Via Allan Fox: Caleb Plant was allowed to box with a full beard appearing to lengthen his head during last Saturday night’s fight with Anthony Dirrell in New York.
Like this writer, Teddy Atlas wondered why the New York committee didn’t say something about the length of the beard of former super-middleweight champion IBF Plant, as it appeared to be at least three inches long or possibly longer.
As Atlas pointed out, having a long beard can be a problem for the opponent if they get cut and the fighter rubs their shaggy hair on the wound, making it worse.
It’s possible to have such a long beard for a boxing match capable of buffering shots to fight but also throw the opponent away from the actual target.
If the opponent aimed their punches at the opponent’s chin, they could miss the target and only hit the beard due to its length.
Atlas was surprised that Plant (22-1, 13 KOs) was not asked to trim his beard because he said that in the old days, boxers wouldn’t be able to have that much facial hair.
If your Dirrell, it’s not a good thing to try to aim his punches at Plant’s billy goat brusqueness because he won’t know where his chin ends and the real beard begin.
Dirrell doesn’t complain about it, but maybe he should because Plant’s beard makes him look like one of the actors from the old Duck Dynasty show.
If roses aren’t going to do anything about boxers fighting while growing beards, they should at least put a limit on the length. It would be troublesome if a boxer entered the ring with a beard that reached his navel.
“I don’t think commissions do their job anymore. Once upon a time, there were rules, there were standards,” said Teddy Atlas The struggletalked about Caleb Plant being allowed to fight Anthony Dirrell with a long beard last Saturday.
“I’m looking at the beard on Plant, and I’m not saying it has any effect on the fight. It didn’t. But it’s two or three inches thick.
“Dirrell has one too, but it’s not as thick. I’m saying, ‘Wait a minute. There used to be a rule, a real rule in real commission states, where you couldn’t have that. What happened to those rules?
“I have to say it because I wonder if there are any other fans out there watching the game and they’re thinking, ‘Yeah, that beard is crazy. I was wondering why is it allowed?‘
“I guess everything is allowed now. That is part of the problem. When you allow everything, then what’s wrong? What is not allowed anymore?
“What I’m doing is going back to the old days; you can’t have a big beard. The committee, the day before the scales, would say, ‘Hey, you have to shave that, and if you don’t shave that and you come back to the locker room with that beard, we’ll give you a razor, and you will shave it before being allowed into the ring. ‘
“There is a certain length. I’m not sure if it’s an inch or not; no matter what you can’t grow too much. Why? For a few reasons. It can cushion the punch a bitCan and blow cushion.
“Maybe some fighters do it for that reason. Maybe they just do it because they like to grow beards. Also, in the old days, if a guy was cut and you went inside with him, you can use your beard to sharpen that cut a bit.
“I know it sounds weird, but it’s hard work, people. So they would be limited to beards, but for now there is no limit to anything.
“You can’t wear a hat in the corner. No regulations. There used to be a code of conduct. It used to be treated like a pro in the corner. The fighters are doing something dangerous. Everyone else should behave professionally in such a tough sport where everything is respected.
“Part of that level of respect has to be the code of conduct in how you professionally conduct yourself in the dark. It’s like anything is allowed,” Atlas said.
