Oftentimes, we only hear about the winner in a battle of fistical wits in this wonderful sport we affectionately describe as the sweet science. To the victor goes the spoils. His narrative is documented, future opponents debated and place among boxing’s hierarchy accounted for. Meanwhile, the vanquished fades into obscurity until their name is called again for another bout.
Rarely, if ever, does the runner-up find himself in a better position as the one who came up short. But that doesn’t mean that his or her story is any less important.
In the case of Daniel “The Miracle Man” Jacobs, his narrow but definitive loss to the sport’s most popular and highest paid pugilist can be seen as a minor setback for an individual who was on the brink of paralysis just over a half decade ago due to osteosarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.
He’s already dealt with just about the worst that life has had to offer. So, a loss in a fight against Canelo Alvarez, where he was as much as a 4-1 underdog and certainly not the fighter the 20,203 fans at T-Mobile Arena and the 1.2 million who watched the fight on DAZN came to see, isn’t going to send him into an emotional tailspin. As a matter of fact, because of the cheers he received during his post-fight interview after entering hostile territory, Jacobs should feel mighty accomplished.
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“The journey is not over. I’ll continue to strive for success and be the best that I can be,” Jacobs said in his post-fight interview.
How did the loser of the match end up becoming a winner?
*****
Five months ago, Jacobs was in New York to attend Canelo Alvarez’s super middleweight fight against Rocky Fielding at Madison Square Garden in New York. He was coming off of a tightly contested split decision victory over former sparring partner Serhiy Derevianchenko to claim the vacant IBF middleweight title and hoped that he put himself into position to challenge Alvarez at a future date.
At that particular moment in his career, Jacobs was viewed as a high risk/low reward opponent for somebody the caliber of Alvarez. In 2017, he gave the man then known as boxing’s boogeyman, Gennadiy Golovkin, 12 rounds of hell in his decision loss. A fight with Alvarez was far from a certainty, and Jacobs knew it.
“I wouldn’t say that I’m the most avoided man in boxing, but a few guys might avoid me in the middleweight division,” Jacobs told Sporting News the day before Alvarez would stop Fielding in the third round. “A lot of guys would prefer to go the business route by getting as much as they can for the least amount of risk than to actually put everything on the line.”
He was ready to be bypassed by Alvarez and resigned to that fate in the event it came to fruition. Fortunately, Alvarez fancies himself as a man who is willing to take on all comers with the ultimate goal of being the undisputed middleweight champion of the world and accepted Jacobs’ challenge with the fight date set for Cinco De Mayo weekend.
*****
It’s Tuesday, April 30, and the fighters are scheduled to have their “Grand Arrivals” at the main lobby of the MGM Grand. This will be the first time that fans will get a chance to see and hear from the two combatants before they wage war a few days later.
Alvarez has been here before. Nearly seven years ago to the date, he participated in his first of many “Grand Arrivals” at the MGM as part of the Floyd Mayweather vs. Miguel Cotto undercard, where he was slated to face Shane Mosley. Just a year later, Alvarez went from Mayweather’s undercard to the opponent of the undefeated fighter nicknamed “Money.”
MORE: Behind the scenes with Canelo Alvarez on fight night
The fight would be the highest grossing pay per view at the time with a monster buyrate of 2.2 million homes and $150 million in PPV revenue. It would later go on to be shattered by Mayweather-Pacquiao (4.6 million buys) and Mayweather-McGregor (4.3 million buys). Nevertheless, the spotlight had never shined brighter on Alvarez as it did in previous fights while Jacobs would walk the main lobby floor as a main event fighter for the first time in his career.
He kept his cool despite being showered with jeers upon his arrival. The product from Brooklyn was keenly aware that he was entering hostile territory and was measured with his approach when he addressed the sea of Alvarez fans.
“It seems like a huge Canelo effect but I’m excited for it,” Jacobs said of the reaction. “It shows you boxing is bigger than ever, and hopefully after this fight, I can win some of these fans.”
Win some fans.
It’s something that he would repeat throughout the week. And it had far more meaning than any of us imagined.
What Jacobs saw was an opportunity. Obviously, he wanted to defeat Alvarez on his makeshift home turf, but the chance to win over fans with an exciting fight was something that was of significant interest to Jacobs.
“I want this to be one of those fights where people can talk about for years to come,” Jacobs said to a small group of reporters before the final press conference on Wednesday. “I don’t want to beat Canelo in a boring fight, I want this to be a really entertaining fight.”
There was a secondary agenda taking place and a narrative that wouldn’t be documented by reporters. Despite having an inspiring story about beating cancer, Jacobs had yet to breakthrough in the mainstream. He refused to play the villain in the build to this fight, even though he could have and possibly brought more attention to the event. However, it’s not in his character to do so and has always hoped that his work would speak for itself. However, he acknowledged his frustration of not being a star despite his exceptional record in an interview with Sporting News last year.
"Listen, it's crazy because I almost have to work twice as hard to get the amount of attention as it is for somebody who's a little lighter than me or from a different country than me, you know?" he said with a nod to Alvarez’s massive popularity. "Their people stick together. It's not that our people don't stick together, but we have so many different sports, we have hip-hop and we all have so many different things that fight for our attention. I don't blame our people, I just blame ... I don't blame anybody. It's just a frustrating thing because I'm American."
*****
It’s fight night. The area surrounding the T-Mobile Arena is flooded with fans waving Mexican flags with shirts and hats embroidered with Alvarez’s logo. What you don’t see is a single shirt or hat that says Daniel Jacobs or “The Miracle Man.” Not a single one. As a matter of fact, the vast majority of paying fans who aren’t celebrities are Latinos. It’s Cinco De Mayo, after all.
The day before, what was a respectful build turned hostile for a moment when Jacobs and Alvarez weighed in. During their final stare down, Alvarez and Jacobs pressed their foreheads together. Shoves were exchanged along with expletives.
“That motherf— right there is going to get it tomorrow,” Jacobs barked afterward. It was the first time Jacobs showed any emotion in the build toward the fight. Never was an ill word said about Alvarez nor a curse word uttered. But the emotions finally got the best of him on the eve of the biggest night in his boxing career.
You’ll have to forgive him for getting out of character. But when a fighter has been through as much as Jacobs has and a life-changing experience is at his doorstep, he’s going to get a little excited. It could be Canelo or King Kong, somebody was going to feel the wrath of Brownsville’s finest.
*****
It’s 6 p.m. and Canelo Alvarez is heading to his locker room amidst a sea of white sweatsuits with gold trim embroidering of his logo. It’s all smiles and jokes as the massive entourage piles into the dressing room.
A Golden Boy publicist mandates who is allowed to enter as the team looks to maintain a controlled environment as the $365 million man prepares for his clash with Daniel Jacobs.
In the adjacent locker room sits Jacobs. Unlike his opponent, the environment is easy to control as only his team and a few members of his family are inside. Some ’90s era New York hip hop pulsates from a speaker in the room as Jacobs gets his hands wrapped. The voice of Guru over DJ Premier production has Jacobs’ head bobbing.
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The door opens and WBO welterweight champion Terence Crawford enters with his girlfriend by his side. Jacobs — who was zoning out — peers up to see Crawford and his colorful shirt. A smile stretches across the middleweight’s face as the two exchange pleasantries. Crawford offers advice regarding Jacobs’ big moment even though he has yet to compete in as hostile of an environment as Jacobs will be walking into in the next hour or so. Nevertheless, when arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world talks, you listen.
Commotion is heard just outside Jacobs’ door. Apparently, R&B artist Usher is looking to greet Alvarez before he makes his ring walk. However, because of the swelling of people, Alvarez’s publicist is trying to figure out how to navigate the situation in order for it to not dissolve into chaos. Word spreads that other celebrities are attempting to head to Alvarez’s dressing room.
Inside, Alvarez is smiling as the sounds of mariachi and ranchera fill up the room. It’s obvious he has been here before as the relaxed vibe of his dressing room turns slightly festive. Trainer Chepo Reynoso is offering some advice while family members and children scurry about. This is nothing is new for Alvarez. He may be facing a tough opponent, but the magnitude of the situation is trivial compared to what he has dealt with before. Suffice to say, Alvarez is at home in this environment.
7:07 p.m.: Jacobs rises from his chair and begins to warm up. The 32-year-old product of Brownsville turns to a song that he routinely cites as one of his go-to anthems. The rowdy yells of Lil Fame and Billy Danze fill up the room over the volatile DR Period production.
“Brownsville, home of the brave,” the husky voice of Billy Danze rings out. “Put in work in the street like a slave.”
Jacobs wears his New York roots like a badge of honor and begins ramping up his shadowboxing.
A song about robbing people may sound crass in theory, but it’s appropriate considering that Jacobs’ goal is to pull off the ultimate theft under the bright lights of Las Vegas.
Ante Up! Yap that fool!
Ante Up! Kidnap that fool!
It's the perfect timing, you see the man shining
Get up off them god damn diamonds!
Trainer Andre Rozier stands off to the side as Jacobs twitches, feints and flicks punches in the air. As the song comes to an end, a brief smile flashes across his face. For a moment, he enjoys M.O.P.’s musical advice of using physical violence to rob Alvarez of WBA (Super), WBC, The Ring, and lineal middleweight titles. It’s not as if the red-headed Mexican is just going to hand over the titles without a fight. And Jacobs is being fueled by the sounds of the Mash Out Posse to complete this heist in front of 20,000 Alvarez fans. Yes, the attendance was officially announced as 20,203, but they all can’t be Alvarez fans. Can they?
It certainly feels like it. And if this writer is noticing, Jacobs certainly feels the hostility through the walls of the arena. Imagine the chaos caused if Jacobs won the title?
“Ante Up” ends, and the brief silence is broken by laughter and music from Alvarez’s locker room.
It’s loud.
Jacobs’ team takes notice, but the IBF champion is unfazed. Instead, he goes to his phone and shifts gears to Evelyn “Champagne” King’s 1982 single “Love Come Down.” The feel good jam of the ’80s grabs the attention of his team, and the groove drowns out the noise from the other side of the wall. Jacobs’ son Nate and longtime girlfriend, Natalie Stevens, have kept their distance on the other side of the room as Jacobs prepares for the fight.
As the room sways to the music, Jacobs looks up at the monitor to see JoJo Diaz making his way to the ring. A network producer steps in to give Jacobs an update on when his ring walk will be. Referee Tony Weeks isn’t too far behind as he offers his instructions to Jacobs and warns that the foolishness that took place at the weigh-in won’t be tolerated tonight.
Jacobs offers a nod and a wink. JoJo Diaz stops Freddy Fonseca in the seventh round. The noise from the arena tells Jacobs that fans are filing in. He starts shadowboxing again.
7:43 p.m.: Jacobs’ robe hangs in the background. The red and black pattered is adorned with his son’s name, “Nate,” who remains on the other side of the room. To this point, Jacobs hasn’t interacted with his girlfriend or his son on the biggest night of his career outside of a smile here and there. Jacobs has said in the past that he doesn’t want to put himself in a situation where his emotions take hold before a fight. He pushes thoughts of his late grandmother, cancer and his family as far to the back of his mind as he can so he can focus only on the task at hand.
But this is a life-changing moment for the Jacobs clan. Win or lose, “The Miracle Man” will leave Las Vegas with a purse that is rumored to hover somewhere around $13 million, which nearly eclipses his career earnings. Well, minus almost a million dollars because of being fined $250,000 per pound that he came in over the 170-pound limit, which was part of a hydration clause. Nevertheless, a record setting payday.
This is all in one night. Thirty-six minutes of action and the future of Nathaniel Jacobs is set.
Maybe that’s why Jacobs finally waltzes across the room to kiss his girlfriend. Nate follows his father to a chair, and the two share a moment. The father smiles at his son, dressed in a plaid blazer and shorts with a pair of loafers. He knows that everything will change after tonight. Of course, he wants to win, but one can argue that he should have never made it this far after being on the verge of paralysis a half decade ago.
The mariachi music ceases across the hall. It’s almost time. The sounds of Mtume’s “Juicy Fruit” fills up the room. Nate goes back to meet his mother. Daniel exchanges pounds and hugs with his team and friends. A producer advises that everyone not associated with Team Jacobs needs to exit the room before the national anthem. On the monitor, Vergil Ortiz Jr. violently stops Mauricio Herrera in the third round of the co-main event.
It’s time. Perhaps sooner than expected because of Herrera’s history of durability. But Ortiz’s abrupt finish closes that chapter, and now Jacobs must prepare for war. The Miracle Man walks back to his family and offers some final words. They take a picture together. He pulls a T-shirt with an animated image of himself over his head. The robe has disappeared from the hanger and is being slid over the New Yorker’s body. The wait is over and the fight is on.
8:56 p.m: It takes nearly an hour between the ring walks, anthems and introductions. The Jacobs family is seated ringside while both combatants are in the ring getting their final instructions from the referee. The fans have bubbled over with excitement. Jacobs and Alvarez are in their opposite corners.
The bell rings.
9:52 p.m.: After 12 closely contested rounds, it is announced that Canelo Alvarez has defeated Daniel Jacobs by unanimous decision with scores of 115-113, 115-113 and 116-112. It’s close, but not controversial. Jacobs struggled early trying to use his height and reach but was unable to find his target as Alvarez surprised his opponent with his early aggression and deft upper body movement.
After Alvarez raced off to a fast start, Jacobs began to claw his way back into the fight. The chants of “Mexico! Mexico!” weren’t as loud in the seventh round as they were in the second as a Jacobs left hand caught Alvarez clean and changed the dynamics of the fight.
A fierce exchange brought a rise from the crowd in the eighth round as some fans began to turn on Alvarez. A few cheers turned to boos for Alvarez while a smattering of cheers grew louder and louder for Jacobs as he landed with more frequency and brought the fight to the Mexican hero.
“Win some fans.”
In the ninth round, Jacobs ramped up the activity and clobbered Alvarez with a pair of huge left hands that would have sent most light heavyweights crashing to the canvas. Once again, the boos heard earlier had turned to cheers. Rather than lose a tactical fight, Jacobs was winning over the hearts of fans by engaging in a war and satiating their bloodlust. The 10th round saw The Miracle Man officially put himself back in the fight with an exciting sequence where he unloaded some heavy artillery on Alvarez that had T-Mobile Arena rocking.
Unfortunately, it was too little, too late. Alvarez had secured enough of the early rounds to win the fight and add Jacobs’ IBF title to his collection. But when the decision was read, Jacobs didn’t hang his head in disgust. He took it like a champion who knew that he came up short. Interestingly enough, during his post-fight interview, he noticed the cheering crowd showering him with appreciation.
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He may have lost the fight, but he won his quest for respect against the biggest star in the sport and the world took notice of Daniel “The Miracle Man” Jacobs. The 1.2 million subscribers on DAZN figured out that Jacobs was a bad man and will likely tune in when he fights again. As with cancer, Jacobs learned that not every loss is debilitating, and nothing will keep him on the proverbial canvas forever. Some shortcomings are a set up to bounce back. Perhaps, more important than anything else, is what Nate thought of his father’s performance.
"I asked him, 'Do you think Daddy did a good job?' He said, 'Yes, Dad, you did a great job.' That's all that matters to me," Jacobs said. "I'll go home and be the best I can be."
The bumps and heartbreak will go away, but he’ll leave Las Vegas with the love of his family, the respect of his fans and a few million in his bank account.
Did he really lose?
