Boxing as a sport should be banned in fact any so called sport that involves hitting another person

AMKC

Any sport that involves hitting another person should be banned. They are stupid and dangerous.

That UFC thing is utter barbarity, and a real sign of how we've become used to things that give us short-term dopamine boosts but leave us unfulfilled and sad at the end of it.

Mopping up blood before the next fight while that meathead Joe Rogan keeps baying the crowd.

Abhorrent stuff.

Yurt2

This thread needs some Hagler Hearns to clear the stink.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HL2a2-8OHdg

bnt

In ideal world I would agree, but in this world, banning something just sends it underground. That process tends to remove whatever safeguards were in place before it was banned.

Badly Drunk Boy

And as for WWE, why are the wrestlers so mean to each other?!?

Yurt2

Sweden and I believe Norway banned pro boxing for decades, until they realised that amateur clubs were still conducting pro-style sparring sessions with the windows blacked-out and the doors locked. Ban is lifted and Sweden is back to being not a ridiculous country any more.

Imagine the Gardai peeping in windows and arresting people for boxing sparring. Faintly ridiculous.

Anyway, Gatti/Ward 1. A beautiful moment in time and a night of sheer glory. Please enjoy...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XgZjz6btCc

Cookie_Monster

We should ban soccer then, right? All those horrific injuries where they're literally rolling around in such tremendous pain. It's just not right to let it continue.

AMKC

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564414#Comment_120564414

Yes please. I would have no problem with that.

policarp

It's a macho thing.

Bulls fighting for cows.

Deer rutting.

Blokes trying to prove their masculinity.

Mrs OBumble

Sport or war.

I'll take the sport. Fewer unconnected civilian injures.

Come on now, Yurt, don't forget the wimminz.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WE89vjfcBI

rob316

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564292#Comment_120564292

First of the sport is called MMA, mixed martial arts.

You can win by submitting your opponent not just knocking them out.

Probably the safest type of combat sport and requires a huge amount of technical skill at pro level.

Don't watch it if you don't like it.

ahusband

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564345#Comment_120564345

Would rape be ok if it was in an arena with an audience & safeguards? extreme yes, but neither is a positive thing.

Boxing should be consigned to history, people who want to see other people beat each other up should question themselves as to why they have this desire to watch people inflict injury on another.

It is not and never has been a sport, it is just socialised thuggery made acceptable through advertising.

Frankie Machine

'Boxing is the sport to which all other sports aspire'.

• George Foreman

So that'll tell you what HE knows about hurling, but anyway...

Ignoring the dull misandry AND misogyny of 'macho... trying to prove masculinity'; the puny distaste for things that just happen to require more testicular fortitude than you have; the daft delusion that combat sports need the oxygen of advertising.

How about, if you don't like boxing and other combat sports, then just move on ? How about a nice cup of tea ?

Look after your own affairs, and let others mind theirs.

ahusband

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564564#Comment_120564564

How about we behave like civilised people and not blood thirsty neanderthals

taxAHcruel

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564540#Comment_120564540

Quite a poor analogy there. Rape is by definition the destruction of the consent of one human being by another. Boxing and MMA in contrast involve two consenting adults who have not just chosen to be in that arena on that night before the cameras - but have engaged in years of training beforehand in order to fulfill and work towards their own personal choice to do just that.

Your comparison therefore is not just "extreme" as you put it - but outright ridiculous.

The human compulsion to ban things one personally does not like is beyond my comprehension to be honest as I do not share it. What consenting adults choose to do - or choose to watch other consenting adults do - is exactly that. A choice. Everyone else can and probably should choose to not partake and not watch those who do. And everyone can continue on happily each in the bubble of their own choices for how they live their own lives.

Everlong1

And what about self defence training for those who don't want to be victims of the army of scumbags that our wonderful welfare state and ludicrously lenient "justice" system are churning out? Should that be banned too?

Boxing is an incredible sport , corrupt as **** though

blueskys

A few distinctions needed. Amateur boxing is a sport. Professional boxing is a business, just like professional UFC etc. I would never seek to defend professional boxing, it's a mugs game. Also do not confuse intent and result; its actually quite difficult in amateur boxing with large padded gloves to land a clean head shot. Rugby has proven to be more dangerous than boxing in this regard. The intent to do injury is not there, but the result is. This is proved scientifically. Rugby results in worse head injuries, neck and back injuries than amateur boxing. So do you want to ban that as well?

Greyfox

A few people on here still haven't learnt how to turn off their TV. If they don't like something why don't they just do something else? Why do these people think they can make decisions for other adults they don't even know? Training for boxing or MMA is a brilliant way to get into great shape. Most of the world's banning brigade are people who lack common sense.

BrianD3

The problem with boxing is not just the risk of immediate injury (although that is there too, particularly in pro) but the insidious damage, increasing the risk of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy later on. Same story with rugby. People who box or play rugby and rely on "heavy gloves" or "concussion protocols" to keep them relatively safe are taking a big risk with their future health. Also, a lot of participants are under 18. But to be any good at any sport, you generally need to start as a child so banning boxing for children would have a major impact on the sport.

Frankie Machine

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564573#Comment_120564573

Things are not 'blood thirsty' or 'neanderthal' just because you don't have the stomach for them, and per se, pusillanimity is not civilised.

AMKC

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564540#Comment_120564540

Would rape be ok if it was in an arena with an audience & safeguards? extreme yes, but neither is a positive thing.

Rape is never OK. There is no way rape could ever be OK. Rape is about having control and power over another human without any consent mostly Men over Women but there is some Men who like to feel that kind of power over other Men too.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564486#Comment_120564486

Don't watch it if you don't like it.

Believe me I did not want to watch it and I did not I kept flicking channels hoping it would be over. I will be complaining to Sky about this too and reporting them for false advertising as well but the F1 qualifying was supposed to be on not that dangerous sport and If it was not bad enough they talked **** for almost 30mins after the fecking thing was over.

Quitelife

Had the misfortune to be in the National Boxing Stadium a few years back, the crew that was at it was far more intimidating and violent than those in the ring. Never again.

THe whole thing in the 26 counties seems to be controlled by travellers , the boxers & families from the 6 counties seemed to be the only people not intimidated out of the sport at this stage & not afraid to stand up to them .

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565215#Comment_120565215

I take it that you are aware that people have died racing in F1 or does danger is sport only matter with the sports you don't like?

greyday

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564540#Comment_120564540

MMA, Boxing etc has two consenting adults talking part so your intellectually disabled comparison with rape is childish.

Boxing causes brain damage. You'd never get me into a ring.

/drinks varnish

AMKC

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565318#Comment_120565318

Yes but at least in F1 they are not boxing each others brains out and making other people think that it is exceptable to do this. No one in F1 or any motorsport is trying to injure someone else whereas in boxing that is exactly what they are doing damaging and injuring their opponent.

Run Forest Run

Two words: Punch Drunk.

Incredibly sad to see old legends of the sport struggle to string a sentence together because of brain damage incurred during their career. No amount of money fame or legacy can compensate for what these guys have lost.

And the idea of kids getting in the ring and subjecting their undeveloped brains to this damage? Crazy.

No responsible parent would willingly allow their child to do this. Head gear doesn't completely protect you either.

For this reason, I don't really see Katie Taylor as a great role model for young kids. Perhaps in terms of her professionalism and application to her craft, but beyond that not really... you can already see the very early signs of brain damage with her. Hopefully there aren't too many young girls hoping to emulate her by stepping into the ring. It's a dead end profession.

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565438#Comment_120565438

Right, and I suppose driving at over 200mph is not dangerous? It's actually called trying to win a competition, nobody is forcing them to enter.

imo if you need to start pointing at other sports or events as “just as bad” or “but look what they do”, it’s not a strong defence tbh

Furze99

Well given the links with criminality, it looks like it's slowly being cancelled already.

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565546#Comment_120565546

I disagree, the point is more that fact that banning any sport due to small risks is really dumb thinking

eggy81

Boxing is a great sport. Great for fitness and discipline. Learning some form of combat sports and self defence should be compulsory in kids imho.

Montage of Feck

Try banning rugby first and see how that goes before doing anything rash.

eggy81

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565623#Comment_120565623

Wait until we’re **** again first though.

bucketybuck

There are people who want to control the lives of others and dictate what they can and cannot do, what is acceptable and unacceptable.

Those people are the scum of the earth, evil in its purest form.

LambshankRedemption

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120564367#Comment_120564367

Yeah, can we not all just be nice to each other?

HazeDoll

When I see people talking about hunting I often think that if they have something to prove they should put down the guns and get into a ring with somebody the same size as them. See how brave they are when they're faced with someone who is expecting them and is prepared to defend themselves and mount an attack of their own.

Fighting of any sort is a bit primeval but at least it's a fair fight between two willing participants. It looks like fun, actually. Let them at it!

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565546#Comment_120565546

Exactly. Some weak defences. Football? What part of football involves punching the head off someone? Oh yeah, the part that would finish your career.

I don't think boxing and MMA can just be "banned" - it doesn't work like that - but the criticism is valid. As for "if you don't like it don't watch it" - what sort of crap rebuttal is that?! I DON'T watch it - I can still see violence for what it is.

Tavrin Callas

I'd rather see the banning of horse racing. Three dead horses at Aintree this year and seven dead in Churchill Downs in the past week. For all the rhetoric of the horses being treated like royalty when being trained, they are quick enough to be destroyed when they're injured, and they are given no choice in partaking in that particular sport unlike boxers and drivers, or jockeys, come to that.

I know there's far too much money in the industry for the banning to ever be a reality though.

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565737#Comment_120565737

It's the perfect rebuttal. People who dont like a sport should mind their own business and just avoid it rather than saying something stupid like ban it. Nobody is forcing you to watch, do you also feel like people force you to watch violent films?

gameoverdude

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565737#Comment_120565737

Heading the ball from an early age has shown to be concusive over time...in soccer.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565793#Comment_120565793

But I clearly said I don't watch them (so how could you construe from that that I'm saying I'm being forced to watch them?) and that I'm not calling for their banning.

However nobody can stop me from voicing an opinion on those sports which involve extreme violence. You're basically saying "shut up - you're not allowed an opinion". You don't get to make that call. And I suspect it's because the reality I'm highlighting is an uncomfortable one.

Guildenstern

After what was a 50s/60s/70s highpoint the advent of types like Mike Tyson and all the baggage he brought, you'd have thought the sport was on the path to self destruction. Step forward Sky etc and the advent of Pay For View, which actually gave top level boxing a cachet, a sort of prestige across the sporting sphere.

As health and safety has advanced as well as the various strands of the culture wars, who'd have thought boxing has bucked the trend. Not me. I would have thought it would have been consigned to history by now.

Quite sad, come Olympics time, all we mostly are good for are a few boxers, for potential medals. I haven't even broached the criminal element which is also a big turn off as it is for many, although many others comfortably disregard those links.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565653#Comment_120565653

Evil and nazi and fascist really do get misused - by both the left and the right.

Obviously there are times when it's OK to disapprove - downloading child porn, using heroin, for example.

As for when it's not anything illegal (but morally questionable) it's rather nuts to say they're "evil". Annoying, busybodies, but evil? They are literally just expressing an opinion too - not actually enforcing anything. Is this not simply free speech?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565871#Comment_120565871

Tyson, Bruno - plagued by mental health issues. Two kids from troubled, chaotic backgrounds, their trauma monetised. Sonny Liston - horrific background. Nothing wrong with seeing it for what it is. Not the same thing as calling for a banning.

Greyfox

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565840#Comment_120565840

You can have your opinion, doesn’t bother me. I actually find boxing can sometimes be boring, particularly when the result is decided on points. I'm comfortable with violence as I'm watching adults who know the risks.

JupiterKid

Not a fan of boxing or MMA or other combat sports - it does seem brutish, primitive and of course violent and is riddled with dirty money and criminality but it is massively popular with a huge cohort of society, has huge amounts of money sloshing around and I don’t see it going anywhere any time soon. Boxing clubs are deeply embedded in deprived, working class areas and they do give many young lads an outlet for their aggression that would probably be met through criminal means otherwise. These clubs also keep young people in deprived areas off the streets and can instill a strong sense of self-discipline and self-esteem.

Banning boxing, MMA or other combat sports would simply drive these underground - but in the long-term future I do hope they eventually die out. They are a reminder of the aggressive, violent and barbaric side of humanity that is really only just below the veneer of civility.

The martial arts such as karate, judo, taikwando etc. I view as being more worthy and honourable than boxing but they are still combative - but these sports have massive popular appeal.

I would also love to see horse racing go the way of the dodo given the appalling animal welfare issues in the sport but that’s also not a realistic expectation given how popular it is.

Frankie Machine

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120565737#Comment_120565737

It's interesting you think that punching the head off someone in football is a career-ending move. It didn't always even get people a red card, as Johnny Giles could tell you.

But football then was a man's game. Football today of course, provides us far too many cringy reminders why boxing is, in the best sense of the word, the noble art.

Overpaid soccer wooly-woofters falling like flies and rolling around on the ground in pretend agony. It is embarrassingly degenerate cheating, and unmanly.

Boxing, in its essential nature, has absolutely nothing to do with the paraphernalia of organised crime, or underprivileged backgrounds, or whatever other half-baked excuse you want to offer.

Rather, in the words of Theodore Roosevelt who took up boxing for the very reason a lot of other people have not got the balls to do...

'It is not the critic who counts;... The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;... so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.'

Sandor Clegane

If you want to go after a sport go after horse racing, coursing, bloodsports etc...these things are genuinely cruel as you'e torturing animals for your own pleasure, what two consenting adults do is their own buisness, they aint hurting anyone but themselves.