As her term as ASUO vice president rushes to a close, Joy Nair is ready to let out some steam and kick some ass.
Today, in front of the expected 2,000 screaming fans, she will get her chance. Nair is one of the 30 contestants in the Smoker, an annual amateur boxing event held in McArthur Court where wannabe student pugilists enter the ring and punch each other in the name of charity.
“I’m so ready, it’s the only thing on my mind,” Nair said.
The Smoker will consist of nine matches between men and six matches between women boxers. Because the event is not sanctioned as a tournament, each boxer will fight in only one match.
The event, sponsored by the Interfraternity Council and Panhellenic Council, is a fundraiser for the Lane County YMCA Big Brothers/Big Sisters program. Tickets can be purchased at the EMU ticket office for $6 or bought at the door for $8. Doors will open at 5 p.m., and the fights will get under way at 6 p.m.
Last year’s event raised $3,000, but IFC Vice President of Programs and Community Service Todd Brink said he hopes to bring in at least $10,000.
Many boxers admit they have never boxed before and are strictly doing it for the spirit of charity. However, with ring names like “Bizzel fo’ shizzel,” “Chewy” and Nair’s own moniker, the “Fijian Fighter,” today’s matches could recreate the spirit of the great Muhammad Ali and George Foreman fights of the past.
“I’ve wanted to do this for the past two years,” junior Phillip Lopez said. Lopez said he is most excited about boxing in front of the screaming fans at Mac Court.
“That’s pretty exciting, as opposed to (boxing) in the backyard,” he said.
However, some boxers admit they just want to kick some butt.
“I like hitting people,” sophomore Kasche Brooks said. “I have quite a bit of experience. I have quite a few brothers.”
Many of the boxers have been working out, sparring with one another trying to prepare for their matches. Rory Baarsted, a coach at West Eugene Boxing Club, has been helping the boxers train and prepare for their fight.
Each fight will consist of three one-minute rounds separated by a one-minute rest period. Each boxer will wear head gear and a mouthpiece and use 12-ounce gloves, which is normal weight for boxers more than 156 pounds.

Baarsted said no matter the weight class, 12-ounce gloves pack a lot of punch.
“They’re going to feel it,” he said.
The event will be scored by three judges, and a referee will officiate each match. Each boxer will also have a coach in his or her corner.
Brink said the judges are sanctioned by USA Boxing and will be judging matches the same as any amateur boxing event. The judges will look for clear violations, such as hitting below the belt or to the back of the head. They will count each legal hit as a point, and in case there is no knockout, the boxer with the most points will win, Brink said.
Doctors will give each contestant a pre- and post-fight physical exam, and emergency medical technicians and ambulances will be standing by, Brink said.
While the ambulance is the last thing on most boxers’ minds, veterans of last year’s fight said the fight is much more strenuous and stressful than it sounds.
The 1-minute rounds “are definitely longer than they sound,” senior Jacob Hale said. “You go in there with everything — the continuous punching, constantly moving around.”
Hale said he fatigued during last year’s event because he was nervous and underestimated the length of the rounds. This year, he’ll approach the fight differently.
Junior Mike Weston, another veteran of last year’s event, said he will also approach his match differently. After watching a tape of last year’s bout, which he called “my first fight since second grade,” he will try to adhere more to boxing fundamentals.
Last year, “I was sloppy,” he said. “You always have to exhale when you punch. If you don’t, you get too tired.”
Nair has been training with a collegiate boxer and said she now understands that the mental aspects of boxing are just as important as the physical. However, no matter how hard rookie boxers train and spar — or watch Rocky movies — nothing can successfully recreate the pressure of the ring.
Senior Jamey Skeele said she has an escape plan.
“If worse comes to worse, I can always lay down and say ‘I give up,’” she said.