is it wrong to root for fighters of your race?

[Guelwaar]

So, when i was a kid, i liked fighters of all different races. never made a difference to me if a guy was puerto rican or black or white or mexican or filipino or japanese or any combination thereof. If he was good and exciting, i was a fan.

But as a teen, i started to notice how boxing fans and commentators really seemed to be divided by race. These days, it's like every fight is overshadowed by race and racism. this was most obvious in ward-kovalev, lomachenko- rigo, floyd-pacquiao/mcgregor, and pretty much every other fmj fight. but, really, it's been going on since jack johnson-jim jeffries and even before that. the holmes-cooney build up was driven by nothing but race and racism...I have a deeper appreciation for fans who have the ability to look past race and root for a fighter because they see something special in him AS A FIGHTER...that takes a special type of human being which is very rare to find.

so, i'm at the point where i don't expect black fans will ever support mexican or white fighters and i don't expect white fans will support black or latinos and i expect mexicans will support their own above anybody else. but the question is: is that so wrong?

when we watch the olympics or even the world cup of soccer, spectators are supporting competitors from their own country...not anybody else's. it's even viewed as a completely normal thing. so, if its normal to support someone from your country, how much more normal is it to support someone of your own race which is even stronger bond that nationality? to me, it's NORMAL for blacks to support blacks, whites to support whites and latinos and asians to support their own....so, i have no problem with fans who root for a fighter ONLY because he's a certain race...as a fallible human myself, i know that's how most of us are.

What i have a problem with is, when certain fans seek to demean fighters of another race by equivocating a mediocre guy from their race with a great fighter from that other race...yeah, i know you're pro your people and shit, but let's keep some sense of perspective here....no, the klitchskos were not great fighters on the level of ali, lennox, tyson, or joe louis nor were they even great heavyweights...and no, beating willie monroe is not the same as beating the great joe louis or marvelous marvin hagler..and no, ggg is not an untalented bum...

one of the good things about the internet is that it allows for everybody to have an equal voice these days. In the past, we were at the mercy of the editorial staff of Ring Magazine and KO or Boxing illustrated or whatever...and a lotta those guys were racist a-holes...but they set the tone for how many fans viewed certain fighters, even if a substantial portion of the fanbase saw it differently. A lotta people these days are still uncomfortable with the dissent and criticism they hear from fans whose point of view has finally gained the light of day as opposed to being ignored and excluded from the discussion as in the past.

what i'm saying is, if you want to throw your support behind a guy because he's from your race, IMHO, you should have at it, hoss...america was born of racial division....but don't act all surprised and like you're being persecuted when fans of other races challenge your notion of being the "good guys" and root for their idol to beat down your champion who, to them, represents the evil and corruption of your entire race...in other words, don't take the ass-whippin all personal and sh*t...and yes, fighters of certain races will dominate at certain weight classes. that's how boxing has always been, so get used to it.

[forcefraser]

Yeah mate, last time I was speaking to Anthony Joshua he told me that 98% of his fans were black and that the majority of the UK wanted him to lose against Klitschko, due to Wlad being white.

Apparently they wanted him to beat Takam as he was darker skinned than Joshua.

Ricky Hatton said that not ONE black bloke travelled to Vegas for his fight against Mayweather.

I guess it's true, the whole world (ie: including that place with almost 7 billion people that actually does exist outside of the U.S) are all like Bernard Hopkins

[Gnome]

Yeah mate, last time I was speaking to Anthony Joshua he told me that 98% of his fans were black and that the majority of the UK wanted him to lose against Klitschko, due to Wlad being white.

Apparently they wanted him to beat Takam as he was darker skinned than Joshua.

Ricky Hatton said that not ONE black bloke travelled to Vegas for his fight against Mayweather.

I guess it's true, the whole world (ie: including that place with almost 7 billion people that actually does exist outside of the U.S) are all like Bernard Hopkins

Probably more of an American thing. The OP did give a couple of examples.

[jamamb]

i mean if im a black guy and cheer for black fighters (wherever there from), im prob being more inclusive number wise than if im a brit cheering for brits or an aussie cheering for aussies or a japanese cheering for japanese etc

[jamesmcdonnell]

One of the appeals of boxing for me, has always been that you don't have to be partisan, you don't have to root for 'your' guy in there.

Many of my favourite fighters were American, or black, or hispanic, or Russian, from anywhere really, I've always followed the fighters I enjoyed watching fight, simple as that.

Supporting along racial lines, for me, is pretty much racist, why would you support someone only based on their colour?

[jamamb]

is being partial to same race fighters any worse than same nation fighters

like over in the brit section we can say we cheer first for british fighters and its no bother, 'get in there!' so whats so bad about race

[gilgamesh]

I don't know if I'd say it's wrong necessarily, but it's not my style. I tend to favor fighters who's style is exciting or who I just take a liking to for whatever reason.

I've definitely liked my share of Black fighters so the OP's assumption that a White fight fan would never support a Black or Latino fighter is pretty ridiculous.

The first PPV I ever bought was Barrera vs Morales 2. Headlined by 2 Latino fighters, and frankly, those guys could've been Purple for all I care. If they fight like that I wanna see it.

[Enlightened-One]

is it wrong to root for fighters of your race?

We're always taught that skin colour doesn't matter, but in the western world, if a white man cheers exclusively for Caucasians. then they're perceived as racists.

And for the same geographical area, one would normally expect societal moral standards to be applied consistently for people of all skin complexions, but unfortunately they aren't, because there are a different set of rules for people from historically oppressed ethnicities and I'm totally fine with the existence of that double-standard, even though it's something I don't really agree with.

Personally-speaking, I'm against positive and negative discrimination based purely on skin colour, because the same people that are likely to support those that possess the same skin complexion as themselves are also likely to subconsciously (or otherwise) be against others possessing different skin tones, due to the fact that both mind-sets requires the same ignorant thought processes or logic.

Simply put: it's blatantly wrong for anyone to be prejudiced for or against a set of people based solely on their skin colour and people that think otherwise must be considered as deeply abhorrent racists, regardless as to whether or not they choose to refrain from articulating any sort of negativity towards those possessing a different skin complexion to themselves.

[greg]

..we all have different backgrounds, etc..which means that I wouldn't expect everyone agrees with me nor do I consider it to be my sacred duty to agree with an opposing opinion just because it is "politically correct"..I'll keep it short:

-no problem if someone supports his country or his race as long as it being NOT THE ONLY factor and in fact is one of many other factors in the equation..

[Thomastearns]

Of course its not wrong to support boxers of your own race, or those from your own country, you can support whoever you like. People tend to support those they can easily identify with.

The problems begin if you allow your prejudice to blind you to the otherwise obvious truth. We regularly see people saying things like the Klitschko's were rubbish, GGG is vastly overrated etc. In fact we see all manner of opinions expressed on this forum, that's what Its all about. If we want reasoned dialogue its helpful if you can explain why you hold the views that you do. If you just want to rant, that's fine too, but you won't convince anyone else though.

Then there's the problem of revisionism, where one fight changes everything that was previously said about a fighter. We've seen great recent examples of this with BJS, Chocolatito and Rigondeaux.

Everyone has prejudices and unsupportable opinions, and everyone relies upon stereotypes sometimes. To not do so wouldn't be human. However it possible for anyone other than the most hardened bigots to cultivate a sense of justice and tolerance. When your fighter loses, lets face it, sometimes it has to be because the other fighter was better on that day, doesn't it? It can't always be referees, judges, cheating etc.

My prejudice is for those boxers who provide action in their fights by coming forwards. Hearns, Hagler, Duran, Tyson, Pacquiao, Joshua, Wilder, GGG, Kovalev etc etc. It doesn't mean I can't appreciate skill, Ali and Leonard were at times, sublime. Never been a great fan of counter punchers.

I guess it comes down to recognising and coming to terms with your prejudices. Its also worth remembering that prejudices often come from pain.

[dagilechia]

it's natural, we can't change that - most of people support other people that have something in common with them, in individual sports usually it's nationality or skin colour

[Badhusker]

I think it is more common on this board at least for people to root against fighters that are not, especially if they are loud-mouths.

I admit bias towards boxers from the country I am from (U.S.). I don't even think about what race they happen to be.

[Stuarty]

Yeah mate, last time I was speaking to Anthony Joshua he told me that 98% of his fans were black and that the majority of the UK wanted him to lose against Klitschko, due to Wlad being white.

Apparently they wanted him to beat Takam as he was darker skinned than Joshua.

Ricky Hatton said that not ONE black bloke travelled to Vegas for his fight against Mayweather.

I guess it's true, the whole world (ie: including that place with almost 7 billion people that actually does exist outside of the U.S) are all like Bernard Hopkins

[Stuarty]

I don't give a fukk about a boxers (or anyone else for that matter) race, religion etc... I do tend to back fighters from my own country when they're facing someone from overseas but I'm a fan of a lot of guys from outside the UK as well as are most fans I'd imagine.

[SenorPipino]

It's fine. It's normal.

No one should feel a need to apologise.

People always support who or what they identify with, whether it's because of country, religion or race.

Historically, boxing has always been a sport that thrives on ethnic rivalries---Mexicans vs Puerto Ricans, Irish vs Italians, American vs Japanese, Jews vs Everone else.

It's what attracts fans to the sport.

Take away the racial angle or any related hint of prejudicial chauvinism, and boxing loses much of its luster.

I'm not convinced, as some here seem to be, that certain fighters are criticized strictly because of their race or country of origin.

Some are criticized simply because of what they show---or don't show---in the ring. Race be damned.

Don't be so insecure as to believe that every time someone takes an opinionated swipe at one of your favorites, it has to be racially or ethnically motivated.

That's a lame cop-out.

[wesshaw1985]

no...

[boxing_rocks]

Leaning towards fighters of your race and/or country is natural, but there are extremes we all know about including in this forum.

[Tony1244]

it's natural, we can't change that - most of people support other people that have something in common with them, in individual sports usually it's nationality or skin colour

I'm white but sometimes I have more in common with a black than a white. I've seen Frank Bruno and Lennox Lewis interviewed and I certainly think and talk a lot more like they do than say Pavlick.

[dagilechia]

it's natural, we can't change that - most of people support other people that have something in common with them, in individual sports usually it's nationality or skin colour

I'm white but sometimes I have more in common with a black than a white. I've seen Frank Bruno and Lennox Lewis interviewed and I certainly think and talk a lot more like they do than say Pavlick.

yeah, it's okay, but it's just an exception, usually whites have more in common with whites, and blacks with other black people, that's a fact

in Europe, most of people would support their compatriot, even if they have a lot more in common with his opponent

[Tony1244]

it's natural, we can't change that - most of people support other people that have something in common with them, in individual sports usually it's nationality or skin colour

I'm white but sometimes I have more in common with a black than a white. I've seen Frank Bruno and Lennox Lewis interviewed and I certainly think and talk a lot more like they do than say Pavlick.

yeah, it's okay, but it's just an exception, usually whites have more in common with whites, and blacks with other black people, that's a fact

That is less true every decade. Economics and education are more accurate indicators than color.

Of course root for whomever you want to root for, but if someone's habits, taste in music, and philosophy are similar to mine, skin color is totally irrelevant.

[dagilechia]

I'm white but sometimes I have more in common with a black than a white. I've seen Frank Bruno and Lennox Lewis interviewed and I certainly think and talk a lot more like they do than say Pavlick.

yeah, it's okay, but it's just an exception, usually whites have more in common with whites, and blacks with other black people, that's a fact

That is less true every decade. Economics and education are more accurate indicators than color.

Of course root for whomever you want to root for, but if someone's habits, taste in music, and philosophy are similar to mine, skin color is totally irrelevant.

i agree, but what i want to say, i guess that most of people in Europe asked ''what thing someone could have in common with you is the most important?'' would answer ''nationality''. and i guess that in USA it's more about race than nationality

what you say it's more important if you want to hang out with someone or go with this person to bar. if you watch sports, nationality/race is for most people the most important factor who they root for, not let's say if the sportsman listens Mozart or Slayer, or prefer tea or coffee, is socialist or free market liberal, believes in God or not etc

[Tony1244]

yeah, it's okay, but it's just an exception, usually whites have more in common with whites, and blacks with other black people, that's a fact

That is less true every decade. Economics and education are more accurate indicators than color.

Of course root for whomever you want to root for, but if someone's habits, taste in music, and philosophy are similar to mine, skin color is totally irrelevant.

i agree, but what i want to say, i guess that most of people in Europe asked ''what thing someone could have in common with you is the most important?'' would answer ''nationality''. and i guess that in USA it's more about race than nationality

what you say it's more important if you want to hang out with someone or go with this person to bar. if you watch sports, nationality/race is for most people the most important factor who they root for, not let's say if the sportsman listens Mozart or Slayer, or prefer tea or coffee, is socialist or free market liberal, believes in God or not etc

I wouldn't necessarily say that race is more important than nationality in the US. I think most white boxing fans in the US would root for Wilder against say a Klitschko. Of course there are exceptions like 1st or 2nd generation Poles rooting for Spilkva.

Sure, way over 90% of the time Russians, Poles, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans you name it root for their countrymen.

To be honest with you, I used to root based on color in the past more than I do now. Perhaps it was because there was a dearth of white HW champions after Johansson. I was born in the early 60s. But after the Klitschkos I couldn't care less for some reason.

[Lackeos]

Yes, it's wrong. And it's not really a good practice to show favoritism based on race or nationality in any aspect of your life.

I've never rooted for boxers on the basis of race or nationality. In fact, it's fine to watch a boxing match without rooting for either fighter, and just enjoy the contest as a whole. On the other hand, there are some fighters you root for because of their stories and their character. There are some fighters you might root against because they are scumbags, i.e. when Chisora spit on Wlad, knowing that Wlad had too much self control to hit him and ruin Vitali's fight, but also knowing that Wlad could easily beat the piss out of him. Sometimes you root against a fighter because other posters are overrating him (i.e. David Price, Seth Mitchell, Amir Mansour, Bryant Jennings, etc. when their fans claimed that these fighters would rule the division) or are simply obnoxious fans in general. Sometimes you root for a fighter because you picked him as a great prospect using solid evidence, and the rest of the boxing world doesn't agree with you, so you root for him because you want your prediction validated. Sometimes you bet money on a fighter because you think the betting odds are simply selling him short, and now you're rooting for him because you bet on him. Sometimes you turn on a sports contest not rooting for either contestant, but then something causes you to start rooting for one of them over the course of the contest, such as the effort they are exerting to mount a comeback.

[dagilechia]

That is less true every decade. Economics and education are more accurate indicators than color.

Of course root for whomever you want to root for, but if someone's habits, taste in music, and philosophy are similar to mine, skin color is totally irrelevant.

i agree, but what i want to say, i guess that most of people in Europe asked ''what thing someone could have in common with you is the most important?'' would answer ''nationality''. and i guess that in USA it's more about race than nationality

what you say it's more important if you want to hang out with someone or go with this person to bar. if you watch sports, nationality/race is for most people the most important factor who they root for, not let's say if the sportsman listens Mozart or Slayer, or prefer tea or coffee, is socialist or free market liberal, believes in God or not etc

I wouldn't necessarily say that race is more important than nationality in the US. I think most white boxing fans in the US would root for Wilder against say a Klitschko. Of course there are exceptions like 1st or 2nd generation Poles rooting for Spilkva.

Sure, way over 90% of the time Russians, Poles, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans you name it root for their countrymen.

To be honest with you, I used to root based on color in the past more than I do now. Perhaps it was because there was a dearth of white HW champions after Johansson. I was born in the early 60s. But after the Klitschkos I couldn't care less for some reason.

yeah but Poles in the USA prefer to support USA-based Polish fighters rather than Polish fighters from Poland, like Golota, Adamek, Fonfara and now Kownacki (in Szpilka-Kownacki almost all the crowd rooted for Kownacki)
Wlodarczyk or Glowacki don;t have such attention in USA-based Polish community like these fighters mentioned above
but i get your point, there is some national pride among Poles Irish Mexicans etc that live in USA
when said that it's more about race, i meant it's something like when black American fights white American, >90% of white Americans support white fighter, and >90% of black Americans would support black fighter. in Europe it's more like we have a fight between an Italian and German, >90% Germans would support the German, and >90% of Italians would support the Italian, no matter what

i try to avoid race-based rooting, but still most of my favourite fighters are white (and have more in common with me, also if we talk about personality) but i can say that I'm a fan of Anthony Joshua and also Terrence Crawford is the fighter i rather root for than against him

[Tony1244]

i agree, but what i want to say, i guess that most of people in Europe asked ''what thing someone could have in common with you is the most important?'' would answer ''nationality''. and i guess that in USA it's more about race than nationality

what you say it's more important if you want to hang out with someone or go with this person to bar. if you watch sports, nationality/race is for most people the most important factor who they root for, not let's say if the sportsman listens Mozart or Slayer, or prefer tea or coffee, is socialist or free market liberal, believes in God or not etc

I wouldn't necessarily say that race is more important than nationality in the US. I think most white boxing fans in the US would root for Wilder against say a Klitschko. Of course there are exceptions like 1st or 2nd generation Poles rooting for Spilkva.

Sure, way over 90% of the time Russians, Poles, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans you name it root for their countrymen.

To be honest with you, I used to root based on color in the past more than I do now. Perhaps it was because there was a dearth of white HW champions after Johansson. I was born in the early 60s. But after the Klitschkos I couldn't care less for some reason.

yeah but Poles in the USA prefer to support USA-based Polish fighters rather than Polish fighters from Poland, like Golota, Adamek, Fonfara and now Kownacki (in Szpilka-Kownacki almost all the crowd rooted for Kownacki)
Wlodarczyk or Glowacki don;t have such attention in USA-based Polish community like these fighters mentioned above
but i get your point, there is some national pride among Poles Irish Mexicans etc that live in USA
when said that it's more about race, i meant it's something like when black American fights white American, >90% of white Americans support white fighter, and >90% of black Americans would support black fighter. in Europe it's more like we have a fight between an Italian and German, >90% Germans would support the German, and >90% of Italians would support the Italian, no matter what

i try to avoid race-based rooting, but still most of my favourite fighters are white (and have more in common with me, also if we talk about personality) but i can say that I'm a fan of Anthony Joshua and also Terrence Crawford is the fighter i rather root for than against him

For example, I rooted for Joe Bugner over Ron Lyle. Why? I certainly look more like Bugner than Lyle. That could have had something to do with it. But I think it had more to do with at the time black HWs were considered superior, and they most certainly were. Now, it's very clear that's nurture, not nature because there are so many great white Eastern European (and British) fighters and so few even good white American fighters.

Some may see my admission as "racist" and people can think that if they want, but I think I just wanted more parity. As I've said here before, and I think it's interesting, even white liberals who were for all the civil rights bills were "white hoping." at the time. The Klitschkos kind of burst that bubble.