Charles Martel
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The Ring Magazine writer Eric Raskin has to be one of the worst haters of white boxers.
After Calzaghe defeated Jones, he wrote an article discrediting Joe.
A few weeks ago, he wrote an article discrediting Ricky Hatton's win over Paulie Malignaggi, a couple of days before before the fight even took place! He knew Hatton would win, and so trashed him for choosing Paulie as an opponent, but Malignaggi was ranked #1 contender at the time by The Ring.
A week or so later, he wrote an article trashing Wladimir Klitschko.
Then he wrote this about the heavyweight division:
By Eric Raskin
On June 1, 2002, as the boxing world watched Evander Holyfield and Hasim Rahman forever change the photo collection that passes through our mind's eye when we hear the word "hematoma," here's one thing none of us were thinking: I could see these guys both challenging for heavyweight titles 6½ years from now.
Rahman was only 29 years old but looking very much like his best days were behind him. Holyfield was a decade older at 39.
Holyfield proceeded to lose three straight after that, including a near-shutout against Larry Donald, of all people. Rahman went 21 months before he won again.
There was absolutely no reason to believe either of these former heavyweight champions would still be fighting, much less fighting for belts, in December of 2008.
But this coming Saturday night in Mannheim, Germany, Rahman challenges Wladimir Klitschko, the number-one heavyweight in the world, for two belts. And a week later, Holyfield takes on Nicolay Valuev in Zurich, Switzerland, for another alphabet strap.
Articles, message boards, and TV commentators bemoaning the sorry state of the heavyweight division are everywhere you look. And some of them, whether believing it to be true or just overstating their case to attract attention, will tell you this is the worst the heavyweight division has ever been.
This particular article won't go that far. But it will tell you that if a division can be judged purely by The Retread Factorâ€â€the need to keep exhuming washed-up warriors in order to make vaguely marketable matchesâ€â€then we have in fact reached a point as low as any history.
The reason that this isn't necessarily the all-around worst talent crop ever comes in the form of the brothers Klitschko, a two-headed "champion" of sorts asserting co-control over the heavyweight landscape. Wladimir and older bro Vitali aren't making anybody forget Muhammad Ali or Joe Louis, but they're collectively decent enough that you can't point to them specifically as a sign that we've reached the heavyweight apocalypse.
If you look, however, at the rankings immediately below the Klitschkos, it gets depressing in a hurry. We're talking Mickey-Rourke's-face depressing.
It's particularly depressing from an American perspective, since there isn't a single American heavyweight currently ranked by THE RING. (Sorry, American citizen Oleg Maskaev doesn't count.)
But just from a pugilistic perspective, regardless of nationality, which of these guys gets you excited? Ruslan Chagaev, who can't stay healthy? Valuev, boxing's answer to Gheorge Muresan? Alexander Povetkin, who boasts determination and an aggressive style but looked wholly ordinary against Eddie Chambers and would surely provide target practice for the Klitschkos? Sultan Ibragimov or Sam Peter, who turned in legendary non-efforts in '08 against Wladimir and Vitali, respectively? Maskaev, who even on his hot streaks is a kayo victim waiting to happen?
The last two in the rankings, Juan Carlos Gomez and Alexander Dimitrenko, each boast a certain measure of potential ... to creep up a couple of spots and becoming middling contenders someday.
It's because of this group of so-called contenders' all-around ordinariness that (a) the boxing public is so quick to overhype an up-and-comer (see fun but flabby Chris Arreola and new addition David Haye), and (b) the matchmakers and networks will settle for re-re-retreads like Holyfield and Rahman. (Oh, and did you know James Toney is back in action, against Fres Oquendo, this Saturday night?)
It's also because of this group of so-called contenders' all-around ordinariness that the assertion that this is indeed the worst era in heavyweight history can be argued intelligently.
"In my opinion, this is absolutely the worst heavyweight division of the past 100 years," said boxing historian Mike Silver, whose new book, The Arc Of Boxing: The Rise And Decline Of The Sweet Science, argues that technique in all weight classes, not just heavyweight, isn't what it once was. "Even at its weakest moments, the heavyweight division could always boast a handful of standouts. From the early-1900s to the 1980s, there was always a small number of quality heavyweights rising to the top, and others coming along to take their place.
"The art and science of boxing has deteriorated to such an extent that size, weight, and strength has taken on much more significance in determining the outcome of a match than ever before. In other words, in the absence of technique, superior physicality will usually ensure the victory. Even if today's giant heavyweights are better athletes and more coordinated than their giant counterparts of decades past, they would still not beat the small 190-to-210-pound heavyweight contenders and champs of previous eras because they do not possess the skill, speed, or ring savvy to do so."
Whether you agree with Silver's viewpoint or notâ€â€and certainly there are some people who disagree strongly and would argue that size is everything and that Ali and Louis would be underdogs against the Klitschkosâ€â€you must concede that the division is hopelessly light on marketable contenders right now.
How else do you explain the fact that when Povetkin got injured, Rahman was both the best replacement Wladimir could find and an acceptable sub by HBO's standards?
Plus, how else do you explain the constant clamor for and rumors of a return by Lennox Lewis? Lennox was never beloved and infrequently entertaining, but now the public wants him back? If that's not a condemnation of what the division has become, then nothing is.
Still, to call this the worst heavyweight era ever isn't easy. The talent pool was shallow when Rocky Marciano retired in 1956. The lengthy period between Gene Tunney's retirement and Joe Louis' ascendance to the throne in the 1930s saw some highly undistinguished champions. Most of the challengers during Tommy Burns' title reign 100 years ago had dubious credentials, at least until Jack Johnson tracked him down.
The problem now is that almost a full five years have passed since Lewis' retirement announcement, and this low period shows no signs of reversing.
I'm not ready to call it the worst heavyweight division ever just yet, not with the Klitschkos both on top, bringing at least a hint of respectability to the equation. But the position Rahman and Holyfield find themselves in this month doesn't help my argument.
And if this downward arc persists for a few more years, I won't have an argument at all anymore.
RASKIN'S RANTS
- Even those of us who viewed Saturday's "Dream Match" as a real fight and not a mismatch in Oscar De La Hoya's favor had to be shocked by how used up Oscar looked. First, let's give a ton of credit to Manny Pacquiao for making him look that way. But in light of how little De La Hoya had left at age 35 and how little Roy Jones has left at age 39, can we all please take an extra moment to also give credit to Bernard Hopkins and marvel over how amazing he is?
This is where the caste system originated - from people like Eric Raskin.
As you can see at the end of his article, he gives lots of credit to Bernard Hopkins. But he never has anything good to say about Vitali Klitschko, who had an even more impressive performance, considering he hadn't fought in nearly four years.
Edited by: JD1986
After Calzaghe defeated Jones, he wrote an article discrediting Joe.
A few weeks ago, he wrote an article discrediting Ricky Hatton's win over Paulie Malignaggi, a couple of days before before the fight even took place! He knew Hatton would win, and so trashed him for choosing Paulie as an opponent, but Malignaggi was ranked #1 contender at the time by The Ring.
A week or so later, he wrote an article trashing Wladimir Klitschko.
Then he wrote this about the heavyweight division:
By Eric Raskin
On June 1, 2002, as the boxing world watched Evander Holyfield and Hasim Rahman forever change the photo collection that passes through our mind's eye when we hear the word "hematoma," here's one thing none of us were thinking: I could see these guys both challenging for heavyweight titles 6½ years from now.
Rahman was only 29 years old but looking very much like his best days were behind him. Holyfield was a decade older at 39.
Holyfield proceeded to lose three straight after that, including a near-shutout against Larry Donald, of all people. Rahman went 21 months before he won again.
There was absolutely no reason to believe either of these former heavyweight champions would still be fighting, much less fighting for belts, in December of 2008.
But this coming Saturday night in Mannheim, Germany, Rahman challenges Wladimir Klitschko, the number-one heavyweight in the world, for two belts. And a week later, Holyfield takes on Nicolay Valuev in Zurich, Switzerland, for another alphabet strap.
Articles, message boards, and TV commentators bemoaning the sorry state of the heavyweight division are everywhere you look. And some of them, whether believing it to be true or just overstating their case to attract attention, will tell you this is the worst the heavyweight division has ever been.
This particular article won't go that far. But it will tell you that if a division can be judged purely by The Retread Factorâ€â€the need to keep exhuming washed-up warriors in order to make vaguely marketable matchesâ€â€then we have in fact reached a point as low as any history.
The reason that this isn't necessarily the all-around worst talent crop ever comes in the form of the brothers Klitschko, a two-headed "champion" of sorts asserting co-control over the heavyweight landscape. Wladimir and older bro Vitali aren't making anybody forget Muhammad Ali or Joe Louis, but they're collectively decent enough that you can't point to them specifically as a sign that we've reached the heavyweight apocalypse.
If you look, however, at the rankings immediately below the Klitschkos, it gets depressing in a hurry. We're talking Mickey-Rourke's-face depressing.
It's particularly depressing from an American perspective, since there isn't a single American heavyweight currently ranked by THE RING. (Sorry, American citizen Oleg Maskaev doesn't count.)
But just from a pugilistic perspective, regardless of nationality, which of these guys gets you excited? Ruslan Chagaev, who can't stay healthy? Valuev, boxing's answer to Gheorge Muresan? Alexander Povetkin, who boasts determination and an aggressive style but looked wholly ordinary against Eddie Chambers and would surely provide target practice for the Klitschkos? Sultan Ibragimov or Sam Peter, who turned in legendary non-efforts in '08 against Wladimir and Vitali, respectively? Maskaev, who even on his hot streaks is a kayo victim waiting to happen?
The last two in the rankings, Juan Carlos Gomez and Alexander Dimitrenko, each boast a certain measure of potential ... to creep up a couple of spots and becoming middling contenders someday.
It's because of this group of so-called contenders' all-around ordinariness that (a) the boxing public is so quick to overhype an up-and-comer (see fun but flabby Chris Arreola and new addition David Haye), and (b) the matchmakers and networks will settle for re-re-retreads like Holyfield and Rahman. (Oh, and did you know James Toney is back in action, against Fres Oquendo, this Saturday night?)
It's also because of this group of so-called contenders' all-around ordinariness that the assertion that this is indeed the worst era in heavyweight history can be argued intelligently.
"In my opinion, this is absolutely the worst heavyweight division of the past 100 years," said boxing historian Mike Silver, whose new book, The Arc Of Boxing: The Rise And Decline Of The Sweet Science, argues that technique in all weight classes, not just heavyweight, isn't what it once was. "Even at its weakest moments, the heavyweight division could always boast a handful of standouts. From the early-1900s to the 1980s, there was always a small number of quality heavyweights rising to the top, and others coming along to take their place.
"The art and science of boxing has deteriorated to such an extent that size, weight, and strength has taken on much more significance in determining the outcome of a match than ever before. In other words, in the absence of technique, superior physicality will usually ensure the victory. Even if today's giant heavyweights are better athletes and more coordinated than their giant counterparts of decades past, they would still not beat the small 190-to-210-pound heavyweight contenders and champs of previous eras because they do not possess the skill, speed, or ring savvy to do so."
Whether you agree with Silver's viewpoint or notâ€â€and certainly there are some people who disagree strongly and would argue that size is everything and that Ali and Louis would be underdogs against the Klitschkosâ€â€you must concede that the division is hopelessly light on marketable contenders right now.
How else do you explain the fact that when Povetkin got injured, Rahman was both the best replacement Wladimir could find and an acceptable sub by HBO's standards?
Plus, how else do you explain the constant clamor for and rumors of a return by Lennox Lewis? Lennox was never beloved and infrequently entertaining, but now the public wants him back? If that's not a condemnation of what the division has become, then nothing is.
Still, to call this the worst heavyweight era ever isn't easy. The talent pool was shallow when Rocky Marciano retired in 1956. The lengthy period between Gene Tunney's retirement and Joe Louis' ascendance to the throne in the 1930s saw some highly undistinguished champions. Most of the challengers during Tommy Burns' title reign 100 years ago had dubious credentials, at least until Jack Johnson tracked him down.
The problem now is that almost a full five years have passed since Lewis' retirement announcement, and this low period shows no signs of reversing.
I'm not ready to call it the worst heavyweight division ever just yet, not with the Klitschkos both on top, bringing at least a hint of respectability to the equation. But the position Rahman and Holyfield find themselves in this month doesn't help my argument.
And if this downward arc persists for a few more years, I won't have an argument at all anymore.
RASKIN'S RANTS
- Even those of us who viewed Saturday's "Dream Match" as a real fight and not a mismatch in Oscar De La Hoya's favor had to be shocked by how used up Oscar looked. First, let's give a ton of credit to Manny Pacquiao for making him look that way. But in light of how little De La Hoya had left at age 35 and how little Roy Jones has left at age 39, can we all please take an extra moment to also give credit to Bernard Hopkins and marvel over how amazing he is?
This is where the caste system originated - from people like Eric Raskin.
As you can see at the end of his article, he gives lots of credit to Bernard Hopkins. But he never has anything good to say about Vitali Klitschko, who had an even more impressive performance, considering he hadn't fought in nearly four years.
Edited by: JD1986
