[kenyan_cheena]

...It took almost five minutes for some semblance of calm and order to return to the arena. Eventually, ESPN's Bill Farris was able to speak with Joe Beckett.

The Englishman was wearing a winning smile from ear-to-ear. He had been sheding tears of joy.

Farris could not help but smile and laugh, caught up in the absolute jubilation of this heavy underdog. He shook Beckett's hand.

"Well, Joe, I guess the question everyone wants to ask you is, 'How on earth did you do that?'" said Farris.

The crowd reacted with another round of applause.

Beckett laughed. "I don't really know!" he exclaimed, still on a high. "I don't think it's sunk in yet. It might not for some time."

"Joe, you have just defeated a man who many have predicted will be the winner of this tournament," Farris said. "How does that make you feel?"

"It's not like anything I've ever experienced before," Beckett said, hands on hips, sweat running down his face. "I really can't believe it. I mean, I said a lot of stuff leading up to the fight. I believed that I could win, but now that it's actually happened, it's just ... WOW!"

Once again, the crowd responded with applause, briefly starting up the "GO JOE!" chant once again.

Farris laughed. "I think that there are a lot of people in the boxing community who are feeling exactly the same way tonight, Joe," he said.

Beckett nodded. "I really want to thank the people of Buffalo," he said.

This single comment recieved just about the biggest cheer of the night, showing how many locals were in the audience.

"So many of you supported me while I was training," Beckett said. "You really took me into your hearts. I don't think that words can do justice to how much you inspired me tonight. I feel like I've found a home-away-from-home here in Buffalo, and I really hope that the HBF will bring our group of boxers back here to entertain you in the future."

Those in the crowd who were not already standing stood up, and the entire arena proceeded to give Joe Beckett a standing ovation that lasted for a full two minutes. Beckett raised his hand to acknowledge the audience, tears slowly running down his cheeks.

"Now, Joe, let's talk about the fight itself," said Farris. "I think everyone here in the arena and those watching the bout on television were very impressed by your performance through the first five rounds. You really showed us much more than most expected, but even still, going into the final round, it was obvious that you would have to do something pretty special to win."

Beckett nodded. "I agree totally," he said. "You might have seen that I was getting a bit frustrated there in the sixth round. I knew that time was running out and I knew that Jack was winning the round. I just hoped that he'd make a mistake and I'd get a chance to get back into it. When he made the mistake, I just reacted to it without thinking. Next thing I know, he's on the canvas and the referee's putting the count on him. It was bloody surreal, I tell ya."

The crowd reacted to this with appreciative laughter and cheering.

'Well, Joe Beckett, I'd just like to say that the guts and determination you showed tonight has been one of the most inspiring performances I've seen in all of sports for quite some time," said Farris. "Congratulations."

The audience had already started applauding before Farris had finished talking.

"Let me just add one more thing," said Farris. "I'm sure that everyone back home in England will be over the moon about tonight's result. Everyone, please join with me in wishing Joe a safe trip back to his hometown of Wickham in England."

After the applause had died down, Beckett shook Farris's hand and left the ring, stopping to speak to Jack Johnson for a few moments before leaving the arena to another standing ovation. Beckett exchanged high fives, handshakes and hugs with a number of people from the audience as he walked up the tunnel.