Chapter 399: Opponent
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The number of boxing organizations in the world was unbelievable. In the US alone, there were more than 70 of them. In reality, a lot of boxing organizations could no longer effectively organize boxing matches. Those organizations would only occasionally appear in regional competitions, provide support in organizing competitions, and sometimes work together with larger and stronger organizations to jointly certify world champions, to show that they still existed.
Without a doubt, the most reputable boxing organizations were the four professional boxing organizations: the World Boxing Association (WBA), the World Boxing Organization (WBO), the World Boxing Council (WBC), and the International Boxing Federation (IBF). Apart from those, there were organizations like the WPBF, WBE, WBF, WBU, IBA, WBB, IBO, IBC, IBU, PBO, WBN, GBU, UBO, and various other more reputable professional boxing organizations. Among them, the IBO and WBF were also quite well-known, and a lot of world-class boxing champions were registered in them.
As the current president of the World Boxing Council, it could be said that Surman enjoyed limitless fame. The WBC had 162 member nations, and was like a condensed version of the United Nations. In nations where professional boxing was well-developed, Surman would receive welcome of the highest class. For example, when he went to South Africa, the president personally welcomed him; when he was in Mexico, he had dinner with the president; even in the US, he was a frequent visitor of the White House.
However, on this day, Surman looked as if he was having the worst headache ever.
"Two years. It vanished before I realized it was gone. That troublesome fellow is coming back," Surman said in a flat monologue, the distance between his furrowed brows becoming shorter and shorter.
On the side, the assistant held a document and said, "Mr. President, from what we have, Kevin Taylor's comeback match doesn't lack any opponents. I've asked a lot of boxers, and most of them are willing to become Kevin Taylor's first opponent upon his return. This the name list after my selection."
"Haha… Just as I expected." Surman smiled, picked up the document, and said, "Taylor used to be the world's strongest heavyweight boxing champion. If he makes a comeback now, many champions will be itching for a chance to beat him up!"
His assistant nodded. "If he were the Taylor from back then, perhaps no one would want to be his opponent. But now, everyone knows that he is just an aging lion, and his teeth and claws are no longer sharp. The younger lions are impatiently waiting for a chance to strike him down to prove their strength."
As the saying went, "In the Yangtze River, the waves behind drive the waves in front forward, and the waves in front splatter and disappear on the beach." If the young professional boxers wanted to become famous quickly, the best way would be to defeat a very renowned boxer; ideally, one who was on the level of a boxing champion. But under normal circumstances, how could a young boxer defeat a boxing champion? Sports was a competition of strength, and those who could become boxing champions, who could wear those championship belts, were definitely amongst the top, even if they weren't the absolute strongest at their level.
At that moment, Taylor was obviously the most suitable "wave in front." His reputation was still great, and if someone could defeat him and make him splatter and disappear on the beach, even if it were an obscure newbie, that newbie would become famous after just one fight.
Not to mention Taylor's technique. Taylor was the kind of boxer who used to dominate the entire boxing world, so his techniques had already been thoroughly researched. Even an ordinary person would know that Taylor's fighting style relied heavily on explosive power. And he was already past his peak, so his explosive power had already deteriorated severely. He could no longer produce the kind of deadly combination punches he had when he was young.
For a professional boxer, finding a way to deal with Taylor wasn't hard. The Taylor from several years ago could take on ten people at the same time, and his three tricks were undefeated. The current Taylor's strength was very likely halved, and to a professional boxer, fighting him would be that much easier.
So many boxers with considerable strength hoped to become Taylor's first opponent after his comeback. They wanted to try to defeat Taylor in that first match. To overcome the one who had once dominated the boxing world, and to become famous through that match, using Taylor as a stepping stone. What an exciting thing it would be!
However, that was also the cause of Surman's headache. What type of boxer should he arrange as Kevin Taylor's first opponent in his comeback match?
Surman shook his head repeatedly as he browsed through the name list. It was apparent that he was dissatisfied with the boxers on the list.
"No. These won't work. They are too weak." Surman rejected them.
"Based on conventional methods, we don't usually schedule strong opponents in the first comeback match of a boxer," the assistant stated.
"That is true, but our conventional methods shouldn't apply to Taylor." Surman folded his arms and thought for ten seconds before speaking. "How about Saunders? Can he fight?"
"You mean 'The Trench' Saunders? Isn't he a little too strong? He is, after all, the tenth ranked title challenger for the champion's belt. Besides, his techniques are quite effective in restraining Kevin Taylor. Would Taylor be able to beat him?" the assistant asked.
"That's the reason why he should be the one to confront Taylor in his first comeback match, because none of us know how much strength Taylor has left, and Saunders is the perfect touchstone," Surman declared.
The assistant looked at Surman with a puzzled expression, so Surman continued to explain. "For us, Taylor's value lies in the fact that he used to be the boxing champion, the conqueror of the heavyweight boxing world at that. If he were just an ordinary boxer, would I follow him personally? But if the current Taylor can't even defeat Saunders, then that would mean that he had lost the strength to remain a boxing champion. A has-been boxing champion whose strength is only average does not deserve further resources from us. Try and think, who would pay attention to a match where newbies fought against each other?"
"But Taylor should have a decent number of fans. From that perspective, he should still have some form of commercial value," the assistant said.
"In the match against Highfield when Taylor bit his ear, that was probably the most scandalous news within the last few decades! Biting someone's ear off just because you couldn't defeat him. If it were you, would you support this type of boxer?" Surman rebutted.
The assistant laughed and shook his head. Surman then continued, "When Taylor was young, he constantly caused trouble. You should remember why he was put in prison back then, right? Rape! To tell you the truth, if he were just an average boxer, I might have removed his name from the WBC a long time ago!"
...
"Coach Li, my opponent in my first comeback match has been confirmed. It's 'The Trench' Saunders," Taylor said with a serious expression.
"'The Trench' Saunders? I've never heard of him." Dai Li obviously did not know too much about the boxing world. Apart from the few world-renowned boxing champions, Dai Li didn't know anyone else. As such, Dai Li pulled out his phone and searched for information about "The Trench" Saunders.
Taylor, who sat opposite Dai Li, began describing the man instead. "Saunders is 26 years old this year. He's one of the rising stars that came to prominence in the heavyweight boxing world within the last three years. He only started appearing and gaining fame when I received the match ban. He's currently ranked tenth among the challengers for the WBC champion's belt."
The championship belt was the gold medal of boxing. Only those who had received championship belts were called "boxing champions."
Among boxing organizations, the strongest boxer within each weight class was naturally the owner of the championship belt, and within a weight class, the top 15 contenders were the title challengers. These 15 people were ranked according to their points, and the person who ranked first was called the first challenger of the championship belt, the second-ranked would be called the second challenger, and so on.
All 15 people within the rank table were qualified to challenge for the championship belt. For example, if a boxer's points were just enough for him to be ranked 15, it meant that he had only just qualified to challenge for the title, but he did not need to defeat all 14 boxers who were ranked higher than him. It wasn't compulsory for him to defeat the first ranked boxer either; he could directly initiate a title challenge with the boxing champion. If he won, then the championship belt would belong to him, and he would be the new boxing champion. Those 14 people who were ranked higher than him still remained as title challengers.
By the same reasoning, if a boxer failed to get into the top 15, he would not be allowed to initiate a championship belt title challenge.
The heavyweight class had always been a more popular weight class in world-class boxing organizations such as the WBC. If a boxer were to successfully rise into the top ten, he was definitely worthy of being regarded as a world-class boxer within that weight class.
Dai Li understood these fundamentals of boxing, but he had never heard of this Saunders. Upon learning that he was the tenth ranked challenger, Dai Li also knew that he would be a tough opponent.
"You seem worried. Are you afraid that you will lose?" Dai Li consoled Taylor. "I haven't even heard the name of this boxer, Saunders, before. You're a boxing champion, I'm confident you can win!"
"If it were me from ten years ago, I could probably settle this fellow in one round, but now, I think that it will be difficult for me to win this match. I originally thought that the opponent for my first comeback match would be weaker, and the difficulty would be lower. Who would have thought the WBC would arrange such a difficult opponent?" Taylor said with a face without confidence.
"Is this Saunders strong?" Dai Li asked.
"His nickname is 'The Trench.' You should know what a trench is, right? In battle, soldiers on defense would hide behind the trenches while they fired away at their enemies. A trench protects people, it helps soldiers avoid bullets and bombs," Taylor said slowly.
"What you mean is that Saunders is formidable in his defense," Dai Li said immediately.
Taylor nodded. "In the heavyweight class, it's rare to see a defensive type boxer, because once you get to heavyweight, the power of the punches can no longer be blocked through defense alone. In reality, Saunders' fighting style is more like a counterattack; he looks for chances to unleash critical hits after the end of his opponent's attack. And for me right now, he is precisely the type of fighter I am afraid of most. I would rather face a boxer who would exchange hits with me than fight a counter-attacking boxer like Saunders. He will restrain me too effectively."
"Looks like you can only settle things quickly, try to knock him down at the beginning of the match," Dai Li said while laughing.
"For the current me, I'm afraid it would be hard to achieve that." Taylor shook his head in resignation. "Now that I think about it, I think that making a comeback might be a mistake. I can imagine it, all those youngsters who are looking to make a name for themselves, lining up to kick my ass! Then they will say that they have defeated Kevin Taylor, that would be enough for them to boast about their entire life…"
Dai Li sighed slightly. Confrontational sports were cruel, and everyone tried to use their seniors as stepping stones. Most people would choose to leave the boxing industry once their condition began to deteriorate, so that they could avoid becoming a stepping stone for those who came after them, thus preventing themselves from losing the dignity of the boxing champion.
If Taylor had not lost all his assets while still owing the bank so much money, perhaps he would have also chosen to retire.