Why all the hate for Larry Merchant?

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He has been a staple of boxing broadcasts for years with HBO. Larry Merchant is 79 years old and has slowed down, but is he that awful on the broadcasts?

Merchant joined Yahoo! Sports and ESPNRadio1100 during our Manny Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton postfight show and did a nice spot. He made salient points about Pacman's place in history and what could be next against Floyd Mayweather Jr.

For some reason, Gawker.com decided to unload on Merchant after viewing the fight. Joshua Stein was livid with the boxing analyst:

"If anyone watched the Hatton v. Pacquio fight last night, the biggest loser wasn’t Ricky Hatton. It was Larry Merchant, the lipid eyed drunkard whose inane commentary damages more brains than Pacquio’s right hook."

The Sports Pig points out that Stein also called Merchant "tuxedoed stooge," "boxing’s old joke," and a "drunk [expletive]."

The Pig defends Merchant nicely:

However, it’s ridiculous to assert or even imply that Larry Merchant is drunk on-the-air with HBO. However, he is 79-years-old. HBO has brought in Max Kellerman to pick up some of the load from Merchant but, since they’re only doing THREE pay-per-view events this year, it begs the question. Isn’t Larry Merchant semi-retired already?

I don't understand all the hate. Merchant's pacing is slow but he's still in a different league versus Max Kellerman. If you don't believe me, watch Steve Bunce explain why. This fan thought that Kellerman's on-air essay sucked after the Juan Diaz-Juan Manuel Marquez fight.

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13 Comments

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1. Posted by Nutcracker Mon May 04, 2009 6:25 pm EDT
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I think Merhcant and Lampley need to go. Merchant may be salient in an interview with you, but on the HBO telecasts he is too slow and gets too cute. Lampley, after all the boxing he has seen really doesn't know the sport. He reminds me of Goldy on the UFC broadcasts sort of reaching and then saying, "Right Joe"??..
Only Steward seemed up to par on the telecast, giving some good insights and opinions on fighters and their abilities. HBO Boxing PPV needs a facelift. Not necessarily Kellerman. Lampley and Merchant are trite and annoying. Steve, send in your resume. Maybe you can get a real gig covering real fighters...
2. Posted by SouthCal21 Mon May 04, 2009 6:50 pm EDT
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maybe they could get Chuck, i mean, with all of the stand up skill he has that i keep hearing about.....i could have seen Chuck this past weekend...."Wow, that was the same left hook that floored me in my last fight with Rua, except with twice the power, ten times the speed, and perfect mechanics. That island boy has got some pop!!!"...good thing he wasnt wearing those MMA gloves or hatton's head would have been in Jeremy Piven's lap.....
3. Posted by leif Mon May 04, 2009 10:02 pm EDT
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larry merchant is a big racist
4. Posted by MR.MVP Mon May 04, 2009 10:03 pm EDT
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Cofield it is called Ageism it is very common in the “Land of the Free”!!! He no longer belongs to the elite group... Merchant had his advantages until he got old, he is a Male and White but no longer young!!! This due to beliefs, attitudes, norms, and values used to justify age based prejudice and discrimination!!!! This is casual and systematic!!!! I don't see anything wrong with the man, but other emphatically due!!!!!!
5. Posted by Nutcracker Mon May 04, 2009 10:11 pm EDT
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I dont mind his age mvp. i just think his opinions are kind of flippant and he comes off as smug and takes longer than ketchup to come out with a sentence. i dont know if he is a racist as said above. i never heard that one before. he is covering the wrong sport if he is.
6. Posted by Irish Bastard Mon May 04, 2009 10:53 pm EDT
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Merchant is a complete brain dead old man who has the attention span of a 2 year old.
go back to the home merchant your a idiot .....like a old boxer your time is up ...your so called whitty words are not whitty ...... your a old j-az merchant .
7. Posted by Farthammer Tue May 05, 2009 12:15 am EDT
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Merchant is hammered while Lampley is busy beating his ex right now.
8. Posted by Alvin Robertson Tue May 05, 2009 1:58 am EDT
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Larry Merchant is a legend.
9. Posted by Parrot Tue May 05, 2009 4:12 am EDT
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Merchant takes about half an hour to string a sentence together, he should of retired 14 years ago!
10. Posted by J W Tue May 05, 2009 9:55 am EDT
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I hope Merchant stays for a very long time. The team of Lampley, Merchant, and Steward is phenomenal. Larry Merchant asks tough questions, won't back down from a confrontation, and offers a historical perspective that no other announcer can provide.
Kellerman tries to steal the show. Go back and listen to his commentary during Cotto vs Margarito. Intentional or not, it seems like every statement he makes has to be absolute. No other explanation or reason is plausible. Furthermore, his outbursts usually don't fit in with the broadcast. He's too calm in exciting moments and too melodramatic during less-meaningful moments. It's sad when I watched Gus Johnson on Showtime and thought his work was comparable to Kellerman.
11. Posted by Amboy Thu May 07, 2009 1:43 pm EDT
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I believe that Larry Merchant is doing his job well. He might be slower now in terms of delivering his words than before but I find him always truthful in his thoughts. He should keep doing what he loves to do as long as he pleases.
12. Posted by Mr.Brooks Fri May 08, 2009 9:39 pm EDT
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So..........july is really merchant online
13. Posted by missoctober_64 Sat Jul 25, 2009 4:36 am EDT
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I LOVE LARRY MERCHANT! So what if he drinks? If my talent took me to see professional boxing matches....for free.....comment round by round about the fight, interview boxers who did not deserve the win, and on national television tell them that their dirty fighter tactics is what they used to win and try to have them admit it , saying things that some of wish we could say to the fighters, rub shoulders with De La Hoya and probably have breakfast with him, then you are there! The only thing that could top that off would be an ice cold beer while being on HBO live...being Larry Merchant. Thank you Larry Merchant!