Ruan Visser:Fight cancelled - hands too big.

[kaiserbill]

Rookie heavyweight Ruann Visser from South Africa made his debut last month, scoring a 1st round TKO.

He was due to fight his 2nd fight a couple of days ago in Fort Worth Texas, but the fight was cancelled due to Vissers hands not being able to fit into the gloves on the night.

Granted, he's massive, but has anybody ever heard of this kind of thing happening before?
Surely these things should be looked at pre-fight by the organisers?

[kaiserbill]

Just googled a bit on it, and prefight weighin was Visser at 286, and Lindsey at 204.

Bit of a weight difference then....

[The Insider]

There was a bit of trouble getting Martin Rogan a pair of gloves that fit his hands before the Skelton fight. Rogans hands are like shovels.

[kaiserbill]

There was a bit of trouble getting Martin Rogan a pair of gloves that fit his hands before the Skelton fight. Rogans hands are like shovels.

Never knew that.

Still, Rogan is a "normal" sized heavyweight, so you can sorta excuse the organisers for assuming his hands fell within the usual range.
And Martins fight did go ahead.

This guy is 6 foot 9, weighs almost 300 pounds, and has an 87 inch reach, which is quite a bit longer than other big heavies such as Price, Fury, Wilder, and the Klitschkos.

Both fighters did all that training, weighed in, got prepped, and it seems the bout was cancelled on the night.

You'd think with an outsized heavy like that, they'd check first?
Actually, now that you think about it, his camp must also shoulder some of the blame.
They do work with him day in, day out after all.

It's not something you hear about often. Or at all, in fact.

[ReggieDiggs]

This mfer looks like Saul Alvarez on HGH. I'm going with this is a marketing scheme to get attention. Kid just had a fight in the same area last month, they found gloves then why not this time? Did his hands grow from the last fight or did they forget he had big ass hands?

Randomly the kid only had 16 amateur fights so I have serious doubts he can fight yet he's just so f#cking big he'll be capable of overwhelming guys for as long as they want til they can cashout.

[JCS]

This mfer looks like Saul Alvarez on HGH. I'm going with this is a marketing scheme to get attention. Kid just had a fight in the same area last month, they found gloves then why not this time? Did his hands grow from the last fight or did they forget he had big ass hands?

Randomly the kid only had 16 amateur fights so I have serious doubts he can fight yet he's just so f#cking big he'll be capable of overwhelming guys for as long as they want til they can cashout.

Holy F.

[Badhusker]

This is all bullshit. Does the guy doesn't spar with boxing gloves? What a stupid fornicating thread. We are not that bored that we have to debate made up shit like this.

[tiny_acres]

This guy looks like a true giant.Unreal size.

[Badhusker]

Unreal size, yes, but can anyone tell me how he spars (practices)? This is so fornicating stupid.

[ReggieDiggs]

Here's his pro debut. His jab looks retarded. He needs to work on that.

[crusader]

That's one giant ginger.

[Lancenix]

This mfer looks like Saul Alvarez on HGH. I'm going with this is a marketing scheme to get attention. Kid just had a fight in the same area last month, they found gloves then why not this time? Did his hands grow from the last fight or did they forget he had big ass hands?

Randomly the kid only had 16 amateur fights so I have serious doubts he can fight yet he's just so f#cking big he'll be capable of overwhelming guys for as long as they want til they can cashout.

Looks like Saul on HGH. That really mad me laugh!!

[kaiserbill]

Unreal size, yes, but can anyone tell me how he spars (practices)? This is so effing stupid.

That's the second time you've said it.

When he spars, his camp provides the gloves. These gloves can be used over and over again.

When he boxes, the organisers/state body provides the gloves, for rather obvious reasons involving many things too onerous to get into. These gloves are new for every bout.

I see absolutely no benefit in PR to mess up this fight.
There was no PR, at least not now, and I simply noticed this situation as a throwaway explanation buried in a fight undercard report.


As said in the thread, one would have thought that his camp would have notified the organisers of any special requirements.
Maybe they did and the message was lost?
Wouldn't be the first time things like this happened I'm sure, going on my experience in the workplace.


He does indeed look raw.
That reach.... in the clip, at the refs instructions, his hands are at the same level as his opponents whilst his shoulders are far higher.
If that 87 inch reach measurement is true, has there been others with longer? As mentioned, that reach is quite a bit longer than other really tall heavyweights like Fury, Wilder, the Klitschkos, Price, ...etc. Longer than Valuevs.
I think Primo Carnera was another with a truly long wingspan, at 85 inches. Is that (Carnera and Valuev) still the longest of the (sort of) heavyweight champions?

[crusader]

If that 87 inch reach measurement is true, has there been others with longer?

BoxRec lists Julius Long's reach as 90, but that's the only example of a longer reach that quickly came to my head. I searched and discovered a list of the tallest boxers on another forum, and it mentioned Ewart Potgieter, whom BoxRec lists at 7'2" with a 94 inch reach. Seven-footer Marcellus Brown, among the more prolific giants with losses to Trevor Berbick, Tommy Morrison, Lamon Brewster, Derrick Jefferson, Charles Shufford and other recognizable names is listed as having an 86 inch reach, as are Audley Harrison and Michael Grant. One inch down, 6'10" Mike White has an 85 inch reach per BoxRec, as do Fury and Valuev.

[ponch]

This is all bullshit. Does the guy doesn't spar with boxing gloves? What a stupid effing thread. We are not that bored that we have to debate made up poo like this.

They don't use their own gloves for the actual fight, right? Doesn't sound far fetched to me that between the fight organisers and their own team they could f*** this up.

[kaiserbill]

If that 87 inch reach measurement is true, has there been others with longer?

BoxRec lists Julius Long's reach as 90, but that's the only example of a longer reach that quickly came to my head. I searched and discovered a list of the tallest boxers on another forum, and it mentioned Ewart Potgieter, whom BoxRec lists at 7'2" with a 94 inch reach. Seven-footer Marcellus Brown, among the more prolific giants with losses to Trevor Berbick, Tommy Morrison, Lamon Brewster, Derrick Jefferson, Charles Shufford and other recognizable names is listed as having an 86 inch reach, as are Audley Harrison and Michael Grant. One inch down, 6'10" Mike White has an 85 inch reach per BoxRec, as do Fury and Valuev.

Interesting info, thanks Crusader.

I looked up Ewart Potgieter in my library, and Chris Greyvensteins The Fighters from 1981 states, interestingly considering the topic:

"His hands in fact were so big that regulation-sized gloves had to be discarded for custom made ones when he fought."

So it appears hand/glove size issues have happened before.

EDIT: A pic of Ewart Potgieter from the book.
Second pic is from the net, standing with Freddie Mills.
No way those hands would go into a normal glove.

[jamesmcdonnell]

This is all bullshit. Does the guy doesn't spar with boxing gloves? What a stupid effing thread. We are not that bored that we have to debate made up poo like this.

They don't use their own gloves for the actual fight, right? Doesn't sound far fetched to me that between the fight organisers and their own team they could f*** this up.

No they don't use their own, they are provided for the bout as stated earlier. The local governing body would handle it.

However, you would imagine that his camp would be aware that he had problems getting gloves that fit and mentioned something?!

[Shirow]

I used to wonder how Valuev fit his hands into gloves because for his size his gloved hands always looked comparitively small.



But it seems that they actually are...


There aren't any signs that the ginger giant can box but his clinching skills are quite well developed watching that clip.

[kaiserbill]

There aren't any signs that the ginger giant can box but he's clinching skills are quite well developed watching that clip.

He's really a young novice.

I was reading an article that states he was a decent age grade rugby player and golfer, but decided to make boxing his career sometime in 2011 instead of rugby.
He had 26 amateur fights and turned pro last month.

So he's really only starting.

Still, it'll have to be a steep learning curve if he wants to go places.
Needs to use his advantages correctly.
At least, from the time period of his very brief amateur career and his first fight and now his 2nd fight that was cancelled, it appears he is intending to be busy.
The article stated that his handlers realise this, and are looking at bringing him along and see where he is in 3 years.

He's certainly raw at the moment. I guess we'll see what transpires.

[ReggieDiggs]

he's clinching skills are quite well developed watching that clip.

Lol, but yea for a guy with a handful of amateur fights he clinches like a 40 fight professional.

[palooka]

This mfer looks like Saul Alvarez on HGH. I'm going with this is a marketing scheme to get attention. Kid just had a fight in the same area last month, they found gloves then why not this time? Did his hands grow from the last fight or did they forget he had big ass hands?

Randomly the kid only had 16 amateur fights so I have serious doubts he can fight yet he's just so f#cking big he'll be capable of overwhelming guys for as long as they want til they can cashout.

Holy F.

Who won?

[Sklar]

I would like to have a similar issue with condoms.

[IRLangmaid25]

I would like to have a similar issue with condoms.

If I had a cup of tea I would spat it out all over my laptop reading that post.

[crusader]

Yes, he's painfully unskilled. Watching the video below is like watching someone being taught to throw punches on their first day in the gym.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KU6HKJh8ULE

[kaiserbill]

He scored his 2nd victory last night with another 1st round KO.