0:06 I have to go again even though I've just
0:09 come back even if I'm covered in blood
0:14 blood all over me everywhere that no one
0:17 bothers to wipe off and yet they call me
0:21 still the crowd cheers the riff is a
0:25 patient my opponent awaits me I feel
0:29 deadened every voice is far away and yet
0:33 I hear I know that this is the moment
0:37 that I have to go it's my job at first I
0:41 liked it I couldn't stop it was my life
0:43 now no longer
0:49 I'm exhausted worn out I'm in pieces how
0:52 long can my body last how many of those
0:56 punches can it take night is falling I
1:01 feel it falling quickly on me my powers
1:05 weaken death will come and be the fatal
1:12 wound for me the final defeat that was
1:16 the poem the boxer by Gabriel 10t it's
1:18 about a boxer who is watching on while
1:20 the crowd cheers for his opponent and
1:23 statue in the photos of the seated boxer
1:26 that statue was founded the baths of
1:29 Constantine and this discussion around
1:32 who carved it and heard the subject is
1:34 is it a boxer at the end of his career
1:38 reflecting because the scars they did
1:40 tell a story of a long life in the ring
1:43 and the crowd is cheering but he seems
1:46 distant mm-hmm he's separate from it
1:48 he's beaten was bloody
1:51 maybe's witnessing nodulation and she is
1:54 for his opponent and trauma it's etched
1:58 into his face and the other week I went
2:00 down to the pub to watch the Tyson
2:03 purity Waldorf fight I went in with a
2:05 few lads and I got in early to watch the
2:08 prelims that was really excited about it
2:10 I started talking to this chap at the
2:12 bar but we didn't know each other's names
2:13 names
2:14 till about two hours into the
2:18 conversation he was nor the bloke we
2:20 started chatting about boxing
2:22 he had a boxing background he was a big
2:25 fan of fury he said Furies a real
2:28 throwback he said to me he said you know
2:29 what he said
2:32 you look like Jack Dempsey I said that's
2:33 a right
2:37 you look like Chuck Whitner it's us and
2:40 fury he's deceptive he doesn't look like
2:43 a million bucks and a stall it comes off
2:46 as awkward and he's not showy except
2:48 when he's playing up he looks like a bit
2:50 of a plotter clutter on the ring but
2:53 he's a solaced he's a jack-of-all-trades
2:56 he's real ring general now he can fight
2:58 on the inside he can fight on the
3:00 outside you can go to the distance
3:03 because this is Durance is sharp his
3:05 footwork defensively is some of the best
3:05 in the business
3:08 you can stutter step peak you can step
3:11 off you can rally or it can square off
3:13 and it can advance it can lay on
3:15 pressure and it can dominate and can
3:17 parry you can fight off the ropes there
3:19 or square off and send up the fight and
3:21 it can counter you can mix it up it can
3:24 throw down but he knows when to back up
3:26 and can use his height and reach to keep
3:30 distance maybe it'd be a nightmare to
3:34 fight as jab sharp it's one of the best
3:36 in the business and he fights at awkward
3:39 angles that's it's a difficult style
3:42 he's just improved phenomenally over the
3:44 past few years and he's an intelligent
3:47 fighter it keeps his head there's no
3:49 real knockout power but he's a complete
3:53 fighter in many respects and talking to
3:55 this bloke at the bar I mean we covered
3:58 a lot of ground we were engaged in the
4:01 conversation we really saw each other
4:02 and we really valued each other's
4:05 perspectives and there was an exchange
4:07 of information but also of experience
4:10 not just about boxing but a whole number
4:10 of things
4:14 now he's from Naples originally Jeff
4:15 spent a lot of time man you know I loved
4:18 Italy so we spoke on life there we
4:21 mentioned the culture the festivals that
4:23 the the Festa de San Gennaro which was a
4:26 great experience talked about other
4:27 aspects of Italian
4:30 like politics cuisine travel business I
4:32 found out he was a bit of a journeyman
4:35 back in his day when he was fighting I
4:37 said yeah yeah I can tell you've got the
4:41 nose for it he said yeah well thank God
4:45 I did and a great conversation with a
4:48 man it should open many doors go one
4:50 door opens and then you walk down the
4:53 corridor and other doors start opening
4:55 up all around you taking you in
4:57 different directions and it's the
4:58 exchange of knowledge but also
5:01 experience how many young men today that
5:04 I've known that did not aware that they
5:05 can have these kind of connections with
5:09 other men it's not necessarily a case of
5:10 them not having the words or the
5:13 experience because that comes in time
5:15 but it's more because that door has
5:18 never been open to them no one took the
5:20 time to sit down with them and and
5:23 listen and actually ask questions and
5:25 and valued the perspectives and their
5:28 experiences for young men today it's not
5:32 often about altering who they are but
5:36 rather stripping away who they are not
5:39 and a good journeyman boxer he'll teach
5:40 a young fighter more in a handful of
5:43 rounds then that kid would learn in six
5:46 to twelve months in the gym now
5:48 journeyman he's a boxer who's always on
5:50 a journey but he never arrives at a
5:54 destination but he plays a key role in
5:56 mentoring a prospect under contention
5:59 and the journeyman is the opponent you
6:02 never remember now he's not showy but
6:04 they're the unsung heroes you know
6:07 professional boxing it's always been a
6:07 dirty business
6:09 and that's what it is it's a business
6:13 it's not a sport yeah it's marketing
6:15 it's image it's prestige but it's
6:18 corrupt and it's built on the backs of
6:19 men who sacrificed their bodies and the
6:22 health to make up-and-coming fighters
6:24 look like the next big thing now these
6:27 men they laid the foundation and they're
6:29 vital and the development of many
6:32 champions and he's an essential teacher
6:34 and a building block now he pads new
6:37 talent up you props him up and it gives
6:39 them minutes in the ring and it makes
6:40 them look strong
6:43 but he also fleshes out the witnesses so
6:45 it gives the a-team aspects to work on
6:48 and to improve he gives them his time
6:51 his attention the benefits of his
6:54 experience and there's no glory there's
6:56 there's no recognition there's very
6:59 little pay because my said gentlemen
7:01 I've known that they work full-time and
7:04 regular jobs and they have other
7:05 interests they pursue they've got
7:08 families all the rest of it and boxing
7:11 it's it's just a sideline yeah and I
7:12 mean they can go up in weight and
7:14 there's a bigger payday but it's more
7:17 risk because you get kayoed is a stand
7:21 down period so yeah no pay but the phone
7:23 rings and you take the fight and can be
7:25 at short notice
7:28 that's also fine line they can look too
7:30 good on the ring and they can show up to
7:32 prospect and that won't be used again
7:36 and a journeyman he's got to be able to
7:37 keep people happy
7:39 you know the prospect the the promoter
7:43 the boxing board the public he's got to
7:46 make the prospect look good and he has
7:48 to be able to defend himself above all
7:52 and make it look competitive and it's
7:53 always been humorous to me that the
7:55 public they always take pro boxing at
7:59 face value but it's marketing you have a
8:01 prospect with marketability with the
8:02 right connections and the right backing
8:05 he gets a push but the outcome is for
8:07 the most part at least in the early days
8:09 are predetermined
8:13 now these matches aren't 5050 and in
8:15 order to progress at anything in life
8:19 you need to take risks to get to the
8:21 next level and you can't run before you
8:22 can walk
8:26 it's like Renzo Gracie said Lorenzo he's
8:28 a member of the Gracie clan the school
8:31 of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Renzo said a
8:34 boxer is a lion he's the greatest
8:37 predator on land but you throw him in
8:41 the shark tank is just another meal a
8:44 young man has to be able to navigate his
8:46 terrain and take those calculated
8:49 measureable risks to get to the next
8:51 level and then grow and develop through
8:54 proper guidance those skills
8:56 he needs to survive and then you train
8:58 there taught through lessons from and
9:01 being modeled by more experienced men
9:05 and the best journeyman op known that
9:06 were from the United Kingdom from
9:09 Ireland Wales Scotland we had really
9:11 strong amateur ranks and that a very
9:13 good discipline very strong technique
9:17 and very strong mindsets and they took
9:19 pride in what they did now it wasn't
9:21 just about a payday now they saw
9:24 themselves as mentors as teachers and
9:26 they put these prospects to the test
9:29 that make them work for it that open up
9:31 the floors in the ring but yeah it's
9:35 it's a fine line who sometimes the kid
9:37 he needs a lot of work and the fight can
9:40 go in favor of the journeyman although
9:42 the decision never will and no matter
9:45 how close it is on points and the
9:46 journeyman could knock the kid into the
9:48 third row and that still raised the
9:52 prospects hand they're there to do a job
9:54 there's no stair downs is there's none
9:56 of that psyche out or that psychology
9:59 because there's no point it's just a job
10:03 but sometimes the prospect it get a bit
10:07 overexcited nagged up you'll cook off so
10:09 in those cases the more experienced
10:10 fighter has to send the kid a message
10:13 and give them a receipt fire back and
10:15 note up-and-comer wants to get knocked
10:17 out by a guy with a hundred losses under
10:20 his belt it's it's kind of like watching
10:22 a deer in the headlights at that point
10:24 and that's a hard realization for an
10:27 up-and-comer as well yeah it's kind of
10:29 like a kid finding out there's no Santa
10:31 Claus they slowly come around to the
10:35 reality of the business a gentleman's
10:37 job is to control the pace of the fight
10:41 and now he picks his moments when to
10:43 fire up when to slow it down and they're
10:45 working levels they level up with a
10:48 level down because they don't typically
10:51 have the stamina of a contender and they
10:53 don't want to go too hard as it may have
10:56 to fight tomorrow night and like I say a
10:58 lot of gentlemen they work full time as
11:00 well they they fight a number of times a
11:04 month training travel family order so
11:05 they could be looking at putting in
11:07 anywhere from 20 rounds per month
11:10 or sometimes more and it may sound like
11:12 a lot but you can do upwards of a
11:14 hundred plus firing rounds when you're
11:17 leading up to a professional fight but
11:20 the fact is if you're not signed with a
11:22 good promoter you're not going anywhere
11:24 in the business and as a fighter that's
11:27 that's a reality many have to come to
11:29 terms with and that's decided very early
11:33 on I mean you can cast the reel but if
11:35 not big fish are biting you need to make
11:38 a decision I have a lot of respect for
11:41 journeyman many are providing for the
11:44 family doing this it's to pay for the
11:46 kids school uniforms I mean that's how
11:48 they look at it now it's supplemental
11:52 income and you can look at a fighter's
11:54 record in the scene you know if 50-60
11:56 losses in a row but that's not telling
11:59 the full story there's a man behind the
12:02 losses doing what he needs to doing what
12:06 he loves and taking pride in it and male
12:10 mentorship it rebuilds because we need
12:12 to rebuild young men because there's so
12:15 much damage that has been done and this
12:16 isn't going to happen overnight
12:20 now male elders they need to be bearers
12:23 of light in the dark the lighthouses
12:25 let's steer these young men to shore
12:28 because boys today that they don't have
12:32 men in their lives you know divorces
12:36 single mothers we've cut these young men
12:38 off at the knees we've cut them off from
12:41 male mentors from from social networks
12:43 from community the big beaten over the
12:46 head in the men left to work out
12:49 masculinity alone and young men all
12:51 young men they're searching for identity
12:54 for purpose for connection and to be
12:57 valued for their contributions but as a
12:59 society where we failed them now
13:02 collectively in every respect now
13:04 they're on a crash course with life with
13:07 no networks or role models to guide them
13:09 well it's same time being attacked and
13:11 shamed and there's a lot of predators
13:13 out there now just looking too many
13:15 black boys with no father figures I mean
13:18 just look at the stats on MA to come
13:21 from broken homes it's
13:22 so it's easy to see how they can go off
13:26 the rails you want to treat me like a
13:28 dog I'll act like a dog and I'll bite
13:31 any hand that reaches out to me I'll get
13:33 a tattoo on my face I'm not like you
13:35 and I'll take pride in being an outcast
13:39 and that will be my identity it's a
13:41 romantic notion but it only ensures
13:45 they'll be exploited and boys are
13:48 retreading they're not engaging and
13:51 they're looking for something and
13:54 they're not even aware of what that
13:55 something is
13:58 that is how severely we have failed
14:01 young men they have lost to such an
14:03 extent that they look to women to fill
14:06 the role of mother father mentor teacher
14:08 guide friend
14:11 they are looking for women to provide
14:13 something that they are fundamentally
14:16 incapable of providing a woman have
14:18 walked away from the table so they have
14:21 no skin in the game no obligation past
14:25 that of their own needs and boys grow
14:28 into men when other men show them the
14:31 way when men listen and accept them when
14:34 they value them when their model
14:36 accountability for them when they
14:38 provide structure when they show them at
14:40 how to look after themselves you know
14:44 nutrition training self-care show them
14:46 how to how to handle yourself in an
14:48 assertive manner so you don't get walked
14:51 on or end up crossing that line intend
14:55 damaging your future prospects and also
14:56 you know helping them identify and
14:59 appreciate their own value and most
15:02 importantly older men can show younger
15:05 males a healthy middle ground because
15:07 the world it isn't just black and white
15:11 it's not all strict axioms and absolutes
15:14 life is shades of grey and it's our
15:17 responsibility to ensure boys can stand
15:20 on their own two feet and that they have
15:25 the skills to engage you look at Mike
15:27 Tyson Mike Tyson had no understanding of
15:29 responsibility now he had the world
15:32 handed to him on a plate he owned it but
15:34 it was handed to him and
15:35 before that happened he was robbing
15:38 people on the street and once he lost
15:42 everything he said in response well what
15:47 did you expect people people want quick
15:49 fixes and gratification they're not
15:51 interested in rebuilding because that
15:55 would require investment but young men
15:57 that they need to get active they need
15:59 to connect to to find their own words
16:03 and experience life because whatever you
16:05 think day in day out in your mind is
16:08 what you will experience yeah every day
16:11 where well either growing it or more but
16:15 we're retreating into less and some
16:17 boxes some boxes they bleed like a stuck
16:22 pig and a cut man a cut man is probably
16:24 the best psychologist you will ever meet
16:28 because the eyes don't lie yeah he keeps
16:29 you together when everything else is
16:31 around you is you're falling apart now
16:35 you could have personal issues or you
16:37 down four rounds in a row and you're
16:39 running on empty but he can read your
16:43 fear and all of your concerns but you
16:45 know with him in your corner you're
16:48 gonna be okay if you make a mistake if
16:51 you get hurt you know he's there to help
16:54 you and he knows you he knows how you
16:56 think how your mind works what you
16:58 respond to what set you off
17:02 he's the calm spot in the ocean and he's
17:04 there with you every step of the way
17:08 it's a team effort and the more a
17:10 fighter panics the less the cut man can
17:13 do to help so the best thing that a
17:15 young fighter can do is to give his
17:19 trust to his corner in at least he can
17:20 look in the mirror and say he gave his
17:25 best you know people could ask you they
17:30 could ask you what is boxing boxing is
17:33 life because to a boxer it is his life
17:37 and people they they look at boxers like
17:40 they're dummies and yeah I mean you
17:41 can't sit down with them and talk Greek
17:44 philosophy but I mean you can't do that
17:47 with most people but their mindset is farm
17:47 farm
17:49 advanced than most of the population and
17:53 it's their mindset that sets them apart
17:56 they're a different breed that mentality
18:00 it comes from experience and it comes
18:02 from consistent small accomplishments
18:04 and from positive feedback and you can
18:06 see it now as his skills grow and
18:09 develop so does this sell value in the
18:11 confidence and they've focused on
18:14 becoming better now on proving things in
18:17 a very very practical way improving
18:19 their technical skills or their
18:21 knowledge and they're hungry but they're
18:24 also curious you know they want to learn
18:26 and grow and they're excited about new
18:29 challenges and their development becomes
18:33 their motivation what once crawled can
18:38 now walk you know one of the key factors
18:40 of photo success is their support
18:43 networks know they know they can't do it
18:44 alone and they know it's a two-way
18:47 street and you get respect by showing
18:51 respect and respect is care it's care
18:53 for yourself and it's care for the other
18:56 person and you've got to put the work in
18:58 but you've got to take care of yourself
19:01 because if you don't respect you no one
19:04 else will and it also means no one else
19:06 has to wipe your nose for you because
19:08 you value yourself enough to put in the
19:11 work and you value those around you
19:13 because it's those relationships that
19:15 will open doors for you now and in the
19:19 future in Sugar Ray Robinson II he said
19:22 everything in boxing is rhythm and if
19:24 one thing is out of rhythm everything is
19:29 and a young man is the sum of many parts
19:33 now as custom art Howe said a boy comes
19:36 to me with a spark of interest I bead
19:38 the spark and it turns into a flame and
19:41 I feed the flame and it becomes a
