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chris byrd: clipped wings
www.doghouseboxing.com
By Jason Petock (April 23, 2006)
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Photo © HBO
Many individuals out there would have you believe that the career of Chris Byrd is no more. These very same people are the same ones who balked at his technical proficiency in the ring and his mastery of the pugilistic arts a few years back. Granted, Byrd never possessed the kind of true Heavyweight power, the kind of sheer power and force that is typically needed these days to defeat some of the “Super” Heavyweights out there in the division and he didn’t back then either. Yet what he did possess was supreme boxing ability. No one could touch Chris Byrd skill wise and few wanted to attempt it. He was a masterful showman in the ring regardless of whether you liked his style or not. He could give you angles and outbox you for an entire fight, scoring at will and making you miss and sending you home embarrassed and packing. His jab was often remarked upon as flicking, light and pitty pat. But what he lacked in power he made up ten fold in terms of absolute talent. Chris Byrd was born to fight, maybe just not as a Heavyweight.
Now this isn’t to take anything away from Byrd. That’s not the intention here. I’m not saying that he hasn’t been successful in the Heavyweight division over the years. He won the USBA Heavyweight Title back in 1995 with a TKO win in the 6th round of a 12 rounder against Mike Rouse. Then there was the time he beat Phil Jackson to capture the WBU International Heavyweight Title. He also took the WBO Heavyweight Title from the brother of the man he just can’t seem to decipher, Wladimir Klitschko. While these accomplishments may pale in the eyes of most astute critics and so-called “fans” of the sport, let’s take into consideration that when a Champion won a belt in the old days he was just that, a Champion. No one tossed around the idea that he was merely a “belt holder”, or not the “legitimate Champion”. Now before you toss your arguments at me full force, yes there are a lot more Champions than there were back in the day and we do need to sort things out and clean up our sport. But as long as there are belts out there and the word “Champion” attached to them then every Championship should be legitimized. And if you don’t think so then you need to help clean up the sport and do something about it besides throwing negativity and fuel to the fire that is burning up our beloved sport.
The media has been slowly and calculatingly clipping away at Chris Byrd’s wings for some time now. At first it was the obvious things. His style in the ring is boring. His mastery lacks explosive power and drama. He merely wins on points and his jab is too slappy. Usually these criticisms were hurled by fans (which I find ironic because when you read most message boards these same “fans” are throwing dirt on boxing at an alarming rate, what the hell has happened?) of boxing, the media and everyone and anyone who had a stake in boxing or thought their opinions mattered most. Self admittingly, I could do without his jab when I used to watch him fight, but as I watched Byrd fight more and more I began to appreciate not only his style but how well he thought in the ring and really worked his angles and took you to school on a consistent basis. Where did that Chris Byrd go?
To me it seems like the man can’t win for trying. When he was a masterful boxer and scored easily in the ring everyone bagged on his style yet no one wanted to fight him. Then he adapted his style to try and conform to a slower and more powerful division only to be further shot down. His lack of opponents and basic ridicule from the general public really didn’t help things during his career either. Not to mention the fact that he was a legit Champion with the IBF Heavyweight Title in his possession, yet when he would be on television with sportscasters or media types they would regularly dismiss his title and position as a Heavyweight Champion, without fail demeaning his accomplishment and status. Now that Wladimir Klitschko has beaten him and taken his IBF Title, now the title holds relevancy and is no longer a mere belt but another Championship notch of a Heavyweight Champion on his way to collecting more trinkets that only hold value when those in control deem them to.
Beauty is often in the eye of the beholder, and to be honest it was a beautiful thing to watch Chris Byrd take his much larger and stronger opponents to school when class was in session. It’s a shame that all the commentators and people who are so intent on kicking a man when he’s down couldn’t take that very same energy and instead of throwing salt on a fighter’s game, help lift him up and remember him for what he was good at and what he did contribute in the ring. As I have said a million times before, we are what is ruining boxing. All the feces that we shovel on top of the sport of boxing is covering what truly matters and that is the fighters. They are who compel us and give us their hearts when they fight on the world stage. And they are the ones who fight the battles that we wish we could in out daily lives. Chris Byrd is one of those fighters. He is a God fearing man who wears his heart on his sleeve, is a true gentleman and deserves all the credit in the world just for being what he is, a boxer. Call me simple but that’s enough for me anyday
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Originally Posted by P.G.H Angel Eyes
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