Arrogant. Confident. Cocky. Brave. Defiant. by Kerry Duffy Mar 10th 2006

All adjectives, which can, in one way or another, be attributed to the persona of a boxer. These words describe how a boxer may be perceived during an important part of a fighter's preparation. The build up. To walk into the ring with even the smallest element of doubt would surely be suicidal, and so the great tradition of talking down the opposition whilst elevating your status is as relevant today as it ever was. Of course, some are more eloquent than others in their choice of rhetoric. Some assume the quietly confident stance of a man who knows, but doesn't feel the need to scream and shout, whilst others stick out their chin and practically beat their chest. Whatever the choice of rabble rousing, you can be sure of one thing. Each individual believes he will be victorious, and that's the way it should be. Arrogant, adj: Having an exaggerated sense of one's own importance or abilities. Confidence, n: A feeling of self-assurance arising from an appreciation of one's own abilities. There is a fine line between arrogance and confidence but the above two definitions give a clear distinction to the difference between these character traits, with the key word I think being ‘exaggerated'. It suggests a step away from reality, and in the case of men making their living from trading blows within the confines of a ring, this could be dangerous territory indeed. Confidence must surely be tempered with a small amount of humility, or am I just being very naïve? Should this perceived arrogance not be balanced with reality and a respect for the opposition and the threat that they may or may not pose? I bring to point the whole confidence/arrogance dichotomy because I feel there is sometimes a lesson lost when someone believes in himself so much that they become lazy almost to the point of denial about their performance. Just because a certain goal has been achieved you shouldn't rest on your laurels. Winners rarely do, but I don't think they should ever stop learning and boxers should never drop their game for an opponent they deem insignificant, because one day they may have their blinkers on and fail to see the sucker punch coming. Alternatively, if things do get a bit close for comfort then that should be a learning curve, a lesson in humility. Mistakes can be rectified if you choose to accept you have made them and so instead of trying to maintain a dignified stance and save face post fight with incoherent ramblings about a fight that was different to what everyone else saw, I think you should be humble, admit a lack of form and maybe a lack of judgement and move on. But what do I know about what it's like to step in the ring? I would never want to be derogatory about the sportsmen who I think work so hard for this sport but I just feel a champion should maintain that mantle and behave like one whoever the opponent may be. Personally, after watching a highly charged fight and the final bell goes, I think it's great to see the two opponents embrace each other and exchange compliments and gratitude, especially after the prerequisite slanging match that may have occurred before the fight. For all their bravado and ‘big I am' speeches, the majority of boxers will delightfully offer their respect to their opponent after the fight and I love that. I am such a woman! Over the years some of our most popular fighters have displayed a hint of arrogance, yet the public laps it up. Mainly I suppose because they are just waiting for them to fall through the ropes and be brought down to earth with a bump. It's almost like a pantomime, the villain of the piece posturing and strutting around the ring, but then big time boxing does have a touch of showbiz about it. Confidence manifests in different ways, of course, and what works for one man might be not be reasonable for another. It's when confidence exceeds decent limits that it can cease to be beneficial. To be honest though, I think the psychology of boxers is so fascinating that I hope they carry on doing whatever they need to do to be successful at their sport and keep us all entertained, whether that may present pitfalls or peaks.

Go back Comment on this article | Send to a friend | Print

There are no comments. Click here to be the first who comment on this article.