A Prize Fighter
Fist fight… Brawl… Scrap… These words in any language, any social strata, and any corner of the world will bring around, about the same reaction… an eager crowd… Schoolyards, a parking lot, a cafeteria, a rainy street, a quiet restaurant… Human beings tend to have a tolerance and thrill in some soft violence…
As long as the scene does not cross a certain line in the amount of violence involved… If you take care of a few variables that can turn a fist fight very dangerous and dirty, namely… the mutual participation of both parties and a few sets of rules and regulations… Voila!! We now have ourselves a legit sport…
For fame, fortune, wealth, glory, country and unquestionably, a small thrill in exacting some controlled violence, we now have a prize fighter… Martial artists willing to risk so much in an endeavor for greatness… Maybe a journey more thrilling… Maybe it’s all you know, all you can…
Stadiums are filled, tickets are sold, merchandise ordered in bulk, television rights, cameras, interviews, newspaper clippings, selfies with celebrities… The dream of every young professional fighter… The reason to get those gloves on, let the sweat pour and the blood flow…
We all have an insatiable desire to compete in life… It’s in our DNA, it’s primal… Watching two human beings walk out and compete with their hands and feet and elbows and knees for a prize, brings out the schoolboy/or girl in us…
We throw our punches with our athletes, celebrate the victories and grieve in defeat… We shed a tear for the gallant and bow in awe to the talented… In sport, we share victories and defeats with our very vulnerable souls, letting the wins and losses feed or deplete us… And when the competition involves not teams but two single separate souls, locked in battle, the heart beats even harder for the favourite and breaks, ever so slightly more, should they fall to the canvas… The sheer guts, courage and belief of a fighter who stands unarmed, isolated in front of thousands, maybe millions and says ‘have at me, we sort this out the old way’…
Risking embarrassment, pain, damage and hanging on to every little string of human will to muster the strength to land one more shot… For those who enter a ring or a cage or mats in a contest of skill, will, talent, strength, and endurance… We thank you, we appreciate you… We salute you…
From The Fight Hub’s point of view…..