By Elliot Worsell
WE are all susceptible to it from time to time; just say those things. Say things that at the time feel right, wise, or the right thing to say, until, later, it is reframed and suddenly seems wrong, out of place; the result of cliché rather than considered thought.
Perhaps, for Shawn Porter, this realization came last week, when working for ProBox TV, the former welterweight champion suggested Japan's Naoya Inoue had to prove something to him – Shawn Porter – and other Americans by fighting (again) in America. This view, as expected and perhaps hoped, has caused a stir online, with many suggesting that Inoue's justification for not playing in the US can be found in the reality of the next fight His super bantamweight title defense against Luis Nery on May 6 will take place. sold out tickets for Japan's famous Tokyo Dome stadium, capacity: 55,000.
“Everybody is looking for the next star,” Porter said when asked about Inoue, 26-0 (23). “Everyone is talking about how much money you can make and how many fans you have. We don't really know what Inoue's goal is. Was his goal the boxing star? If his goal is to become a boxing star then you have to come to the United States. You have to cross those waters and take out some Americans to get other Americans to pay attention to who you are and what you're doing. There are a lot of people in the boxing world who respect Inoue and what he's done but if you're someone like me, I would say, 'Get him out of his own backyard; make him a little uncomfortable and see how he handles it.'”
Inoue stops Stephen Fulton (Getty Images)
On the surface, what Porter said is not excessive, nor is he wrong in wanting to see Inoue more on American soil (Inoue has fought there three times so far) and for other Americans to become proud. inspired by the super-king of the bantamweight division as Porter declared. However, it seems that the problem for Porter stems from the fact that the saying “Fighter A has to come to America to be truly successful” has over time become a cliché and become something that boxing fans he, as well as experts and former fighters, will say it just because it sounds right or someone said something similar about some other fighter years ago.
Of course, it's true that there was a time when America truly was the Promised Land for professional fighters; home of heavyweights and the dominant nation in most legendary pound-for-pound lists. However, that era, like those heavyweights, is no more and now the landscape has changed, to the point where fighters like Inoue, along with many fighters from the UK (interestingly, heavyweights), in recent times prefer to stay at home and fill stadiums instead of traveling to America.
That was certainly a trend a few years ago, when big stadium games were a regular occurrence in England, and it will probably continue to do so as America struggles to find opponents. heavyweight to return the belt – and the sport – to their turf. . Even with the sudden and growing influence of Saudi Arabia, there is still a demand for fighters to compete in stadium fights back home, whether they are British and fighting in the UK or like Inoue, who was Japanese and fought in Japan.
Naoya Inoue with some of his belts
Honestly, for Inoue, the idea of competing on home soil while competing in lower weight classes is nothing new. In fact, just as the heavyweight division has long been synonymous with America, the same can be said for Asia and smaller men; because it is there, in Asia, that many of the world's best players were born and fought for most of their careers. Indeed, the prospect of “making it in America,” as if these were not boxers but pop stars groomed by Simon Cowell, is always secondary in the minds of boxers. smaller officer. Outside of the likes of Naseem Hamed and Manny Pacquiao, it's hard to think of too many people who have explored this as an option and taken full advantage of it. After all, it's hard to get the right crossover matches – exciting matches; which attract more than just die-hard fans – in the lower weight classes. Typically, these divisions are known more for their remote fights than their one-shot dramas, which is hardly ideal for sports bars and casinos that are primarily populated by people. normal fan. Furthermore, they tend to feature fighters with names that are difficult to spell or pronounce and who have no connection to the United States, making it difficult for most Americans to think of them as one of their own. Surname.
Of course, Pacquiao is an exception, and Hamed, while not necessarily beloved, is charismatic and divisive enough to at least keep people interested. Don't forget, both have unusual, fight-ending strength, of the sort more suited to middleweights than men weighing no more than nine stone.
Likewise Inoue is blessed. However, there are also differences. First, he is not an English speaker like Hamed, nor, at 31, is he a young fighter with the time and room to develop into an international star. Instead, “The Monster” is just a star in the eyes of purists, which is fine, and draws huge crowds in his hometown because there, in his hometown his hometown, he found a greater concentration of both countrymen and purists; people who understand not only the talent of Naoya Inoue but also, having watched many of them over the years, the talent of fighters whose combined weight is equal to the torso of an American heavyweight.
