Mitchell chooses the right path

July 18, 2010

“Using the power of decision gives you the capacity to get past any excuse to change any, and every, part of your life in an instant.”  ~Anthony Robbins

As Kevin Mitchell savours Saturday’s thrilling victory over John Murray, he would do well to reflect on two key moments that changed the course of his career, and indeed his life.

The first of these moments occurred approximately six months ago. Slumped in an East End bar, and by his own admission £100k poorer after an eight-month drinking binge, the Dagenham man was trapped in a downward spiral of depression. 

His relationship with Amanda, the mother of his two children, had disintegrated and seriously upset the preparations for his world title tilt against Australian Michael Katsidis in May 2010. Mitchell kept his home turmoil secret from trainer Jimmy Tibbs until moments before the fight. Tibbs watched on powerlessly as his under-prepared charge duly suffered a brutal KO in front of his adoring West Ham public. 

Humiliated and heartbroken, Mitchell joined the long list of sportsmen who sought solace in alcohol – and found none.

At that particular moment, Mitchell was confronted by his parents, estranged for many years, but united in their concern for their son. The story goes that Mitchell was dragged from the premises and given an ultimatum: give up drinking or give up on everything you’ve worked so hard for.

Mitchell listened and made a choice.

It was the right one.

He reunited with Tibbs, the man who’d guided him so carefully to the brink of global recognition. Still upset about what had unfolded in the dressing room before the Katsidis fight, Tibbs laid out the terms for their reconciliation; all or nothing. No booze, no distractions. Total dedication. 

Fast forward six months to Saturday night at Liverpool’s Echo Arena. Mitchell once again found himself on the brink as he returned to his corner after a fifth round mauling at the hands of rival John Murray.

The unbeaten Mancunian had dragged Mitchell into a dogfight, exactly what the Londoner had hoped to avoid, and was winning. Another big round could force a stoppage. A stoppage that would launch Murray’s career into boxing’s stratosphere and almost certainly consign Mitchell’s to the scrapheap.

Unlike his battle with alcohol, this particular moment of truth offered no time for lengthy introspection. Mitchell had less than 60 seconds to make two choices: Did he have the mental strength to recover from adversity? Was he ready to place his faith in the tutelage of Jimmy Tibbs?

The answer was emphatic.

Mitchell’s trainer sent him out with a clear message; follow the gameplan. Do what you do best. Box behind the jab and out manoeuvre Murray.

A huge seventh round was swiftly followed by a ruthless start to the eighth as Murray, who’d not been hurt in his previous 31 bouts, visited the canvas for the first time in his career. And from the jaws of defeat, Mitchell snatched victory.

The general belief is that at sport’s highest levels, where physical prowess is all but equal amongst the top competitors, the difference between victory and defeat can be in the mind.

On Saturday night, Kevin Mitchell showed the boxing world reserves of mental strength that many doubted he still possessed.

And we were happy to be proved wrong.

Ralph Welch

Follow on twitter: @ralphwelch

Brawls, Knockouts and Controversy - Boxing returns to form

It’s been a week of introspection in the boxing universe.

Seven days previously the two most powerful pugilists on the planet had met in the Hamburg Arena. It was a fight two years in the making. A fight that had captured the imagination of the entire world. A fight that had commanded more global headlines and column inches than any other in recent times.

If you believed the hype, and it was inescapable, this was the fight that was going to re-ignite the public’s passion for boxing’s flagship division.

Ultimately this titanic battle would indeed go down in history. Not for the bravery and mastery of the combatants, but for the fragility of a little toe.

It left many fans asking the question: should we ever believe the hype?

Thank goodness then for Brandon Rios.

This past Saturday the WBA lightweight champion and arch-rival Urbano Antillon gave us a toe-to-toe war that will live long in the memory. More importantly, it restored our faith in the pre-fight posturing that is so crucial to the sport.

In this case, the trash talk had been particularly aggressive. In several spicy press exchanges Rios alleged that Antillon had insulted his wife, and duly vowed revenge. For his part, Antillon promised to meet his foe in the centre of the ring and settle their differences the old-fashioned way.

It was a promise that boxing fans had heard seven days previously. Only this time it most definitely delivered.

The only disappointment was that the fight didn’t last longer. For eight minutes and forty-nine seconds we were treated to a battle of such frenetic, ferocious intensity that it provoked memories of the famous Gatti –Ward trilogy of the previous decade.

After a stunned Antillon was felled for a second time, the referee wisely called the contest to a close.

But unlike Haye or Klitschko, when these two men lace up their gloves again, we’ll all be watching.

Williams return impresses judges, but not the fans

Returning from a devastating knockout is perhaps the ultimate test of any fighter.

Many pundits had questioned whether Paul “The Punisher” Williams would have the mental strength to pick up the pieces of a career that had been so violently shattered by Sergio Martinez in November 2010.

On Saturday night, Williams (40-2) returned the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, the scene of that Halloween nightmare and sought to exorcise the ghosts that have haunted him since.

He faced a difficult challenger in unbeaten Cuban Erislandy Lara, but one that he was expected to beat comfortably.

In truth, over twelve rounds it was hard to make any kind of case for a Williams victory. Lara landed more punches and power shots, leaving Williams bruised and battered. At the final bell, “the Punisher” was left hoping for a huge slice of fortune in a venue which had been so brutally unforgiving in the past.

Except that on this night the gods of fortune favoured him. The officials gifted him a highly questionable decision met with disbelief in the arena, and widespread cries of highway robbery amongst boxing commentators.

The vitriol directed towards Williams from some quarters has been relentless. He’s gone from being a former champion with a point to prove to a has-been fighter who stole a decision. Even by boxing standards, it’s a remarkable fall from grace.

Given the context in which Paul Williams fought, I suggest that it’s unfair. After all, he didn’t judge the fight. He entered the ring trying desperately to resurrect his career. As his dreams of a glorious comeback seemed to slip away with each attack, he didn’t give up. He gritted his teeth and hung in there, hoping that the unlikeliest of decisions would go his way.

Whatever the result, whatever our opinion of the judges, on Saturday night in Atlantic City Paul Williams epitomised the bravery and courage that makes boxers such a special breed.

For that at least, he deserves nothing but praise.

Steward goes back to the future to cement a legacy

Was there a bigger smile anywhere in the Hamburg Arena this Saturday than that of Wladimir Klitschko’s trainer Emanuel Steward?

Even the torrential rain couldn’t dampen the spirits of a man who proved once again that the 76-year-old boxing oracle is peerless in his chosen profession.

Wladimir Klitschko had completed his transformation from an awkward, stuttering giant with a suspect chin to a dominant, all-conquering heavyweight champion of the world.

A champion moulded by the evergreen Steward, the leader of that famous production line of champions, Detroit’s Kronk Gym. Steward has allied Klitschko’s natural physical gifts with a ring nous that makes him a supremely effective heavyweight.

Saturday night’s dismissal of the brash and arrogant David Haye was his finest hour in their six-year association.

His was a smile born not just out of satisfaction, but out of absolute, total familiarity.

You see, Emanuel Steward had been here before...

One night in Memphis

It had been nine years since the heavyweight division had seen an event of this magnitude. On the night in question, June 8 2002, Steward watched on from the corner as his charge, Lennox Lewis, faced his nemesis Mike Tyson.

This was a defining moment for Lewis. Despite his dominance, he was still a target for some critics who labelled his style as one-dimensional.

There were also questions about his punch resistance. Twice during his career he’d been the victim of brutal knockouts against unfancied opponents (Oliver McCall and Hasim Rachman).

Never mind the fact that he’d gone on to avenge both defeats. Never mind that he’d beaten all the names the governing bodies had put in front of him; they were decried as a poor crop in a division that had once boasted iconic fighters such as Foreman, Ali and Holmes.

According to his remaining critics, if Lewis was ever to be mentioned in the same breath as these legends then he he’d have to do more than victories over journeymen challengers.

He needed a career-defining fight.

His victory over Evander Holyfield had earned him some long-awaited plaudits but was marred by whispers that Holyfield was already a fighter in terminal decline.

If Lewis was to silence those remaining doubters once and for all, he needed to beat the biggest puncher - and the biggest personality - that this sparse heavyweight landscape could offer.

He needed to beat Mike Tyson.

The build-up had been infamous for Tyson’s increasingly low-class attempts to rattle his normally unflappable foe. It had started badly with Tyson proclaiming of Lewis that he wanted to “eat his children”. It got worse when he then bit Lewis’s shin during an unseemly brawl in front of the world’s media.

The Briton remained typically dignified throughout, refusing to react to the baiting. With the wily Steward by his side, he was supremely confident in their gameplan to dispose of his arch-rival.

He was right.

Over eight utterly one-sided rounds, Lewis picked “Iron Mike” apart. Dominating behind the jab, the champion toyed with Tyson. He avoided the challenger’s wild attacks with ease before putting him out of his misery with a trademark right hand.

Two things happened that night; firstly, Lewis cemented his legacy as the greatest heavyweight of his era.

Secondly, Mike Tyson’s career as a top-class heavyweight was cruelly ended. He carried on, of course, but that night in Memphis would forever haunt him.

Doesn’t it all sound so incredibly familiar?

Back to the future

After his domination of David Haye, Wladimir Klitschko has proved himself, alongside brother Vitali, as the best of his generation.

His style may be unpalatable to some, but his record of 55 wins is truly remarkable. Whether he will ever be recognised as one of the great heavyweights to rank alongside Lewis and the other big names is entirely questionable.

Yet there is one fact that cannot, under any circumstance, ever be disputed.

Emanuel Steward is one of the finest trainers in the history of the sweet science.

He’s proved it in the past, the present...

...and he’ll prove it again in the future.

Ralph Welch

Twitter: @ralphwelch