Boxing News Thread

[dali]

^^Thanks for the response. I don't really follow boxing like that, i just wish the heavy weight division would become more interesting again..cause those guys are supposed to be the best at what they do right? I mean, if you're the heavy weight champion of the world and got every belt possible, you're practically the best boxer in the world, cause i doubt anyone weighing much less/being smaller could beat the heavy weight champion?!

I also just read that Vitali won 4 of the 6 rounds against Lennox (even was like 8:1 against Byrd), before the fight was stopped, because of lacerations in the face on Vitalis part, so he possibly could have won that fight, if it wasn't for the blood gettin into his eyes. He was supposedly also in the lead against Chris Byrd, before he had to quit due to a tendon fracture (sp?) in his shoulder...so it's not like he was dominated in the fights he lost, right? At least he never ducked any fighter, as far as i know?!

 

[dali]

Heavy Weight division needs another Tyson quick. They need a new bad boy, who doesn't only talk shit, but can throw some heavy punches, too. Klitschkos are way too calm and level headed. I watched the fight against Chambers and Klitschko was lucky to get the KO in the last round..it was quite boring, i must say. Klitschkos face didn't even have any bruises.
Too bad the brothers are never gonna fight each other, now THAT would be an interesting fight to watch.

 

[2-0-Sixx]

^^Thanks for the response. I don't really follow boxing like that, i just wish the heavy weight division would become more interesting again..cause those guys are supposed to be the best at what they do right? I mean, if you're the heavy weight champion of the world and got every belt possible, you're practically the best boxer in the world, cause i doubt anyone weighing much less/being smaller could beat the heavy weight champion?!

Well that's why they have the term "pound 4 pound" greatest fighter. Right now, Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather are called the best fighters in the world, pound for pound.

And I'm not too concerned with the heavyweights not being that interesting right now because honestly I've always liked the smaller guys. Like welterweight to middleweight is perfect because you get the both of best worlds (guys with power & speed). Think of Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Tommy Hearns, Roberto Duran, these guys were the golden era of boxing in many people's opinions and they were all welterweight to middleweights. I think the smaller guys have always been more interesting than the heavyweights. Even when Tyson was in his prime it was really just him people were interested in (then holyfield). The greatest boxer of all time is universally recognized as Sugar Ray Robinson and he was, a welterweight & a middleweight.

I also just read that Vitali won 4 of the 6 rounds against Lennox (even was like 8:1 against Byrd), before the fight was stopped, because of lacerations in the face on Vitalis part, so he possibly could have won that fight, if it wasn't for the blood gettin into his eyes.

You never saw the fight? If not, do yourself a favor and watch it, GREAT fight.

I don't know if Vitali would have won, he was winning imo but lennox started to really land some serious shots before the fight ended due to cuts. I'm not so sure which way it would have went.

He was supposedly also in the lead against Chris Byrd, before he had to quit due to a tendon fracture (sp?) in his shoulder...so it's not like he was dominated in the fights he lost, right? At least he never ducked any fighter, as far as i know?!

Yeah that's right, Vitali broke is shoulder or something like that and quit. But he was winning. Vitali also has the highest KO percentage in the history of heavyweight boxing. Again though, the only negative thing is his resume isn't as great as a lot of the other all time greats, and it's not his fault but the HW era has been pretty weak.

 

[2-0-Sixx]

Heavy Weight division needs another Tyson quick. They need a new bad boy, who doesn't only talk shit, but can throw some heavy punches, too. Klitschkos are way too calm and level headed. I watched the fight against Chambers and Klitschko was lucky to get the KO in the last round..it was quite boring, i must say. Klitschkos face didn't even have any bruises.
Too bad the brothers are never gonna fight each other, now THAT would be an interesting fight to watch.

yeah that's part of the reason the klitscho's aren't too popular here, most people don't find their fights too interesting.

Wlad Klitschko really fucked up his chances of becoming a star in america when he fought Sultan Ibragimov. It was promoted pretty well and it was on HBO and it was hyped because it was the first heavyweight unification bout in years and it was a complete stinker. Wlad jabbing for 12 rounds. A lot of people were turned off by that, myself included. They are what they are though and as long as the Germans and other parts of Europe love them they will never change, nor should they. They are great at what they do and their style of fighting is very hard to beat and it's smart. American's just like more action when it comes to heavyweights, they want knockouts, and spectacular ones at that. If they want to see someone jab and pot shot for 12 rounds they will tune in to see floyd mayweather.

 

[dali]

It's a damn shame most people in Germany (at least the general public) don't even know about Pac and Mayweather. Hell, I wouldn't know about them if it wasn't for the siccness. I guess it's because they haven't fought any Germans, or boxers the German public likes to claim (like Abraham, who was born in Armenia, i think). It's also a shame they don't show Pacman or Mayweather fights here. We do have pay per view channels, but it's not like you can pay a one time fee and watch a particular fight, you have to buy like a private channel for an entire year to even keep up with the American boxing scene.

I will try to check out the fight against Lennox, i don't think i'Ve seen it completely. Also im wondering do any of you know about Max Schmeling (Heavyweight) or Henry Maske ? I think they're like the most well known German boxers ever here. My Uncle used to be a boxing trainer in the Soviet Union, dude got me a little into it lately.

 

[MOREBASS]

Just for the record, I think Vitali would whoop Wladimir's ass.

 

[dali]

American's just like more action when it comes to heavyweights, they want knockouts, and spectacular ones at that.

I think thats what the majority of people in Europe would like to see, as well. They had a co commentator at the Chambers fight (Some other well know eastern boxer whose name i forgot) and he also criticized Vitalis very defensive (boring) fighting style..it was like he had a very long stick tied to his left hand, keeping the distance to Chambers at all times...it seemed like he was stroking the guys head at times, instead of landing some heavy hits with the right. He was just trying not to let a lucky hit happen, i guess. I wish he would have gotten super angry when Chambers wrestled and lifted him up. Then we would have possibly seen a nice exchange of blows, and i bet Chambers would have been KOed way quicker.

 

[2-0-Sixx]

Max Schmeling vs Joe Louis II was probably the biggest fight in the history of boxing.

yeah the klitschko's can be frustrating because it feels like at any given moment if they really wanted to they could knock the other guy out.

 

[heyzel]

Pacquiao retirement watch

By Esteban Garduno: WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao is kicking around the idea of retiring from boxing after his mother advised him to retire. According to Tempo.com, Pacquiao, speaking about his mother, says “She kneels down and cries very time. That’s a heavy burden when it’s my mother doing that. Of course, we have to respect our parents. Without them, we will be not here.” Very true. None of us would be here without mom and pops. Pacquiao says “It may not reach a point where I will fight [Floyd] Mayweather. I may announce retirement. I will talk to my family about it.” Search your feelings, Pacquiao. Decide for yourself.


Pacquiao needs to make up his own mind instead of letting other people influence him on this. He shouldn’t be passive when it comes to his retirement, because he might end up really hating himself if he walks away before he’s really ready. The way that Pacquiao has been talking about Mayweather a lot, I think it’s important that he go out of his way to make that fight happen. Not only do boxing fans want this fight to happen, but I think Pacquiao wants it to happen just as much, although he’d probably be the last one to admit it.

Maybe Pacquiao should talk to his promoter Bob Arum about it too about retirement. He’ll be able to give him some good advice on the subject, I’ll bet. I wouldn’t jump head over hills into a fight against
Whether or not Pacquiao does hang up the gloves, Mayweather will still be there as a bit of unfinished business for Pacquiao. If he does decide to continue fighting, one would hope that Arum makes a good effort in putting together a fight with Mayweather where they can agree to – at least in part – to what Mayweather is asking for.

If Mayweather wants random blood tests to take place up until 14 days before the fight, then it would be nice of Arum and Pacquiao to meet him at say 17 days or so. At least that would show that Pacquiao and Arum are willing to make the fight happen. But if they wait until Mayweather changes his mind about wanting the Olympic style blood tests, they could be waiting an awful long time. It’s better to at least give in on that part and meet Mayweather part of the way then to just stubbornly say no, and take a fight against someone who boxing fans don’t care to see.

Arum is predicting that the Pacquiao-Clottey fight will reach 750,000 pay-per-view buys, which is a good number for a fight involving the little known Joshua Clottey. But I don’t that’s good business sense to make a practice of opting for lesser known fighters to be matched up with Pacquiao unless Arum was using Pacquiao to increase the name value of Clottey, who also fights for Arum’s Top Rank company. If that was the objective then I think it failed miserably, because Clottey looked horrible and if anything, turned people off rather than winning new fans with his performance.

Share and Enjoy:

 

[heyzel]

Mayweather-Pacquiao could take place in New York

By Alexander Fugate: The world wants to see a Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao fight. As everyone who hasn’t been living in a cave knows by now, negotiations for this super fight fell apart over stringent drug testing that Mayweather wanted and Pacquiao refused. Since the Mayweather negotiations, Pacquiao, his trainer Freddie Roach, and his promoter Bob Arum have all repeatedly said they will not agree to the Olympic style drug testing that Mayweather wants all of his future opponents to undergo- UNLESS it is ordered so by the state athletic commission, of the state they would fight in.


There could be a breakthrough, as Leonard Ellerbe of Mayweather Promotions and Richard Schaefer of Golden Boy Promotions announced in a recent conference call that Melvina Lathan of the New York State Athletic Commission has expressed that that commission is interested in that form of testing and is considering implementing these tests for future boxing matches in New York state. When asked about this revelation, Mr. Ellerbe responded, “…this is something that they’re considering and my interpretation from this; I think eventually all the commissions across the United States will eventually adopt it.” In the future all states may adopt similar testing, but as of now and the very near future, the New York commission is the only one considering such testing for PEDs.

If Olympic style drug testing becomes mandatory for all fights in the state of New York, then why not have Mayweather-Pacquiao in Madison Square Garden or outdoors at Yankee Stadium? After all Madison Square Garden has been home to literally thousands of boxing matches and some very memorable ones. Sugar Ray Robinson, Henry Armstrong, Joe Louis, Roberto Duran, Sugar Ray Leonard, Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali, including their first fight against each other, are just a few of the many legends who have battled in Madison Square Garden.

This would allow Pacquiao to save face by not giving in to Mayweather and Mayweather would feel comfortable that his opponent is clean. It really would be a win-win, and there would be no excuse for either fighter not agreeing to it. If Mayweather refused everyone would view him as being afraid of Pacquiao, and if Pacquiao refused he would be seen as either a cheat or being scared of facing Mayweather. There have been many big fights and PPV boxing events in New York before and a fight at either Madison Square Garden or Yankee Stadium would almost certainly sell out well before fight night, regardless of how many seats are available. Hopefully, the New York State Athletic Commission is serious about this; if they are, they could bring their state many millions of dollars, through taxes, hotels, restaurants, and all the other revenue a city gains from hosting any mega-event that attracts people from all over the country. If they do adopt this form of testing for PEDs, the fight that would likely break records for revenue and PPV buys for boxing, and focus the limelight of professional sports on boxing for a positive reason (for a change), could very well take place in the not-too-distant future.

 

[heyzel]

Steward calls Haye “Chinny,” doesn’t think he’ll fight Wladimir

By Scott Gilfoid: Emanuel Steward, the trainer of IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, has his doubts that World Boxing Association heavyweight champion David Haye (23-1, 21 KO’s) will fight Wladimir in the future. Steward says in an article at the Mirror, “I don’t think Haye is going to do anything but talk. He may fight Ruiz but he will not fight Klitschko. Haye should win against Ruiz but you always worry about him [Haye] because he’s too chinny. Even Monte Barrett had him down.” Mr. Steward, I totally agree with you. I’ve thought those exact same things about Haye for some time.


I see Haye’s chin as one of the weakest in the heavyweight division, and he brags about himself 24/7 as if he’s the best heavyweight in the world. I’m still waiting for him to fight someone I consider good. I don’t count Monte Barrett, Nikolay Valuev and Tomasz Bonin as fitting in that category. I also am not impressed with any of Haye’s wins at the cruiserweight level.

I’m sorry, but I’m not impressed with wins over Enzo Maccarinelli, Jean Marc Mormeck and Giacobbe Fragomeni. Those are arguably Haye’s best wins while fighting at cruiserweight, and I don’t see any of those guys as comparable to fighters like Danny Green, Tomasz Adamek, Steve Cunningham, Ola Afolabi, Krzystof Wlodarczyk, Denis Lebedev, Victor Ramirez, and Alexander Alexeev.

Haye departed the cruiserweight division just when those fighters rose up in the ranks. It was great timing that Haye used in moving up weight, because if he stayed at cruiserweight I think some or all of those fighters would have beaten him.

Haye has a fight coming up on April 3rd against John Ruiz at the M.E.N. Arena, Manchester, England. This will be Haye’s first title defense. I don’t have a good feeling about Haye winning this fight. I wish I could say he’ll definitely win it but I can’t. With Haye’s weak chin, I think Ruiz will land something decent and plant Haye on the canvas for the ten count.

The bad thing about that is it will mean that we won’t see a future fight between Haye and the Klitschko brothers unless they still have interest in fighting him coming off a loss. I don’t see why they would. It won’t be like he can do much convincing if he gets beat by Ruiz. For Haye to get a fight against the Klitschko brothers at that point, he’d have to turn around and fight a rematch with Ruiz and take him out with a flashy knockout.

I don’t see that happening. Haye hits hard at cruiserweight, but doesn’t seem to have a ton of power at the heavyweight level. A fighter that Haye reminds me a lot is Kirk Johnson. Some people may not remember him because it’s been awhile since Johnson has been mentioned. The 6’2” Johnson was known for his fast hands, decent power and for his 4th round knockout win against Oleg Maskaev in 2000.

That win did a lot for Johnson’s career, but when he stepped it up against Ruiz in 2002, Johnson was defeated by a 10 round disqualification. Ruiz has no problems with Johnson’s hand speed and totally nullified all his advantages. Johnson was later destroyed by Vitali Klitschko in a 2nd round knockout in 2003. Haye doesn’t see blazing fast at heavyweight, and his power isn’t all that impressive either, at least for a heavyweight.

Haye might be a good puncher at cruiserweight, but at heavyweight he seems like an average puncher. I think Ruiz will beat him unless Haye can get lucky and score a knockout. I doubt very much that will happen. Ruiz has a good chin and Haye doesn’t throw enough combinations for him to put Ruiz in any kind of danger. Throwing an occasional pot shot won’t get the job done against Ruiz.

 

[Johnny Truelove]

Pacquiao says he can afford to wait

MANILA, Philippines -- Manny Pacquiao is still open to fighting Floyd Mayweather Jr., but is waiting for the challenge to come from the other side and for promoters to iron out a spat over drug testing.

"I came this far in my boxing career without Mayweather, so I see no need to call him out," Pacquiao told reporters Monday. "He needs me to bolster his career.

"I am open to him fighting me anytime he wants to."

Pacquiao returned to thousands of cheering fans in Manila to celebrate his latest victory over Joshua Clottey in Dallas. He'll now focus on a bid to enter politics, campaigning for a seat in the Philippines' House of Representatives in the May 10 national elections.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerrry Jones has expressed interest in bringing a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight to Cowboys Stadium, which hosted Pacquiao's win over Clottey.

Mayweather's insistence on Olympic-style testing was the primary reason negotiations fell through in January for a megafight against Pacquiao. Mayweather wanted blood tests up to 14 days before the fight, while Pacquiao claims he feels weak after drawing blood and would not agree to testing within 24 days.

The negotiations quickly deteriorated, and Pacquiao signed to fight Clottey while Mayweather turned his attention to welterweight champion Shane Mosley.

Mayweather will face Mosley in Las Vegas on May 1 after both agreed to undergo an unlimited number of unannounced blood and urine tests before and after the fight.

"He should win against Mosley. If not, Mosley and I will fight," Pacquiao said.

Pacquiao is now concentrating on the national elections. His 2007 campaign fell short, but this time Pacquiao said he is better prepared.

"I have prepared for my political plans even before I faced Clottey last week," he said. "I am ready to campaign."

The two-month campaign starts later this week. Apart from running for his own seat in southern Sarangani province, Pacquiao is also campaigning for presidential aspirant Manny Villar, a senator and the richest politician in the country.

Villar raised Pacquiao's hand after welcoming him at a hotel Monday, before the boxer headed for a church service and a courtesy call in the presidential palace.

Asked if he plans to retire from boxing if he wins at the election, the 31-year-old Pacquiao said he was undecided.

"My own mother asked me to stop boxing. We'll talk about it," he said.

 

[heyzel]

John Ruiz: "Klitschkos Only Fight People They Can Beat"

By Mark Vester

Former heavyweight champion John Ruiz had nothing good to say about Wladimir Klitschko's kncokout of Eddie Chambers from last Saturday in Germany. Ruiz said the fight made the entire heavyweight division look bad. In his opinion, fights like Klitschko-Chambers are the reason why the fans are running away from heavyweight division. He doesn't think the Klitschko brothers are willing to fight any real challenges.

"The thing with the Klitschkos is they only fight people they can beat," he said. "They don't go out there and fight people who could actually give them a fight. I've been trying to meet up with them for a quite a while. But that's the way it is in boxing. That's why so many people are staying away from the heavyweight division. Nobody really wants to fight anybody. It's sad. At one point, the heavyweight division was boxing," Ruiz told Kevin Mitchell of The Guardian .

Ruiz will challenge David Haye on April 3 for the WBA heavyweight title in England. He was very honest when he presented an opinion of his own worth and talent. Ruiz knows he doesn't have the most talent, or charisma, but he has the drive to keep on fighting.

"When you hear the name John Ruiz, you hear nothing but bad news afterwards. It's been like that forever. I don't have the greatest talent in the world, I don't have the greatest [box office] appeal but, at the same time, I have the determination to be the best. That keeps me going. It's been a rollercoaster ride, and it's been kind of tough. I can never get a break. But things are starting to change for me. I'm starting to realise who I am as a person and as a fighter," Ruiz said.

 

[2-0-Sixx]

Damn this is going to be a good card:

 

[MOREBASS]

Rigondeaux by liver shot.

 

[heyzel]

Hatton denies retirement talk, says he never asked Roach to be his trainer

By Sean McDaniel: After weeks of silence on the matter of retirement former International Boxing Federation light welterweight/WBA welterweight champion Ricky Hatton (45-2, 32 KO’s) has come out and quashed the idea of him retiring at this time from boxing. Hatton, 31, had this to say from the Manchester Evening News: There has been a lot of hearsay in recent weeks regarding my retirement, but I urge my loyal fans to ignore the speculation. If, and when, I do eventually retire, the announcement will be made by myself. I feel I have earned the right to do it myself.” What Hatton doesn’t say is why he waited so long to speak about the rumors.


Hatton could have spoke up immediately to set the record straight rather than waiting until weeks later to speak about the retirement talk. However, it’s better late than never to find out from Hatton that he’ll continue fight. In May, Hatton will have been out of the ring for a year, and unless he starts taking of weight soon the chances of him having a successful comeback will likely drop the longer he stays out of the ring.

It will be of interest to see who Hatton does end up fighting when/if he does make an eventual comeback. It would seem doubtful that he’ll be able to beat a top fighter if he stays away from the ring for much longer. Hatton is a pressure fighter who has excelled because of a combination of conditioning and pressure. He’s not a huge puncher by any means. The light welterweight, if that’s where plans on fighting at, has gotten better in the past year and it’s unclear what kind of success Hatton would have if he chooses to fight one of the top fighters at that weight class.

Hatton would be better off taking on a smaller and older fighter like Juan Manuel Marquez rather staging a comeback against a young lion in the light welterweight division like Timothy Bradley, Devon Alexander, Amir Khan, Victor or Marcos Maidana. However, if Hatton is going to go after one of those fighters, he needs to fight Khan and ignore the rest of them.

A fight against Khan would be a good paying bout in the UK, and it might interest fans from the United States as well. Hatton would likely have a better chance beating the shaky chinned Khan compared to fighters like Alexander, Bradley, Ortiz and Maidana.

Hatton says “I was also interested to read that I had recently asked Freddie Roach to train me but that he turned me down. I wish to put the record straight that, while I have the utmost respect for Roach, I have never once asked him, or indeed considered him, to train me.” Roach said recently that Hatton had asked him last year if he would train him, but Roach turned him down, saying that he should retire. It seemed like an odd choice for Hatton to ask Roach given that Hatton had been stopped by one of his fighters Manny Pacquiao in May.

 

[heyzel]

Is Floyd Mayweather doing Boxing a favor?

By Ryan Dunn: I just read a great article by Lem Satterfield regarding the USADA testing protocols being employed in the Floyd Mayweather vs. Shane Mosley, “Who R U Picking?” Superfight coming up on May 1. I have to say, the more I read about the protocol and how it applies to the world of boxing, the more enamored I become with it.

I like the idea of fighters providing whereabout information up front, so that they may be found any time, any where, to be tested for any performance enhancing drugs by the doctors for the USADA. I also like the idea that there are “real” penalties; like a possible 2-year suspension and disqualification for the bout itself.


Travis Tygart, president of The United States Anti-Doping Agency explained how the testing would work in the Mayweather-Mosley fight, which is taking place in the wake of Mosley’s fight with Berto falling through, and Mayweather’s negotiations with Pacquiao falling through. But this match-up may serve a bigger role in boxing than what happens inside the ring.

While I may not entirely agree with Mayweather’s motives for demanding the USADA protocol in his negotiations with Manny Pacquiao, he and Shane Mosley have both agreed to the same stringent request. In fact, by putting the heat on Pacquiao, Floyd may have inadvertently (or intentionally) just done boxing the biggest favor in recent years.

By instating this rigorous testing protocol (random, unlimited blood and urine all the way up to fight-night) for a match-up which will be heavily promoted (by Golden Boy Promotions), publicized (by HBO’s 24/7 and the media/internet), and viewed (by us, the fans), he will put his new regime center-stage for the world to judge. And who doesn’t support clean boxing for all parties involved? Boxing is a dangerous sport; people can die inside the ring; boxers often starve themselves of nutrients in order to make weight; and nobody wants a juiced up opponent knocking the life out of his opponent.

Of course those are extreme circumstances, but they are realities nonetheless, whether you think steroids can turn you into the Incredible Hulk or not. Which brings this back to the point: If things go the way I think they are going to go (there are already rumors of the Boxing Commissions considering rule changes in their drug-testing protocols as early as this September), then Floyd Mayweather will have single-handedly transformed the landscape of boxing as we know it.

I am of the opinion that no single athlete is bigger than the sport they are paid to perform, and Floyd is no exception. I disagree that drug-testing should be allowed to be negotiated in a contract. I think that boxers, if they want rules changed, should bring their cases to the rule-makers, so they can instate them in a professional manner. And yet… Floyd Mayweather, by bringing his case to the court of public opinion, may have fast-tracked what would have otherwise been a slow and rigorous process consisting of endless lobbying, back-room negotiations, and painful deliberations.

In a perfect world, boxers and their promoters (and Vegas) should have less control over the sport, with more control going back to the Boxing Commissions. John McCain had it right when he requested there be a National Boxing Commission which oversaw all boxers for total equality, and I also agree with Floyd Mayweather whole-heartedly that the sport needs better Anti-Doping policies put into place as soon as possible. (I’ll save my invasive vs. non-invasive drug-testing rant for another article.)

So let’s all take this moment to thank Floyd Mayweather Jr. (whether you love him or hate him) for exposing a true weakness in the sport of boxing. And let’s hope that his controversial road to repairing the sport can translate into something ultimately positive and effective toward the evolution of Boxing Commissions across the country.

 

[heyzel]

Manny Pacquiao's Great, But How Would He Have Faired Against Thomas Hearns!?

by James Slater - Talk about one helluva Dream Fight: Manny Pacquiao Vs. Thomas Hearns - "The Hitman" against "Pac-Man!"

There is little doubt Filipino southpaw and genuine boxing superstar Pacquiao is a fighter who has earned himself a place among the all time greats of the sport. From flyweight up to welterweight, the 31-year-old has dominated and won a major belt and, incredibly, it is while operating as a welterweight that Pac-Man has appeared to be getting even better. Taking care of top names Oscar De La Hoya (albeit a weight drained version), Miguel Cotto and, most recently, the much bigger Joshua Clottey, Pacquiao has more than proven his worth as a 147-pounder. However, what would have happened had the current pound-for-pound king been forced to face a peak Thomas Hearns at the weight he now fights at?

Hearns, who really was a freak of nature at the weight, both in terms of height (6'1") and in punching power, was an utterly devastating fighting machine back in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Literally standing his fellow welterweights on their heads in those glory years - with top men/ respectable fighters such as Pipino Cuevas, Randy Shields, Harold Weston and Luis Primera all being stopped - Hearns earned himself a reputation as a fierce customer.

Taking Pacquiao back in time to face this Tommy Hearns, the southpaw dynamo has one tough night's work ahead of him!

First of all, Manny quickly finds out he has an incredibly arduous time coping with the 78" reach Hearns possesses. Having a wingspan of just 67" himself, the 5'6.5" Pacquiao is facing a fighter with measurements like no-one he's met before. Pac's southpaw stance - a stance Hearns has never had much experience against his whole career thus far - allows him to trouble Hearns and work his way inside, though, and Pacquiao is able to get in close and go to work. Tommy's never all that reliable chin looks like it may let him down against the lethal and blurring hands of his rival at times, but despite wobbling, Hearns stays upright.

"The Hitman," no slouch at the inside fighting himself, gets his own body punches to work and his body assault more than rivals Pacquiao's. Hearns hasn't yet learnt how to properly tie up an opponent, though, so Manny is certainly getting in and doing some damage. But enough to get the stoppage?

The fierce battle rages while the two men are warring on the inside, but after a while the action is broken up and the distance between the two fighters again favours Hearns and his spearing left jab; to say nothing of the right cross flying at the smaller man - a right cross that has both crunching power and great accuracy. At the point of the 5th-round, Pacquiao's face is beginning to mark up, especially around the eyes.

Popping Manny's face with combinations at times, being dragged into an inside battle at others, Hearns is both giving and taking shots; but he is mostly doing the former. Pacquiao has great heart, but even he is unable to take too many of Hearns' bombs. Letting the heat of battle go to his gladiatorial head, Pac-Man then engages in one too many brutal exchanges and he pays the price.

In the 8th-round, a "Hitman" right hand buckles Pacquiao's knees, inviting the Detroit man to go for the finish. A desperate and buzzed Pacquiao slings haymakers of his own in an attempt to stay in the fight, and his blend of speed, guts and power sees to it that the already awestruck fans get to see some mesmerising action, but after a few sensational seconds Hearns connects with another huge right hand, putting Manny down.

Pac-Man beats the count, just, but Hearns refuses to let him off the hook. Always a great finisher, Hearns unleashes more hell with both hands and forces the referee to dive in and save Pacquiao from further punishment. Hearns gets the TKO, with Manny still on his feet, in the 8th-round of a fight that elevates both men!

 

[heyzel]

Big Fight Fiasco - Steve 'USS' Cunningham Breaks His Silence Over Godfrey Pulling Out

After a long, long fifteen month wait, this coming Friday former IBF Cruiserweight Champion of the World Steve 'USS' Cunningham should finally have had the chance to regain the coveted title that he, and many others, believes is rightly his by facing Matt 'Too Smooth' Godfrey for the vacant IBF Cruiserweight Crown.

However, following one fiasco after another, first a change of date and location, then with just over a week to go before the fight Don King announced that the fight would be postponed again due to a contract dispute between himself and ESPN, it seems Steve’s hopes of regaining his crown soon are to be dashed yet again.

As King, who had won the purse bid on December 18th '09, had defaulted on making the fight within 90 days the IBF reacted quickly to try and save this most important of fights..

Kathy Duva's Main Event's organisation, who had made the second highest bid, were contacted by the IBF. Main Event's president Kathy Duva then spoke with ESPN who negotiated with Chicago promoter Daniel Pesoli to place the fight on his existing 26th March show. So courtesy of some seriously slick negotiations the big fight was back on...or was it?

Following what has been described by Godfrey's trainer, John Scully, as a 'miscommunication' between Godfrey and his promoter, Jimmy Burchfield, the fight is now seemingly in doubt again.

Scully, claims that Burchfield had failed to let them know that the fight was being rearranged and as such Godfrey stopped training last Wednesday. Godfrey and Scully claim to have only found out that the fight was rescheduled, to take place in Chicago, whilst watching last week’s ESPN's Friday Night Fights. Godfrey and Scully say that they have lost three important days of preparation and as such are now not ready for the fight.

Unusually things have been extremely quiet from the Steve 'USS' Cunningham camp during the lead up to this most important of fights for the former Champion. This was because Steve broke with tradition and instead of preparing close to home, at The James Shuler Memorial Gym in West Philadelphia, traveled to the relative seclusion of Big Bear in California.

'USS' Cunningham, who was being prepared for the showdown, with Godfrey, by ‘Trainer of the Year’ Naazim Richardson, finally broke his long silence this week saying, "This latest news is very disappointing. I have been away in Big Bear, CA for over two months training hard for this fight. That is time and money spent, that you just don't get back. This has been an emotional roller coaster, the fight is on... the fight is off... it's back on...but one thing has remained the same, there is a world champion belt at stake, my belt, and no news was going to keep me from being ready for whatever.

When I got the call from my wife/manager that the fight was off, it was a huge disappointment, at that time there was no hope of the fight being saved, we were told it would have to be rescheduled. I have been around long enough to know that it isn't over until it's over, me, Livvy and Naazim all felt it best to stay on course. And it seems like this is one of the big differences here, I am ready and he's not.

I have no negative feeling towards, Matt. It sounds like there was communication problems in his camp, it's just a shame that it's costing everyone this opportunity. No doubt this boxing business is messed up and shady stuff happens, but at the championship level it is the fighter's job to stay focused and be ready for whatever.

So if it's really over, what can I say, I am world champion with or without that belt, and I will be ready for whatever is next. I'm still sticking with 'Champ again in '10'"

Back in Philadelphia, Steve's wife, and manager, Livvy took a less philosophical stance by saying. "We are upset, a lot went into this, but it is not the end of the world and quite frankly nothing new...fighters have missed their planes on the way to weigh-ins to avoid fighting Steve [G. Jones], they have vacated their belts rather than fighting Steve [Bell], they have claimed to have 'cleaned up the division' and moved up to heavyweight [Haye], while Steve was an IBF titleholder, and just skipped him all together... it's all flattery in a way, but you know what? Flattery doesn't pay our bills and it doesn't help this division get the attention is deserves.

The Cruiserweights are over looked by many and the fighters aren't getting rich here, they are fighting to be best and for a legacy and I still cannot wrap my head around just letting this opportunity pass you by, it makes me wonder what is really going on behind the scenes, because it just doesn't add up."

The Cunningham's are not the only ones who can't believe that Godfrey has now elected to withdraw from the fight. Main Event’s President Kathy Duva, today said "The fight is now 100% off. I am extremely disappointed. I decided on Wednesday to do everything I could to salvage the March 26 date, rather than elect to move the bout to June, which was my right, because I believed that it was the best thing to do for the fighters, who had already spent a considerable amount of time, money and effort to prepare for a fight that was only days away. I know for a fact that Doug Loughrey at ESPN shared this belief, as he did everything he could to keep the fight intact.

Steve was an absolute professional through all of this. He remained in Big Bear and continued to train at his own expense through today in the hope that he could still fight on Friday. We let both Godfrey's promoter and Livvy Cunningham know at roughly 4:30 pm on Wednesday--three hours after we all learned that DKP had canceled the fight--that we were working with ESPN to salvage the fight. In fact, Godfrey's promoter suggested to my attorney and to ESPN on Wednesday that we should investigate the possibility of finding another promoter's show on March 26 and offer them the fight. ESPN immediately contacted Dominic Pesoli of 8 Count promotions in Chicago and suggested that we work together to make it happen, which we did.

We kept Godfrey's promoter and the Çunningham camp apprised of the situation every step of the way as it unfolded. The Godfrey camp never suggested to us or the IBF that Godfrey would not go through with the fight until after ESPN announced that we had succeeded in saving the bout on Friday night.

How Godfrey could ignore the fact that we were all working to move Heaven and Earth to save the date is a mystery to me. Fighters are supposed to want to fight. I've never seen anything like this in my life."

So it’s now official, Cunningham Vs. Godfrey for the vacant IBF World Cruiserweight Title on the 26th March is off. The big question now, that Matt Godfrey has withdrawn from the title challenge, is who will face Steve 'USS' Cunningham for the title. The smart money is on Canada’s Troy Ross, who is currently ranked number 4 by the IBF. As for the revised date I guess we will have to wait and see

 

[heyzel]

Kelly Pavlik Could Fight In Cowboys Stadium, Arlington Later This Year - If He Can Ge

by James Slater - The hugely successful idea of holding a big fight inside The Dallas Cowboys incredible stadium in Arlington, Texas looks as though it will not prove to have been a one-off. Hot on the heels of "The Event," between Manny Pacquiao and Joshua Clottey, which attracted over 50,000 fans to the stadium that cost around $2 billion to build, comes news that promoter Bob Arum is looking at having middleweight king Kelly Pavlik fight there later on this year.

According to Joe Scalzo of Vindy.com, Arum has talked to Cowboys stadium owner Jerry Jones about the idea of Pavlik defending his world middleweight title at the venue this year..

"Jerry [Jones] was very impressed when he met Kelly [Pavlik], and he told me he's looking forward to Kelly fighting a main event in Cowboys Stadium," Arum said. "When I spoke to Kelly, his eyes opened wide."

This idea, though a hugely intriguing one, is reliant on Pavlik winning his next fight; against the dangerous southpaw Sergio Gabriel Martinez on April 17th. By no means is this a definite winning fight for the man known as "The Ghost," and knowledgeable fight fans are well aware of this. Pavlik, still only two wins removed from his terribly humbling experience at the hands of Bernard Hopkins, will be facing the man who came thisclose to beating the highly regarded Paul Williams last time out. Very much having the look of a 50-50 fight, Pavlik-Martinez could conceivably go either way.

Speaking of "The Punisher," his name is one of three that have been mentioned as possible opponents to face Pavlik at Cowboys Stadium if the idea comes to fruition. Knowing Pavlik would need a fighter who is also a big name to help fill the huge arena, Arum has reportedly looked at Williams, Lucian Bute and Winky Wright.

As fans know, the Pavlik-Williams fight was almost a go two times last year; until finally falling apart. If the match-up we all still want to see could get re-made this year, holding it in such a grand setting would make the wait worthwhile. Pavlik-Wright is not as exciting a prospect, but this prospective bout is also a pretty solid-looking one. However, the fight that probably has the best chance of happening out of the three is the one with Lucian Bute.

The reigning IBF 168-pound champion, who meets power-punching Colombian Edison Miranda the same night Pavlik meets Martinez, has had his name put next to Pavlik's before now. Pavlik could make the move up to super-middleweight in search of his second world title, and if both men win on April 17th, who knows; this explosive-looking battle might take place in what is one of the best sporting venues in the world.

Pavlik's clash with Martinez now looks to be even more a must-win fight for Youngstown's finest!

Article posted on 24.03.2010