SHANE. I believe my experience in mentally preparing for fights has kept me from being nervous in the days which precede a fight. The length of time I have been boxing certainly comes into play as does my undefeated title. Not being defeated builds a level of confidence a new opponent doesn’t easily diminish – at least not by merely challenging me to a fight. To me, fighting is a part of my life no differently than going to church is to some people.

Something about this fight was different. I wanted this win for other reasons; and my deep desire for the win was causing me to second guess my ability. Without a doubt, Tyson Brock was a fighter who would present far more of a challenge to me than any opponent I faced in my entire career. The difference between him and everyone else I had fought was the difference between a backyard baseball game and the World Series. Although I would never admit it publicly, simply completing this particular fight would be a tremendous feat for me.

I felt if I would happen to win the fight my life would be in order for as long as Kace, our children and I would ever live. Through endorsements and prize money, Kelsey said I could expect between 50 and 100 million dollars before it was all over. Secretly, I wanted to retire undefeated and live a quiet life at home raising my children and acting as the husband and father I’ve always wanted to become.

In this fight, I’d need to dig deeper and find an inner strength to fuel me. In the past, the demons inside of me fueled me to step into the ring and fight. My talent in fighting allowed me to stand the successor in the end. Fighting Brock would be so much different for many reasons. I no longer felt the deep inner demons, nor did I truly believe I was a more talented fighter than he was. From a strength standpoint, although I was in better physical condition than I had ever been, he was certainly fractionally stronger.

Ultimately, I wanted to win.

But.

I wanted to be a father even more.

KACE. Pride. For me to accurately explain how proud I was of Shane for making it to this level in his career would be nothing short of impossible. I have overheard him talking to Ripp, A-Train and even Kelsey expressing his concerns regarding his performance in this fight. Tick-Tock Brock is far more of a savage fighter than Shane from what little I have read. Brock is supposed to be a brawler, and Shane is a boxer. By everyone’s description, this is to be a mismatch.

I’m proud he has made it to this point. The fact he is here fighting for the Heavyweight Championship of the World is enough for me. The support of all of Alec’s friends has made my day far more pleasurable. They’ve helped take my nervousness and turn it into a newfound excitement. Because Shane is the challenger, we all have special seats at the front of the ring, they call these seats ringside seats. Ripp says it’s a big deal. I’m excited because Casey will probably be seen by millions of people on television.

Ripp’s parents, Ripp, Vee, Jessie, A-Train, Manda, Katie, Austin, and all of A-Train’s friends who came to support Ripp in court had come as well – Kelli, Erik, Kelli’s father, Teddy, Heather, and some guy they call Bunny. Having this big crowd to support Shane throughout the fight made me happy. Win or lose, in the end, Shane would be a winner. With Casey held high in the air above my head, we all cheered as Shane came down the aisle toward the ring. Joe and Kelsey proudly followed, one in front and one behind him.

I was on pins and needles, now sitting between Kelli and Vee. No matter who won, this fight needed to end quickly. The people, the cameras, and all of the commotion was far more than I would have ever imagined. My heart was racing no differently than if I was the one stepping into the ring.

As the announcer spoke into the microphone, the sound echoed throughout the entire arena.

“The challenger, in the blue corner, with a career record of 52 and 0, and a professional record of 13 and 0, weighing in at two hundred twenty seven pounds, Shane…Shame…On…Deeeeekkaaaaar.”

When the crowd cheered for Shane, it was incredible – thousands of people were screaming his name. The sound was nothing short of deafening and it felt so good to have all of these people behind him.

“And the champion, in the red corner,” when the announcer paused, the crowd went absolutely wild. The amount of noise they made for Tick-Tock Brock was twice what they made for Shane.

“With a professional record of 17 and 0, weighing in at two hundred thirty six pounds…” the announcer paused again.

“Tyson…Tick-Tock…BaaaahRocckkkk.”

The crowd went insane. I began to feel bad for Shane, considering the difference in the amount of cheering the crowd did for the champion. I guess Brock is the champion after all. If Shane was champion, I’d want people to cheer for him just as much.

Come on Shane, keep your head up. These people love you.

The referee talked to the fighters, and they went to their corners. In a minute, the bell rang and the fight began. Most of Shane’s fights are a challenge of two talented men, fighting in a boxing match where they have to study each other, and find an opening – a mistake in the other fighters prediction of what is going to happen – and take advantage of it.

This fight was nothing like that.

As soon as the bell rang, Tick-Tock rushed toward Shane and began swinging wildly. He hit Shane in the shoulder so hard he almost knocked him over. Another wild punch caught Shane in the face and caused him to attempt to cover up his face with his forearms and hands. During the cover up and attempted recovery for Shane, Brock hit him no less than thirty times.

It was as if Shane got off to a bad start and wasn’t going to have time or an opportunity to recover.

At the beginning of the fight, we all screamed for Shane. As the round continued, the yelling turned into people wincing and covering their mouths as Shane was hit once again by Brock’s powerful right hand. Shane did get a few good punches in, and the crowd cheered wildly, but those counter attacks were short lived and more of a defensive tactic for Shane.

As the round came to a close, I knew I didn’t want to hear what everyone had to say. I kind of hoped this would just end and we could go home.

When Shane walked to the corner, Kelsey began to scream, and I felt as if I was going to be sick. I needed to be strong for Shane so I sat up in my seat, propped Casey up by my chest, smiled and waved.

And said a silent prayer.

God, please let him make it out of this fight alive.