Universal Sport

Readers, writers, and critics alike look forward to each new collection of Thomas Hauser's articles about today's boxing scene. Reviewing these books, Booklist has proclaimed, "e;Many journalists have written fine boxing pieces, but none has written as extensively or as memorably as Thomas Hauser. . . . Hauser remains the current champion of boxing. . . . He is a treasure."e; Hauser's newest collection meets this high standard. The Universal Sport features Hauser's coverage of 2021 and 2022 in boxing. As always, Hauser chronicles the big fights and gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at boxing's biggest stars. He offers a cogent look the rise of women's boxing and shines a penetrating light on the murky world of illegal performance enhancing drugs and financial corruption at the sport's highest levels. He explores how boxing has become a tool in the high-stakes world of "e;sportswashing"e; by Saudi Arabia and a flash point for discussions about Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine. The book culminates in a memorable four-part essay on the craft of writing coupled with reflections on Hauser's own induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.