Heaven & Hell

The boxing gym is one of the most spiritual places I have ever been. Heaven and Hell converge. The gym is the savior, it is the place you pay for your sins, you let your demons out on that bag, you sweat out the pain, you bleed, you cleanse yourself. The gym keeps you honest. You walk out of that gym a different man than when you walked in. Boxing can save you. If you give yourself to the sport, it will set you free. Boxing isn't a rich kid sport. The grittiness and blue collar heart are some of the defining elements of boxing. Countless boxers share a similar story: if it wasn't for boxing they would be dead or in jail. While their friends were out getting in trouble they were in the gym or out in the streets doing their roadwork. There is a constant tension, a duality that exists at all levels in boxing. Here, purity and the richness of spirit and heart go hand and hand with scandal, crime and exploitation.