Why don't people like Max Kellerman?

[Kirkland Laing]

I can't get on his case about knowing older fights. If it weren't for younger guys studying up,then we would lose boxingsd rich past. Kellerman is a good historian with sometimes bad ideas. He shouldn't be blamed for studying the golden era. That'd be like criticizing car buffs for rebuilding classic cars or people reading old books or..well you see my point ?

Did you ever watch Around the Horn on ESPN when he did it? It was him chairing a debate between a bunch of sports journalists and he used to do the same know-it-all thing on baseball, football, every sport they discussed and almost every programme I saw the jounalists ate his lunch and/or exposed that he didn't know what he was talking about. He was total garbage and failed upwards into a job at HBO entirely because his family is really well-connected in the media world.

I'm not doubting he's a boxing fan or he's read a few books and watched old fights but I still think a guy in his job should have actually have lived through a few of those fights like Merchant instead of having read about them decades later. HBO hired him to appeal to a younger demographic but they should concentrate on appealing to a boxing demographic.

[Spicoli]

Did you ever watch Around the Horn on ESPN when he did it? It was him chairing a debate between a bunch of sports journalists and he used to do the same know-it-all thing on baseball, football, every sport they discussed and almost every programme I saw the jounalists ate his lunch and/or exposed that he didn't know what he was talking about. He was total garbage and failed upwards into a job at HBO entirely because his family is really well-connected in the media world.

I'm not doubting he's a boxing fan or he's read a few books and watched old fights but I still think a guy in his job should have actually have lived through a few of those fights like Merchant instead of having read about them decades later. HBO hired him to appeal to a younger demographic but they should concentrate on appealing to a boxing demographic.

I hear what your saying But Strictly speaking on boxing I do believe Kellerman & HBO are focused on a boxing demographic as you state.Alot is made of his age or lack there of but the fact remains that he is very knowledgable in the sport.He strikes me as someone that Is a fan first with a general passion for the history of the sport and who is slowly ebbing his way through trial and error into the role boxing commentator.His flaws on camera can be glaring but he knows boxing,past & present.Is Kellerman young, brash and a little goofy?Absolutly,But how and when he developed his Knowledge is frankly not immportant,It is genuine and Is Not scripted,feigned or read off of a prompter.He is uncomfortable on camera but I like that he does not worry so much about the Cosmetics of a show and Lets the history flow.
No doubt that he will never have the first hand experience of a Larry Merchant,None of us will for that matter,But that should not devalue or exclude any one or Kellerman from delving into that available History and trying to keep it In the minds of the current and future Fans alike.

[Kirkland Laing]

I hear what your saying But Strictly speaking on boxing I do believe Kellerman & HBO are focused on a boxing demographic as you state.Alot is made of his age or lack there of but the fact remains that he is very knowledgable in the sport.He strikes me as someone that Is a fan first with a general passion for the history of the sport and who is slowly ebbing his way through trial and error into the role boxing commentator.His flaws on camera can be glaring but he knows boxing,past & present.Is Kellerman young, brash and a little goofy?Absolutly,But how and when he developed his Knowledge is frankly not immportant,It is genuine and Is Not scripted,feigned or read off of a prompter.He is uncomfortable on camera but I like that he does not worry so much about the Cosmetics of a show and Lets the history flow.
No doubt that he will never have the first hand experience of a Larry Merchant,None of us will for that matter,But that should not devalue or exclude any one or Kellerman from delving into that available History and trying to keep it In the minds of the current and future Fans alike.

He sounds exactly the same talking about baseball or football, hockey or basketball.

[SweetPea]

He sounds exactly the same talking about baseball or football, hockey or basketball.

Which is why it's a good thing that HBO pays him to talk about boxing, since that's the sport he's very knowledgeable about.

You seem to just not like the guy and as a result you're trying to denigrate his ability as a boxing commentator.

[Kirkland Laing]

Which is why it's a good thing that HBO pays him to talk about boxing, since that's the sport he's very knowledgeable about.

You seem to just not like the guy and as a result you're trying to denigrate his ability as a boxing commentator.

Yep, I definitely don't like him. I want a crusty old guy doing that job, not some twentysomething guy who's read a few books and watched a bunch of videos.

[SweetPea]

Yep, I definitely don't like him. I want a crusty old guy doing that job, not some twentysomething guy who's read a few books and watched a bunch of videos.

1. Kellerman is turning 35 this year. He's not in his twenties.

2. If you're so insistent on an old guy having the job, then recommend an old guy who can serve as Merchant's heir apparent.

[donnydarkoIRL]

I'll forever associate the downfall of Juan Diaz with Kellerman.

As Juan's impending defeat became more apparent Lampley seemed to speak less and Kellerman seemed to chime in more worsening the situation each time.

[Kirkland Laing]

1. Kellerman is turning 35 this year. He's not in his twenties.

2. If you're so insistent on an old guy having the job, then recommend an old guy who can serve as Merchant's heir apparent.

It's probably just me having an old guy moment about some young whippersnapper on the TV, even though he isn't much younger than me. It just doesn't seem right.

As for who can do the job better than Kellerman I'd stay with Larry Merchant but if I had to find somebody else I'd start with crusty old trainers who've been in and around the business for decades, like Angelo Dundee and similar people. All of those guys can call a fight and make observations infinitely better than Kellerman.