Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

[RumbleCard]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

Its one thing to praise someone for gutting it out or finding the heart to carry on but quite another to criticize someone for stepping down after nearly 10 unanimous rounds. It always amazes me how some fans can just demand things with no regard to individual health or long term well being.

I don't think its in good taste let alone even reasonable to call Dawson out especially with him being so far down on the cards. Maybe...maybe if he was winning on paper or if the fight was close, you might question him but if anything his decision to bow out of a hopeless fight should be regarded as the intelligent choice. This is his career at worst and his life at best. I have a lot of respect for him making the smart decision over idiotic emotional fanfare.

[Complex]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

Its one thing to praise someone for gutting it out or finding the heart to carry on but quite another to criticize someone for stepping down after nearly 10 unanimous rounds. It always amazes me how some fans can just demand things with no regard to individual health or long term well being.

I don't think its in good taste let alone even reasonable to call Dawson out especially with him being so far down on the cards. Maybe...maybe if he was winning on paper or if the fight was close, you might question him but if anything his decision to bow out of a hopeless fight should be regarded as the intelligent choice. This is his career at worst and his life at best. I have a lot of respect for him making the smart decision over idiotic emotional fanfare.

I remember maligini vs cotton. He was losing badly and bloodied, and he damn near cried when his corner stopped the fight late. Its honorable to leave it all in the ring and things can turn around at anytime. Moore vs Foreman ring a bell. Dawson cashed it in.

Had he been injured, OK. But he wasn't.

[JayBee74]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

This just shows how good Ward is. Dawson is a really good fighter and Ward just ran straight thru him. Weight had nothing to do with that, Ward just took away the jab and then controlled the fight from there. Would like to see him fight the Martinez-Chavez winner. If Chavez wins, i dont see why he couldnt make 168.

Chavez ain't going to 168 anytime soon.

[Complex]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

This just shows how good Ward is. Dawson is a really good fighter and Ward just ran straight thru him. Weight had nothing to do with that, Ward just took away the jab and then controlled the fight from there. Would like to see him fight the Martinez-Chavez winner. If Chavez wins, i dont see why he couldnt make 168.

One thing I give Ward is that he cleared out his division via the tournament. He may be ready to move up. Chavez has a lot of work to do still at 160.

[JayBee74]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

One thing I give Ward is that he cleared out his division via the tournament. He may be ready to move up. Chavez has a lot of work to do still at 160.

Yeah, and he just knocked out the Ring and WBC Light Heavyweight champ, but it was for a 168 crown. That indicates to be that Ward is pretty comfortable at his current 168. I mean he didn't move up to fight Dawson at 175 which would have given him another title (probably).

[RumbleCard]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

I remember maligini vs cotton. He was losing badly and bloodied, and he damn near cried when his corner stopped the fight late. Its honorable to leave it all in the ring and things can turn around at anytime. Moore vs Foreman ring a bell. Dawson cashed it in.

Had he been injured, OK. But he wasn't.

I don't dispute the positive connotations of gutting it out. What I think is absurd is pointing fingers at a guy who made an intelligent choice when he knew he didn't have what it took to win the fight.

He didn't "cash it in". He put up a good fight and I don't think Dawson at any point in any of those rounds quit on himself. He only stepped down after repeatedly being clipped and taken down.

I don't know anyone in boxing that feels that its a fighters duty to take the biggest beating possible in an essentially unwinnable situation.

You've made a few unreasonable assumptions about boxing within your criticisms of Dawson. Some fighters are always in the match no matter what the score card says. But that's not the case for all boxers and it certainly wasn't the case for Dawson Saturday night. There's definitely a difference between recognizing when you've been beaten and cashing it in. Insisting that taking a beating is somehow honorable. Particularly the assumption that a boxer should put his life and health behind your desire to see a losing fighter take an even worse beating on the off chance that he even has enough juice to land a legitimate one shot desperate KO.

You really need to differentiate between reality/humanity and fantastic entertainment.

[Money99]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

Who else is there for Ward to fight at 168? He's cleaned out the division.
I suppose he can give a rematch to a few guys from the tourney, but that's boring.
The only fight left for him at 168 is if Chavez Jr somehow beats S-Mart. Other than that, I think he needs to move up to 175 and cleanout that division as well.

My biggest fear is that he fights Hopkins. That's a lose-lose situation, but Ward might still take it due to potential purse and ease of fight for him.

[Dos_Santos]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

Ward is great, but the hyperbole needs to be toned down a bit.

He has fought 9 of his last 10 fights in comfortable surroundings.

He needs to leave Cali.

[JayBee74]

Re: Andre Ward v. Chad Dawson - September 8 - HBO

I don't dispute the positive connotations of gutting it out. What I think is absurd is pointing fingers at a guy who made an intelligent choice when he knew he didn't have what it took to win the fight.

He didn't "cash it in". He put up a good fight and I don't think Dawson at any point in any of those rounds quit on himself. He only stepped down after repeatedly being clipped and taken down.

Hard to say. One of the memorable boxing scenes was the second classic Pryor-Arguello fight. Pryor brutalized Arguello in the tenth round. After the knockdown Alexis just sit there and allowed himself to be counted out. Anyone that saw the two fight series (Arguello was KOed in the 14th round of their first fight) and the destruction that Pryor dished out in the final round knew that Arguello made the right decision.....but he did quit.