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08/09/2004 Archived Entry: "A BAD NIGHT FOR BRAZIL"
A BAD NIGHT FOR BRAZIL
By Dean Vios
The sounds of drums, sports whistles and spirited chants overwhelm the bingo hall where the usually dominating roars of an electric crowd took a reluctant backseat. Beautiful women with silky, jet black hair donned the room paired with their men eagerly anticipate the arrival one of their country’s biggest stars. People are initiating conversation with the closest stranger in an ear’s reach unloading their opinions of the war at hand. The constant hiss inside my ears does not stop me as I am just as guilty as anyone else to say the least. Somehow in all of the madness I noticed I had arrived inappropriately dressed. The suggested dresscode of the evening’s events was apparently a soccer jersey of a Brazilian kind and I was merely dressed to go out.
Suddenly a deep chorus echoing disapproval overcomes the room in a wave, in a flash of lights Corrales is marching out. Corrales is seemingly impervious to the unanimous reaction. Moments later, just as sudden & without a breath, the crowd rejoices twice as loudly at the sight of their hero as he quickly makes his entrance. Freitas enters the ring with an absolute eruption. Without a shadow of a doubt this is their man’s night and I would almost have to agree. It was hard to believe that this deafening display of allegiance was a room with a capacity of only a few thousand people. I then realized how foolishly oblivious I was to what I had signed up to participate in for a just a single admission fee and tank of gas.
As the announcements continue, the tension builds dramatically. Two warriors in their prime are about to meet in an epic battle and no one is quite that casual about this fact. As the fight commences, each hard blow is met by the crowd standing on their seats, applauding and raising their arms victoriously. After only a few rounds of screaming sore, it is widely agreed that “money’s worth” has already been easily established. Freitas was looking as athletic as ever. As Freitas slipped shots while landing lead rights, Corrales deliberately pursued his second chance at a career defining fight. Just as frantically, I hunted for my waitress. Upon finding her with a tray of plastic cups overflowing with beer, I selfishly order another round with relief.
To this point, each round was surprisingly a replay of the previous. Amazingly enough Freitas appeared fresh, but could this really last? His stalker was relentless. The crowd knew it and so did he. The power that has served Freitas well so many times before was not having the impact he needed. Corrales patiently continued and finally Freitas allowed this inevitable end to take its course. With a gasping roar of shock from the crowd, Freitas took his first journey to the canvas. Though many celebrated Corrales’ feat, many did not believe the severity of the situation at hand. Freitas rose but an urgency developed that no one in attendance wanted to oblige. Corrales grew confident and much to the dismay of his loyal followers, a more emphatic knockdown of Freitas was the result only a few minutes later. It was clear that this was not in the script nor did team of Corrales and Goosen care in the least. Despite some desperate but valiant efforts, the mighty Freitas finally wilted in a neutral corner soon after. The evening finished as Freitas sadly got up and clearly waved it to an end.
The likeable Corrales was met with the approval of the fans earned through his persistent efforts as well as any other self respecting boxing fan. Though many others silently poured from their seats in disbelief, there was more than enough to share this enormous moment with Corrales. Freitas passed on the moment as well as he exited in much the same fashion as his fans. I found myself left with conflicted emotions over the result that I’ve yet never before experienced. It was something to the effect of two comic book heroes squaring off. Regardless of the merit of men at hand, unfortunately there is always a loser.
There is not a single American who does not appreciate the value of a good comeback story. Corrales is a man who at one time owned the larger part of a shared spotlight with Mayweather. Amidst issues outside the ring, Corrales lived out a nightmare of performances against Mayweather only to follow it up with a jail term. With the staunch support of his wife Michelle who met Diego the day of his release, he began the second leg of his career. In a less than stellar comeback to this point he was prematurely matched with crafty Cuban, Joel Casamayor. Though the fight was not without some bright spots for Corrales, he was clearly not ready for a fight of this magnitude. Without much of a place to go, Casamayor accepted a rematch and the stage was set for Corrales to try get it right once and for all. Cooler minds expected a repeat of the first fight but the script would be changed once again. Before camp began, Casamayor had oddly enough jettisoned a big part of the picture that Corrales was happy to embrace after, Joe Goosen. The rest is history as a Goosen lead Corrales marched to two consecutive victories over the heavily regarded Casamayor and Freitas, two men once bound by their own shared battle. Just as these two men jockeyed for their positions in the division and pound for pound rankings respectively, the once forgotten man Corrales has surpassed his peers and is marching up the rankings once again. It may have indeed been a bad night for Brazil but it was an incredible night for boxing.
Replies: 5 Comments on this article
Cool stuff, Dean!
--Juan C. Ayllon
Posted by Juan C Ayllon @ 08/13/2004 01:04 AM EST
AMAZING!! This story is so cool, clear and exciting! Keep up the good work!
Posted by Girlwitheverything007@yahoo.com">Christie Patton @ 08/11/2004 09:59 PM EST
The manner in which this article was written made me feel like I was right there at the fight. Look out Steven King, there is another creative writer waiting in the wings...
Posted by tigger4244@yahoo.com">Danielle @ 08/11/2004 09:34 AM EST
Bravo .. give him an oscar !!
Posted by JonnyMicros @ 08/10/2004 02:45 PM EST
This guy's an OUTSTANDING writer. His narrative made me feel like I was right there at the event with him. Let's hear more from him -- much more.
Posted by Daniel G. Wiest @ 08/10/2004 11:30 AM EST
