Sometimes a line can be crossed, even in the world of boxing. Personally I believe that line has now been crossed twice by Brandon Rios.
First, for the uninformed, Brandon Rios is the exciting, undefeated WBA lightweight titlist who is set to defend his belt on July 9thagainst number 8 ranked Urbano Antillon.. Ring magazine currently has Rios ranked number one in the world behind world champion Juan Manuel Marquez.
Rios’ fan friendly, take no prisoners style is very pleasing to the eye. He gives a hundred percent and is always just a punch away from turning a fight in his favor.
But it is what he does outside the ring that grates on one’s nerves. Think 1990’s Mike Tyson. At that point his skills were fading, but his style was still pleasing to watch. However, his problems, usually caused by him, were a big reason people starting pulling against Tyson. It was like watching a building implode so many times it became boring.
Rios is definitely no where near Tyson when it comes to out of the ring problems, but his persona is taking on a punkish quality that may eventually turn fans away or at least make people start rooting against him.
It started last year when the HBO cameras caught Rios mocking Freddie Roach and his battle with Parkinson’s disease. A move that brought a ton of bad publicity for Rios, so much so that he later issued an apology.
The problem with the apology was that it was a case of someone apologizing only because they had been caught. Somewhere a publicist was working overtime trying to make Rios look good and the apology didn’t seem genuine to most.
Fast forward to this past week at the Rios-Urbano Antillon press conference. It is understandable that fighters will take shots at each other during these events. As Ricky Hatton used to say,”afterall, it’s not a tickling contest in there.”
But Rios again crosses the line by continually mocking Antillon’s slight lisp. It is one thing to be a confident boxer, sometimes bordering on the arrogant, that is what boxing is, but the personal attacks cross the line.
It also doesn’t help when we consistently see his fine trainer, Robert Garcia, laughing at Rios over the top antics. Good trainers should know when to reign in a fighter and Garcia doesn’t seem to have that control or refuses to have that control over Rios.
Sometimes good and usually great trainers need to know when to say enough with the personal attacks. Like a good parent, stop being his buddy and start being his mentor.
And it really is a shame because Rios is fun to watch, but a little humility can go a long way in boxing and life. Unfortunately, Brandon Rios has yet to learn that.
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