I recently read an article on mmajunkie.com about UFC fighter Joe Stevenson seeking medical care in Tijuana.

 Joe “Daddy” participated in TUF 2, fought BJ Penn for the title and performed in more than 10 UFC fights.  I suggest that most would agree (fan of his or not) that Joe has paid his dues in the octagon.

So why was he in TJ seeking x-rays for his bum knee?

No health insurance.

The UFC, as most MMA promotional organizations, are required to provide fight night insurance and to varying degrees cover injuries sustained that night…nothing more.

So he chose to go south of the border in order to save money.  What did he get for his hard earned cash?

He got knee x-rays and an inappropriate and misinformed diagnosis by a technician not a doctor and certainly not an orthopedic surgeon.  X-ray technicians are trained to perform an x-ray not evaluate (read) it.  Nor do they attend medical school, residency or fellowships in hopes of one day providing a useful diagnosis.

FYI- x-rays are not used to diagnose or image LCL or PCL tears.  Clinical exams and MRI’s are used to evaluate those types of ligamentous injuries.

I hope that Joe “Daddy” got more in TJ than just suspect medical care.

Not so long ago, I sparked a lively debate when I took the temperature of the MMA faithful when I asked if we/they would be willing to voluntarily donate (redundant) a dollar to a medical fund for injured UFC fighters who could not afford proper medical care.  I suggested, once again a donation which is very different than a tax (involuntary…once again redundant), to be added to the ppv fee as merely a simple means to collect said funds.

No sooner did the article post the venom spewed…to my dismay.

There exists a significant very vocal cadre of fans that generally feels “Screw’em… I pay too much already”!

The wealthiest and most financially able promoters will not cover these elite athletes and their families that depend on them with adequate basic health insurance.  Many fans say “screw our heroes…they know the risks, are irresponsible and no one pays my bills”.

So an honorable athlete like Joe Stevenson leaves it all in the octagon for our enjoyment and catches a ride to TJ for substandard but less expensive medical care…my conscience tells me that there must be a better way.

Manny Pacquiao is without a doubt one of the greatest fighters in the history of professional boxing.  His talent in the ring may only be surpassed by his enormous generosity and love of the people of his native Philippine Islands.  Many people can learn something very valuable from Manny Pacquiao

He fights all comers and always without question gives the fans their monies worth.  To this I say- Thank you and much respect, Sir.

But his team’s decision to fight Antonio Margarito on Nov. 13th has me scratching my head.

A fight with Manny Pacquiao is a gift from heaven.  The opportunity, media exposure and financial win-fall are life altering and truly the chance of a lifetime. With rare exception win, lose or draw the guaranteed pay day is usually more than most fighters will make in their entire career…not to mention a single fight.

For all but one fighter on the planet Manny is doing a great favor to any fighter by presenting them with a contract to fight him.  He is truly blessing them…and the entire boxing world (including that fighter) knows it.

Why…Why…Why would Manny Pacquiao bless a fighter like Antonio Margarito? 

Margarito was exposed, before the Mosley fight, loading his hand wraps with plaster of Paris, the white stuff that orthopedic surgeons (like me) have traditionally used to make those heavy casts.  This was not merely a violation of the rules but potentially placed his opponent in a life-threatening or altering situation.

Can you imagine a professionally trained fighter beating someone with 2 plaster casts?

He was suspended from boxing in the US for 1-year but continued to fight internationally as if he did nothing wrong.

This is the same man (and I use that word begrudgingly) that pummeled Miguel Cotto into bloody submission with what many now suspect were similarly tainted hand wraps.

Why Team Pacquiao would now bless such a scoundrel can only be reasonably explained by greed and should be considered an embarrassment to his proud family name.

Manny Pacquiao you are a better man than that!  Please don’t let your honorable legacy be tainted by rewarding Antonio Margarito.

Sports media is all a buzz with the on-going Floyd Mayweather v Manny Pacquiao saga.
 

Floyd Mayweather does not respond well to ultimatums.  Bob Arum of Top Rank boxing whom Floyd has had a particularly contentious relationship with in the past is probably the wrong person to unilaterally set deadlines and issue mandates.

It is a funny thing about young men who just earned tens of millions of dollars less than 3 months ago…they don’t feel pressed.  For better or worse, Floyd is going to fight if and when Floyd is damn well ready and not a moment sooner.

Floyd has many traits and some of which are not particularly pleasant but cowardice certainly does not seem to be one of them.

I don’t know.  If I were a young, single man with tens of millions of cash in my pocket like Floyd Mayweather, I may be more interested in doing a few other things than rushing into a boxing ring.

Call me crazy.

Now that the Lebron James sweepstakes has been decided there is the usual chatter about who is the best NBA player ever.

Of course, there is the deafening roar of "MJ, MJ" and who could quarrel with that?  The Kobe chorus is certainly growing in volume with back-to-back championships and 5 rings in all.  Some are even opining that Bron- Bron will re-write the record books and become the player against whom all others will be judged.

Definitely and interesting debate but incomplete in my opinion.

Why has the collective basketball universe forgotten William Felton Russell?  Bill Russell, #6 for the Boston Celtics...Remember him?

I am not old enough to have ever actually seen him play live but as the great American statesman Jay Z once said- "men lie, women lie but numbers don't lie."

Bill Russell won back-to-back National Championships in college.  Kobe and Lebron never attended college and even his 'Air'-ness can't match that accomplishment. 

He won an Olympic gold medal in 1956 when the American team was still limited to truly amateur players.

Russell won NBA Championships in an astounding 11 of 13 seasons.  He currently has as many rings as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Lebron James combined!

Russell has all of the usual All-this and All-that awards and only he and the great Wilt (Norman) Chamberlain have ever snagged 50 rebounds in a single game. 

With whatever criteria are used to anoint the greatest NBA player of all-time, how can the world pay such little respect to the accomplishments of Bill Russell?

And I will not even bore you with a discussion about which of the above mentioned athletes carried the mantle of social change and demanded dignity for all people.