***Freelance Writers Needed!***

[Markus Heinsohn]

Hey guys,

we want to make ootpdevelopments.com a place worth visiting for baseball-, boxing- and sports-fans in general.

That's why we would like to encourage you to write articles in this forum, which will be mentioned in the OOTP Developments news. You sure have noticed the news-headlines on top of the board, the same news can be found on ootpdevelopments.com.

Articles may vary from weekly reports on your favorite teams, trade discussion, descriptions of famous fights or anything that you feel would be interesting to folks here on the boards and sports fans in general.

So, if you feel you have written upsomething special, please email to markus@ootpdevelopments.com, I'll then review the article and in case it is well-written and a good piece of work, I'll add it to the news headlines.

Similar things will be done for the OOTP Dynasty forums, and soon to be TB forums.

Thanks in advance!

Markus and the whole OOTP Developments crew

[ctorg]

Very cool. Now I have new reason to do the dynasty thread I keep putting off doing.

[jaxmagicman]

This is a good Idea.

[AnotherAlias]

Great idea. I might write something about the Cubbies.

[H.P. Lovecraft]

This is quite an unexpected treat.

[Eric]

How about OT items such as how my lunch was or whether so-and-so is hot? Maybe we can have a summary of who's hot/not for the month of July.

[Jeremy Weimer]

That's a sweet idea and I'll probably utilize it in the future.

[JWay]

if i could only write....

[Dwolfson20]

Awesome!

[sixto]

Free-lance does not mean "free," although it is a VERY common misconception.

[GForce22]

My guess is that Markus' definition differs there, Sixto.

GH

[Markus Heinsohn]

Originally posted by sixto
Free-lance does not mean "free," although it is a VERY common misconception.

OK, let me change that to: guys-having-fun-writing-good-stuff-without-getting-paid.

[wildhawke11]

Rocky Marciano a Champion both In and Out of the Ring

If winning fights is*ALL* that matters then there is only one Heavyweight in the picture
Has to be Rocky Marciano. 49 fights -- 49 wins -- 43 by KO

Of course we All know stats on paper don't give the full story.
Ali most feel holds that Crown, and arguable was the Best

I would love to have seen a fight between Marciano and Holmes,
both at there peak. On paper it looks like a Holmes victory. Most would say "Yes Larry is to big and has a great jab" !!!!!!
Till i whispered in the Rocks ear "Hey Champ this is the guy who said you were not fit enough to carry his jock strap"

That's all Marciano would need to put Holmes through more pain then any fighter has had to take to earn a win. Not sure then who my money would be on. Ohhhhh hell put my $$$$$ on the guy who never gave up, and walked through fire and brimstone to land his own blows

In a lot of ways he was a bit like the fighter in the Rocky Films, if you were going to beat him you had to be prepared to die to win. Once in that square jungle with the Rock. It was pain, pain and more pain to follow.

Many fighters who took on the Rock worked out he was clumsy, slow and had there game plan all worked out.

"I will keep him away with my strong jab, or tie him up when close. or make him miss with my boxing skills"
The reality was, once the fight started, they found out that he was not so slow, had power in EVERY blow he threw, and it was a total different ball game trying to fight the Rock then watching this squat figure from the safety of a ringside seat and dreaming they could take him.

No matter how much you hit him, or were ahead on points against this guy, He never stopped coming at you. He was losing against Joe Walcott going into the 13th round but once again the Rock did it as the song goes
---- "I Did it My Way"----

You know why people loved the Rock, it was because they could associate themselves with him, he did not look like our stereo type picture of a fighter, more like the average Joe in the street, short of build, craggy features, he was one of us. if you know what i mean.
He had not the speed of Clay, the accuracy of Joe Louis, or the film star looks of say a young Billy Conn, but he had the biggest Heart in the World it is true, i have heard guys say he would rather die then give up. That was our Rocky.

Unlike some he never disrespected any other fighter he took on, he just did the job in his own way, and went out with a true unbeaten 49 record win to show for his efforts.
What more can a man do to then be the Best of his era.

Maybe its time now to start judging the smaller old time Heavyweights such as Marciano, Dempsey, Tunney etc etc on a Pound for Pound basis but then still rank them say for example at number 4 in The All time Great Heavy List
rather then say would Jack Dempsey have beaten say Lewis. or the next 290 lb fighter that is sure to come one day. In the year 2075 they might well be saying how could little Ali have beaten our present 350lb World Champ.

They might knock you Rocky and criticise you in any way they like, but one thing no one can ever take away from you. Is that great unbeaten record you took to your grave.

I salute a real Champion * Rocky Marciano a real Man of the People*

Just something i knocked up in the Boxing Section Guys as a tribute to Rocky.
Danny

[Hootowl 9]

Danny,
Thank You for the above article on Rocky Marciano!! I think you touched on the very essence of why people loved Rocky. With the great depression still fresh in the minds of many here in the USA , (in many cases people never did recover) and the tragic events of a Wolrld War, the every day people on both sides who suffered greatly needed a peoples champion and Rocky for many was the Champion in my view. Rocky had many "flaws" in his armor if you will. Certainly there were many pure fighters better than Marciano,....but you can't teach "Heart" and Rockys was large. With a will and pure determination, guts and disregard he would keep coming and coming an coming at his opponents, taking four or five shots to deliver one of his painful "salvos" !
I think in that piece of leather on his fist there was the sweat, pain and character of his familys hard work ethic, and background as well as the energy of every downtrodden working class Joe Six-Pack with him! I think Rocky felt that,....at least in my heart I want to believe it's true.
To say that the Rock or Ali, Joe Louis, Dempsey, Jack Johnson was the best ever may be fun to discuss, and a good argument can be made for many. I would rather think of maybe 20 or 30 fighters alltime reaching an "elite" class due to a plethora of reasons, era....whatever! On any given day, one could beat the other. Hell...I'll take Fraizer vs anybody on a given day! Respect is earned, not given...."every" Champion fought some bum's on the road to greatness, but the Rock beat everyone put in front of him. 49 - 0 say's it all for me!
In the 2075 bout....hmm...I still put my money on Ali or the Rock.

Danny,...you did make mention of some writing you have in publication?? If I am correct about that I would have a intrest in a purchase of your work. In any case I have enjoyed the posts of many here on this site.

[wildhawke11]

Hootowl
Thanks for the Complement my friend, but no i am not a pro writer by any means.

I have to admit at one time someone one saw some of my posts and story's from our past History in Boxing a writer himself, as well as being an ex pro fighter. He mailed me and asked me to do some story's on a web site. I sort of laughed it off, but he said i had a gift that i was wasting, but even more important he added i write from the Heart.

Another World Champion mails me and was impressed at my knowledge of what it is like to fight as a pro that in spite of me telling all i have never done any real boxing. He said "Danny i cant believe you never fought as a pro your insight alone tell me this guy knows to much to be just a fan of the fight game"

I must be coming across here to those who don't know me or any public posts i have done, as full of my self, but as i am sure Hootowl will confirm, this is the first time i have ever given others any real info on me in regard to Boxing, or my silly storys

I only did it here because i figured no one or very few from the Boxing Section would wander in. Hey come on my friend you do a good job yourself Hootowl, and i try not to say things i don't mean. Must admit i have twisted the truth at times, but only when i felt it was necessary to avoid hurting someone's feelings
Thanks again for your kind words though


You may note i deleted one of my previous posts on hindsight i felt it was not appropriate, and the wine did not help much at the time.

I have wrote about that Lightweight World WBC Champion *Rodolfo Gonzalez* on here in the Boxing Section, he is a Class Act both in an out of the Ring. I also as it happened wrote to four members of The World Boxing Hall of Fame asking why he has been overlooked so many times when other lesser fighters are in there.
I put a good case for him both as a fighter and a Human being i was surprised when One high ranking member was kind enough to mail me back.

His record is Fights 89 wins by KO 71 lost 7 drew 1
but the losses do in no way tell the full story. He had cancer and sometimes was in real pain and weak when he lost.
But That's another Story

On a last note he is on the voting again this year to be elected,so my letters along with others from various people must have done some good.

Makes you wonder though, when after all this he mailed me a couple of weeks ago and informed me they had still not got his record right. They have took 20 KOs of his real score, in the sheets the WBHOF send out to the fighters involved.
Sad but True

[wildhawke11]

Sorry to All i know this is not the Boxing Section.
But i was just looking around and saw this thread.
Please Forgive.
Danny

[PittPanther]

Here we go again, another old white guy telling us how good Rocky Marciano was. . .

Danny,

Cheers to YOU my old friend!

[wildhawke11]

Originally posted by PittPanther
Here we go again, another old white guy telling us how good Rocky Marciano was. . .

Danny,

Cheers to YOU my old friend!

Cheers To you to Panther
But this *Old White Guy* must be doing something right

I enclose part of an email i got the other day from Rodolfo Gonzalaz himself.
--------------------------- IT READS -----------------------------

Hi Danny,

What good news this morning. I just received a phone call from the President of the WBHOF to tell me that I will be inducted this year. They have gone over the ballots again and are adding me to the list of inductees.

Your efforts with your letters to the board members has made a big difference. Two of the board members mentioned about the "guy writing from England" ( I knew he meant you). And when I talked to various members of the board I told them about my friends from all over the world, meaning you.

Thanks again, Danny. I wish there was some way you could be at my induction.

Your friend,

El Gato

[wildhawke11]

El Gato fully deserved his place along with the others. One of the problems of course though, is sometimes its a case of knowing the right people, as i am sure you well know yourself.

In this case i figured out it might be just a case of knowing the right buttons to push.
With age sometimes comes a little wisdom although my wife might tell you different .
Take Care Panther

[jaxmagicman]

wildhawke11 it seems like you have a talent. I am glad you were able to help El Gato get what he deserved.