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Bert Sugar on Boxing: The Best Of The Sport's Most Notable Writer
A colorful tour of the excitement, agony, and thrills of the fight game, from its greatest raconteur.
312 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2003
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About the author
Bert Randolph Sugar
78 books7 followersBert Randolph Sugar was a boxing writer and sports historian.
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May 28, 2020
Are you fascinated by the psychology of boxing? As a lifelong sports fan, although I don't rank it among my favorite sports, I consider boxing (along with golf) to be the most interesting in terms of what mentally separates the greatest from the average. Not "what makes a person want to take that kind of punishment?", but rather "what is it that enables some to rebound from a terrible beating, whether during a given bout, or after one?". While this concept is not the focus of Sugar's book, he does touch on it, especially in his brief history of boxing trainers. His admiration for trainer Cus D'Amato (of Mike Tyson fame) led me to look into books by and about him, and I have added his biography "Confusing the Enemy" by Scott Weiss to my reading list.
Bert Sugar was voted the greatest boxing writer of the 20th century. He actually graduated from law school, but quickly decided to become a sports journalist. Sugar died in 2012. This book, published in 2003, is an anthology of his best writing, covering the 70's, 80's and 90's. It is mostly a collection of his magazine articles, divided into sections on The Fighters, and The Fights. The first section, titled Rants and Raves, is a grouping of articles largely discussing the sport as a whole, especially his take on controversies in boxing. Considering the shaky ground boxing holds in our society, I expected a stronger defense of the sport from Sugar. (Disclaimer - I am pro-boxing.). In one such essay, it wasn't until the last paragraph that I unraveled which side of a certain issue Sugar stood on! While he is passionate about boxing, his arguments for its continued existence were not particularly impressive. Of course journalists are more likely to be remembered for the breadth and not so much for the depth of their wit.
Sugar freely credits earlier sportswriting giants Ring Lardner and Damon Runyon for both his love of the trade, and some of his writing style. I learned that early boxer John L. Sullivan, a bare-knuckled champion, actually became a proponent for gloves. And that in his early childhood, Jack Dempsey's mother read him a biography of John L. Sullivan, and told him "I want you to be the next John L.".
While sportswriters Jim Murray and Red Kelly remain my all-around favorites, I enjoyed this book. It would benefit from an index. It stimulated me to watch some of the great fights on YouTube, which has been very enjoyable.
Bert Sugar was voted the greatest boxing writer of the 20th century. He actually graduated from law school, but quickly decided to become a sports journalist. Sugar died in 2012. This book, published in 2003, is an anthology of his best writing, covering the 70's, 80's and 90's. It is mostly a collection of his magazine articles, divided into sections on The Fighters, and The Fights. The first section, titled Rants and Raves, is a grouping of articles largely discussing the sport as a whole, especially his take on controversies in boxing. Considering the shaky ground boxing holds in our society, I expected a stronger defense of the sport from Sugar. (Disclaimer - I am pro-boxing.). In one such essay, it wasn't until the last paragraph that I unraveled which side of a certain issue Sugar stood on! While he is passionate about boxing, his arguments for its continued existence were not particularly impressive. Of course journalists are more likely to be remembered for the breadth and not so much for the depth of their wit.
Sugar freely credits earlier sportswriting giants Ring Lardner and Damon Runyon for both his love of the trade, and some of his writing style. I learned that early boxer John L. Sullivan, a bare-knuckled champion, actually became a proponent for gloves. And that in his early childhood, Jack Dempsey's mother read him a biography of John L. Sullivan, and told him "I want you to be the next John L.".
While sportswriters Jim Murray and Red Kelly remain my all-around favorites, I enjoyed this book. It would benefit from an index. It stimulated me to watch some of the great fights on YouTube, which has been very enjoyable.
Displaying 1 of 1 review