Trying To Gain Respect

Who is the better pound for pound fighter in the world Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr.? I know I know, we all wont know for sure until both of them step into the ring together so the debate will continue. However there is one man who never really gets mentioned in the pound for pound discussion, even though he has dominated his opponents through out his career. But as his next fight comes closer he may start to get universal respect, His name is Sergio Martinez.

The five foot ten, 37 year old southpaw Sergio Martinez (49-2, 28 Ko's) is currently preparing to face young Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. on September 15^th live on pay per view. This will mark the biggest bout of Martinez's career. Although Martinez has faced great opposition such as Paul Williams, Kelly Pavlik, Kermit Cintron, Darren Barker, and Antonio Margarito. The number three ranked pound for pound for fighter in the world will have all eyes on him to dominate Chavez Jr.

With great well known named fighters ahead of him in Mayweather and Pacquiao, every Martinez bout means just that much more. One loss could mean Martinez not seeing a future super fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. Martinez who offered 80% of the earnings to Mayweather for a possible bout, still wants to move up the rankings one day and beat Floyd Mayweather. For now Martinez must take care of a hungry Chavez Jr. in a fight of the year candidate.

Martinez holds the true warrior spirit and we should see that in his upcoming fight. That's what has made him such a fan favorite. And even more so thats what has made his run so impressive as one of the top pound for pound fighters in the world. Possibly even one day here we could see Martinez grace the rankings as the top pound for pound fighter in the world.

A Mission For Greatness

As the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London get closer, U.S.A Boxing will prepare itself for redemption. At the 2008 Olympic Games held in China, U.S.A Boxing had its worst showing of all time capturing just one medal. On top of that the U.S.'s one medal was just a bronze captured by heavyweight Deontay Wilder who since has turned pro. In Olympic history U.S.A Boxing holds the record for most medals and gold medals all time in Boxing.

Over the history of the Olympic Games the U.S.A Boxing team has been a source of pride, featuring many Boxers that would go on to have Hall of Fame careers, including Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali), Sugar Ray Leonard, Oscar De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Roy Jones Jr., and recently Andre Ward among others. Greatness in almost any fighters back ground can be traced back to his amateur days with U.S. Boxing. What will this year hold for the U.S.A.? Will we see a gold medal? Could we see the next Hall of Famer? One man from Staten Island, New York Marcus Browne, may just claim both a gold this year and one day possibly a H.O.F. Ring.

It's hard to tell the future obviously, if anyone could we would all be rich. But 21 year old Marcus Browne may have the pedigree it takes to get himself into both elite classes of the Boxing world. Browne earlier this year in May at the America's Qualifier tournament in Brazil qualified himself for the 2012 London Games. Ranked as the number one Light heavyweight amateur in the U.S. Browne has enjoyed success throughout his amateur career, capturing golden gloves, winning national championships and now even a 2012 Olympic athlete. But it's not the accomplishments and accolades that will bring Browne success, it's something else that some may never get taught. The lesson of adversity.

For hundreds of years men have enjoyed success in there amateur and pro careers in Boxing, but what really defines a great fighter isn't when there winning, but how they can rebound from tough situations. It's that moment when someone gets knocked down or losses, that we find there true worth. Some fighters will crumble, but the true champions battle through to greatness. This is a key detail the 2008 Olympic team was missing, they simply hadn't been tested enough. So when things got tough the young amateurs were crushed leaving the U.S. Know where to be found on the medal stands. This year U.S.A Boxing has some of the guys who can battle through tough times. One of those men is the Light heavyweight Marcus Browne.

Going into last years 2011 World Championships, Marcus Browne was cruising his way to an easy bid to the 2012 Olympic Games. It was there though that he would be tested. Browne who only needed a few more victories to punch his ticket was defeated. Browne however stayed focused on the prize. Instead of taking the easy way out and turning pro, Browne stuck with U.S.A Boxing. 

Training harder then ever in the gym, Browne found his way back to the 2012 National Championships earlier this year in March at Fort Carson, Colorado Springs. Browne leveled the competition through out the tournament, until he got to the finals where he would meet up with one of Fort Caron's favorites, the Army's own Steve Nelson. Against Steve Nelson, Browne also learned more about fighting through adversity.

With over 97% of the crowd cheering for Nelson every punch landed was even more dramatic. And when Browne slipped in the first round, the crowd gave a huge roar thinking it was a knock down, the extremely biased crowd clearly wanted a loss from Browne and a win for Nelson. But once again Browne fought his way through the bout, and even more impressively he did it being pressured up against the ropes for most of the night. Browne won the bout in a hostile environment that mentally weak amateurs would have let get the best of them.

Marcus Browne then was off to the America's Qualifier tournament where he put a rubber stamp on his journey to the 2012 London games. Browne cruised his way through to win the gold medal, and ensure himself a spot this time at the 2012 Olympic games.

Marcus Browne has been through the ringer  and made his way back without melting down at any point. Marcus Browne is mentally ready to take any challenge in London as he heads towards his gold medal hopes. But if it's still physical ability and pure Boxing skills you want, then Marcus Browne has them as well. 

The lengthy 6'2 Light heavyweight southpaw has great hand speed, as well as great strength that can make his opponents night bad very quick with a stoppage. On top of that with the help of legendary trainer Teddy Atlas, Browne has been getting the knowledge and expertise of one of the greatest trainers of all time. Atlas has worked extensively to help Marcus Browne sand off his rough edges in the ring. The same tips Atlas learned along the way with heavyweights Mike Tyson and Alexander Povetkin.

So just what are realistic expectations for Marcus Browne? Olympic gold medal? Future Hall of Famer? Before you answer, just ask yourself-- What separates the talented athletes from the great ones? Every athlete at the pro level of Boxing, NFL, NBA, NHL, Etc. is talented. What makes the great ones so great, is how much adversity they have to battle through in there journey to get to the top. When things get bad the greatest athletes know how to handle it because they have been there before. Browne still has plenty of learning to do at the pro level. However If I had to bet one way or the other, I would bet on Marcus Browne being the next best thing in Boxing, and the next U.S.A Boxing gold medalist.

Is Boxing Doing Enough To Prevent Steroid Use?

Almost every sport has been affected by controversies and scandals. One of the biggest issues to rock the culture of sports has been the haunting reality of steroids. The sport of Boxing is no different. In the past year already we have seen multiple fighters test positive for performance enhancing drugs, and many of them have been at one time or another staples in the sport. It certainly won't be the last time someone is caught trying to cheat there way to a win. But it merits the question once again, is Boxing doing enough to protect the integrity of the sport and keep steroids out of the ring?

At first glance one would answer with a simple no Boxing isn't doing enough. And who could blame them with the evidence put in front of us. In the last couple months we have seen both Andre Berto and Lamont Peterson test positive for a banned substance in preparation for there upcoming bouts with Victor Ortiz and Amir Khan. On top of that just this last weekend another test came back positive. This time is was one of the top amateur and pro fighters to ever grace the sport, Antonio “The Magic Man” Tarver. Tarver who was drug tested before his last bout June 2^nd against Lateef Kayode, tested positive for a banned substance called Drostanolone an Anabolic Steroid. As the results of Taver's failed test came down this weekend it was just another piece of evidence for some fans that Boxing needs to do more to keep steroids out of the sport. But what if this is the best thing for Boxing? What if this is just the system actually working?

On the surface when someone is caught cheating taking steroids its received as a huge black eye. That will never change. But look at the sport of Baseball for instance. For the majority of 2000-2007 all the news around Baseball was bad news after bad news of superstars getting busted for cheating. A stain on the game of Baseball was definitely left. However look at Baseball almost six years later now. The superstars getting busted are far in between now because after a period of everyone getting busted in Baseball, everyone learned to stay away from steroids and do it the right way. The same is happening in Boxing. The only difference is a giant stain hasn't been left yet. Boxing is cleaning up far before the biggest superstars in the sport get busted. With Three bigger named fighters getting busted this year as well as the past, others will think twice about cheating and using performance enhancing drugs.

The systems put in place right now with drug testing in Boxing aren't perfect, but the systems are good enough to clean up most of the cheaters. One thing that everyone can agree on is Boxing should have one unified policy of testing, but with more superstars like Floyd Mayweather Jr. and others demanding Olympic style drug testing, big time fights will be held with higher standards. And maybe even one day there will be a unified testing system. One can only dream.

Boxing can also help itself by wiping clean any outside evil entities connected to steroids such as Victor Conte formally of BALCO, who involve themselves in the sport. These men who have a dirty image attached to them should be ridden of. Why mess with someone who has a trail of bread crumbs leading to dirty athletes on steroids? If you don't want to be seen as suspicious then don't associate yourself with these men. It never pays off just ask Andre Berto. 

So do you still think Boxing needs to do more to keep steroids out of the sport? While there is some work still to be done, for now Boxing fans don't panic. The only time to worry would be if no one was getting caught. We have seen three bigger name fighters this year test positive, and that should be a good sign that something is in fact working in the drug testing system and that fighters are being caught.