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If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Let's say Wladimir and Vitali were born in the most populous city and economic center of the US, New York City and let's pretend that Wladimir has an all American name like Warren and Vitali being Vernon and they just did what they are basically doing right now, would they get more respect and deemed as dominant and great HW champions?
Discuss.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
If Wladimir was American, boxing would be as big in the US as it is in Germany right now.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
For sure.
Although names like Hank and Chuck would make them more popular than Warren and Vernon.
Sven Ottke would be considered an all-time great if from the States.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
generalbulldog
Let's say Wladimir and Vitali were born in the most populous city and economic center of the US, New York City and let's pretend that Wladimir has an all American name like Warren and Vitali being Vernon and they just did what they are basically doing right now, would they get more respect and deemed as dominant and great HW champions?
Discuss.
Yes.
End of discussion.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
I think they might have more popularity. Anything can be popular hear if its promoted the right way. Most of TV now is filled with untalented people making fools of themselves nightly. Even the losers of Idol and similar shows have websites and fan clubs run by fanboys and teeny boppers. Theres definitely a portion of fans here waiting for the next "great white hope".
Would they get more respect? Hard to say. I would wager to say they might even get less from the traditional and hardcore boxing fans because their style is not enough blood and guts, not flashy and doesn't really fall in line with classic American form. All a matter of perception of course, but it seems like the fans of most sports over here are tapering off of their once beloved sports and only tune in for the really particularly amazing athletes or feats. Koby vs Labron, The superbowl, Boston, Yanks or Both in the world Series. The Klits would have to run through guys at a rapid pace and obliterate all comers to truley get the that kind of praise/respect here. With boxing not as popular as it was, there would have be something truley special to get peoples attention and after hurdling that, they'd be measured against the greats.
Sports used to be so absolute here. One player transcended the sport because they were so good or passionate. Now.. Players transcend the level of play of the pack and the media puts them above the sport. There is no longer one or two Titans who have decimated all. There are a few really good guys and the fans argue over who the best is. It once was.. the best was the best and you loved them or hated them .. or "liked this guy better" but there was rarely a dispute to who was the best. The passion in sports has been replaced by greed and money. There no hand shake deals or guys taking fights as a matter of personal pride/dislike/grudges/etc. or even charity or exhibition matches. Everyone today fights or plays for the money and it shows. Thats why throwbacks almost gain instant credibility with the fans.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
No,did Americans ever and or easily embrace Lennox Lewis or just say 'Ahaa told you so' when he was flattened twice?Not all but most American and 'casual' boxing fans want their heavyweights getting hit,coming forward and going for KO's.Caveman style
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
No,did Americans ever and or easily embrace Lennox Lewis or just say 'Ahaa told you so' when he was flattened twice?Not all but most American and 'casual' boxing fans want their heavyweights getting hit,coming forward and going for KO's.Caveman style
Lewis was British though not American.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
No,did Americans ever and or easily embrace Lennox Lewis or just say 'Ahaa told you so' when he was flattened twice?Not all but most American and 'casual' boxing fans want their heavyweights getting hit,coming forward and going for KO's.Caveman style
Lewis was British though not American.
Canabrit.
I decided any time this arguement comes up, that is how I'll address him. I'll accept Britadian too.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
No,did Americans ever and or easily embrace Lennox Lewis or just say 'Ahaa told you so' when he was flattened twice?Not all but most American and 'casual' boxing fans want their heavyweights getting hit,coming forward and going for KO's.Caveman style
Lewis was British though not American.
Haa.Iknow.That kept me rooting against him up until he bounced Ruddock like a drunken slob :shinner:.At that time the local press was still calling him Jamaican-Canadian-Brit lol.Deep question though....if he was born American,would he have had those two left feet in the early days ;D
Canabrit YB lol
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Youngblood
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
No,did Americans ever and or easily embrace Lennox Lewis or just say 'Ahaa told you so' when he was flattened twice?Not all but most American and 'casual' boxing fans want their heavyweights getting hit,coming forward and going for KO's.Caveman style
Lewis was British though not American.
Canabrit.
I decided any time this arguement comes up, that is how I'll address him. I'll accept Britadian too.
;D
Born and raised for 13 years in London, England
Lets just call him a Londoner.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
No,did Americans ever and or easily embrace Lennox Lewis or just say 'Ahaa told you so' when he was flattened twice?Not all but most American and 'casual' boxing fans want their heavyweights getting hit,coming forward and going for KO's.Caveman style
Lewis was British though not American.
Haa.Iknow.That kept me rooting against him up until he bounced Ruddock like a drunken slob :shinner:.At that time the local press was still calling him Jamaican-Canadian-Brit lol.Deep question though....
if he was born American,would he have had those two left feet in the early days ;D
Canabrit YB lol
Dunno,
But he certainly wouldn't have had that dodgy accent. ;D
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Lewis was British though not American.
Haa.Iknow.That kept me rooting against him up until he bounced Ruddock like a drunken slob :shinner:.At that time the local press was still calling him Jamaican-Canadian-Brit lol.Deep question though....
if he was born American,would he have had those two left feet in the early days ;D
Canabrit YB lol
Dunno,
But he certainly wouldn't have had that dodgy accent. ;D
Never know now.....could have been spawned out of Mississippi,gulf coast.Picture him talking like Tavoris Cloud :o;D
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Youngblood
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Lewis was British though not American.
Canabrit.
I decided any time this arguement comes up, that is how I'll address him. I'll accept Britadian too.
;D
Born and raised for 13 years in London, England
Lets just call him a Londoner.
http://media.olympic.ca/files/photos...pscale_q85.jpg
;)
Not that I actually give a shit.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
I think they would be more popular by virtue of the size of the American fanbase, the exposure the would receive, and nationalism. However, I still think they would be held to the same criticisms that they are now (particularly Wlad).
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
No,did Americans ever and or easily embrace Lennox Lewis or just say 'Ahaa told you so' when he was flattened twice?Not all but most American and 'casual' boxing fans want their heavyweights getting hit,coming forward and going for KO's.Caveman style
One thing your missing. Over 80% of american's are white, and there has not been a white american heavyweight champion since Rocky Marciano. although noone likes to admit it, race still makes a difference in the usa. (see Gerry Cooney)
Even with his predicitble style, had Klitschko been born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio, he would be a mainstream celeberty like ODHL.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Lance Uppercut
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Spicoli
No,did Americans ever and or easily embrace Lennox Lewis or just say 'Ahaa told you so' when he was flattened twice?Not all but most American and 'casual' boxing fans want their heavyweights getting hit,coming forward and going for KO's.Caveman style
One thing your missing. Over 80% of american's are white, and there has not been a white american heavyweight champion since Rocky Marciano. although noone likes to admit it, race still makes a difference in the usa. (see Gerry Cooney)
Even with his predicitble style, had Klitschko been born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio, he would be a mainstream celeberty like ODHL.
Unfortuantly race plays a unspoken factor,your right.Joe Mesi anyone?But are you sure about that 80% ?He-they would get a huge push but I just don't see Wlads style translating to massive following and def dont think he reaches Oscar numbers.Styles not only make fights,they make fans.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
I would not respect them more just for being American:pOf course America would support them more though.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
CFH
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Youngblood
Canabrit.
I decided any time this arguement comes up, that is how I'll address him. I'll accept Britadian too.
;D
Born and raised for 13 years in London, England
Lets just call him a Londoner.
http://media.olympic.ca/files/photos...pscale_q85.jpg
;)
Not that I actually give a shit.
And to use a Sinfield quote ...."not that theres anything wrong with it"
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
And so the question arises:
If the Klits where British with the names Thomas and Nigel would American embrace them even more than they do now?
Umm that would be, a, NO .
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
They'ld still be the cure for insomnia, so no.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
We got side-tracked huh.
There is enough Lewis praise to go around. Brits raised him to puberty. Thanks, ol chaps! Canadians taught him to box and prepared him for that world. Merci! And the Jamaicans claim. Let us not forget the Jamaicans. Those awesome hairstyles. Tanks maan!
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
CFH
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Youngblood
Canabrit.
I decided any time this arguement comes up, that is how I'll address him. I'll accept Britadian too.
;D
Born and raised for 13 years in London, England
Lets just call him a Londoner.
http://media.olympic.ca/files/photos...pscale_q85.jpg
;)
Not that I actually give a shit.
;D
“My mum took me to Canada when I was 12, but I am British in my heart." Lennox Lewis
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
My take being if they were Americans they be respected more and there wouldn't be talk of this is a weak HW era. Take Holmes and Tyson for example, they dominated the 80s. Was the 80s a great HW era? Tyrell Biggs, Michael Spinks, Tony Tucker, Trevor Berbick, Gerry Cooney, Tony Tubbs, does that sound like a good era for HWs? But yet almost everyone has said that those 2 were great HW champions and belong in a top 5 list.
And also someone also pointed out race. Race and ultra-nationalism plays a big part in the US. If the Klitschkos brothers were White Americans they would be praised to death. The US media would lap it up. They would be made into the boxing version of Brett Favre.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
I don't think it would have much effect on their popularity.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
People always accuse Americans of being more nationalistic then the other countries, I don't agree with that especially when it comes from the Brits who's TV pundits seem to drink the coolaid on every Of course the Klitschkos would be more popular because we would hear more about him, Vitali would be much more popular then Wlad obviously because of his style but I don't think it would mean to much of a difference. We've had most of the big stars in boxing for yeArs and it hasn't made hardcore fans out of most of the population yet.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
generalbulldog
Let's say Wladimir and Vitali were born in the most populous city and economic center of the US, New York City and let's pretend that Wladimir has an all American name like Warren and Vitali being Vernon and they just did what they are basically doing right now, would they get more respect and deemed as dominant and great HW champions?
Discuss.
Maybe if their names were Gerry Cooney and Tommy Morrison prior to their first defeats, before they became jokes, they might.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Lyle
I don't think it would have much effect on their popularity.
I agree. Boxing is a niche sport in America. Boxing fans in America know who the Klitschko's are, and non-fans dont. Just like boxing fans in American know who Jermain Taylor and Bernard Hopkins are, and non-fans dont.
So even if the Klitschko's were american, only boxing fans would know who they were. Wlad's style would still be respected but criticized. Vitali would still be respected. It wouldn't change anything.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
The style, attitude, and demeanor of the Klitschko's make them less likely to be massive stars here in the US. We are the country of icons of sport legends: Ali, Tyson, Louis, Jack Johnson, Rocky Marciano....those are the guys with the styles and the substance to capture the entire nation. Wlad and Vitali have too much respect to act in the manor that Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Roy Jones Jr. act, and their fighting styles don't make up for it. Americans have short attention spans and it takes constant action for the non-boxing majority to be intrigued, they need lots of bells and whistles and the Klitschko's just don't have those bells and whistles.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Lyle
I don't think it would have much effect on their popularity.
yeah, the American angle in this thread is overplayed. After all, I see they get plenty of diss from Brits as well. I hate them too, and I'm Canadian, and we all know that if Canadians started dissing boxers cause they weren't Canadian, then we'd have to turn our backs on the sport entirely.
We could talk about which nation is most likely to play up their boxers beyond their ability. That'd be fun.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
CFH
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Youngblood
Canabrit.
I decided any time this arguement comes up, that is how I'll address him. I'll accept Britadian too.
;D
Born and raised for 13 years in London, England
Lets just call him a Londoner.
http://media.olympic.ca/files/photos...pscale_q85.jpg
;)
Not that I actually give a shit.
agreed. who gives a shit He has roots in England, he has roots in Canada. He was born in England. If he wants to impress the Brits, then hell yeah he'll say that's where his heart is. I always supported him cause of his Canadian roots, That gold medal was awesome, as far as I'm concerned he was on our team then.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
....I thought Lennox was Jamaican??? ;D
Ja'makin me crazy Lennox! :wackomz4:
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Lyle
....I thought Lennox was Jamaican??? ;D
Ja'makin me crazy Lennox! :wackomz4:
yeah, his parents were Jamaican, so I guess those are the real roots.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Fenster
For sure.
Although names like Hank and Chuck would make them more popular than Warren and Vernon.
Sven Ottke would be considered an all-time great if from the States.
Well Calzaghe ducked him for a reason
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
if the klitschko were american I think they'd be promoted better. Espn would cover their fights, they'd be expose to the public a lot more in AMERICA.
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
Marketed better perhaps, promoted better, doubtful
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
if both Klits were Americans theyll be defensive line backers now in nfl or power forwards in the nba.. Boxing would be out of the picture..
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Re: If the Klitschkos were American, would they get more praise/respect?
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Originally Posted by
antimoron
if both Klits were Americans theyll be defensive line backers now in nfl or power forwards in the nba.. Boxing would be out of the picture..
That's an extremely good point.
