Deaths and damage in the ring

After the death of Simiso Buthelezi, who died at the King Edward hospital in Durban after his bout against Siphesihle Mntungwa on Sunday, the public has once again been made aware of the dangers of boxing.

It has been reported that since 1890 more than 1 876 fighters have died as a result of injuries sustained in the ring.

The first death reported in South Africa was in 1889 and since then there have been a total of 55 deaths in the professional ring and 26 amateurs.

The last recorded ring death in South Africa prior to death of Buthelezi was that of Herbert Nkabedi who died on 29 April 2017, a day after being knocked out in the sixth round by Willis Baloyi at Carnival City in Brakpan.

After the death of a fighter there will always be calls to ban boxing and administrators, promoters, fighters, supporters and others involved in the sport will not be surprised by the banning reaction. Every time a boxer suffers fatal injuries, cries go up for governments to declare boxing illegal.

However, despite many campaigns to eradicate boxing, the sport remains hugely popular in many countries.

Even though women’s boxing has made big strides in the past decade, both as an Olympic sport for amateurs and a professional occupation, there have also been ring deaths.

And as long as the top boxers earn millions of dollars it is highly unlikely that the “ban boxing” campaigns will get off the ground.

THE RIGHT TO FIGHT

It is hard to argue with those who want boxing to be banned because when two fighters step into the ring, the basic idea is that they would try to knock each other unconscious.

It has been said many times that boxing is the only big sport in which the prime objective is to inflict maximum physical damage on an opponent.

But many believe anyone should have the right to fight if he or she wants to make boxing a career. They maintain, with some justification, that banning boxing will merely drive it underground, where there will be less supervision and probably more deaths.

For many years, boxing has been a way out of poverty; a road to a decent living if not riches.

When it was banned in countries such as Sweden and Norway fighters simply moved to countries where they could use their talents and chase their dreams.

In Africa, Mexico, the United States, the Philippines and many other countries boxing provides an escape from crime and drugs and death on the streets.

Thanks to boxing, many South Africans have overcome unfavourable circumstances and disadvantages to rise above their contemporaries.

Brian Mitchell, Lehlohonolo Ledwaba, Vuyani Bungu, Sugarboy Malinga, Phillip Ndou and a long list of others became more than boxing champions; they became leaders in whose footsteps others followed.

‘BARBARIC SPORT’

There is no doubt that boxing has always, since the days of bare-knuckle fighting, been a controversial sport.

Influential opinion formers, including medical experts, have condemned boxing as a barbaric sport. Others, with more hands-on experience, and some with vested interests have vigorously defended boxing and the rights of boxers.

Much has been done to improve safety measures to limit serious injuries and fatalities. Partly as a result of campaigns to ban the sport, boxing authorities introduced larger gloves and shorter fights, stricter rules and supervision and headgear for amateurs, which was subsequently withdrawn.

In addition to thorough pre-fight medical examinations, doctors were also given the right, and the responsibility, to stop fights whenever they deem it necessary. This is only allowed in certain countries.

But whatever the administrators do, there will always be serious injuries and fatalities in boxing, just as there are similar tragedies in many other sports.

CHAMPIONS WHOSE OPPONENTS DIED

Several fighters who later became world champions suffered the trauma of being involved in fights that led to the death of their opponents. Among them were five heavyweights – Bob Fitzsimmons, Jess Willard, Max Baer, Primo Carnera and Ezzard Charles.

Con Riordan collapsed in the second round of an exhibition bout with Fitzsimmons and died. Bull Young was stopped in the 11th round of a fight against Willard and died, as did Frankie Campbell, whom Baer knocked out in the fifth round.

Ernie Schaaf died after collapsing in the 13th round of a fight with Carnera and Sam Baroudi died after being knocked out by Charles.

HEAVYWEIGHTS NOT AS PRONE

Strangely enough, records indicate that first-class heavyweights are not as prone to serious injury as boxers in the lighter divisions are.

The heavyweight division has no upper-end limit and the difference in weight can at times be alarming. Yet the biggest men in boxing often go ten or 12 rounds without any problem.

In the lighter divisions, many boxers struggle to weigh in under the limit. They, usually with the knowledge of their trainers, revert to severe dieting, bordering on starvation, as well as dehydration and the use of various weight-loss products.

Many fighters leave it too late to get down to the required weight. They believe if they can shed the last few grams just before the weigh-in, they can rehydrate and be strong enough when the fight begins.

Scientists say a boxer should be no more than 4.5 per cent above the limit two to three weeks before a fight.

Other experts feel boxers should participate in a series of compulsory weigh-ins before any fight. If rules are broken, the fight should be called off.

Clearly, this could cause problems for promoters, sponsors and broadcasters, but the well-being of the boxers is what counts.

Boxing, and most other sports, will never be completely safe. But to ban boxing globally will be impossible. And as long as the sport survives in some countries, boxers from elsewhere will cross boundaries to compete and earn a living.

DAMAGE TO FIGHTERS

The unknown factor is always what happens in sparring sessions and what damage a fighter suffers.

In the case of Buthelezi, according to reports, he was ahead at the time of the stoppage in the tenth round.

Looking at the facts after this tragic result, you must ask why a fighter with only four professional fights and 13 rounds in the professional ring is allowed to go into a ten-round title fight?

There is no doubt that boxing is a brutal sport and brain trauma does happen.

Among some of the great world champions who suffered damage was Aaron Prior who died in October 2016 at the age of sixty and suffered from dementia.

One of greatest British fighters never to win a world title, Herold “Bomber” Graham ended up in the psychiatric ward of a North London hospital with short term memory loss.

In 1934 Nat Fleischer, first editor of The Ring magazine, wrote that he knew of almost 40 fighters who had been institutionalised for punch-drunkenness.

Another sad case was that of Ralph Dupas from New Orleans who was stopped in two rounds by South Africa’s Willie Ludick in September 1964. The American ended up pushing around shopping carts in Las Vegas parking lots, collecting bottles to sell and make some money. He spent his last years diagnosed with dementia pugilistica, and spent years staring blankly at walls before his death.

Other great world champions who suffered damage were Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson, Johnny Bratton and Emile Griffith.

One of the saddest cases was that of heavyweight Jerry Quarry who went into full time care and needed help shaving, showering and putting on his socks.