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By Benny Henderson Jr. (April 22, 2006)
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Photo © HBO
After years as a diehard boxing fan I’ve come to realize that all things, good or bad, come to an end. The curtain falls on everybody’s career, sometimes prematurely while others pull the plug at exactly the right time. Other boxers cling on to the threadbare remnants of their careers until there is nothing left to hang on to.
Some time ago I remember cramming to the television with the guys to witness the destruction of Evander Holyfield, who was no doubt going to be put to sleep with ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson’s awesome power. But what a surprise. The ear bite incident, a few distasteful fights, a spanking by Lewis, and then the end when I sat there dumbfounded at the edge of the couch seeing a shell of a man sitting on the canvas looking clueless in Kentucky with Danny Williams standing over him.
It was disheartening to find out that the very guy who brought you to the sport couldn’t deliver himself out of the bottom of the pile of the heavyweight division. The funny thing is I kept the hope alive until I had nothing else to hold on too.
When you see a fighter you look up to with nothing left to offer up as a pugilist it pulls at your heart, ala ‘Sugar’ Ray Leonard versus Hector Camacho in ’97. I wanted Leonard to win, and looking past the lay off believing he could scrounge up enough to pull off the big one just one more time, man I had hopes, I had prayers but I didn’t receive the victory I was looking for and again it the end of something good.
So here I am once more, rooting for my boy, looking for the W. Despite the odds being stacked against him, I am holding on to high heavens praying that some way some how he can muster it up and come home with the crown. But am I just living in the past as I did with Tyson, or Leonard? Separate fighters, different styles and situations and personalities, but all meeting the same fate, the end.
So is this the end for Chris Byrd?
With the match-up Tonight on HBO there is something I have pondered the past few weeks. Can Chris pull off the big upset and keep his strap? Being biased I would go on to say yes, but being a realist I can honestly say this may very well be the end of his reign as a major player in the heavyweight division, or at least a titleholder.
The one thing that Byrd had over his towering opponents was speed. He is a very smart fighter with fast hands, but as time goes by the speed slips away and what do you have left? The major component that has guided you through countless victories is now no longer a threat, useful over an old perhaps Holyfield or a gassed McCline, but merely an obstacle for a younger, stronger much more powerful Klitschko.
Tonight won’t be a cakewalk for Wladimir – no doubt you just can’t overlook any opponent – but what does Byrd have over the 6’6” contender? Very mentally strong, a decent chin, comes in shape, but lacks the power, and what about the hometown decision? You are fighting a man in his backyard; it doesn’t look good for ‘Rapid Fire’.
A loss wouldn’t necessarily end Byrd’s career, but what else would be left for the thirty-five year old fighter? His only hope would be a controversial loss to get the fans behind a rematch and if that would be the case, highly unlikely.
It appears to me and many other that this is the end of the road for Chris Byrd. Klitschko in the eyes of many is just too big and strong for Byrd. Can Byrd overcome the shadow of 2000 or will it be a carbon copy?
I like both fighters. Klitschko in my opinion is one of the top talented fighters in the division, although I am a fan of Byrd’s I like him on a personal level as well. And as a writer I will be watching this fight open minded. I will be rooting for Chris, but honestly I feel I will be on the couch watching the tube witnessing yet another long time pugilistic hero of mine reaching the end, a good run my friend, but it appears it is the end.
is this the end of chris byrd?
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