RING WAR!
By Rick Folstad
InsideBoxing.com Columnist
INSIDE BOXING (May 21, 2002) - A prize fight? Naw, this was a resurrection, a little fistic CPR administered to a dying sport that was miraculously brought back from the dead.
The next time you wonder what all the fuss is about - why some of us think this sport is so special - remember Mickey Ward and Arturo Gatti. Remember how they single-handedly brought the fight game back to life, grabbed it by the shirt collar and jerked it back to its feet.
Suddenly, boxing is off life support and looking for a ride back to town. At least for now.
Their fight Saturday night was part car wreck, part barroom brawl, part Beauty and the Beast, though Beauty only made a cameo appearance.
You may go the rest of your life and never see another fight as good as that one. All the right ingredients were there - heart, styles, heart, guts and some more of that rare heart stuff. Fortunately, someone had the good sense to toss all the parts together and stir the pot.
In case you missed it, Ward was the official winner by a majority decision, though they ought to shoot any fool who calls Gatti a loser. The best decision would have been to not make one. They should have just told both fighters to take a break for a few weeks and come back sometime in the middle of July. Do it again, start from where they left off. By then, the fight game would probably be back in intensive care, in need of another transfusion. Doctors Gatti and Ward.
It took both fighters about 10 seconds to agree to a rematch, though you can’t hold them responsible for what they might have said in the aftermath of a brawl. It’s like asking your buddy if you can borrow $10,000 while he watches his house burn down.
When the fight was finally over, both fighters were taken to the hospital as a precaution. It was a smart move. We can’t afford to lose either one of these guys.
They put on a ring war and as much fun as wars are to watch, they come with a price. As a fighter, you don’t walk away from a war without leaving something behind. You can’t touch it or see it, but you know it’s gone and you’ll never be the same again.
For Ward and Gatti, it was a fight they’ll long be remembered for. And a rematch would be sweet, though you can’t expect it to live up to Saturday night’s standards.
Sadly, guys like Gatti and Ward don’t need the fight game nearly as much as the fight game needs them.