Arthur Abraham Still a Hero
Arthur Abraham seems surprised at his opponent Andre Dirrell’s fall. (411 Mania Photo)
By Edmond Y. Azadian
DETROIT — The much-anticipated fight between Arthur Abraham and Andre Dirrell took place at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit on March 27. The undefeated Armenian from Berlin, Germany was facing Michigan-native Dirrell.
To the credit of Armenians in Detroit we must say their show of support was tremendous. They were joined by a contingent of Armenians all the way from Los Angeles, Chicago and Toronto.
The huge arena was alive with the Armenia tri color. Dirrell’s local fans were equally enthusiastic but also intimidating. Had the outcome of the match been different, many Armenians, and some of the referees would not come out alive, despite tight security.
Abraham had won 31 matches, 25 with knockout and no losses. He played a very ethical game, knowing full well the intention of the hostile media and the fans.
Dirrell was more athletic and he was able to avoid Abraham’s punishing punches — that is until the 11th round, when he was exhausted and was running around the ring like a scared rabbit.
Finally, Abraham cornered him and he was knocked down almost unconscious, when Abraham reached one for his finishing blow, while he was falling down. That was considered a penalty and he was disqualified.
Dirrell was taken to the hospital disoriented and doctors announced that he was being tested for brain damage. Though Dirrell was declared the “winner” of the match, Arthur Abraham is still a hero!
(Note: 337 articles appeared in the media on the fight, most biased against the “European.” This article aims to be more objective.)
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It is a shame that it had to end the way it did. But to all of us, he is still the real winner. It is sad to say that no matter how many years pass, no matter how many generations come and go, the “Armenians” will always be envied and discrimination will always be a part of our lives. Arthur Abraham was treated unfairly and his victory was stolen from him.
(Note: 337 articles appeared in the media on the fight, most biased against the “European.” This article aims to be more objective.)”
That could be true, but please don’t forget that the fans have opinions of their own. Over 90% of the people leaving their comments after the biased articles, they all said Dirrell was acting, the referee is a racist, and the animals from the Dirrell team were behaving badly.
AA is a true warrior. I’am sure he’ll be the winner of Super Six.
What video was you watching or was you watching with eyes closed.? He hit him while he was on the ground, not while falling. It wasnt even close. Thats what he was DQ’ed for. A seriously late blow. What do mean running like a rabbit? He was up by 6 points and was dominating the fight. A totally biased article.
I was at the game with my wife and both of us are not into boxing. I have to say that it was amazing and we Armenians made noise in a hostile environment. The most amazing time was the tenth and eleventh rounds when Arthur starting punishing Direll and the guy was running away like a chicken. The guy would have never made it to 12 th round. We were devestated by his disqualification. We both couldn’t sleep that night! Armenians we love you and Arthur we will come and cheer for you next game no matter where the next match will be!
Saying Dirrell would not make it to the end is just guessing. To say he was behind badly on the cards is a fact. Theres no way a win was stolen from Abraham because he wasnt even winning. Abraham did take the illegal punch. No one forced him to swing. He was rightfully DQ’ed and was rightfully losing badly. I didnt see anything from Abraham in the 11th that came close to knocking Dirrell out. Even if Dirrell chose to run like a chicken for the rest of the fight, so what? He dominated most of the fight and took everything Abraham had to offer which wasnt much. Abraham relies almost solely on power. If he gets in there with a solid boxer with a solid chin (which I agree Dirrell does not have), he will lose badly.
Well, the question that I ask is how is Abraham’s punch illegal?
This is boxing and, often, we see boxers punch each other even upon referees command to stop the fight. The reason for punching is not that these boxers are illegal boxers; it’s basically adrenaline rush and passion for the boxing.
My personal answer to this question is the following:
Arthur Abraham has used God given power to use his muscles and therefore he couldn’t stop God given power upon referees command to stop. This is a basic rule and I think that we should judge this game based on this.
I wish Andre Dirrell a speedy recovery and Arthur Abraham more patience; I can see his power and I can foresee his future victories.
This a sport not a nationalistic pride contest. There are rules. When one breaks the rules the way that Abraham did its only fair that he face the consequences. He landed one good punch in the 10th round but his foot was directly behing Dirrell’s heel and its hard to say Dirrell would have went down or not had it not been for the trip. But the punch definitey landed clean. Abraham was losing the 11th round and getting countered very well although he was fighting much more aggressively at that point. I think that Abraham threw the punch intentionally thinking that he would only be penalized for it and that Dirrell would have to continue on without his legs being well underneath him and that he would be able to finish him off while Dirrell was still dizzy from the cheap shot. The fact Abraham was getting beat up the whole night long and he had yet to inflict any damage on his opponent is the only thing that cannot be disputed here. Long live Armenia, but this was a night that the African Americans ruled.