A few years ago, I read an insightful article on why Russians dominate heavyweight boxing. Obvious answer is that they're hungrier than American boxers. But, why?

Seems that every American teenager who's physically big and reasonably athletic is being steered into baseball, hockey and other sports that previously didn't require you to be big. Reason: people want records to be broken, and big guys = new records. Explains why steroid use is rampant. Also explains why they don't go into boxing. Only the champs and a few top contenders make any money; and even the top guys get the piss beaten out of them. But, you don't have to be an absolute top guy to play on a team; you can have a long career and make plenty of money, and you can retire with your brains intact.