The air inside the enclosure hung heavy, thick with the pungent aroma of fresh wood shavings and the salty tang of perspiration. A low hum of hushed conversations vibrated through the audience, a sign of the mounting suspense that gripped every person in the stands. Under the burden of hundreds of spectators, the weathered timbers of the grandstand complained with low groans, acting as a protest against the weight of the onlookers stretching their necks for a better view. Beyond the walls, the a