Beautiful Brutality: Part Two
 By "Big Dog" Benny Henderson Jr., Doghouse Boxing (Oct 29, 2012) Doghouse Boxing
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It was 2005, and all though I was serving as lead writer for Doghouse
Boxing, I was feature writer for Max Fighting as well, and I was about
to embark on my first UFC event, so I packed up, and flown out of small
town Texas to Sin City, to witness UFC 33, Ortiz vs. Belfort. And I was
in for such a huge surprise.
Now, I have been to a handful
of amateur bouts, smokers, and covered a few fights, at that time, the
biggest being the Brewster/Meehan heavyweight championship, but I was
about to witness a totally different beast when I grabbed my credentials
for my very first UFC event. The atmosphere was different; the blood
seemed to flow more freely than any other boxing event that I have
attended. I witnessed a man get his wig split from one side to the
other, and seemingly bleed out a pint or two of blood. But, all though
my experience to the brutal beat downs, I still loved my boxing.
Boxing vs. the UFC
Fight
fans on both sides of the spectrum have their thoughts and opinions on
Boxing vs. the UFC, so here is my take on the debate, and you are
entitled to yours as well.
To me, there is no comparison
when looking at the two, when you compare the history of the two. All
though the MMA has a long line, boxing to me, seems to be deeper rooted.
I will say that the UFC has honestly taken its hold on the fight game,
and all though there have been some big names that have stepped in the
cage, history is on the side of boxing, as well as the more legendary
fighters. Who would be the Mike Tyson of the UFC, or the Ali? The
legendary fights, unless I am missing something, the only fight that
would come close to a Ward vs. Gatti, would be the Griffith vs. Boner.
But I see no great trilogies like the before mentioned or a Bowe vs.
Holyfield in the UFC. And all though the UFC has had its fair share of
great match-ups, I believe boxing owns the UFC in that department as
well.
Now what about a MMA fighter taking on a boxer? The
fans of the UFC say, remember Couture vs. Toney? I say, remember Mercer
vs. Silvia? If you take Couture and put him in a ring with Toney, even
as bloated as James may be, I believe Toney would embarrass Couture, as
Randy did James in the cage. What about a street fight? When it comes to
the street, I will say this; I would pick something up and whack
somebody with it if I had to do so to win.
I do feel that
MMA belongs to a much younger audience, it has a lot better marketing
than Boxing, and I like the “ONE” belt per weight class, the UFC has not
been watered down like boxing has in that department. The alphabet
soups in boxing is what is killing it, nobody knows who the champion is
anymore, so I applaud the UFC for doing what they do.
Can it get any more Brutal?
If
we go back in time to the days of the Gladiator, fighting was pretty
damn brutal, even the bare knuckle days of two men duking it out in a
pub, it was pretty damn brutal, and all though the MMA is seemingly a
tad bit more ruthless than boxing, will it get even more fierce?
A
man whom I respect in the sport of boxing, Bobby Gunn, well, in 2011,
he fought in the first sanctioned bare knuckle boxing match since 1889.
Gunn earned the vacant heavyweight bareknuckle boxing title, previously
held by John L. Sullivan. Basically you have two guys meet somewhere in
nowhere, and they punch one another in the face with no protective gear
on until a winner is proclaimed. All though it has been talked about by
some of the media, it has not caught on as of yet. There would seemingly
be many hoops to jump through with the commissions and such to organize
a legitimate event. But from what I have heard, those steps are being
made. But will the public embrace that style of fighting as they have
regulated boxing and the MMA? Could it produce such stars as boxing and
the UFC have? Those are questions yet to be answered.
The Wrap Up
There
is one thing I honestly enjoy, and that is the fight game, I love a
good chess match, and I enjoy a quality slugfest. I dig two men stepping
in the ring or cage and giving it their all for the fans. I stepped in
the ring twice in my lifetime as a pro, well, more of a novelty I should
say, let’s face the facts, I was going nowhere in the sport of boxing.
But 2006, I had two bouts that forever changed my outlook on the sport. I
felt what it was like to be a fighter, maybe not a good one, but a
feeling that I will never forget. The ring walk was just amazing; it
actually stripped me to almost nothing, but then made me feel like
somebody. Getting booed by your opponent’s hometown fans, to being
cheered when his ass hits the deck for the ten count. After my first
fight, my jaw hurt so bad, not because I was hit to hard, but because of
me clenching down so hard on my mouthpiece. My family standing up and
clapping for me as I walked by them to the ring, hearing my boy scream
out load with joy when I won, and hearing that my little girl cried when
she seen her Daddy get hit. There are so many emotions that a fighter
goes through, I only experienced it at an extreme low level, and I am
still in awe of it.
The sport of boxing, it will never die, the
fighters will be beloved, as well as hated, but either way, boxing is
here to stay. The fight game has evolved, and it will continue to
progress. Into what? Only time will tell. All I will say is this, I love
the fight world, I respect the fighters, and with the little that I
have done in the game, I have been blessed. I have my opinions on it
all, but what do I know, I am just a fan of the brutality, and it is
beautiful, beautiful brutality.
 Beautiful Brutality: Part One Benny Henderson Jr
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