Ray "Boom, Boom" Mancini and Regret

All of us have experiences in our life that we wish we could do over. We wish that we could receive a mulligan to replay a decision or an event and come out with a totally different outcome. Things happen to us and we do things that can be quite painful, that can haunt us forever. When I was a kid, my Dad used to be a big fight fan. I remember watching Larry Holmes in the heavyweights and Sugar Ray Leonard. Back then, big fights were actually on television instead of on pay per view like they are now. One of my Dad's favorite fighters was Ray 'Boom, Boom' Mancini. He was a tough kid from Pennsylvania who seemed to be a throwback to fighters from the 50's when my Dad was growing up. I was 7 or 8 years old, but I liked him as well.

Then, I just kind of remember him disappearing. I didn't know why, but in the mind of an 8 year old, you are really only thinking about what is going on right in front of you at the time. My sports heroes were players for the New Orleans Saints or the LSU Tigers. I forgot about 'Boom, Boom.' Until this past weekend. I saw a special on him on ESPN and learned about how he was a man of deep faith from the steel mills of Allentown, Pennsylvania. I learned that his father was a fighter before World War II and that his brother was accidently shot by his girlfriend when Ray was only 18. I learned about how he left Pennsylvania and went to New York City to become a great fighter. And, I found out why he disappeared from my 8 year old memory.  Ray Mancini accidentally killed Duk Koo Kim in the ring on November 13, 1982, and it shattered him and effectively ended his career. He was never the same fighter again.

I ran across a moving article on the subject by Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports called Mancini and Kim Forever Linked.   If you find sports interesting as a metaphor for life, I highly recommend it as a great read. As I read the article, I couldn't help but think about how our past can so radically affect our future, even when we are trying to do the right thing. It seems that Ray Mancini has moved on to live a productive life even though he was never the same fighter, but others involved in the fight were destroyed by it.  Significant tragedies have a way of scarring us to the point that we can become immobilized by fear, by guilt, or by the questions of what could have been. For the Christian, we suffer the same agony. Yet, there is hope in that we know that we are not defined by our past. Even when tragedy occurs, whether it is our fault or not, there is always hope for the future because God remains on the Throne. He is the God of Hope and He can intervene even in the midst of horrible situations - even situations that we feel responsible for.

Ray Mancini is a good man and the regret over what happened is part of what makes him human. No one would ever say that it was his fault. The death of a promising young person is always a tragedy, but a concurrent tragedy takes place in the lives of those around the person who constantly ask themselves "what if" questions. I have seen this pain and these questions in the minds of parents who lost children to drugs or alcohol or just to a freak accident on a dark road. What could have been? In our own lives, we often have to make a conscious decision to give our pain over to Jesus who went to the Cross to bear our pain, our suffering, and also our sin. Holding onto it, while feeling natural, does not change anything. It does not reverse the event. Own it, grieve over what took place, feel the remorse, and then lay it down before the Lord who takes our pain. These things will not be forgotten and will often color the rest of our lives, but they do not have to cripple us. God is still there.  

Comments

[Gregory Teal]

That is a great story, sad, but good.
Awesome book list!

[Charles]

Alan,

I remember the look on Ray Mancini face after the fight. He was devastated. He has a big heart and was truly crushed to think that he killed a man in the ring.

[deborah grady]

Ray Mancini is from Youngstown , Ohio, not PA.

[Dave]

Most people don't know it, but Kim's mother flew in from Korea while he was in the coma.. she was with him when he died.. a month later, she committed suicide.. drinking insect poison..

not only that, but the referee was consumed by guilt for letting the fight go on, and HE killed himself later.

So much death, sadness, suffering.. Mancini is a strong and faithful guy just to be able to function today.. I see him calling fights on TV and am glad he's still involved..

[Anthony]

Hey good article but I am from Youngstown Ohio and Boom boom was one of our great champs like kelly Pavlik is now just figured you would like to know thanks bud