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2006 is proving to be the one of the best years for the sport of boxing. Most of Boxing's elite have and will grace the center of the ring. We have the return of Shannon Briggs, hoping to breathe life back in the Heavyweight division that hasn't been the same since the prime days of Lennox Lewis and the real Iron Mike Tyson.
Hopkins is moving up in weight to take on Tarver. We have the up and coming Felix Sturm, Jermain Taylor, Winky Wright, and Sam Soliman in the Middleweight division. However, boxing has been held down by the Welterweight and Lightweight divisions for the past four years now. With all this excitement in boxing, something is still not complete.
Left behind are the empty shoes of one of the greatest boxers I have ever seen, and the shoes cannot be filled, not even by Miguel Cotto. Someone that never ducked a challenge, and he always gave us a great battle. He left us with few controversial decisions, with a hell of a record of 42 wins (35 by KO) and only 2 losses. The losses do not define his skill or what he has given to his fans for the past 15 years of his career. He will still go down in the Hall of Fame as one of the best pound for pound boxers ever. Loved by most and disliked by few. He showed us father-son teams can exist in harmony. His father will go down as one of the best trainers in boxing.
It has been a little over eleven months now since Papa and Tito Trinidad have been gone, and my heart still feels heavy at the thought that they will never return. Over the past few years I have seen boxing have its highs and lows. When you think of those high moments, one boxer comes to mind, Felix "Tito" Trinidad Jr. It angers me a bit to see how quickly we have written off the Trinidads and their contribution to boxing.
Tito was more than just a "puncher" as many critics have tried to categorized him. Let's not forget about the many boxers that stepped into the ring with him and haven't been the same since. If critics wish to find fault in Don Felix, then let it be that he didn't have the heart to tell his son he was losing a fight, but don't take away the skills he implemented in his son. He created a boxer that had the power to end careers; is that not remarkable enough? So before criticizing, take a look at Tito's record and ask yourself what kind of trainer Don Felix is.
It has been said that Don Felix doesn't feel like he has anything left to give, and that he feels that he is not giving 100% to his son's corner. Well, I beg to differ, because Don Felix you also said that the fight within a fighter never dies. Papa knows this very well, because even after his great boxing career ended early, the ring still beckoned him. So I challenge the thought, would Don Felix had retired if Tito had beaten Winky Wright? Or is it that Don Felix cannot stand to see his son lose? And as I said before, his two losses do not define his greatness. Anyone that questions Trinidad's greatness because of his losses is a fool.
The Trinidads still have so much to offer, even after fifteen years. Boxing is missing honor, respect, and loyalty, qualities that father and son possessed; not to mention that there are so many opponents out there for Trinidad to take on in the Welterweight and Jr. Middleweight divisions. Oscar De La Hoya, Winky Wright, Antonio Margarito, Bernard Hopkins, Shane Mosley..... the list goes on and on. And even Tito said once, that he may return if he was called out.
Well, Mayorga has been running off at the mouth again. And it's been no secret that De la Hoya has been trying to coax Tito for part II. Rematch, yes! And if De la Hoya still can't beat him, he'll just try and sign him up as a promoter for Golden Boy Productions. I would like to see all the critics hushed once more. Even after all this time, you still hear people say how much they miss Tito and wish he would come back.
So please let it be true that Don King has stated that Tito is ready to return. After saying just last week that he would never throw another punch with out Papa Trinidad. The truth will come out after the De La Hoya-Mayorga fight, I can hardly wait.
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© Copyright / All Rights reserved: Doghouse Boxing 1998-2006
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By DJ Carter, BRC (April 26, 2006)
