When the trainer talks to the fighter, there's a connection. You don't always have to say much.
Sugar Ray LeonardRead
When I was fighting, I would look to excite the crowds with a bolo punch or something taunting. Looking back, they were legal - but not sportsmanlike. I don't recommend another boxer try them. But we looked more to make the robot fights dramatic first and realistic second.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the excitement and showmanship involved in boxing, prioritizing crowd engagement over sportsmanship.
In this introspective statement, Sugar Ray Leonard acknowledges that during his boxing career, he often employed provocative and entertaining techniques to captivate the audience, even if they were not deemed sportsmanlike. He emphasizes the importance of drama in the sport, suggesting that while winning is essential, engaging the crowd adds another layer to the experience, although he does not endorse such tactics for future boxers.
Themes
BoxingSportsmanshipCrowdDramaTechnique
In practice
Example use cases
A motivational speech for young athletes discussing the balance between showmanship and sportsmanship.
More from Sugar Ray Leonard
All quotes →Boxing's a poor man's sport. We can't afford to play golf or tennis. It is what it is. It's kept so many kids off the street. It kept me off the street.
Sugar Ray LeonardRead
Muhammad Ali was a god, an idol and an icon. He was boxing. Any kid that had the opportunity to talk to Ali, to get advice from Muhammad Ali, was privileged. He's always given me time to ask questions, although I was so in awe that I didn't ask questions.
Sugar Ray LeonardRead
Bruce Lee was an artist and, like him, I try to go beyond the fundamentals of my sport. I want the public to see a knockout in the making.
Sugar Ray LeonardRead
The Olympics meant everything to me. Going through them is like nothing else you will ever experience. For those few weeks, you are in another world. At that point, I couldn't see how there could ever be anything better.
Sugar Ray LeonardRead
To say what I would have been if I wasn't boxing, I don't know why, but I always wanted to be an x-ray technician or a substitute teacher. Those two occupations always stuck with me, maybe because my substitute teacher didn't give us homework, or because I've always had x-rays of my hands.
Sugar Ray LeonardRead
Similar quotes
I hope somebody hits .400 soon. Then people can start pestering that guy with questions about the last guy to hit .400.
Ted WilliamsRead
Maybe you're not having a thousand times more injuries, but there's an aspect to the purity of the game and the quality of the game that is played on grass that is different on turf.
Megan RapinoeRead
The technocracy of professional sport has managed to impose a soccer of lightning speed and brute strength: a soccer that negates joy, kills fantasy and outlaws daring.
Eduardo GaleanoRead
My approach to cricket has been reasonably simple: it was about giving everything to the team, it was about playing with dignity and it was about upholding the spirit of the game. I hope I have done some of that. I have failed at times, but I have never stopped trying. It is why I leave with sadness but also with pride.
Rahul DravidRead
It makes great conversation to discuss what's wrong with open-wheel racing today.
Mario AndrettiRead
When you train a massive club or little third division outfit, when you go out to play football in any situation, it is always about winning.
Pep GuardiolaRead