Nasa kritikal na kondisyon si Emanuel Augustus, ang quality fighter na mas kinilala bilang clown prince sa boxing, sa Louisiana hospital makaraang barilin ito sa ulo kamakalawa.

Taglay ni Augustus, dating lumaban bilang si Emanuel Burton, ang 38-34-6 (win-loss-draw) record na may 20 knockouts sa kanyang fight career na nagsimula pa noong 1994 hanggang 2011. Wala pa ring suspects o motibo ang awtoridad sa nangyaring insidente.

Sinabi ni Floyd Mayweather, ang top pound-for-pound boxer sa mundo, na si Augustus ang nagbigay sa kanya ng matinding laban sa kanyang karera. Pinabagsak ni Mayweather si Augustus sa ikasiyam na round noong Oktubre 21, 2000 sa Cobo Hall sa Detroit.

Sa kanyang naging laban kay Miguel Cotto noong 2012, nagsalita si Mayweather sa FightHubTV at kanyang ipinagmalaki si Augustus.

“Emanuel Augustus was my toughest opponent thus far. His record didn’t show his skillset, but the guy was unbelievable,” pahayag ni Mayweather.

Para kay matchmaker Ron Katz, hindi siya makapaniwala sa nangyayari. Kilala si Augustus bilang “The DrunkenMaster” hinggil sa kanyang ikinikilos sa ring, kung saan ay tila langong gumagalaw ang katawan nito na animo’y isang lasing na tila babagsak na.

Ang antics ay bahagi lamang ng katawanang ginagawa ni Augustus, ayon kay Katz. Ikinumpara ni Katz si Augustus sa dating Harlem Globetrotters’ star.

“He was a damn good fighter,” pahayag ni Katz sa Yahoo Sports. “To me, he was the Meadowlark Lemon of boxing. He was the clown prince, but with crazy mad skills. He could entertain you and make you laugh like crazy, but if you didn’t watch out, he could put you on the seat of your pants, too. He was a good fighter and he did it the old-fashioned way. He fought good guys and he fought often.”