Ben was outside of the cage, taking off his red gloves and headgear. As soon as he slid the soft headgear off his face, he took a deep gulp of air, still exhausted as sweat dripped down his hair and face. He was unsure if he should be happy or disappointed with his results today.
By the end of the sparring match, he still couldn't land any punches on his opponent. However, Ben wasn't without accomplishments. He avoided getting hit as well. Having learned to utilize his Body Language Reading, Ben became better at dodging at a rapid face. It was an improvement, though an embarrassing one.
Ricardo was also not sure whether he should congratulate Ben or scold him, so the old coach spoke from his heart. "Listen, don't worry about all that stuff I said about the waiver. I just wanted you to know you had no way out to get you to fight hard. There's an old military saying: 'To get your army to defend to the last man, burn the ships behind them.' You understand?"
