Fierce Pets: Fighters and Their Companions
Boxers fight in the ring, endure long and monotonous training, and lack social life, which is a common feeling for many boxers. To fill the emotional void, a significant portion of fighters have chosen to keep pets.
Historically, the most famous boxer pet is the white tiger raised by heavyweight boxing champion 'Iron Man' Mike Tyson. When Tyson was young, he was imposing and radiant, like the sun; only a tiger like a pet could match his domineering and kingly image. However, raising a tiger is ultimately unsafe. Besides the high cost, as tigers grow larger, they pose a threat to their owners and family members. Now in his 50s, Tyson has taken off the mask of 'Iron Man' and become a kind and amiable old man with a white beard. His pet has also become a huge white dog. On social media, Tyson posted a photo with his new best friend, writing: 'New best buddy'. The image gives off a feeling of 'simple and true'.
For Asian boxers, petite and cute pets are more popular. ONE featherweight champion Koto Hiroki, nicknamed 'Crazy Rabbit,' is known for his aggressive fighting style. When asked about the origin of this nickname, Koto Hiroki smiled and said, 'Because I fight crazy, and I like rabbits, I raised a pet rabbit called Gumi-chan.'
'Shadow Cat' Ginaலின்- walks onto the ring with cute cat ears, and her petite appearance and cat ear emblem are immediately recognized by many fans. On the ring, Radzan is agile and nimble, like a cat in battle. Under the ring, Ginaலின்- is a standard 'cat owner,' not only does she like cats, but her job is to be a pet clinic nurse. Because she is inseparable from her pet, she was even called 'Shadow Cat' by her coach during training. When not training, Radzan's favorite thing to do is watch TV while playing with her cat.
ONE atomweight world champion 'Unstoppable' Li Shengzhu is also a pet lover. Recently, she shared photos of her pet dog on social media, but she wasn't walking her dog, but instead brought it to the gym and put a jiu-jitsu black belt on it, along with veteran Carlos Fajardo for a 'private dog jiu-jitsu class', playing with it.
Everyone knows that Li Shengzhu is a ground grappling master, but her husband Carlos Fajardo has a deeper understanding of jiu-jitsu, and he once won two Brazilian jiu-jitsu No-Gi World Championships. Now the two jiu-jitsu masters want to transform their pets into 'jitsu dogs' too. When they train with their dogs, netizens jokingly say: 'This is while training the pet dog, while bullying a single dog.'
Through pets, boxing fans see the soft and warm side of boxers. They have tough fists, but also a gentle heart. This is the true definition of a strong person.
