have weighed about 13 stone. They put me in with a guy in his mid 30s who was an ex pro (i only ever knew him b the nickname "browny") and probably a light / welter (Not so he could smack me around but so he WOULDNT do me any damage as he knew he was leagues above)
I remember jabbing away hitting just his gloves if i was lucky, but without him hitting me back. I was ruined after 2, 2 minute rounds. in the third round he started actually thorwing shots back (wearing 20oz pillow type gloves) and my immediate response was to run forward windmilling! He cant have thrown more than 30 punches and none at more than about40% power but i felt like i had been hit by a train when i finished.

I was very fortunate that i enjoyed a fairly decent amateur career, i finished up with an 11-4 record 5KOs and got to the quater finals of the Superheavy ABAs novice class in 05.
Iv also fought 4 times on the "semi pro" or "unlicensed" circuit (joe pyle's mean machine promotions and ricky english cards)
A nice way to make a few quid if your half decent but you can occasionally get stitched up. I won all 4 fights by KO/stoppage on the unlicensed shows as most of the guys i fought were overwight doorman types, and whilst im sure they are fantastic at knocking out drunken idiots 2 stone lighter than them at 2 in the morning, they had all the boxing skills/ability of a concrete block and would tire after a maximum of 1 minute.

Iv also sparred quite a few rounds with Derek Chisora (back in 04-05 around when he was turning pro - he was fighting out of finchley and i used to go there for sparring) and another Pro called Joe Smyth (got KO'd in prizefighter about 2 years ago at either cruiser or light heavy - i cant remember)

there is a certian appreciation you can only have once you have fought. I get most angry when i see guys being stopped by the ref when they are more than able to carry on, or guys who turn up with no intention of fighting and just look for the quickest way out.
nonetheless i still have a respect for anyone prepared to fight

Definitely opened my eyes up a bit. Started training and sparring last year to fight in a fundraising boxing night. Before it I had absolutely no idea what sort of training went in to preparing for a fight and just how hard it is to keep it up. Absolutely loved the training. Nothing prepares you for taking a proper punch to the jaw or getting the nose jabbed off you by someone with a bit of skill.

azania wrote:I boxed in my youth and seriously appreciate what all boxers have to put themselves through prior and during any fight. I irks me when some boxers are described as cowards by people who have never set foot in a gym. It takes immense bravery even to spar. Someone once said that the loneliest place is in a boxing ring. It sure is especially when you're getting your rear end handed to you.

Absolutely spot on Az, I had a reasonable long, if unsuccessful amateur career and it certainly made me far more appreciative of just how tough a game it can be. I remember that prat Larry Merchant calling Golata a dog for quitting against Tyson despite that fact that his nose was flattened, eye cut and had had the Poopie kicked out of him, likewise Don King calling McCellan a dog foe quittting against Benn.
It looks way easier and way less painful outside of the ropes, and anyone who's going question a boxers courage should only do so once he's got in the ring himself.

horizontalhero wrote:

azania wrote:I boxed in my youth and seriously appreciate what all boxers have to put themselves through prior and during any fight. I irks me when some boxers are described as cowards by people who have never set foot in a gym. It takes immense bravery even to spar. Someone once said that the loneliest place is in a boxing ring. It sure is especially when you're getting your rear end handed to you.

Absolutely spot on Az, I had a reasonable long, if unsuccessful amateur career and it certainly made me far more appreciative of just how tough a game it can be. I remember that prat Larry Merchant calling Golata a dog for quitting against Tyson despite that fact that his nose was flattened, eye cut and had had the Poopie kicked out of him, likewise Don King calling McCellan a dog foe quittting against Benn.
It looks way easier and way less painful outside of the ropes, and anyone who's going question a boxers courage should only do so once he's got in the ring himself.

Spot on.

I'll be honest, I have never even set foot in a boxing gym, let alone a boxing ring, but by the same token, I would never dream of labelling a boxer as a coward. I was thinking about Tyson Fury and the stick, quite rightly in my opinion, that he got for 'avoiding' Price. In this kind of instance, I would say questioning his motives or going so far as calling him a 'ducker' is fair game. It is not questioning his courage in the traditional sense, as he clearly has that element to his personality, but he took a fully informed decision to avoid/duck/run or whatever else you want to call it. It shouldn't happen, but people confuse this kind of action with cowardice.

However, I don't think you need to have been in a boxing gym/ring to fully appreciate what kind of dedication it takes though, you just need a tiny degree of intelligence and some common sense. If anything, my appreciation and respect for these guys is amplified as I know full well it is something I couldn't do.

I've not really got a problem with your average person on the internet etc Tino unless they're taking the urine, but boxing promoters should no better. I prefer to call them pussies myself. Tyson Fury deserves all the stick he gets at the minute.

The Galveston Giant wrote: but boxing promoters should no better.

Yep, but they truly are a breed apart from the rest of us!