Boxing: Return to Glory?

Just came back from a boxing match. Although the fighters came from all over the world, I'd never heard of any of them.

My fondest memories of boxing go back to the early 80s with the likes of Sugar Ray Leonard, Larry Holmes, Thomas Hearns, Marvin Hagler, and John Mugabe. The sport seemed to be very popular until the end of the 90s. When did interest wane with boxing, and why? Do any of you think it will ever return to glory?

Outlaw and Eugene, very good insight. I agree with you.

The Philadelphia area used to be the mecca of boxing back in the day. I used to go watch Joe Frazier train his son Marvis...then I saw Marvis get annihilated by Larry Holmes, lol. Holmes, for all you novices, is (or was?) based out of Easton, PA, the home of Lafayette College. I recall that his swimming pool is in the shape of a boxing glove. As an undergrad student I used to play basketball with Bernard Hopkins, one of the sport's most flamboyant stars.

When I lived in Tampa, I found out that Ferdie Pachenko, the "Fight Doctor," grew up in Tampa in the Ybor City area (back when Tampa was the cigar capital of the US). And a friend of mine from grad school was a fight promoter in the Tampa area. One of his best fighters was Edner "Cherry Bomb" Cherry, who had a few fights televised on Showtime.

Having gone to boxing matches again, my interest in boxing is rekindled. Maybe not enough to follow the sport like I do football and basketball, but I'm anxious to see who will make boxing relevant in the U.S. again.

Joe Frazier, wow that's cool you saw him training. I don't think he ever got the recognition he deserved. I believe Frazier said that Ali had made him the bad guy in the fight in Africa. Zaire? So Frazier's talent was shadowed by Ali's publicity machine.

Whatever happened to his son? I saw some news blips about him fighting. I've been out of boxing for quite awhile now. Marvis against Larry Holmes? Ouch I'd say Marvis would of been too young against Larry.

Easton, maybe that was it. I had finished a summer job in the Philly area and was driving home. So what was basketball with Bernard Hopkins like? For some reason I remember the name (Hopkins) but not much else about him. Larry Holmes swimming pool shaped like a boxing glove? Sweet.

I was more of an Ali fan. Whatever happened to your buddy who was a fight promoter? Does he still do it? Did he like it? I remembering going to a few amatuer boxing matches. Very different than just watching it on TV. Check out the movie "Fat City." It's an old one about boxers.

I thought the actor portraying Sugar Ray Robinson in the Jake Lamotta film "Raging Bull" (DeNiro) was fantastic. Allegedy Ali had studied Sugar Ray Robinson and I think Jack Johnson. It's been awhile so I might be wrong.

Who do you think would of won in a Mike Tyson vs. George Foreman fight? Both at their peaks.

Just came back from a boxing match. Although the fighters came from all over the world, I'd never heard of any of them.

My fondest memories of boxing go back to the early 80s with the likes of Sugar Ray Leonard, Larry Holmes, Thomas Hearns, Marvin Hagler, and John Mugabe. The sport seemed to be very popular until the end of the 90s. When did interest wane with boxing, and why? Do any of you think it will ever return to glory?