 Shay Riley, once a heavyweight contender, lost his career years ago by throwing a fight for money. Now Shay coaches his son Benny in the ring. Shay s corner man Cyrus prepares Benny for the fights by injecting his hands with  Novacain  to give him an edge. Benny quickly becomes hooked. He breaks down and visits Cyrus who gives him a fix in the middle of the night. On the high stakes fight night, Shay withholds the drugs. Benny explodes, confronting his father for the first time in his life. Fighting exhaustion and withdrawal, Benny fights valiantly in the last fight to no avail. Shay walks silently to the gym showers to find out what remains of his broken relationship with his son.