Team boxing? Philadelphia Smoke fighting to give the sport a makeover
Team Combat League is professional boxing, with a twist. It's the nation's first-ever team boxing league.
"That's something I've been wanting since I was a kid because high school has football, soccer, basketball teams, but we don't have that for boxing," Francisco Rodriguez, a lightweight boxer, said. "So, this is new and I'm excited and blessed to be in this opportunity. I'm going to train hard and win these fights."
How Team Combat League boxing works
There are 12 teams in 12 cities across the country, including the Philadelphia Smoke.
League matches feature 24 three-minute rounds where the boxers are switched out after every round.
One round, and you're done.
"It's one round of non-stop action. It's exciting," Smoke head coach Bobby Kane said. "When you're in there, you're not going to sit down in your seat the whole entire time. It's action-packed, non-stop. It's best fighter vs best fighter. A lot of people are used to taking their time and studying a fighter in the beginning for rounds, but the fighters that come to TCL say this one is harder than doing that."
"It's back to wall, time to go"
Ray Robinson, a super middleweight boxer for the Smoke, says team boxing is more of a "crowd-pleaser to me."
"I think the crowd wins here because you get to see so many different styles in one night," Robinson said. "There's no warm-up round or 'let me see how his style is.' It's back to wall, time to go."
Fighters hearing their teammates cheer them on in the ring brings a camaraderie that boxing has never had.
"In a traditional fight, you hear three people in your corner, but here you hear the whole team," Rodriguez said. "You hear everyone give their thoughts, motivating you when you feel like you're getting tired. They push you even more."
"Not just an all-men sport"
Nine of the 12 weight classes are for men, and the last three are for women, making this a co-ed league.
"We're bringing female boxing up, and it's not just an all-men sport, boxing," Smoke lightweight boxer Shera Mae Patricio said. "So, we're exposing females out there saying, 'We can actually do the same thing as a man in the sport.'"
The Philadelphia Smoke won the championship last year during their first year in the league. They're hoping to repeat this season.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Tim Tszyu's camp responds after Aussie warned against potential career-ending move
Tim Tszyu is facing a tough career call after his second devastating loss to Sebastian Fundora with the Aussie boxer warned to avoid a mega-money bout with American Keith Thurman. Tszyu was outgunned against his towering American rival having been battered in nearly every round before failing to return from the corner after the seventh. Tszyu showed heart to battle back after a first round knockdown from a left hook, but was bombarded from distance as Fundora took everything the Aussie threw at him. And Tszyu didn't return after the seventh round having looked out on his feet at the end. And Tszyu's third loss in four fights appears to have derailed what could have been mega-money fights against the likes of Jermell Charlo, Errol Spence Jnr and the No.1 target on his list Thurman. Question marks remain over where Tszyu goes from here with the fighter clearly needing a break after two heavy losses across the last 18 months. While Tszyu will most likely be keen on continuing his foray in the US, the Aussie has now lost his three fights overseas. He will be expected to continue his career back on the domestic front and fellow Aussie Michael Zerafa is his predicted opponent. While there is plenty of question marks over his future in the sport, promoter George Rose suggested Tszyu would take some time away first to recover after taking so much damage. Although he had no doubt Tszyu can bounce back. "First and foremost, he needs to just recover from this, go through your process of facing defeat," Rose said after the fight. "You've got to go through your moments with that, and then it's a decision for him. "He's still, as far as talent and capability goes, very much a very capable fighter, a very talented fighter, and I still think that he still beats most of the guys in the division on his night. It's just a decision up to him as to what he's going to do, whether he gets back in the gym on Monday, whether he has a break, what he does." While fans are questioning where Tszyu goes from here, one of his rivals believes there is no doubt the Aussie can bounce back. Although he warned him who he should avoid as his next opponent. Keith Thurman's warning to Tim Tszyu Thurman was in attendance at the Tszyu fight, clearly keen to potentially build the momentum for their potential fight if the Aussie won, but was quick to warn the 30-year-old it could be career-ending if they go toe-to-toe. The outspoken American suggested if they fight it won't go well for Tszyu after his latest displays. 'How bad do want Tim Tszyu to get beat up?' he told The Punch Podcast. 'Y'all hate Tim Tszyu? 'Y'all want him to get murdered?' Thurman felt Tszyu may have overestimated his own talent, before proving himself overseas against elite competition. Speaking on his way out of the arena, Thurman feels Tszyu can build his legacy back up with a few wins. Although he warned him about stepping into the ring against him. 'No, the kid's not done but they need to pick the right fights,' Thurman said. 'They need to pick somebody who is better than (Joey) Spencer but who is not a world champion. Or a Hall of Famer like myself. You take me over to the Gold Coast and I will end Tim Tszyu's career. If that's what you all want to see, pay me and I'll do it. I'll get rid of Tszyu.' Tim Tszyu facing reset back in Australia American boxing great Shawn Porter felt the Aussie may need time to build back up to the big fights before heading back overseas. And this could see Tszyu go home and reset. 'It's hard to not feel this train ride come to a halt,' Porter said. 'It's doesn't mean it's going to end, it's just slowed down...I don't believe that Tim Tszyu has fought his way out of title contention. It just doesn't go through Sebastian Fundora." Porter suggested there were a number of 'technical errors' in Tszyu's style that need to be addressed if he wants to take on top competition again, which starts with his defence and head movement.
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
OKC Thunder jersey history No. 34 - Reggie Evans (2002-06)
The Oklahoma City Thunder (and the Seattle Supersonics before them) have 51 jersey numbers worn by the players who have suited up for the franchise since its founding at the start of the 1967-68 season. To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Thunder Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. And while those Supersonics jerseys may not remain part of the franchise history should a new team be established in Seattle as was the case with the return of the Charlotte Hornets, they are part of the Thunder's history today. For this article, we continue with the 34th jersey number in the series, jersey No. 34, with 17 players in total having donned the jersey in the history of the franchise. The 11th of those players did so in the Seattle SuperSonics era, forward alum Reggie Evans. After ending his college career at Iowa, Evans would go unselected in the 2002 NBA Draft. The Pensacola, Florida native would instead sign with Seattle and play parts of the first four seasons of his pro career with them, traded to the Denver Nuggets in 2006. During his time suiting up for the Sonics, Evans wore only jersey Nos. 34 and 30 and put up 4.0 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference. This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Thunder jersey history No. 34 - Reggie Evans (2002-06)
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Ryan Gerard wins the Barracuda Championship for his first PGA Tour title
TRUCKEE, Calif. (AP) — Ryan Gerard had two seven-point, birdie-eagle bursts and overcame five bogeys to win the Barracuda Championship on Sunday for his first PGA Tour victory. In breezy conditions at Tahoe Mountain Club in the only PGA Tour event that uses the modified Stableford scoring system, Gerard followed a two-point birdie with a five-point eagle on Nos. 2-3 and 10-11. The 25-year-old former North Carolina player had a 13-point round to finish with 47 points for a three-point victory over 2021 winner Erik van Rooyen of South Africa. Gerard fell short of van Rooyen's tournament record of 50 points. 'Been playing a lot of really good golf,' Gerard said. 'Felt like I haven't been quite getting the scores out of the shots that I've hit. It's been a long time being a long grind, and it's pretty cool to end up on top.' Fifth in the event two years ago, Gerard won in his 47th PGA Tour start to become the 999th winner in tour history. 'It's just like a culmination of a lifetime of work,' Gerard said. 'I can't tell you how many hours I've spent hitting golf balls dreaming of winning on the PGA Tour. Yeah, it's really special.' Played opposite the British Open, the tournament was co-sanctioned by the European tour. With the victory, Gerard received a spot in the PGA Championship next year but not the Masters. Van Rooyen had an eight-point day. He made a 20-foot eagle putt on the par-5 15th and a 30-footer for birdie on the par-4 18th. 'Mixed emotions,' van Rooyen said. 'Really happy with how I fought. Left some shots out there the last few days unfortunately with the putter, but can't expect to make everything, right? So maybe I'm a bit too hard on myself.' Todd Clements of England was third with 39 points after a 16-point round. Beau Hossler scored 17 points Sunday to tie for fourth at 37 with Max McGreevy (16) and Jacques Kruyswijk (10). Tied for the third-round lead with Rico Hoey, Gerard made a 20-foot eagle putt on the par-5 third and holed a 35-footer from the fringe on the par-5 11th. On the 11th, he hit his approach into the rough, but was allowed to take relief and move his ball to the fringe because of a sprinkler head. Gerard followed both seven-point runs with consecutive bogeys — with a point deducted for bogey — and missed a 3-footer on 16 for a three-putt bogey. The winner made a 5-foot birdie putt on 14 to get back the points he lost with the bogeys on the previous two holes. He also quickly canceled out the consecutive front-nine bogeys with a birdie on No. 7. Gerard played for the sixth straight week — a string that began with the U.S. Open and took him to Scotland last week. He was ninth and second in consecutive events in Texas in April. Hoey tied for eighth at 34 after a scoreless round. ___ AP golf:
