I just watched a video of the brawl, and it seemed like so many other baseball fights to me. Not that much in the way of punches, mostly a bit of grappling and then it's over.
Padding can suck, football fights are generally ridiculous. However, hockey has had the best fights of the major sports, and they wear a good deal of padding.
A couple of the big fights between the Wings and Avalanche back in the day when Roy was goalie for the Avs were great. Goalies skating at each other to meet in center ice and fight is just a fun thing to watch.