Actor Anthony Mackie Says Boxing Is a Joke, Bashes Klitschko Brothers

Actor Anthony Mackie, who stars in that Real Steel movie with Hugh Jackman, took some shots at the boxing industry in an interview with TooFab, and singled out Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko:

"I am so glad Ortiz headbutted Mayweather. Those two punches [Mayweather threw to knock Ortiz out] were the first two real punches I've seen in boxing in a long time. We grew up watching boxers like Mike Tyson where guys would get knocked out. When they left the match they would have towels over their heads because they were so messed up. Nowadays it doesn't even look like boxers fight. Now it's about the car you drive and going to the club after the fight. [The Mayweather KO] was a step in the right direction.

"We're not going to get the fight that we want to see, which is Mayweather versus [Manny] Pacquiao. I think it says a lot that Pacquiao won't do Olympic drug testing.

"Boxing is a joke. I'm waiting for the Klitsckhos to go away. I've never seen two worse boxers than the Klitsckho brothers. There needs to be a new Don King who will bring it back."

I don't know what fights Anthony Mackie watches -- I assume very, very few -- but as you reading this site are aware, today's boxers get plenty beaten up. Take last week's Sergio Martinez vs Darren Barker fight, where Barker left with a perforated eardrum and Martinez had his nose broken. Surely that fight would not meet the standards of Those Times That Mike Tyson Did Those Things Which I Clearly Remember And Am Not Romanticizing Whatsoever, but I'd say they earned their pay.

It's also cute that Mackie apparently roots for Mayweather but then complains about (1) fighters who don't take punishment, and (2) fighters who are concerned about fancy cars and clubbing. Like, seriously? That's 90% of Floyd Mayweather's personality.

As for his shot at the Klitschkos, well, what can you do? Lots of people don't like them. But I bet if you asked Chris Arreola or Samuel Peter if Vitali delivers enough punishment, they'd say he does. He turned both of their faces into hamburger -- they might have even put a towel over their head after the fight, the true mark of agonizing brutality!

If Anthony Mackie has never seen two boxers worse than the Klitschko brothers, I'm not sure he's seen more than four boxers and Will Smith's portrayal of Muhammad Ali.

Maybe a lot of people feel exactly like this, but a lot of people think a lot of things. A lot of people think the debate over who the all-time greatest heavyweight comes down to Ali and Tyson, and they're wrong. A lot of people think Jeff Dunham is funny, too.

As for Real Steel, it's doing better than I expected with critics. Not great, mind you, but better than I expected.