EDITOR’S LETTER
The dangers of mental health, social media, mismatches and Jorge Linares
Mental health, mismatches and Junior
FIGHTERS get hit in the head, and many fighters have mental health problems. The link between those two facts should be common sense - not quite an inevitable transition, but a condition likelier to occur in boxing than other professions. Nonetheless, the fraternity are too often afraid to accept that our beloved sport might be the cause of a widespread problem.
It’s not always getting hit in the head that causes the issue (the black hole of retirement can often be the trigger), and being a boxer does not automatically lead to misery, but we can be certain that getting punched regularly does absolutely nothing to prevent problems with the brain – be they the obvious issues surrounding brain damage, or the easier to disguise condition of depression. Consequently, boxing needs to hold its hands up, and take some responsibility.
In this week’s issue, thanks to some excellent work from Boxing News reporter George Gigney [pages 24-29], we highlight what the industry should be thinking about, and doing, in the battle against depression. The disease thrives in silence, and behind closed doors. It’s time to drag it out into the open.
If you read this and think, “well, they should just pull themselves together,” then you’re part of the problem. It’s time for the sport to act before the death count from suicide gets any higher.
l SOCIAL MEDIA, for all its faults, has a habit of exposing those who should really be doing something more useful than insulting people in public. This week’s example is Chris Eubank Jnr, a recent arrival in the super-middleweight division, calling out WBC cruiserweight champion, and heavyweight contender, Tony Bellew. Eubank has developed a habit of harassing fellow fighters on Twitter which, frankly, is only making him look silly. This method of trying to secure a big money showdown should not be encouraged, but is nothing new. After all, it could be argued that Bellew himself did this with David Haye – and look what happened there. But at least Haye was appealing for potential opponents when Bellew made his move, and the Scouser was not competing a whopping three divisions below the guy he was trying to lure into a fight.
Junior’s most recent bout – a thrashing of Renold Quinlan – was a solid starting point in the 168lb weight class but the momentum has stalled. Junior is an exceptional prospect, and should concentrate on building his reputation in the ring so he is taken seriously outside of it.
At a similar point of his father’s fistic education he was going to war with the likes of Nigel Benn and Michael Watson. Calling out Frank Bruno just did not cross his mind.
l IT’S all about levels, we’re told time and again. We’re also told that positive mental attitude can scale the most insurmountable obstacles, therefore rendering the first point redundant. But on Saturday night, inside the Manchester Arena, it was clear that some levels cannot be reached. In the main event, Anthony Crolla – oozing self-belief as he walked to the ring after a supreme training camp – turned in a performance of extreme courage, but was soundly beaten by the brilliant Jorge Linares for the second consecutive time. No amount of PMA can compete with that kind of boxing wizardry, unless you’ve got the skills to match. The Manchester hero should not be too downbeat – going 24 rounds with Linares is an achievement to match the highest peaks of his brilliant career.
But elsewhere on the bill, the wide ranging levels in boxing was even clearer. While it would be silly to throw a highly-touted professional debutant in too high, launching one at a grossly overmatched opponent has got to stop. Top class amateur Lawrence Okolie took just 20 seconds to halt the 0-3 Geoffrey Cave, learning little about the unvested code in the process, apart from how horrible it feels to see an opponent stretched out on the canvas receiving oxygen.