By: Hans Themistode
The biggest contest in boxing has officially taken place.
No, we aren’t talking about Deontay Wilder’s title defense against Luis Ortiz on November 23rd. Nor are we referring to unified Heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz taking on Anthony Joshua in Saudi Arabia on December 7th.
Photo Credit Matchroom Boxing Twitter Account
We are of course discussing the two widely popular internet sensations KSI and Logan Paul.
The two squared off live at the Staples Center, in Los Angeles California in front of a star studded crowd.
The contest was a continuation of their first bout from last year which ended in a draw. The first bout was considered an amateur boxing event. This time around, they decided to ditch the headgear and turn professional to compete in a six round bout.
Hardcore boxing fans may have found this event to be nothing more than a joke, but others found it to be very interesting. The attention that these two generated even grabbed the attention of the betting public as young boxing star Ryan Garcia revealed that he laid down ten thousand dollars on Logan Paul to win the contest.
This event wasn’t just for casual fans. WBC Lightweight champion Devin Haney outclassed Alfredo Santiago. While WBO Suppr Middleweight titlist Billy Joe Saunders knocked out the obscure Marcelo Esteban Coceres in the 11th round.
With those contests out of the way, everyone’s attention was now shifted to the main event.
Without a great deal of experience for either man, much of the bout looked sloppy and uncoordinated.
As soon as the opening bell rang, KSI wasted no time trying to make it a short night. He swung wildly at Logan but didn’t land anything significant. Logan seemed to be the calmer of the two, but still, he didn’t flash much offense either in the opening round.
The following round was much of the same as it turned into a slug fest with both men looking for the knockout. Surprisingly enough, KSI landed several jabs throughout the round which seemed to give him the edge.
Things got really heated in the third round. KSI landed a shot to the back of the head of Logan which sent him to the deck. He managed to bounce back up as the referee for some reason ruled it as a slip rather than a knockdown. In the following round, Logan returned the favor as he landed an upper cut which landed right on the money.
The punch actually looked like one that a professional fighter would throw.
As KSI went crashing down, Logan got a bit too excited and hit him in the back of the head while he was already on the ground. That of course triggered the referee to stop the contest and give KSI some time to recover.
Whatever momentum Logan gained in that moment was lost as the referee negated the knockdown and took away two points for his actions.
The final two rounds were lackluster as both men were exhausted.
It was a close contest throughout, but Logan’s point deductions in the fourth round came back to haunt him as he loss a close split decision. The scores were as read, 56-55 for Logan Paul, 57-54 for KSI and 56-55 for KSI once again.
After the bout, Logan Paul showed a genuine amount of respect for his opponent.
“You are one of the toughest people I know,” said Logan Paul. “I don’t like being a dick to you.”
With their everlasting feud now behind them, the sport of boxing will look to return back to normal. Then again, maybe a contest like this will happen once again.