No other sport divides opinions like boxing does. Some call it the highest art, a distillation of the human struggle for survival, while others see it as a brutal brawl and a shady business. For a select few, boxing is the ticket out of poverty and humiliation to fame and wealth; for others, it’s a trip without drugs; for many, it’s just a regular job. Countless artists of all kinds have long succumbed to the magical allure of the brightly lit ring, where two people demand everything their bodies, hearts, and souls have to offer. Few things reveal more about the state of a society than the reporting from the boxing ring. Boxing is, as the author experienced firsthand, the most intense form of entertainment that two people can engage in. One reason: because my first fight taught me how to deal with my fear.