Underdog Boxing: Farewell Smokin’ Joe

It’s always sad to see legends go. Smokin’ Joe Frazier fought his best fights well before I was born but I’ve seen a bunch of his fights and I’ve read a lot of articles about him. Frazier was boxing’s poster boy for the working class. He was a no nonsense kind of fighter who’ll keep on fighting until he can’t do it anymore. The boxing world has been unfair to Frazier because he has been and always will be regarded as the “gorilla" who lost twice to Muhammad Ali. I am not going to lie. When I watch their fights, I side with Ali. He was flashy in the ring. He moved gracefully, eluded punches with ease, and struck his opponents with punches they don’t even see coming. Frazier, on the other hand, did not do anything particularly well, of course except his patented left hook. There are a lot of fighters faster than him (Ali) and those who punch harder than him (George Foreman). In essence, Frazier has no obvious skill set to which people can relate to. But come think of it, this is exactly why Frazier was an amazing fighter. He was never the fastest and never the strongest but he was able to reach the top of the boxing world, thanks to his unbelievable perseverance. He was mentally built to overachieve, to strike down walls and barrel his way forward even if the whole world says he will not get far. It is this spirit that led him to win a gold medal in the 1964 Olympics even if he only made it to the US National team as an alternate. The same spirit that helped him defeat Ali back in 1971 in one of the greatest matches in boxing history. The same spirit that made him want to continue fighting Ali in Thrilla in Manila even if his left eye was swollen shut. Smokin’ Joe fought through life like how he fought in boxing matches. He bobbed and weaved to cut the distance between him and his opponent and he’d eat a steady stream of leather along the way but when he gets close enough, he unleashes his patented left hook that more often than not hurt his opponents badly. In real life, Frazier did the same thing. He bobbed and weaved to get closer to us. He dealt with a lot of negativity on the way, a lot of it from Ali, but he took all those blows because he wanted us to realize who he really was. He wanted to show us what kind of a man he really was and that he deserved our respect too. Boxing lost another legend and this one will cut deep. By his death I hope that the younger generation of fighters realize that boxing is not just a sport but a showcase of the human spirit. So farewell Smokin’ Joe. We may not have always cheered for you but we’ve always seen ourselves in you. - OMG, GMA News