From a particularly ironic paragraph of an article by Carlo Rotella, in The New York Times, leading up to Shannon Briggs' 2007 clash with Sultan Ibragimov, about Briggs' hyping his 2006 fight with Sergei/Siarhei Liakhovich:
"Briggs said, “I don’t get caught up in the race thing,” but he told me more than once that promoters and cable networks favor the Russian heavies because they’re white. He also enjoyed retelling the story of how he’d spread the false rumor that Liakhovich, known as the White Wolf, had used a racial slur. Briggs had been playing a prefight head game, trying to put his opponent on the defensive. At their postfight press conference, Liakhovich, plainly upset and still dazed, earnestly assured Briggs that he had never called him any such thing. “I smiled,” Briggs said, “and I said: ‘I know. I made it up.’ He was, like, ‘Whuuuh?’ ”
(Click here to read the full throwback article: Shannon Briggs Says Nyet)
This article is something beyond an article about Shannon Briggs with some ironic humour. It expands into the territory of an American philosophical breakdown, with Shannon Briggs, perhaps among the most unfit fighters to carry such a burden at such a time, becoming the focal point. The article illustrates a major cultural shift in the global sport of boxing and an odd kind of analysis of why the shift was taking place. I may write an article of my own about this piece, actually, because I find it so interesting. Either way, it's important to remember and beware that Shannon Briggs will make you racist if you're not careful. He's clever like that. Watch out, folks!
Work that bag,
Basement Gym Boxing
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