Boxing News Thread
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woah... PLASTIC and Maxipads!
Don't see anyone going to france to fight anytime soon this is beyond shady
N'Jikam tried to use Margarito-style hand wraps for his fight with Lorenzo
Giovanni Lorenzo victim of impropriety in failed title bid
(from boxing talk)
Quote:
by Socrates Palmer, Jr.
On April 2nd, the WBA's interim middleweight title was at stake when the title holder, Hassam N’dam N'jikam defended against Giovanni Lorenzo in N'dam's adopted home nation, France. At the conclusion of the bout, N’dam was awarded a unanimous decision in front of a booing crowd. Round five was Lorenzo's best round-he knocked N'dam out of the ring.
Justly or not, it is perceived that for visitors fighting in Europe must do more than win the majority of the rounds in order to gain a victory. Lorenzo’s handlers say that what took place on French soil would make even Pepe le Pew pinch his nose. Despite the knockdown, two judges scored the fifth round only 10-9 in Lorenzo's favor, and besides the scoring, n'dam was caught in Antonio Margarito-light bid to illegally wrap his hands. Even the wba's official supervisor, Guy Jutras, validated Lorenzo's complaints about the judges' scoring of the fight, although he stopped short of saying Lorenzo deserved a victory.
When the fight was signed, Lorenzo's co-manager Richard Ryan felt that his fighter could get a fair fight but no longer believes that was the case. According to Ryan, the controversy began in the dressing room before the fight.
N'dam was getting his hands wrapped prior to the fight, with the customary representative from the other corner present. In this case, it was Lorenzo's trainer ray farrait watching on behalf of lorenzo. Ryan continues with the story: “Ray noticed a piece of plastic sticking out of the wraps and demanded further inspection. N'dam and his team refused and it got ugly with a lot of pushing and shoving.
In the end N'dam was caught trying to put a foreign substance under his wraps, perhaps a piece of plastic. What is even more disturbing is that the inspection was conducted in front of Philippe Verbeke, one of the judges assigned to score our fight, and they did this right in front of him. He was sleeping on the job. Isn’t he supposed to be supervising? Fortunately, the wba's official supervisor [the respected Guy Jutras] made N'dam remove the illegal substance from his gloves and re-wrap his hands before the fight.”
Lorenzo's other co-manager, Kurt Ehmhoff, told boxing talk that N’dam’s people tried to use a menstrual pad as part of their hand wraps. Emhoff believes the pads served a dual purpose. "Sugar Ray Leonard used to wear them in training to protect his knuckles. I think they would be more for protection than anything but clearly maxipads are built to absorb moisture, so they might make the gloves a little heavier." In any event, maxipads are clearly illegal to put in a fighter's wraps.
Once the fight began, Lorenzo was the aggressor for most of the evening. When the judges scorecards were announced (Stefano Carozza: 119-110, Juan Manuel Garcia: 119-109 and Philippe Verbeke: 116-110, all for N'dam), Ryan says he was stunned by the one-sided tallies. “Lorenzo won as many of the rounds as N'dam, who ran for most of the fight after getting knocked down (and out of the ring) in the fifth. But in the fifth round, two judges scored it only 10-9 for Lorenzo, a round that clearly Lorenzo dominated, since the knockdown came early. Judge Verbeke gave n'dam a 10-8 ninth round even though Lorenzo was not down. I thought that was an even round. Judge garcia also tried to deduct a point from Lorenzo, stating the referee took the points away, but the referee didn’t take any points away from anyone!” complained Ryan.
The internationally trusted Guy Jutras supervised the fight on behalf of the WBA, and his official report validated Lorenzo's beef. "the spread in the scores give the false impression that the fight was one-sided, which was clearly not the case," wrote Jutras. The scoring of the fifth round was also unfair to Lorenzo in the view of Jutras, who wrote, "because it was a clear knockdown which was correctly called as such by the referee, all three judges should have entered their score as 10-8 in favor of Mr. Lorenzo." Jutras' full supervisor's report is reprinted below.
Besides the scoring of the fifth round, Ryan and Emhoff also complain about the assistance N'dam received in climbing back into the ring. Lorenzo landed a left that caught N’dam on the temple, which momentary made him lose his equilibrium. N’dam retreated on rubbery legs and shortly thereafter wound up on his back and through the middle ropes after Lorenzo's short right hand to the head. The video shows a man using one hand to push N'jikam back up, a possible violation of uniform championship rules of the association of boxing commissions. According to team Lorenzo, this hand belonged to one of the judges.
Rule #9 states: A boxer shall receive a twenty (20) second count if boxer is knocked out of the ring and onto the floor. The boxer is to be unassisted by his seconds. If assisted by his seconds, boxer shall be disqualified by the referee. Emhoff will be filing an official protest with the wba over the assistance N'dam received from a photographer and judge Corozza in getting to his feet.
Although complaints about scoring are difficult to dispute, Emhoff is filing a formal protest with the WBA over the handling of the fifth round. "I am drafting a protest today based on the assistance N'dam was given by a photographer as well as judge Corozza in getting to his feet when he was knocked onto the apron in round 5. No one should have touched N'dam. That should have been a dq or a deduction of points. The fact that a WBA judge touched the fighter and then held the rope steady for leverage so N'dam could climb back in the ring is a travesty. Round five was the only round Corozza gave to Lorenzo," Emhoff told boxing talk today.
Ryan says the French crowd turned against their local boxer, and the video backs him up. “the sold-out crowd was booing N'dam by the ninth round for running, and after the fight the, boos grew louder,” Ryan. When the veridct was announced, the french crowd clearly booed the verdict in N'jikam's favor, and Ryan bounced around the ring in a red track suit, beside himself in anger.
The fight was not available to american viewers, but is now on youtube. With this latest defeat Lorenzo’s record dropped to 29-4 while N’dam adds another win to undefeated mark of 26-0.
official report of wba supervisor Guy Jutras:
In round #5, Giovani Lorenzo scored a clear knock-down over Hassan N'Dam and judge Philippe Verbeke correctly scored the round 10 – 8 in favor of Giovani Lorenzo. Because it was a clear knockdown which was correctly called as such by the referee, all three judges should have entered their score as 10-8 in favor of Mr. Lorenzo in the section of the score card which reads “points by round”; but for some reason, judges Stefano Carozza and Juan Manuel Garcia Reyes both chose to enter Lorenzo’s score as 10-9 in that section (points by round), and they entered -1 in the section of the card titled deducted points (see round #5 score cards for details). These two judges later explained that they were of the opinion that a regular knock down is to be entered on the score card as they did!
In view of the fact that the referee had not deducted a point in that entire round #5, i simply assumed that the two judges in question had mistakenly interpreted a gesture by the referee, as a one point deduction. Considering that a knockdown is not always automatically scored 10-8, i simply entered their 10-9 score on my master score sheet, figuring that it was their intended score.
While the above described scoring mishap did not cause a change as to who won the bout, it understandably caused justified discontent on the part of the lorenzo team, as they genuinely thought that their man lorenzo deserved to win. Quite frankly, mr. Lorenzo won the hearts of the fans for his aggressive crowd-pleasing style, but since the existing scoring system favors the number of clean punches landed rather than who is giving chase, the victory was awarded to the right boxer in my opinion, even though some of the rounds were quite closely contested.
Boxing fans in general seldom warm up to boxers who resort to exaggerated back-pedaling, which is what mr. Ndam did excessively, and thus “stole ” rounds with his periodic but nevertheless precise combinations. His hometown spectators turned against him in this fight, just as they did in his previous fight which i also supervised a few months ago. On the other hand, Mr. Lorenzo is a rough and tough crowd pleasing warrior who ran after his foe and just kept on coming forward. The spread in the scores give the false impression that the fight was one-sided, which was clearly not the case.
Mr. Lorenzo gained the respect and admiration of all those in attendance, and he did us proud as a worthy contender for one of our WBA titles.
here is round 5 when he's knocked out of the ring the rest of the fight is on youtube as well:
Don't see anyone going to france to fight anytime soon this is beyond shady
N'Jikam tried to use Margarito-style hand wraps for his fight with Lorenzo
Giovanni Lorenzo victim of impropriety in failed title bid
(from boxing talk)
Quote:
by Socrates Palmer, Jr.
On April 2nd, the WBA's interim middleweight title was at stake when the title holder, Hassam N’dam N'jikam defended against Giovanni Lorenzo in N'dam's adopted home nation, France. At the conclusion of the bout, N’dam was awarded a unanimous decision in front of a booing crowd. Round five was Lorenzo's best round-he knocked N'dam out of the ring.
Justly or not, it is perceived that for visitors fighting in Europe must do more than win the majority of the rounds in order to gain a victory. Lorenzo’s handlers say that what took place on French soil would make even Pepe le Pew pinch his nose. Despite the knockdown, two judges scored the fifth round only 10-9 in Lorenzo's favor, and besides the scoring, n'dam was caught in Antonio Margarito-light bid to illegally wrap his hands. Even the wba's official supervisor, Guy Jutras, validated Lorenzo's complaints about the judges' scoring of the fight, although he stopped short of saying Lorenzo deserved a victory.
When the fight was signed, Lorenzo's co-manager Richard Ryan felt that his fighter could get a fair fight but no longer believes that was the case. According to Ryan, the controversy began in the dressing room before the fight.
N'dam was getting his hands wrapped prior to the fight, with the customary representative from the other corner present. In this case, it was Lorenzo's trainer ray farrait watching on behalf of lorenzo. Ryan continues with the story: “Ray noticed a piece of plastic sticking out of the wraps and demanded further inspection. N'dam and his team refused and it got ugly with a lot of pushing and shoving.
In the end N'dam was caught trying to put a foreign substance under his wraps, perhaps a piece of plastic. What is even more disturbing is that the inspection was conducted in front of Philippe Verbeke, one of the judges assigned to score our fight, and they did this right in front of him. He was sleeping on the job. Isn’t he supposed to be supervising? Fortunately, the wba's official supervisor [the respected Guy Jutras] made N'dam remove the illegal substance from his gloves and re-wrap his hands before the fight.”
Lorenzo's other co-manager, Kurt Ehmhoff, told boxing talk that N’dam’s people tried to use a menstrual pad as part of their hand wraps. Emhoff believes the pads served a dual purpose. "Sugar Ray Leonard used to wear them in training to protect his knuckles. I think they would be more for protection than anything but clearly maxipads are built to absorb moisture, so they might make the gloves a little heavier." In any event, maxipads are clearly illegal to put in a fighter's wraps.
Once the fight began, Lorenzo was the aggressor for most of the evening. When the judges scorecards were announced (Stefano Carozza: 119-110, Juan Manuel Garcia: 119-109 and Philippe Verbeke: 116-110, all for N'dam), Ryan says he was stunned by the one-sided tallies. “Lorenzo won as many of the rounds as N'dam, who ran for most of the fight after getting knocked down (and out of the ring) in the fifth. But in the fifth round, two judges scored it only 10-9 for Lorenzo, a round that clearly Lorenzo dominated, since the knockdown came early. Judge Verbeke gave n'dam a 10-8 ninth round even though Lorenzo was not down. I thought that was an even round. Judge garcia also tried to deduct a point from Lorenzo, stating the referee took the points away, but the referee didn’t take any points away from anyone!” complained Ryan.
The internationally trusted Guy Jutras supervised the fight on behalf of the WBA, and his official report validated Lorenzo's beef. "the spread in the scores give the false impression that the fight was one-sided, which was clearly not the case," wrote Jutras. The scoring of the fifth round was also unfair to Lorenzo in the view of Jutras, who wrote, "because it was a clear knockdown which was correctly called as such by the referee, all three judges should have entered their score as 10-8 in favor of Mr. Lorenzo." Jutras' full supervisor's report is reprinted below.
Besides the scoring of the fifth round, Ryan and Emhoff also complain about the assistance N'dam received in climbing back into the ring. Lorenzo landed a left that caught N’dam on the temple, which momentary made him lose his equilibrium. N’dam retreated on rubbery legs and shortly thereafter wound up on his back and through the middle ropes after Lorenzo's short right hand to the head. The video shows a man using one hand to push N'jikam back up, a possible violation of uniform championship rules of the association of boxing commissions. According to team Lorenzo, this hand belonged to one of the judges.
Rule #9 states: A boxer shall receive a twenty (20) second count if boxer is knocked out of the ring and onto the floor. The boxer is to be unassisted by his seconds. If assisted by his seconds, boxer shall be disqualified by the referee. Emhoff will be filing an official protest with the wba over the assistance N'dam received from a photographer and judge Corozza in getting to his feet.
Although complaints about scoring are difficult to dispute, Emhoff is filing a formal protest with the WBA over the handling of the fifth round. "I am drafting a protest today based on the assistance N'dam was given by a photographer as well as judge Corozza in getting to his feet when he was knocked onto the apron in round 5. No one should have touched N'dam. That should have been a dq or a deduction of points. The fact that a WBA judge touched the fighter and then held the rope steady for leverage so N'dam could climb back in the ring is a travesty. Round five was the only round Corozza gave to Lorenzo," Emhoff told boxing talk today.
Ryan says the French crowd turned against their local boxer, and the video backs him up. “the sold-out crowd was booing N'dam by the ninth round for running, and after the fight the, boos grew louder,” Ryan. When the veridct was announced, the french crowd clearly booed the verdict in N'jikam's favor, and Ryan bounced around the ring in a red track suit, beside himself in anger.
The fight was not available to american viewers, but is now on youtube. With this latest defeat Lorenzo’s record dropped to 29-4 while N’dam adds another win to undefeated mark of 26-0.
official report of wba supervisor Guy Jutras:
In round #5, Giovani Lorenzo scored a clear knock-down over Hassan N'Dam and judge Philippe Verbeke correctly scored the round 10 – 8 in favor of Giovani Lorenzo. Because it was a clear knockdown which was correctly called as such by the referee, all three judges should have entered their score as 10-8 in favor of Mr. Lorenzo in the section of the score card which reads “points by round”; but for some reason, judges Stefano Carozza and Juan Manuel Garcia Reyes both chose to enter Lorenzo’s score as 10-9 in that section (points by round), and they entered -1 in the section of the card titled deducted points (see round #5 score cards for details). These two judges later explained that they were of the opinion that a regular knock down is to be entered on the score card as they did!
In view of the fact that the referee had not deducted a point in that entire round #5, i simply assumed that the two judges in question had mistakenly interpreted a gesture by the referee, as a one point deduction. Considering that a knockdown is not always automatically scored 10-8, i simply entered their 10-9 score on my master score sheet, figuring that it was their intended score.
While the above described scoring mishap did not cause a change as to who won the bout, it understandably caused justified discontent on the part of the lorenzo team, as they genuinely thought that their man lorenzo deserved to win. Quite frankly, mr. Lorenzo won the hearts of the fans for his aggressive crowd-pleasing style, but since the existing scoring system favors the number of clean punches landed rather than who is giving chase, the victory was awarded to the right boxer in my opinion, even though some of the rounds were quite closely contested.
Boxing fans in general seldom warm up to boxers who resort to exaggerated back-pedaling, which is what mr. Ndam did excessively, and thus “stole ” rounds with his periodic but nevertheless precise combinations. His hometown spectators turned against him in this fight, just as they did in his previous fight which i also supervised a few months ago. On the other hand, Mr. Lorenzo is a rough and tough crowd pleasing warrior who ran after his foe and just kept on coming forward. The spread in the scores give the false impression that the fight was one-sided, which was clearly not the case.
Mr. Lorenzo gained the respect and admiration of all those in attendance, and he did us proud as a worthy contender for one of our WBA titles.
here is round 5 when he's knocked out of the ring the rest of the fight is on youtube as well:
Exclusive Interview: Emanuel Steward On What Made Him The Great Trainer He Is
By James Slater - Hall of Fame boxing trainer Emanuel Steward is and always has been his own man. Unlike other accomplished boxing trainers, Emanuel doesn’t feel he owes a debt of gratitude to any “father figure” coaches of yesteryear. When recently asked by this writer if any one trainer taught him any invaluable lessons as he was making his way up the coaching ladder, Steward replied instantly “No.”
A natural at simply watching and learning from the ringside, it wasn’t long before Emanuel became famous and established via his tremendous success with the Kronk gym he opened in Detroit.
During his time in boxing (he began training guys at age 16, in 1961, when he was still boxing himself), Steward has learnt a lot. Here he lists the things he feels are the most important when it comes to becoming an effective boxing trainer.
“I never learnt from one particular trainer. I was always my own man, in my own little world with the guys at Kronk,” Steward explains.
“I just watched and picked things up when I was an amateur. I know Angelo Dundee quite well, but I never learnt anything from him. I never read books about boxing training. I worked against Eddie Futch twice - his fighters against mine. Both times I won - Tommy Hearns against James Schuler and Evander Holyfield against Riddick Bowe the second time..
During his great career, Emanuel has collated a number of “Golden Rules” - he lists them here:
“Pretty much, I make sure I stick to the basics, basic boxing. The fundamentals. Guys [trainers] don’t seem to do this now, they look to get too complicated.
“I look at balance and the correct delivery of a punch as being extremely important for any fighter I work with. Footwork, coordination. Common sense stuff, really. A fighter has to master the fundamentals to be successful. I see a lot of guys trying to get too technical today.
“I’ve also learnt that you cannot treat each guy the same. All boxers are different. You have to get to know each guy and his mental makeup. You can’t take one fighting style and use it with every guy. And you can’t take one style and try to make it successful against each opponent your guy fights. As a trainer, you have to study each opponent’s style and work with your guy on what he needs to do to overcome him. As a broadcaster and analyst (On HBO), I pick things up watching the fights. And Larry Merchant has said some interesting things that I’ve picked up on. For example, he told me that tall guys don’t need to use their jab aggressively; they can be more relaxed with it and dominate that way. Things like that are interesting.
“Another important thing is, you must realise that amateur and pro boxing are totally different - they are two different levels of boxing. Boxing is all about levels. There are things a pro can do that an amateur can’t do.
“And finally hard work. If a guy isn’t prepared to put in the hard work, if he isn’t dedicated, then he’s wasting your time as well as his own time.”
A fighter, a fan, or even a fellow trainer, can learn a whole lot by listening to what “Manny” Steward has to say!
By James Slater - Hall of Fame boxing trainer Emanuel Steward is and always has been his own man. Unlike other accomplished boxing trainers, Emanuel doesn’t feel he owes a debt of gratitude to any “father figure” coaches of yesteryear. When recently asked by this writer if any one trainer taught him any invaluable lessons as he was making his way up the coaching ladder, Steward replied instantly “No.”
A natural at simply watching and learning from the ringside, it wasn’t long before Emanuel became famous and established via his tremendous success with the Kronk gym he opened in Detroit.
During his time in boxing (he began training guys at age 16, in 1961, when he was still boxing himself), Steward has learnt a lot. Here he lists the things he feels are the most important when it comes to becoming an effective boxing trainer.
“I never learnt from one particular trainer. I was always my own man, in my own little world with the guys at Kronk,” Steward explains.
“I just watched and picked things up when I was an amateur. I know Angelo Dundee quite well, but I never learnt anything from him. I never read books about boxing training. I worked against Eddie Futch twice - his fighters against mine. Both times I won - Tommy Hearns against James Schuler and Evander Holyfield against Riddick Bowe the second time..
During his great career, Emanuel has collated a number of “Golden Rules” - he lists them here:
“Pretty much, I make sure I stick to the basics, basic boxing. The fundamentals. Guys [trainers] don’t seem to do this now, they look to get too complicated.
“I look at balance and the correct delivery of a punch as being extremely important for any fighter I work with. Footwork, coordination. Common sense stuff, really. A fighter has to master the fundamentals to be successful. I see a lot of guys trying to get too technical today.
“I’ve also learnt that you cannot treat each guy the same. All boxers are different. You have to get to know each guy and his mental makeup. You can’t take one fighting style and use it with every guy. And you can’t take one style and try to make it successful against each opponent your guy fights. As a trainer, you have to study each opponent’s style and work with your guy on what he needs to do to overcome him. As a broadcaster and analyst (On HBO), I pick things up watching the fights. And Larry Merchant has said some interesting things that I’ve picked up on. For example, he told me that tall guys don’t need to use their jab aggressively; they can be more relaxed with it and dominate that way. Things like that are interesting.
“Another important thing is, you must realise that amateur and pro boxing are totally different - they are two different levels of boxing. Boxing is all about levels. There are things a pro can do that an amateur can’t do.
“And finally hard work. If a guy isn’t prepared to put in the hard work, if he isn’t dedicated, then he’s wasting your time as well as his own time.”
A fighter, a fan, or even a fellow trainer, can learn a whole lot by listening to what “Manny” Steward has to say!
Peter Manfredo Junior-Dmitry Pirog A Possibility - DiBella, Pelullo In Talks
By James Slater: There is no doubt about how former “Contender” Peter Manfredo Junior is both in line for and deserving of a big fight in the near future. Having come through some tough times and showing real character in regrouping after his 2008 loss to the much bigger Sakio Bika, the 30-year-old has strung together six decent wins and has also signed a deal with promoter Lou DiBella.
“The Pride of Providence,” now campaigning at a more comfortable 160-pounds, is 37-6(20) overall and he has recently had his name mentioned as a future challenger of world middleweight king Sergio Martinez. Thanks to DiBella, Manfredo - a proven fan-favourite and ticket seller - is in line to challenge for a major belt at middleweight; maybe against Martinez, maybe not. The latest word from DiBella, via his Twitter page, is that Manfredo is possibly in line to fight unbeaten Russian star and WBO 160-pound champ Dmitry Pirog - in a fight that could see the winner go on to challenge the world ruler from Argentina.
DiBell, one of the best promoters in the game, has revealed how he is now in talks with Pirog’s promoter Art Pelullo, about the possibility of a fight between Manfredo and the Russian who burst to prominence with that 5th-round stoppage of the previously unbeaten “Golden Child” Danny Jacobs last summer. Having the look of a good fight, Pirog Vs. Manfredo could go either way.
Sure, 30-year-old Pirog, 18-0(14) looked great in bursting Jacobs’ bubble, but he failed to sparkle in his first title defence back in March. Winning a clear but somewhat dull 12-round UD over Argentine Javier Francisco Maciel, the 6’1” Pirog didn’t put on the showcase many fans felt he would. Maybe the inactivity he had between the Jacobs and Maciel fights affected him (some eight months), but some fans began to wonder if Pirog was the future star they thought he was. Against the more experienced Manfredo, we will perhaps find out.
Coming back from financial and career setbacks, the gutsy Manfredo has claimed some respectable-looking wins over the past three years, climbing gradually up the middleweight ratings as a result (Manfredo is now ranked at #11 by the Boxrec ratings). As hungry as ever and craving a legit belt to wrap around his waist, Manfredo is willing to go in with anyone from Martinez to Kelly Pavlik. It looks like he may get Pirog next, though, and what a win that would be for him. But can the former NABF and IBO champ get a victory?
The fight is by no means set yet, but DiBella and Pelullo are at least in talks. At 5’10,” Manfredo would be giving away a fair amount of height, and he is perhaps less fresh than is Pirog. But the experience the former reality TV show star has under his belt could well play huge dividends if and when he faces Pirog.
I for one would be most intrigued to see this match-up made.
By James Slater: There is no doubt about how former “Contender” Peter Manfredo Junior is both in line for and deserving of a big fight in the near future. Having come through some tough times and showing real character in regrouping after his 2008 loss to the much bigger Sakio Bika, the 30-year-old has strung together six decent wins and has also signed a deal with promoter Lou DiBella.
“The Pride of Providence,” now campaigning at a more comfortable 160-pounds, is 37-6(20) overall and he has recently had his name mentioned as a future challenger of world middleweight king Sergio Martinez. Thanks to DiBella, Manfredo - a proven fan-favourite and ticket seller - is in line to challenge for a major belt at middleweight; maybe against Martinez, maybe not. The latest word from DiBella, via his Twitter page, is that Manfredo is possibly in line to fight unbeaten Russian star and WBO 160-pound champ Dmitry Pirog - in a fight that could see the winner go on to challenge the world ruler from Argentina.
DiBell, one of the best promoters in the game, has revealed how he is now in talks with Pirog’s promoter Art Pelullo, about the possibility of a fight between Manfredo and the Russian who burst to prominence with that 5th-round stoppage of the previously unbeaten “Golden Child” Danny Jacobs last summer. Having the look of a good fight, Pirog Vs. Manfredo could go either way.
Sure, 30-year-old Pirog, 18-0(14) looked great in bursting Jacobs’ bubble, but he failed to sparkle in his first title defence back in March. Winning a clear but somewhat dull 12-round UD over Argentine Javier Francisco Maciel, the 6’1” Pirog didn’t put on the showcase many fans felt he would. Maybe the inactivity he had between the Jacobs and Maciel fights affected him (some eight months), but some fans began to wonder if Pirog was the future star they thought he was. Against the more experienced Manfredo, we will perhaps find out.
Coming back from financial and career setbacks, the gutsy Manfredo has claimed some respectable-looking wins over the past three years, climbing gradually up the middleweight ratings as a result (Manfredo is now ranked at #11 by the Boxrec ratings). As hungry as ever and craving a legit belt to wrap around his waist, Manfredo is willing to go in with anyone from Martinez to Kelly Pavlik. It looks like he may get Pirog next, though, and what a win that would be for him. But can the former NABF and IBO champ get a victory?
The fight is by no means set yet, but DiBella and Pelullo are at least in talks. At 5’10,” Manfredo would be giving away a fair amount of height, and he is perhaps less fresh than is Pirog. But the experience the former reality TV show star has under his belt could well play huge dividends if and when he faces Pirog.
I for one would be most intrigued to see this match-up made.
Vitali Klitschko vs. Tomasz Adamek on 9/10
By James Slater: There was a chance that Vitali Klitschko, the seemingly unbeatable WBC heavyweight king, would take an optional title defence in June, against a selected “keep busy” opponent. However, according to both Dan Rafael of ESPN.com and Boxrec.com, this will not now be the case; “Dr. Iron Fist” will instead travel directly to Poland for his next fight, against national hero Tomasz Adamek - the exciting-looking match-up to go ahead at a venue to be determined on September 10th.
It is expected that the clash will play out in front of a huge outdoor crowd of many thousands of fans, and reportedly two Polish stadiums are in the run to host the big fight. Sure to be a massive event - maybe even bigger than the expected late June or early July rumble between Wladimir Klitschko and David Haye - Vitali Vs. Adamek has the look of an attractive, if one-sided, fight.
34-year-old Adamek, now 6-0 as a heavyweight, has been aching for this big opportunity for quite a while. Fresh off a clear points win over the lumbering Kevin McBride, the warrior known as “Goral” says it has always been his dream to become heavyweight champion. Now, against the giant who made surprisingly short work of the previously unbeaten Odlanier Solis in his last fight, the former light-heavy and cruiser boss gets his chance. But as big a fight as the September showdown will be, has the much smaller, lighter-hitting challenger got a real chance of winning?
At age 39 (40 by the time of the first bell), the thinking in some places (maybe amongst Team-Adamek) is that Vitali has to go some time. There haven’t been too many heavyweight champions who reigned at an older age than Vitali, but so far the well-conditioned, iron-chinned ruler has smirked in the face of Father Time. And even though the elder Klitschko brother has said he has no wish to break George Foreman’s record as being the oldest ever heavyweight champion, it’s possible Vitali could do just that.
If Adamek IS banking on Vitali at last showing his age in September, he may be in for a shock. But knowing Adamek as we do - as one of the fiercest competitors out there - it’s unlikely he will be looking for any advantage come fight time. Adamek, 44-1(28) has never taken the easy route, and it is to his credit that he has sought out the Klitschkos. The Polish hero gets Vitali, British hero Haye gets Wladimir. Has either guy got a genuine shot at ending the formidable reign of the finest heavyweight boxing brothers in history?
Neither challenger figures to fall early, or without a fierce fight. To me, though, Haye has the firepower needed; Adamek does not. That said, is Adamek a better, smarter fighter than Haye? In what could be the best year for the heavyweight division in quite some time, we will soon find out.
Good luck to both Klitschko challengers: they will need it!
By James Slater: There was a chance that Vitali Klitschko, the seemingly unbeatable WBC heavyweight king, would take an optional title defence in June, against a selected “keep busy” opponent. However, according to both Dan Rafael of ESPN.com and Boxrec.com, this will not now be the case; “Dr. Iron Fist” will instead travel directly to Poland for his next fight, against national hero Tomasz Adamek - the exciting-looking match-up to go ahead at a venue to be determined on September 10th.
It is expected that the clash will play out in front of a huge outdoor crowd of many thousands of fans, and reportedly two Polish stadiums are in the run to host the big fight. Sure to be a massive event - maybe even bigger than the expected late June or early July rumble between Wladimir Klitschko and David Haye - Vitali Vs. Adamek has the look of an attractive, if one-sided, fight.
34-year-old Adamek, now 6-0 as a heavyweight, has been aching for this big opportunity for quite a while. Fresh off a clear points win over the lumbering Kevin McBride, the warrior known as “Goral” says it has always been his dream to become heavyweight champion. Now, against the giant who made surprisingly short work of the previously unbeaten Odlanier Solis in his last fight, the former light-heavy and cruiser boss gets his chance. But as big a fight as the September showdown will be, has the much smaller, lighter-hitting challenger got a real chance of winning?
At age 39 (40 by the time of the first bell), the thinking in some places (maybe amongst Team-Adamek) is that Vitali has to go some time. There haven’t been too many heavyweight champions who reigned at an older age than Vitali, but so far the well-conditioned, iron-chinned ruler has smirked in the face of Father Time. And even though the elder Klitschko brother has said he has no wish to break George Foreman’s record as being the oldest ever heavyweight champion, it’s possible Vitali could do just that.
If Adamek IS banking on Vitali at last showing his age in September, he may be in for a shock. But knowing Adamek as we do - as one of the fiercest competitors out there - it’s unlikely he will be looking for any advantage come fight time. Adamek, 44-1(28) has never taken the easy route, and it is to his credit that he has sought out the Klitschkos. The Polish hero gets Vitali, British hero Haye gets Wladimir. Has either guy got a genuine shot at ending the formidable reign of the finest heavyweight boxing brothers in history?
Neither challenger figures to fall early, or without a fierce fight. To me, though, Haye has the firepower needed; Adamek does not. That said, is Adamek a better, smarter fighter than Haye? In what could be the best year for the heavyweight division in quite some time, we will soon find out.
Good luck to both Klitschko challengers: they will need it!
Martirosyan vs. Roman on June 4th
By Eric Thomas: Unbeaten junior middleweight contender Vanes Martirosyan (29-0, 18 KO’s) will be taking on Mexican Saul Roman (34-8, 29 KO’s) for the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) Silver light middleweight title on June 4th at Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California.
This is a fight that was supposed to have taken place on April 23rd of this month but the 24-year-old Martirosyan came up ill with a case of the flu while training and had to take time out to get better.
Martirosyan, ranked #4 IBF, #4 WBC, #1 WBO, is coming off of an impressive 2nd round TKO of Bladimir Hernandez in March. That fight was a step down in competition from Martirosyan’s lopsided 10 round unanimous decision win over Joe Greene last year in June.
The way that Martirosyan so easily handled Greene seemed to suggest that Martirosyan was ready for a title shot against one of the champions. Indeed, Martirosyan has been trying to get a fight against WBA junior middleweight champion Miguel Cotto but he hasn’t had any luck getting Cotto into the ring.
It’s unfortunate but Martirosyan is going to have to keep winning until the champions are literally forced to fight him. With his number #1 ranking by the WBO, Martirosyan is in the perfect position to get a shot against champion Sergiy Dzinziruk.
That is a fight that would be interesting to see. However, Martirosyan has to get by the 30-year-old Roman first before he can think title shots. It’s good to know that Roman has lost three out of his last five bouts. But he did recently stop a tough Michael Medina by a 2nd round TKO in his last bout in January.
Roman has some power that Martirosyan is going to have to be wary of. He can’t just walk through this guy like he’s done with many of his opponents. If Roman lands something big, Martirosyan could find himself starting from scratch with his career. He can’t afford that.
By Eric Thomas: Unbeaten junior middleweight contender Vanes Martirosyan (29-0, 18 KO’s) will be taking on Mexican Saul Roman (34-8, 29 KO’s) for the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) Silver light middleweight title on June 4th at Staples Center, in Los Angeles, California.
This is a fight that was supposed to have taken place on April 23rd of this month but the 24-year-old Martirosyan came up ill with a case of the flu while training and had to take time out to get better.
Martirosyan, ranked #4 IBF, #4 WBC, #1 WBO, is coming off of an impressive 2nd round TKO of Bladimir Hernandez in March. That fight was a step down in competition from Martirosyan’s lopsided 10 round unanimous decision win over Joe Greene last year in June.
The way that Martirosyan so easily handled Greene seemed to suggest that Martirosyan was ready for a title shot against one of the champions. Indeed, Martirosyan has been trying to get a fight against WBA junior middleweight champion Miguel Cotto but he hasn’t had any luck getting Cotto into the ring.
It’s unfortunate but Martirosyan is going to have to keep winning until the champions are literally forced to fight him. With his number #1 ranking by the WBO, Martirosyan is in the perfect position to get a shot against champion Sergiy Dzinziruk.
That is a fight that would be interesting to see. However, Martirosyan has to get by the 30-year-old Roman first before he can think title shots. It’s good to know that Roman has lost three out of his last five bouts. But he did recently stop a tough Michael Medina by a 2nd round TKO in his last bout in January.
Roman has some power that Martirosyan is going to have to be wary of. He can’t just walk through this guy like he’s done with many of his opponents. If Roman lands something big, Martirosyan could find himself starting from scratch with his career. He can’t afford that.
Johnson wants to knock Froch out to ensure he gets the win
By Sean McDaniel: 42-year-old Glen Johnson (51-14-2, 35 KO’s) wants to knockout WBC super middleweight champion Carl Froch (27-1, 20 KO’s) on June 4th to ensure he gets the win and doesn’t end up getting the shaft in their fight at the Boardwalk Hall, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Johnson had this to say about his fight with Froch in an article at thisisnottingham.co.uk: “Every time I’m fighting marquee guys you always want to go in there and get the knockout because it’s the only way to assure yourself of the victory. You can’t blame Johnson for wanting to make sure he gets the win, because one Super Six tournament fighter, Andre Dirrell, lost a questionable decision to Froch in their first fight of the tournament. Many people thought Dirrell should have won that fight.
Johnson is fortunate that his fight with Froch won’t be taking place in Froch’s home city of Nottingham. That’s one less thing that you would think that Johnson has to worry about. Johnson has lost a number of decisions during his career where he appeared to win but was on the losing end of a bad decision. Johnson has to get to Froch and take advantage of his low guard by hitting him hard to try and get him out of there. At the very least, Johnson could get Froch in the retreat mode like he was in the Mikkel Kessler fight and possibly earn a decision.
By Sean McDaniel: 42-year-old Glen Johnson (51-14-2, 35 KO’s) wants to knockout WBC super middleweight champion Carl Froch (27-1, 20 KO’s) on June 4th to ensure he gets the win and doesn’t end up getting the shaft in their fight at the Boardwalk Hall, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Johnson had this to say about his fight with Froch in an article at thisisnottingham.co.uk: “Every time I’m fighting marquee guys you always want to go in there and get the knockout because it’s the only way to assure yourself of the victory. You can’t blame Johnson for wanting to make sure he gets the win, because one Super Six tournament fighter, Andre Dirrell, lost a questionable decision to Froch in their first fight of the tournament. Many people thought Dirrell should have won that fight.
Johnson is fortunate that his fight with Froch won’t be taking place in Froch’s home city of Nottingham. That’s one less thing that you would think that Johnson has to worry about. Johnson has lost a number of decisions during his career where he appeared to win but was on the losing end of a bad decision. Johnson has to get to Froch and take advantage of his low guard by hitting him hard to try and get him out of there. At the very least, Johnson could get Froch in the retreat mode like he was in the Mikkel Kessler fight and possibly earn a decision.
Robert Guerrero: “Marquez either has to fight me or go up in weight”
by Geoffrey Ciani (Interviewed by Jenna J & Geoffrey Ciani) - This week’s 118th edition of On the Ropes Boxing Radio (brought to you by CWH Promotions) featured an exclusive interview with former two division champion Robert Guerrero (29-1-1, 18 KOs) who just won the interim WBA and WBO lightweight world titles when he defeated Michael Katsidis (27-4, 22 KOs) by lopsided unanimous decision. Guerrero spoke about that performance, a potential fight against Juan Manuel Marquez, a possible jump to 140, Pacquiao-Mosley, Lopez-Salido, and more! Here are some excerpts from that interview:
On how he rates his performance in his victory against Michael Katsidis:
“I’d give myself maybe a C+. There are a lot of things in there that I worked on in the gym that I didn’t get to do in the ring. That’s why you go back and assess yourself and start improving.”
Regarding the specific areas of his game where he believes he could improve:
“I mean there are a lot of things, stepping off to the right more, throwing more feints, and I mean there was a number of things we did in the gym that I didn’t get to do. You know what I was doing in there it was getting the job done and we turned out a good night.”
Whether he was ever bothered by the pressure being applied by Katsidis:
“No, not at all. I knew he was going to come stronger. One of the game plans going in was to really get behind that jab and with every move he made just keep sticking him with that jab and setting him up. I know Michael Katsidis. He’s that type of fighter where he puts so much pressure that guys fold and their game plan just goes out the window with him. It was a matter of staying focused and not losing my cool and staying right behind that jab and letting him run right into it.”
On whether he was hurt any of the body shots Katsidis landed in the 8th:
“No. You know he caught me with I think two or three low blows during that round, but other than that the body attack he imposed on me didn’t affect me at all. Part of me standing there and weathering the body attack was my part of my game plan to let him know, hey I’m strong and I can hold my ground if I want. I pretty much went out there to put in his mind that I was in charge of the fight and I was going to dictate it.”
His views on whether he can realistically expect to facer Juan Manuel Marquez in his next fight:
“Yeah, I mean it could be a possibility. They tried to make the fight before. It didn’t get made. We’ll see what happens. We’ll see if he’s going to go up to 140 pounds or stay at 135. I know he’s very interested in trying to get that Pacquiao fight. I don’t blame him. We’ll see what happens. I’m the number one mandatory challenger to fight him. I’m excited that I’m right there. Marquez either has to fight me or go up in weight.”
On whether he is tempted to make the jump to 140 to land some bigger name fights:
“Oh yeah, definitely! I mean I feel real good at 135 pounds. I have no problem making 140-147. I got the height and the reach, and the speed and the power for it. I’m excited to be right in the area where there is the possibility of a Mayweather fight, a Pacquiao fight, Marquez, Bradley, Zab Judah just won the IBF title and there are so many big fights out there, Amir Khan, Marcos Maidana who just beat Morales in the main event. There are so many big fights out there. Pretty much I’m at the right spot at the right time.”
On whether making the jump to 140 might happen sooner rather than later if he is unable to secure a fight against Marquez at 135:
“Oh yeah. Yeah definitely, we’ve been looking at a lot of names out there and one of the biggest names out there is Floyd Mayweather. If I could get that fight I would take that fight in a heartbeat. It’s about making big fights and fighting the best and going out there and putting on great shows for the fans. As everybody has seen Saturday night that’s what I’m willing to do is to put on a great show for the fans and to come out and give it my best.”
His views on the Morales-Maidana fight and whether he was surprised that Morales had a turn back the clock type of performance:
“No, not at all. I knew Morales coming into this fight was going to be in great shape. From the press conference when we announced the fight and just seeing how good he looked not being in top shape, how well he had been taken care of himself he looked good. Last week leading up into the fight me and him were doing our shake outs in the same gym at the same time and seeing how good he looked and how fit he was and his power and strength and everything and how his speed looked. I wasn’t surprised at all how he went out there and performed. I think he deserves a lot of credit for going out there and standing right there with Marcos Maidana and actually hurting him a bunch of times with body shots. I take my hat off to him because he came out and he fought a great fight. I take nothing from him because everybody was counting him out and saying he would get knocked out, and he came out and did his thing.”
Regarding which of the 140 pound champions (Timothy Bradley, Amir Khan, and Zab Judah) he would most like to fight in the event he makes the jump to 140:
“Any one of them. It doesn’t matter. They’re all good champions. I mean Zab Judah has a great resume. He fought a number of great fighters. Amir Khan’s out there. He’s a young hot champion coming out just beating Marcos Maidana. I mean there are so many fights. Then Bradley, Bradley’s a great fighter too. He has got quick hands, he comes in strong, and he does his thing. I’d fight any of them. It doesn’t matter. They’re all solid top notch great champions and like I said it’s about making those big fights and it’s going to be who matches up the best for me put on the great fight for the fans.”
Whether he is at all disappointed him that the big name fights have eluded him thus far:
“Yeah, I mean I think this fight with Michael Katsidis has kind of put me where I could get those big mega fights. That’s one of the things I wanted in my career was having a marquee name. I was a three time IBF world champion and now I’m the WBA and WBO interim champion. So it’s exciting that everything is starting to fall into place. I have to be patient and it’s here now and I got to take advantage of it, but the main thing is being 100% ready and in great shape and working on getting better:
His views on the upcoming fight between Juan Manuel Lopez and Orlando Salido:
“I think Lopez beats him. You know Lopez is on his game. He’s a very strong fighter. The one thing with Orlando Salido is he’s been at featherweight for the longest time and when you’re not on the juice and you’re not on the sauce you don’t fight the same. I think after he fought me he’s never looked the same ever. I think that was the strongest and the fastest he’s ever looked and it showed in his drug test. I think Lopez is going to go out there and take care of business.”
On whether he believes Shane Mosley has enough left to pull off the upset against Manny Pacquiao:
“Oh yeah! You can never count Shane out. I mean I’ve been in the gym with him. I’ve sparred with him. He’s just one of those tremendous athletes that just pulls them out of the bag. He just pulls them out of the bag. It’s like everybody was counting him out when he fought Margarito and he came out and he just shocked the world. You had seen Saturday night with Morales who everybody was counting him out and he came back in spectacular fashion and showed the world he had something left. I think this is a fight where Shane is going to come out and show he still has something in the tank. I think he’s going to be ready for this fight. I think he’s going to be ready and this is his opportunity to pull out that last big trick.”
On when he expects to be back in the ring:
“Hopefully I can get in there soon. I feel real good. I’m just a little bit sore. I have no injured arms or anything. I just got my hand a little sore. It’s a little bruised up from the fight. I’m going to get it looked at tomorrow by a hand specialist and see what’s going on there, but as soon as I get word when I’ll be able to get back into the ring hopefully maybe in the next three or four months I’ll be ready for another fight to rock and roll. I’m excited. Golden Boy is doing a great job with me and I think I’ll be ready to fight and it will be all right there. So I’m hoping to get back there pretty soon.”
On whether there was anything he would like to say to all of his fans and supporters:
“I want to thank them for watching. I appreciate them. That’s why I come out and give it my all to fight for them. I hope they enjoyed the fight Saturday night because I worked very hard and I’m going to keep working hard, so keep on watching because the best of Robert Guerrero is yet to come and I’m going to be working hard just to get better.”
by Geoffrey Ciani (Interviewed by Jenna J & Geoffrey Ciani) - This week’s 118th edition of On the Ropes Boxing Radio (brought to you by CWH Promotions) featured an exclusive interview with former two division champion Robert Guerrero (29-1-1, 18 KOs) who just won the interim WBA and WBO lightweight world titles when he defeated Michael Katsidis (27-4, 22 KOs) by lopsided unanimous decision. Guerrero spoke about that performance, a potential fight against Juan Manuel Marquez, a possible jump to 140, Pacquiao-Mosley, Lopez-Salido, and more! Here are some excerpts from that interview:
On how he rates his performance in his victory against Michael Katsidis:
“I’d give myself maybe a C+. There are a lot of things in there that I worked on in the gym that I didn’t get to do in the ring. That’s why you go back and assess yourself and start improving.”
Regarding the specific areas of his game where he believes he could improve:
“I mean there are a lot of things, stepping off to the right more, throwing more feints, and I mean there was a number of things we did in the gym that I didn’t get to do. You know what I was doing in there it was getting the job done and we turned out a good night.”
Whether he was ever bothered by the pressure being applied by Katsidis:
“No, not at all. I knew he was going to come stronger. One of the game plans going in was to really get behind that jab and with every move he made just keep sticking him with that jab and setting him up. I know Michael Katsidis. He’s that type of fighter where he puts so much pressure that guys fold and their game plan just goes out the window with him. It was a matter of staying focused and not losing my cool and staying right behind that jab and letting him run right into it.”
On whether he was hurt any of the body shots Katsidis landed in the 8th:
“No. You know he caught me with I think two or three low blows during that round, but other than that the body attack he imposed on me didn’t affect me at all. Part of me standing there and weathering the body attack was my part of my game plan to let him know, hey I’m strong and I can hold my ground if I want. I pretty much went out there to put in his mind that I was in charge of the fight and I was going to dictate it.”
His views on whether he can realistically expect to facer Juan Manuel Marquez in his next fight:
“Yeah, I mean it could be a possibility. They tried to make the fight before. It didn’t get made. We’ll see what happens. We’ll see if he’s going to go up to 140 pounds or stay at 135. I know he’s very interested in trying to get that Pacquiao fight. I don’t blame him. We’ll see what happens. I’m the number one mandatory challenger to fight him. I’m excited that I’m right there. Marquez either has to fight me or go up in weight.”
On whether he is tempted to make the jump to 140 to land some bigger name fights:
“Oh yeah, definitely! I mean I feel real good at 135 pounds. I have no problem making 140-147. I got the height and the reach, and the speed and the power for it. I’m excited to be right in the area where there is the possibility of a Mayweather fight, a Pacquiao fight, Marquez, Bradley, Zab Judah just won the IBF title and there are so many big fights out there, Amir Khan, Marcos Maidana who just beat Morales in the main event. There are so many big fights out there. Pretty much I’m at the right spot at the right time.”
On whether making the jump to 140 might happen sooner rather than later if he is unable to secure a fight against Marquez at 135:
“Oh yeah. Yeah definitely, we’ve been looking at a lot of names out there and one of the biggest names out there is Floyd Mayweather. If I could get that fight I would take that fight in a heartbeat. It’s about making big fights and fighting the best and going out there and putting on great shows for the fans. As everybody has seen Saturday night that’s what I’m willing to do is to put on a great show for the fans and to come out and give it my best.”
His views on the Morales-Maidana fight and whether he was surprised that Morales had a turn back the clock type of performance:
“No, not at all. I knew Morales coming into this fight was going to be in great shape. From the press conference when we announced the fight and just seeing how good he looked not being in top shape, how well he had been taken care of himself he looked good. Last week leading up into the fight me and him were doing our shake outs in the same gym at the same time and seeing how good he looked and how fit he was and his power and strength and everything and how his speed looked. I wasn’t surprised at all how he went out there and performed. I think he deserves a lot of credit for going out there and standing right there with Marcos Maidana and actually hurting him a bunch of times with body shots. I take my hat off to him because he came out and he fought a great fight. I take nothing from him because everybody was counting him out and saying he would get knocked out, and he came out and did his thing.”
Regarding which of the 140 pound champions (Timothy Bradley, Amir Khan, and Zab Judah) he would most like to fight in the event he makes the jump to 140:
“Any one of them. It doesn’t matter. They’re all good champions. I mean Zab Judah has a great resume. He fought a number of great fighters. Amir Khan’s out there. He’s a young hot champion coming out just beating Marcos Maidana. I mean there are so many fights. Then Bradley, Bradley’s a great fighter too. He has got quick hands, he comes in strong, and he does his thing. I’d fight any of them. It doesn’t matter. They’re all solid top notch great champions and like I said it’s about making those big fights and it’s going to be who matches up the best for me put on the great fight for the fans.”
Whether he is at all disappointed him that the big name fights have eluded him thus far:
“Yeah, I mean I think this fight with Michael Katsidis has kind of put me where I could get those big mega fights. That’s one of the things I wanted in my career was having a marquee name. I was a three time IBF world champion and now I’m the WBA and WBO interim champion. So it’s exciting that everything is starting to fall into place. I have to be patient and it’s here now and I got to take advantage of it, but the main thing is being 100% ready and in great shape and working on getting better:
His views on the upcoming fight between Juan Manuel Lopez and Orlando Salido:
“I think Lopez beats him. You know Lopez is on his game. He’s a very strong fighter. The one thing with Orlando Salido is he’s been at featherweight for the longest time and when you’re not on the juice and you’re not on the sauce you don’t fight the same. I think after he fought me he’s never looked the same ever. I think that was the strongest and the fastest he’s ever looked and it showed in his drug test. I think Lopez is going to go out there and take care of business.”
On whether he believes Shane Mosley has enough left to pull off the upset against Manny Pacquiao:
“Oh yeah! You can never count Shane out. I mean I’ve been in the gym with him. I’ve sparred with him. He’s just one of those tremendous athletes that just pulls them out of the bag. He just pulls them out of the bag. It’s like everybody was counting him out when he fought Margarito and he came out and he just shocked the world. You had seen Saturday night with Morales who everybody was counting him out and he came back in spectacular fashion and showed the world he had something left. I think this is a fight where Shane is going to come out and show he still has something in the tank. I think he’s going to be ready for this fight. I think he’s going to be ready and this is his opportunity to pull out that last big trick.”
On when he expects to be back in the ring:
“Hopefully I can get in there soon. I feel real good. I’m just a little bit sore. I have no injured arms or anything. I just got my hand a little sore. It’s a little bruised up from the fight. I’m going to get it looked at tomorrow by a hand specialist and see what’s going on there, but as soon as I get word when I’ll be able to get back into the ring hopefully maybe in the next three or four months I’ll be ready for another fight to rock and roll. I’m excited. Golden Boy is doing a great job with me and I think I’ll be ready to fight and it will be all right there. So I’m hoping to get back there pretty soon.”
On whether there was anything he would like to say to all of his fans and supporters:
“I want to thank them for watching. I appreciate them. That’s why I come out and give it my all to fight for them. I hope they enjoyed the fight Saturday night because I worked very hard and I’m going to keep working hard, so keep on watching because the best of Robert Guerrero is yet to come and I’m going to be working hard just to get better.”
Shane Mosley: “I know that I’m going to be at my best
by Geoffrey Ciani (Interviewed by Jenna J & Geoffrey Ciani) - Last week’s 119th edition of On the Ropes Boxing Radio (brought to you by CWH Promotions) featured an exclusive interview with former three division champion Sugar Shane Mosley (46-6-1, 39 KOs) who is scheduled to face the reigning Pound-for-Pound King Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 Kos) on May 7 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Shane spoke about his upcoming fight and also touched on other aspects of the current boxing landscape. Here is a complete transcript of that interview:
JENNA J: It is time for our third guest of this week’s show. He is a former three division champion making his seventh appearance with On the Ropes. We’re joined by Sugar Shane Mosley. How are you doing today Shane?
SHANE MOSLEY: I’m doing good. I’m feeling really great about a hard workout I had this morning and I’m doing good.
JENNA: Well we definitely like to hear that. Now you have a big fight against Manny Pacquiao coming up on May 7. How have your preparations been going so far?
MOSLEY: Preparations have been going very well. Like I said I’m training hard. I’m very sore and I’m anxious to get in there and have the fight.
JENNA: Alright now who are you sparring with to prepare for someone like Manny Pacquiao’s style?
MOSLEY: I have a lot of different sparring partners that Brother Nazim brings in and that come at me at different times. I mean have “Chop Chop” is down there, and Ricardo Williams, and Terrance Cauthen. There are a lot sparring partners.
JENNA: Okay, now when you get into the ring with Manny Pacquiao he will most likely be the fastest fighter you’ve ever faced. What are you doing in camp to adjust to someone fighting with his speed?
MOSLEY: Well I don’t know if he’s going to be the fastest that I fought, but he’s going to be very active and he’s going to be pretty much the smallest guy I fought in a long time so that will be great.
JENNA: Alright well the boxing bookies have you as a significant underdog in this bout and it’s probably the most you’ve ever been counted out in any fight you’ve had in your career. How do you feel about that going into this one?
MOSLEY: I feel great! I feel great that they doubt me and they feel that way. That only makes the victory that much greater.
JENNA: Okay, well we’re also joined by my Co-Host Geoff.
GEOFFREY CIANI: Hey Shane! It’s a pleasure to have you back on the show.
MOSLEY: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
CIANI: Shane I wanted to ask you, at the time when Pacquiao did what you did and he skipped over the 140 pound weight class to jump from 135 to 147 to have a mega fight with Oscar De La Hoya, before Pacquiao made that jump did you think he had a chance against Oscar?
MOSLEY: Yeah, I did think he had a chance and knowing what Oscar went through to make the weight at 147 and how weak he was, I figured that Pacquiao had a good chance at beating him.
CIANI: Now were you surprised by the way that he beat him at that time when he first made the jump?
MOSLEY: No, not really. It wasn’t really that I was surprised. It was more that I had seen what Oscar had to do to get to where he had to go. When he was in the ring, talking to Oscar, he said he had nothing. After two rounds he had nothing. He had seen everything but he just couldn’t do anything and that was because he was so weak and I understood that.
CIANI: When we had Ronnie Shields, Emanuel Steward, and a few others on the show, they all mentioned that you matchup much more favorably style-wise against Pacquiao than you did against somebody like Mayweather or even Mora. Do you view that the same way?
MOSLEY: Well Sergio Mora is more of a big guy. He’s really a 160 pounder and I was just a 147 pound guy fighting him. With Mayweather I had some difficulties but I was able to hit him on the chin a couple of times and get him riled up. Stylistically I can probably agree with Ronnie Shields and others.
JENNA: Alright now Shane, some people feel like you look drained in your fight with Floyd Mayweather Junior like having to make the weight of 147 took a little bit out of you. Your last fight was at 154 pounds. How do you think you’ll react to getting down to the weight this time?
MOSLEY: Well I’m pretty much there already so hopefully I’ll be good. I’m already around the weight. I’m in striking distance.
JENNA: Shane, this fight with Manny Pacquiao is going to be part of a reality show “Fight Camp 360”. What is it like to have every moment of your training camp filmed and do you at all worry that certain things that you don’t want out there will get out there.
MOSLEY: They’re around you a lot and they stick the camera right in your face. You just kind of go into your own shell and just do what you got to do and say what you got to say. I don’t really taper the words that I’m saying too much. I just kind of go with the flow and work hard.
JENNA: Well for this promotion it’s actually going to be broadcast on CBS and you’re going to get out to probably the largest audience that you’ve ever been out to. How do you feel about that and the transition to regular television?
MOSLEY: I mean that’s wonderful. For people to be able to reach us that don’t really watch boxing as much is going to be great. I mean I like it and maybe it’s going to show on the pay-per-view numbers as well. That In turn translates into more dollars in my pocket, so I am definitely happy about that.
JENNA: Alright well back to your fight with Manny Pacquiao, every fighter they say has a weakness. When you look at Manny Pacquiao what things do you think you can exploit in the ring?
MOSLEY: He’s going to throw a lot of punches and he’s going to be on his toes. He’s going to be moving and he’s going to try and create angles and stuff like that and try to keep me off balance. He does a lot of great things. Pacquiao’s not the hardest person to hit so I’m going to have a pretty good advantage with being able to hit him. I think it’s going to be an exciting fight because both me and Manny like to fight. We both fight hard and we come to fight.
JENNA: Shane do you think your best chance in this fight is if you can somehow drag Manny Pacquiao into a dogfight?
MOSLEY: Yeah I think that the thing is to be smart about the way I throw punches and what I’m doing. I think it was proven with Marquez and the two other guys that fought him smart. They were able to land good shots. I think with my size it’s going to help me a lot because I’m a lot faster than the guys that he’s fought and my timing is probably a little better than theirs, especially Margarito’s and being that Magrarito was able to hit him a few times I think that I have a better chance of hitting him a lot on the button.
CIANI: When we had Freddie Roach on the show he said that he thought the first four rounds of the fight were going to be crucial and that you were going come out for a quick start, but he seemed to insinuate that if he you didn’t get Pacquiao out of there in the first four rounds that it almost seemed he thought they would coast. If that is indeed their mentality going into this do you think they’re making a mistake?
MOSLEY: Well if that is there mentality they are. Usually it’s been shown in my other fights that I can continue fighting at a high tempo. I even knocked out Mayorga and I always got late knockouts. That could be a mistake. Even with Margarito that was a late knockout. I had to pound him from round to round before I got the knockout so I do have my power in the late stages of a fight as well. He just has to be careful, that’s all.
CIANI: A win over Pacquiao can potentially change your life. What do you think it could do for your legacy at this point?
MOSLEY: I think it’s great for my legacy. Beating a guy like Manny Pacquiao when nobody gives me a chance, that will be one for the history books. Also we just started my own promotional company, Sugar Shane Mosley Promotions that’s going to help as well to recruit young talented fighters to come workout because we all know I can’t do this forever so I might as well help the young talent to come up and do the same thing I had done.
JENNA: If you do win this bout and Manny Pacquiao does not want to do a rematch, a fight that everybody would want to see in boxing would be a fight between you and Sergio Martinez. Do you think that you will be able to go up to middleweight and fight him if you are to win this bout?
MOSLEY: No, I wouldn’t go up to middleweight to face Sergio Martinez because he’s too big. 154 pounds I can get away with where I’m not as strong or whatever, but my body frame is not big enough for that. If Manny Pacquiao doesn’t want to fight maybe I can get a rematch with Mayweather.
JENNA: Okay you say you want a rematch with Mayweather. What do you think you could do differently that would change the result?
MOSLEY: I think that there were little personal problems that I had before that Floyd Mayweather match that kind of drained me a little bit. But I think with this, with me being at my top, I believe when I hit Mayweather again I can maintain the same power and strength that I had throughout the whole fight. So that would be the difference. Rocking Mayweather and then being able to rock him again in the later rounds would be the difference and possibly able to knock him out.
JENNA: Well Shane, I just have a couple of more questions before we let you off the line and I’m curious to get your thoughts on the rematch that’s going to take place in the same month as your fight with Manny Pacquiao, and that’s between Bernard Hopkins and Jean Pascal. I don’t know if you saw the press conference, but what do you think about the feelings both guys have now about each other and how do you see the rematch playing out?
MOSLEY: Well it’s obvious that Bernard has gotten in Pascal’s head. Pascal mentally is feeling that. I think that when they fought the first time Pascal was thinking, “I’m stronger, I’m younger, and I can beat this old man”. Then he found out that wasn’t the case, that Bernard really wasn’t old. The age is really not that age because he keeps his body in shape and now Pascal knows that it’s going to be a different fight this time with Bernard. He knows that Bernard is coming to get him.
JENNA: People say the same thing about you that you have aged pretty well as a fighter. You’ve been able to fight effectively at the age of 39. Do you think you could ever fight as long as Bernard Hopkins has?
MOSLEY: You know I don’t think I would want to fight that long. I think I could, but I don’t think I would want to. I think that I want to go off into another career after I finish what’s done here. I have to give it my 100% all, give it everything I got, beat Pacquiao, we can do a rematch, fight Mayweather, and I think that’s pretty much it for me. Then I will go off and I will stop helping these young fighters become world champions and get into another side of the business.
JENNA: One thing that’s for sure in boxing is victory is never guaranteed. What happens if you are unable to beat Manny Pacquiao? Where do you from there?
MOSLEY: If we get over there on that side of the bridge we’ll think about it and talk about it. I always have winning in my mind and I eliminate the doubt, starve the doubt, and go for what I know and that’s the win, the victory. That’s the only thing that’s in my mind is winning the fight because if I didn’t think that way and I didn’t train that way then there’s no need to fight.
JENNA: Okay well you have winning on the mind. What is your official prediction against Manny Pacquiao when you face off May 7?
MOSLEY: You know I always go for the knockout so I’m going for the knockout. I’m going to be at my best and train hard and make sure that when I fight Manny Pacquiao it’s going to be a night that nobody is going to forget.
JENNA: Okay well Shane usually I ask a fighter what they want to say to their fans, but instead of that I’d like for you to answer your critics. Is there anything you want to say to your critics out there that believe you have no chance in this fight?
MOSLEY: I mean I have nothing to say to the critics. I mean they’re critics and that’s what they get paid to do. I just feel like I know that I’m going to be at my best and don’t be shocked if you see Manny Pacquiao on the floor.
JENNA: For my final question, is there anything you do want to say to your fans and supporters, the ones that believe you will win this fight?
MOSLEY: I just thank God that I have terrific fans and people that love me and admire me and admire my career and everything that I’m doing. Thank you for being loyal fans and thank you for being boxing fans and loving the sport of boxing because that’s what I love, I love the sport of boxing.
JENNA: Shane it’s been great as always speaking with you. We wish you all the best in your upcoming fight against Manny Pacquiao and we’re looking forward to a good fight.
MOSLEY: Thank you, you too.
CIANI: Thank you Shane. Good luck.
MOSLEY” Alright, bye bye. Thank you.
by Geoffrey Ciani (Interviewed by Jenna J & Geoffrey Ciani) - Last week’s 119th edition of On the Ropes Boxing Radio (brought to you by CWH Promotions) featured an exclusive interview with former three division champion Sugar Shane Mosley (46-6-1, 39 KOs) who is scheduled to face the reigning Pound-for-Pound King Manny Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 Kos) on May 7 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Shane spoke about his upcoming fight and also touched on other aspects of the current boxing landscape. Here is a complete transcript of that interview:
JENNA J: It is time for our third guest of this week’s show. He is a former three division champion making his seventh appearance with On the Ropes. We’re joined by Sugar Shane Mosley. How are you doing today Shane?
SHANE MOSLEY: I’m doing good. I’m feeling really great about a hard workout I had this morning and I’m doing good.
JENNA: Well we definitely like to hear that. Now you have a big fight against Manny Pacquiao coming up on May 7. How have your preparations been going so far?
MOSLEY: Preparations have been going very well. Like I said I’m training hard. I’m very sore and I’m anxious to get in there and have the fight.
JENNA: Alright now who are you sparring with to prepare for someone like Manny Pacquiao’s style?
MOSLEY: I have a lot of different sparring partners that Brother Nazim brings in and that come at me at different times. I mean have “Chop Chop” is down there, and Ricardo Williams, and Terrance Cauthen. There are a lot sparring partners.
JENNA: Okay, now when you get into the ring with Manny Pacquiao he will most likely be the fastest fighter you’ve ever faced. What are you doing in camp to adjust to someone fighting with his speed?
MOSLEY: Well I don’t know if he’s going to be the fastest that I fought, but he’s going to be very active and he’s going to be pretty much the smallest guy I fought in a long time so that will be great.
JENNA: Alright well the boxing bookies have you as a significant underdog in this bout and it’s probably the most you’ve ever been counted out in any fight you’ve had in your career. How do you feel about that going into this one?
MOSLEY: I feel great! I feel great that they doubt me and they feel that way. That only makes the victory that much greater.
JENNA: Okay, well we’re also joined by my Co-Host Geoff.
GEOFFREY CIANI: Hey Shane! It’s a pleasure to have you back on the show.
MOSLEY: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
CIANI: Shane I wanted to ask you, at the time when Pacquiao did what you did and he skipped over the 140 pound weight class to jump from 135 to 147 to have a mega fight with Oscar De La Hoya, before Pacquiao made that jump did you think he had a chance against Oscar?
MOSLEY: Yeah, I did think he had a chance and knowing what Oscar went through to make the weight at 147 and how weak he was, I figured that Pacquiao had a good chance at beating him.
CIANI: Now were you surprised by the way that he beat him at that time when he first made the jump?
MOSLEY: No, not really. It wasn’t really that I was surprised. It was more that I had seen what Oscar had to do to get to where he had to go. When he was in the ring, talking to Oscar, he said he had nothing. After two rounds he had nothing. He had seen everything but he just couldn’t do anything and that was because he was so weak and I understood that.
CIANI: When we had Ronnie Shields, Emanuel Steward, and a few others on the show, they all mentioned that you matchup much more favorably style-wise against Pacquiao than you did against somebody like Mayweather or even Mora. Do you view that the same way?
MOSLEY: Well Sergio Mora is more of a big guy. He’s really a 160 pounder and I was just a 147 pound guy fighting him. With Mayweather I had some difficulties but I was able to hit him on the chin a couple of times and get him riled up. Stylistically I can probably agree with Ronnie Shields and others.
JENNA: Alright now Shane, some people feel like you look drained in your fight with Floyd Mayweather Junior like having to make the weight of 147 took a little bit out of you. Your last fight was at 154 pounds. How do you think you’ll react to getting down to the weight this time?
MOSLEY: Well I’m pretty much there already so hopefully I’ll be good. I’m already around the weight. I’m in striking distance.
JENNA: Shane, this fight with Manny Pacquiao is going to be part of a reality show “Fight Camp 360”. What is it like to have every moment of your training camp filmed and do you at all worry that certain things that you don’t want out there will get out there.
MOSLEY: They’re around you a lot and they stick the camera right in your face. You just kind of go into your own shell and just do what you got to do and say what you got to say. I don’t really taper the words that I’m saying too much. I just kind of go with the flow and work hard.
JENNA: Well for this promotion it’s actually going to be broadcast on CBS and you’re going to get out to probably the largest audience that you’ve ever been out to. How do you feel about that and the transition to regular television?
MOSLEY: I mean that’s wonderful. For people to be able to reach us that don’t really watch boxing as much is going to be great. I mean I like it and maybe it’s going to show on the pay-per-view numbers as well. That In turn translates into more dollars in my pocket, so I am definitely happy about that.
JENNA: Alright well back to your fight with Manny Pacquiao, every fighter they say has a weakness. When you look at Manny Pacquiao what things do you think you can exploit in the ring?
MOSLEY: He’s going to throw a lot of punches and he’s going to be on his toes. He’s going to be moving and he’s going to try and create angles and stuff like that and try to keep me off balance. He does a lot of great things. Pacquiao’s not the hardest person to hit so I’m going to have a pretty good advantage with being able to hit him. I think it’s going to be an exciting fight because both me and Manny like to fight. We both fight hard and we come to fight.
JENNA: Shane do you think your best chance in this fight is if you can somehow drag Manny Pacquiao into a dogfight?
MOSLEY: Yeah I think that the thing is to be smart about the way I throw punches and what I’m doing. I think it was proven with Marquez and the two other guys that fought him smart. They were able to land good shots. I think with my size it’s going to help me a lot because I’m a lot faster than the guys that he’s fought and my timing is probably a little better than theirs, especially Margarito’s and being that Magrarito was able to hit him a few times I think that I have a better chance of hitting him a lot on the button.
CIANI: When we had Freddie Roach on the show he said that he thought the first four rounds of the fight were going to be crucial and that you were going come out for a quick start, but he seemed to insinuate that if he you didn’t get Pacquiao out of there in the first four rounds that it almost seemed he thought they would coast. If that is indeed their mentality going into this do you think they’re making a mistake?
MOSLEY: Well if that is there mentality they are. Usually it’s been shown in my other fights that I can continue fighting at a high tempo. I even knocked out Mayorga and I always got late knockouts. That could be a mistake. Even with Margarito that was a late knockout. I had to pound him from round to round before I got the knockout so I do have my power in the late stages of a fight as well. He just has to be careful, that’s all.
CIANI: A win over Pacquiao can potentially change your life. What do you think it could do for your legacy at this point?
MOSLEY: I think it’s great for my legacy. Beating a guy like Manny Pacquiao when nobody gives me a chance, that will be one for the history books. Also we just started my own promotional company, Sugar Shane Mosley Promotions that’s going to help as well to recruit young talented fighters to come workout because we all know I can’t do this forever so I might as well help the young talent to come up and do the same thing I had done.
JENNA: If you do win this bout and Manny Pacquiao does not want to do a rematch, a fight that everybody would want to see in boxing would be a fight between you and Sergio Martinez. Do you think that you will be able to go up to middleweight and fight him if you are to win this bout?
MOSLEY: No, I wouldn’t go up to middleweight to face Sergio Martinez because he’s too big. 154 pounds I can get away with where I’m not as strong or whatever, but my body frame is not big enough for that. If Manny Pacquiao doesn’t want to fight maybe I can get a rematch with Mayweather.
JENNA: Okay you say you want a rematch with Mayweather. What do you think you could do differently that would change the result?
MOSLEY: I think that there were little personal problems that I had before that Floyd Mayweather match that kind of drained me a little bit. But I think with this, with me being at my top, I believe when I hit Mayweather again I can maintain the same power and strength that I had throughout the whole fight. So that would be the difference. Rocking Mayweather and then being able to rock him again in the later rounds would be the difference and possibly able to knock him out.
JENNA: Well Shane, I just have a couple of more questions before we let you off the line and I’m curious to get your thoughts on the rematch that’s going to take place in the same month as your fight with Manny Pacquiao, and that’s between Bernard Hopkins and Jean Pascal. I don’t know if you saw the press conference, but what do you think about the feelings both guys have now about each other and how do you see the rematch playing out?
MOSLEY: Well it’s obvious that Bernard has gotten in Pascal’s head. Pascal mentally is feeling that. I think that when they fought the first time Pascal was thinking, “I’m stronger, I’m younger, and I can beat this old man”. Then he found out that wasn’t the case, that Bernard really wasn’t old. The age is really not that age because he keeps his body in shape and now Pascal knows that it’s going to be a different fight this time with Bernard. He knows that Bernard is coming to get him.
JENNA: People say the same thing about you that you have aged pretty well as a fighter. You’ve been able to fight effectively at the age of 39. Do you think you could ever fight as long as Bernard Hopkins has?
MOSLEY: You know I don’t think I would want to fight that long. I think I could, but I don’t think I would want to. I think that I want to go off into another career after I finish what’s done here. I have to give it my 100% all, give it everything I got, beat Pacquiao, we can do a rematch, fight Mayweather, and I think that’s pretty much it for me. Then I will go off and I will stop helping these young fighters become world champions and get into another side of the business.
JENNA: One thing that’s for sure in boxing is victory is never guaranteed. What happens if you are unable to beat Manny Pacquiao? Where do you from there?
MOSLEY: If we get over there on that side of the bridge we’ll think about it and talk about it. I always have winning in my mind and I eliminate the doubt, starve the doubt, and go for what I know and that’s the win, the victory. That’s the only thing that’s in my mind is winning the fight because if I didn’t think that way and I didn’t train that way then there’s no need to fight.
JENNA: Okay well you have winning on the mind. What is your official prediction against Manny Pacquiao when you face off May 7?
MOSLEY: You know I always go for the knockout so I’m going for the knockout. I’m going to be at my best and train hard and make sure that when I fight Manny Pacquiao it’s going to be a night that nobody is going to forget.
JENNA: Okay well Shane usually I ask a fighter what they want to say to their fans, but instead of that I’d like for you to answer your critics. Is there anything you want to say to your critics out there that believe you have no chance in this fight?
MOSLEY: I mean I have nothing to say to the critics. I mean they’re critics and that’s what they get paid to do. I just feel like I know that I’m going to be at my best and don’t be shocked if you see Manny Pacquiao on the floor.
JENNA: For my final question, is there anything you do want to say to your fans and supporters, the ones that believe you will win this fight?
MOSLEY: I just thank God that I have terrific fans and people that love me and admire me and admire my career and everything that I’m doing. Thank you for being loyal fans and thank you for being boxing fans and loving the sport of boxing because that’s what I love, I love the sport of boxing.
JENNA: Shane it’s been great as always speaking with you. We wish you all the best in your upcoming fight against Manny Pacquiao and we’re looking forward to a good fight.
MOSLEY: Thank you, you too.
CIANI: Thank you Shane. Good luck.
MOSLEY” Alright, bye bye. Thank you.
So Where Does the Middleweight Division Go From Here?
y Paul Albano: In boxing, the voyage from prospect to champ is a constraining one, fraught with obstructions, setbacks, and dehydrated men with a half pound of leather taped around their wrists hell-bent on punching stuff. David Lemieux (25-1), the pride of Montreal, and perhaps the top 160 pound prospect, suffered one of those setbacks on Friday Night Fights. Likewise with James Kirkland (27-1) Saturday night, and Bastie Samir (10-0-1) with his draw against standard issue stepping-stone Lester Gonzalez. So it goes.
For the Lemieux camp, the most pressing question is whether their guy got exposed as a populist ticket-seller with a soft-record and a limited future; or if Marco Antonio Rubio (50-5-1) was a just a little too much too soon? It might be both. Lemieux was definitely winning up until the 7th round corner stoppage, and was clearly faster and the harder puncher. In fact, he looked bound for another early knockout after a big flurry in the 1st round. But he began losing the fight in the 6th when Rubio stunned him twice, and probably a round earlier, after Rubio started timing him, and landing straight rights off of Lemieux’s jab.
A lot of fighters stumble early in their careers—Lemieux is only 22—and he’s a good athlete with natural power, so not all is lost. But he looked awfully one dimensional against Rubio, relaying on an ordinary jab and long, sweeping rights that were effective at first, but couldn’t land once Rubio survived the initial onslaught and settled in. Most concerning of all, aside from Lemieux’s insistence on wearing those hideous mauve and mustard gloves, were the total lack of adjustments. Once Rubio began to block the sweeping rights, and using his reach to establish distance, Lemieux looked frustrated and utterly lost. It was as if he planned for everything—except Rubio doing exactly what he always does, jab, stay outside, counter, and survive.
Kirkland, 27, just looked awful. His defeater, Nobushiro Ishida, (23-6-2) is a light puncher, with an inflated record that still isn’t that impressive and absent any significant opposition. He’s also 35, and hadn’t won since outpointing Oney Valdez in 2009, and hadn’t stopped anybody since a 6th round TKO of Tatsuki Kawasaki in 2007. That Kirkland—with pre-prison victories against tough, hard-punchers like Brian Vera and Joel Julio—somehow couldn’t withstand a single clean shot from Ishida (and crumbled three times in the round, even if he was never seriously hurt) is astounding—and only comprehensible because…well…it actually happened.
But, perhaphs the most pressing question to emerge from the weekend is: who’s next in line in the middleweight division? Sergio Martinez is the undisputed, flamboyant, King, but on the 40 years old side of 35. Rubio’s had a solid career, but isn’t in the mix, at least not as a threat to become lineal champ; Julio Casear Chavez Jr. is popular, Sebastian Zbik is not, but regardless of who wins their summer fight, no one seems to take either seriously; Dmitry Pirog showed promise but appears to have been kidnapped; Pavlik deserted the division; Felix Sturm is talented but absent any interest of fighting outside of Germany; and former top prospects—the Kronk Gym Irishman Andy Lee, Golden Boy’s Daniel Jacobs, and now Lemieux, Kirkland, and Samir, have all been upset on their path to legit contention (though Lee seems to have worked his way to the precipice once again, and there is still time for the others to do the same).
The best hope for a compelling successor to Sergio—the guy with the chance to be The Guy, and capture people’s attention and crack pound-for-pound lists, like Martinez, or Pavlik, or Taylor, or Hopkins—might be Maryland based Fernando Guerrero (21-0). He’s still green, and a ways off from seriously challenging the division’s top fighters, but he’s fast, ultra athletic, and can really punch. Thus far, he’s leapt over the stepping-stones (Ishe Smith, Jesse Nicklow, Derrick Findley), though he’s yet to face a true gatekeeper. But he wisely avoided scheduling a fight this past weekend.
y Paul Albano: In boxing, the voyage from prospect to champ is a constraining one, fraught with obstructions, setbacks, and dehydrated men with a half pound of leather taped around their wrists hell-bent on punching stuff. David Lemieux (25-1), the pride of Montreal, and perhaps the top 160 pound prospect, suffered one of those setbacks on Friday Night Fights. Likewise with James Kirkland (27-1) Saturday night, and Bastie Samir (10-0-1) with his draw against standard issue stepping-stone Lester Gonzalez. So it goes.
For the Lemieux camp, the most pressing question is whether their guy got exposed as a populist ticket-seller with a soft-record and a limited future; or if Marco Antonio Rubio (50-5-1) was a just a little too much too soon? It might be both. Lemieux was definitely winning up until the 7th round corner stoppage, and was clearly faster and the harder puncher. In fact, he looked bound for another early knockout after a big flurry in the 1st round. But he began losing the fight in the 6th when Rubio stunned him twice, and probably a round earlier, after Rubio started timing him, and landing straight rights off of Lemieux’s jab.
A lot of fighters stumble early in their careers—Lemieux is only 22—and he’s a good athlete with natural power, so not all is lost. But he looked awfully one dimensional against Rubio, relaying on an ordinary jab and long, sweeping rights that were effective at first, but couldn’t land once Rubio survived the initial onslaught and settled in. Most concerning of all, aside from Lemieux’s insistence on wearing those hideous mauve and mustard gloves, were the total lack of adjustments. Once Rubio began to block the sweeping rights, and using his reach to establish distance, Lemieux looked frustrated and utterly lost. It was as if he planned for everything—except Rubio doing exactly what he always does, jab, stay outside, counter, and survive.
Kirkland, 27, just looked awful. His defeater, Nobushiro Ishida, (23-6-2) is a light puncher, with an inflated record that still isn’t that impressive and absent any significant opposition. He’s also 35, and hadn’t won since outpointing Oney Valdez in 2009, and hadn’t stopped anybody since a 6th round TKO of Tatsuki Kawasaki in 2007. That Kirkland—with pre-prison victories against tough, hard-punchers like Brian Vera and Joel Julio—somehow couldn’t withstand a single clean shot from Ishida (and crumbled three times in the round, even if he was never seriously hurt) is astounding—and only comprehensible because…well…it actually happened.
But, perhaphs the most pressing question to emerge from the weekend is: who’s next in line in the middleweight division? Sergio Martinez is the undisputed, flamboyant, King, but on the 40 years old side of 35. Rubio’s had a solid career, but isn’t in the mix, at least not as a threat to become lineal champ; Julio Casear Chavez Jr. is popular, Sebastian Zbik is not, but regardless of who wins their summer fight, no one seems to take either seriously; Dmitry Pirog showed promise but appears to have been kidnapped; Pavlik deserted the division; Felix Sturm is talented but absent any interest of fighting outside of Germany; and former top prospects—the Kronk Gym Irishman Andy Lee, Golden Boy’s Daniel Jacobs, and now Lemieux, Kirkland, and Samir, have all been upset on their path to legit contention (though Lee seems to have worked his way to the precipice once again, and there is still time for the others to do the same).
The best hope for a compelling successor to Sergio—the guy with the chance to be The Guy, and capture people’s attention and crack pound-for-pound lists, like Martinez, or Pavlik, or Taylor, or Hopkins—might be Maryland based Fernando Guerrero (21-0). He’s still green, and a ways off from seriously challenging the division’s top fighters, but he’s fast, ultra athletic, and can really punch. Thus far, he’s leapt over the stepping-stones (Ishe Smith, Jesse Nicklow, Derrick Findley), though he’s yet to face a true gatekeeper. But he wisely avoided scheduling a fight this past weekend.
Koncz: Experienced Mosley could earn November Pacquiao rematch
Michael Marley
* Boxing Examiner
Manny Pacquiao's taciturn Canadian agent Michael Koncz just spilled the beans.
Koncz admitted to me Monday afternoon that this Pacman Training Camp, which got off to a solid start in Baguio City and is now meshing well in Los Angeles, has been markedly different than all the big fight camps which came before.
What's missing then as Pacquiao, 32, winds down his preparations for his May 7 Las Vegas title defense against smooth and experienced operator Sugar Shane Mosley?
Peace, man, peace as in inner peace.
According to Koncz, there has not been a single incident of internal squabbling, backbiting or any other form of dissension within what the agent called "the Inner Circle.
"I wasn't going to talk about this," Koncz said. "This has been the most organized and least distracting camp we have ever had. Before, when we were in Baguio, Manny made four trips down to Manila. This time he limited it to one Manila excusion.
"Among the Inner Circle, everything has been good. No arguments, no disputes, no nothing. I was just thinking about it. It's kind of a strange feeling for a Pacquiao Camp."
Boxing guru Coach Freddie Roach left Pacman to fly to Manchester, England, where's he got to work the corner for his second most important pupil, world champion Amir Khan as he defends against plucky Irishman Paul McCloskey Saturday night.
(If you want some proof that Khan can do strong box-office in the UK, I hear that 15,000 tickets are gone even though the event goes on the night following a huge FA Cup match between intracity rivals Manchester United and Manchester City at London's Wembley Stadium. The big footy game starts at 5:15 p.m. and will be done in time for the Khan card to get rolling.)
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I asked Koncz if Roach's week-long absence will be any kind of hindrance.
"Manny doesn't have any problem with it," Koncz said. "I think Freddie gets back sometime Sunday so it's not any big deal."
I asked if attention might be paid to the other title bout HBO will screen (McCloskey-Khan will be taped) the same night from Connecticut, welterweight champion Andre Berto against Vicious Victor Ortiz from the MGM Grand at Foxwoods.
"I don't think so we don't plan ahead like that," Koncz said. "Look, Mosley is the most experienced guy, with the deepest amateur and pro background that Manny has ever fought. We might be looking aty a November rematch if it goes 12 rounds and Mosley fights as strong and as hard as we expect. Manny is preparing for the best possible Mosley, he is not undestimating Mosley at all.
"If Mosley fights like that, then we might have a possible rematch. Mosley is the most intelligent fighter that Manny has ever faced."
Geez, Mosley-Pacquiao II, wouldn't Uncle Bob (Arum) hate that?
Michael Marley
* Boxing Examiner
Manny Pacquiao's taciturn Canadian agent Michael Koncz just spilled the beans.
Koncz admitted to me Monday afternoon that this Pacman Training Camp, which got off to a solid start in Baguio City and is now meshing well in Los Angeles, has been markedly different than all the big fight camps which came before.
What's missing then as Pacquiao, 32, winds down his preparations for his May 7 Las Vegas title defense against smooth and experienced operator Sugar Shane Mosley?
Peace, man, peace as in inner peace.
According to Koncz, there has not been a single incident of internal squabbling, backbiting or any other form of dissension within what the agent called "the Inner Circle.
"I wasn't going to talk about this," Koncz said. "This has been the most organized and least distracting camp we have ever had. Before, when we were in Baguio, Manny made four trips down to Manila. This time he limited it to one Manila excusion.
"Among the Inner Circle, everything has been good. No arguments, no disputes, no nothing. I was just thinking about it. It's kind of a strange feeling for a Pacquiao Camp."
Boxing guru Coach Freddie Roach left Pacman to fly to Manchester, England, where's he got to work the corner for his second most important pupil, world champion Amir Khan as he defends against plucky Irishman Paul McCloskey Saturday night.
(If you want some proof that Khan can do strong box-office in the UK, I hear that 15,000 tickets are gone even though the event goes on the night following a huge FA Cup match between intracity rivals Manchester United and Manchester City at London's Wembley Stadium. The big footy game starts at 5:15 p.m. and will be done in time for the Khan card to get rolling.)
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I asked Koncz if Roach's week-long absence will be any kind of hindrance.
"Manny doesn't have any problem with it," Koncz said. "I think Freddie gets back sometime Sunday so it's not any big deal."
I asked if attention might be paid to the other title bout HBO will screen (McCloskey-Khan will be taped) the same night from Connecticut, welterweight champion Andre Berto against Vicious Victor Ortiz from the MGM Grand at Foxwoods.
"I don't think so we don't plan ahead like that," Koncz said. "Look, Mosley is the most experienced guy, with the deepest amateur and pro background that Manny has ever fought. We might be looking aty a November rematch if it goes 12 rounds and Mosley fights as strong and as hard as we expect. Manny is preparing for the best possible Mosley, he is not undestimating Mosley at all.
"If Mosley fights like that, then we might have a possible rematch. Mosley is the most intelligent fighter that Manny has ever faced."
Geez, Mosley-Pacquiao II, wouldn't Uncle Bob (Arum) hate that?
Boxing News Archive Is Mayweather Fooling Us? Or Just Himself?
Written by Frank Lotierzo
Last Friday there was an article posted on abc-cbnnews.com stating that Floyd Mayweather Jr. turned down a $50 million dollar purse guarantee to fight boxing's most popular and pound-for-pound best fighter, Manny Pacquiao. This is according to Pacquiao's adviser Michael Koncz. Since the supposed $50 million dollar offer has exploded in the media and digested by fight fans, it's also been reported that Mayweather has said it'll take a $100 million dollar guarantee for him to get in the ring with Pacquiao. If the $50 million dollar offer is legit, and I'm not sure I believe that it is, it would be more money than Mayweather grossed in his two fights with Oscar De La Hoya (2007) and Shane Mosley (2010) combined.
The money being thrown around at Floyd, again, if one believes the numbers are true, are ridiculous. What's even more ridiculous is Mayweather turning that much money down. How could a guy who's a borderline all time great who after 15 years as a pro and 41 fights and still lacks a career defining win, be so condescending?
Since he's become a public figure there are two things Mayweather loves to brag about - his money and his legacy. Most objective and sophisticated boxing fans know his legacy is hollow and he's more remembered for who he didn't fight than who he did. And if the recent news is true that he really does owe the IRS close to four million dollars, his money is apparently also a myth. If Floyd thinks swapping punches with Pacquiao is overwhelming, his other opponent, the IRS, is a much badder foe. Especially now being that the United States is broke and has hired a plethora of agents to try catch up and settle with all entities who owe Uncle Sam a substantial sum of dead presidents.
One would think Mayweather couldn't get into the ring soon enough with Pacquiao (For the record I would favor Mayweather to defeat Pacquiao if they fight this year). Think about it, if Floyd beat Pacquiao he'd finally have a legitimate claim as to being one of the greats. In other words, people like myself could no longer say who did he beat. Finally, I'd have to acknowledge that Mayweather did beat a great fighter who wasn't dead on arrival the night he fought him. And let's face it, beating one truly great fighter elevates his legacy a lot more than never beating or facing one.
For years Mayweather has conned the public into believing that his wealth rivals Oscar De La Hoya's and his legacy rivals Sugar Ray Leonard's. Which of course both claims if taken seriously are preposterous. And the reason that Floyd can get over and string the public along is because a majority of boxing writers and fans actually believe what fighters and promoters say. This is assuming Floyd really does see both as con jobs, and that he's working on the theory that if you say something long enough, people will fall for it. And this kind of mass hysteria is what drives the purses of fights way up.
But maybe that's not what's happening here. Maybe Floyd really believes the things he tells people and passes along to the media. I can see where an undefeated fighter who's faced decent to good opposition in an era with few all-time greats can start to believe his own press clippings. After all, greatness is largely subjective. But money is money: it is what it is. And if Floyd Mayweather honestly believes that a.) he's been offered $50 million for thirty six minutes of work, and b.) it's not enough money, he's moved from being either con man or someone who's slightly deluded over the line into being 100% certifiably nuts.
However, Mayweather understands the inner and outter workings of professional boxing better than any fighter around today with the exception of Bernard Hopkins. Nobody, I mean nobody is close to Hopkins in that regard, and the fact that he's much less marketable than Mayweather makes his success even that much more astounding.
As for Mayweather, he's mastered the game of stringing the sport along as to his importance and relevance in it. He really hasn't made one misstep yet. He's wealthy and has a sizable percentage of the boxing public convinced that he's an undisputed all-time great despite the overall body of work not being there. But even at that he still must fight and beat Pacquiao. Because if they never do confront each other in the ring, Pacquiao will be the default winner simply due to the fact that everybody who's honest with themself knows it's Floyd's reluctance that's holding the fight up. Pacquiao is acknowledged as the more willing fighter interested in settling who's really the better man and fighter. On top of that Pacquiao's legacy is greater and further cemented than Mayweather's. Pacquiao's career wouldn't take much of a hit if he lost a decision to Mayweather. Whereas Mayweather's legacy would be greatly diminished if he lost to Pacquiao.
As of this writing Pacquiao-Mayweather would be off the chart huge in anticipation and hype. However, the sand is slowly slipping through the hour glass. In less than a month Pacquiao will have officially stopped Shane Mosley and the drumbeat for Pacquiao-Mayweather will be ignited once again. And this is when the fight should finally become a reality. In what can only be described as the ideal setting, Manny and Floyd would meet in November of this year with both of them having defeated Shane Mosley in their last bout.
Floyd should count his blessings and keep his fingers crossed that Mosley doesn't get lucky and upset Pacquiao early next month. Because Mayweather winning by default over Pacquiao won't cut it or enhance his legacy to where he thinks or tries to convince us it ranks in comparison to some of the greatest of the greats in fistic history.
Written by Frank Lotierzo
Last Friday there was an article posted on abc-cbnnews.com stating that Floyd Mayweather Jr. turned down a $50 million dollar purse guarantee to fight boxing's most popular and pound-for-pound best fighter, Manny Pacquiao. This is according to Pacquiao's adviser Michael Koncz. Since the supposed $50 million dollar offer has exploded in the media and digested by fight fans, it's also been reported that Mayweather has said it'll take a $100 million dollar guarantee for him to get in the ring with Pacquiao. If the $50 million dollar offer is legit, and I'm not sure I believe that it is, it would be more money than Mayweather grossed in his two fights with Oscar De La Hoya (2007) and Shane Mosley (2010) combined.
The money being thrown around at Floyd, again, if one believes the numbers are true, are ridiculous. What's even more ridiculous is Mayweather turning that much money down. How could a guy who's a borderline all time great who after 15 years as a pro and 41 fights and still lacks a career defining win, be so condescending?
Since he's become a public figure there are two things Mayweather loves to brag about - his money and his legacy. Most objective and sophisticated boxing fans know his legacy is hollow and he's more remembered for who he didn't fight than who he did. And if the recent news is true that he really does owe the IRS close to four million dollars, his money is apparently also a myth. If Floyd thinks swapping punches with Pacquiao is overwhelming, his other opponent, the IRS, is a much badder foe. Especially now being that the United States is broke and has hired a plethora of agents to try catch up and settle with all entities who owe Uncle Sam a substantial sum of dead presidents.
One would think Mayweather couldn't get into the ring soon enough with Pacquiao (For the record I would favor Mayweather to defeat Pacquiao if they fight this year). Think about it, if Floyd beat Pacquiao he'd finally have a legitimate claim as to being one of the greats. In other words, people like myself could no longer say who did he beat. Finally, I'd have to acknowledge that Mayweather did beat a great fighter who wasn't dead on arrival the night he fought him. And let's face it, beating one truly great fighter elevates his legacy a lot more than never beating or facing one.
For years Mayweather has conned the public into believing that his wealth rivals Oscar De La Hoya's and his legacy rivals Sugar Ray Leonard's. Which of course both claims if taken seriously are preposterous. And the reason that Floyd can get over and string the public along is because a majority of boxing writers and fans actually believe what fighters and promoters say. This is assuming Floyd really does see both as con jobs, and that he's working on the theory that if you say something long enough, people will fall for it. And this kind of mass hysteria is what drives the purses of fights way up.
But maybe that's not what's happening here. Maybe Floyd really believes the things he tells people and passes along to the media. I can see where an undefeated fighter who's faced decent to good opposition in an era with few all-time greats can start to believe his own press clippings. After all, greatness is largely subjective. But money is money: it is what it is. And if Floyd Mayweather honestly believes that a.) he's been offered $50 million for thirty six minutes of work, and b.) it's not enough money, he's moved from being either con man or someone who's slightly deluded over the line into being 100% certifiably nuts.
However, Mayweather understands the inner and outter workings of professional boxing better than any fighter around today with the exception of Bernard Hopkins. Nobody, I mean nobody is close to Hopkins in that regard, and the fact that he's much less marketable than Mayweather makes his success even that much more astounding.
As for Mayweather, he's mastered the game of stringing the sport along as to his importance and relevance in it. He really hasn't made one misstep yet. He's wealthy and has a sizable percentage of the boxing public convinced that he's an undisputed all-time great despite the overall body of work not being there. But even at that he still must fight and beat Pacquiao. Because if they never do confront each other in the ring, Pacquiao will be the default winner simply due to the fact that everybody who's honest with themself knows it's Floyd's reluctance that's holding the fight up. Pacquiao is acknowledged as the more willing fighter interested in settling who's really the better man and fighter. On top of that Pacquiao's legacy is greater and further cemented than Mayweather's. Pacquiao's career wouldn't take much of a hit if he lost a decision to Mayweather. Whereas Mayweather's legacy would be greatly diminished if he lost to Pacquiao.
As of this writing Pacquiao-Mayweather would be off the chart huge in anticipation and hype. However, the sand is slowly slipping through the hour glass. In less than a month Pacquiao will have officially stopped Shane Mosley and the drumbeat for Pacquiao-Mayweather will be ignited once again. And this is when the fight should finally become a reality. In what can only be described as the ideal setting, Manny and Floyd would meet in November of this year with both of them having defeated Shane Mosley in their last bout.
Floyd should count his blessings and keep his fingers crossed that Mosley doesn't get lucky and upset Pacquiao early next month. Because Mayweather winning by default over Pacquiao won't cut it or enhance his legacy to where he thinks or tries to convince us it ranks in comparison to some of the greatest of the greats in fistic history.
Mayweathers’ Continue to Assert Pacquiao Involvement with Steroid
Is State Athletic Commission Urine Testing Adequate?
By Bryanna Fissori
Legal Analyst
In 2009 Floyd Mayweather accused Manny “Pac Man” Pacquiao of using PEDs (Steroids) based on a dispute over the style of drug testing that would be used before and after the fight. Since then Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Sr. have continued to assert that Pacquiao is on PEDs. Pacquiao has since filed suit against Mayweather Jr. and Sr. as well as Roger Mayweather, Mayweather Promotions, LLC., Richard Schaefer and Oscar De La Hoya. You can read more about the litigation at BoxingInsider.com.
The two fighters began negotiating for a welterweight title fight which was tentatively scheduled for March of 2010, but never evolved due to the drug testing hold up. Mayweather insisted that Pacquiao agree to Olympic-style blood testing, which is more rigorous than the Nevada State Athletic Commission and that of other state commissions. According the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), Olympic-style testing allows for blood to be drawn at any time pre or post fight. The agency also asserts that blood testing is a more complete method of searching for PEDs because substances such as Human Growth Hormone (HGH), synthetic hemoglobin and erythropoietin which cannot be indentified in urine. It is undisputed the Pacquiao has never tested positive for steroids or any other drugs in his 15 years or so as a fighter.
In May of 2010 Pacquiao agreed to submit to blood testing up to two weeks prior to the bout and immediately after. Various media sources over the last several years have asserted that part of Pacquiao’s hesitation stems from both superstition about giving blood close to the fight and anxiety about the actual procedure, which is a fear a vast number of people can relate to. Top Rank Promotions politely denied an interview to confirm or deny the assertions due to their relativity to the active litigation.
In 2005 Fans may recall that Pacquiao submitted to a random blood test two days prior to his bout with Erik Morales. Pacquiao lost the fight. Coupled with the blood drawn, the Pac Man also lost a good amount of blood in the ring, not that it is any excuse for the loss, but it seems logical that testing after the bout would be just as adequate.
It appears that the Mayweathers may be a bit out of touch with mainstream media as they must not be reading the same articles as the rest of boxing’s followers. Last month (March 2011), Roger Mayweather stated in an interview with the Philippines Daily Inquirer, “I’m not saying that Pacquiao is not a good fighter but what I am saying is this. A guy fights with something in him, he ain’t basing that on his skills and ability as a fighter, he’s basing that on something that energizes him to do what the f**k he’s doing.”
The language of the quote asserts as a fact, that Pacquiao is using something internally to better his skills implying PEDs. Given that the pending lawsuit relates to very similar statements, perhaps no one has explained to the Mayweathers what the legal term “defamation” means, though it does not appear that there has been a motion granted for an injunction to cease furtherance of such assertions by the defendants. And there has definitely been no ceasing.
In BoxingInsider.com’s interview with Travis Tygart, Chief Executive of the USADA he stated, “In order to most effectively detect and deter the use of performance enhancing substances in sport, as well as protect clean athletes’ rights to compete on a level playing field, the development of a testing plan takes into consideration a number of factors including; available information on doping trends in a particular sport; scientific research indicating at which point in a training regimen a prohibited substance might provide the greatest performance-enhancing benefits, and specific intelligence on doping practices. USADA uses all available information to determine when and where attempts to cheat sport are most likely to occur.”
When Mayweather fought Shane Mosley in May of 2010, Mosley agreed to Mayweather’s demand for Olympic-style testing. Each fighter was tested eight times. Results of all testing by the USADA are available to the public and the samples will be stored with the USADA for eight years in the event that they may need to be re-tested. Pacquiao will face Mosley next month in the ring.
According to Tygart and the USADA, “What we see in sport, is that it is extremely difficult to both police and promote a sport. When a sport body takes on the primary task of promoting events, drawing fans, and raising revenue, there will be a natural reluctance and tension to put in place a stringent testing program which could remove a fighter from competition and ultimately negatively affect one of these greater priorities. An improved anti-doping testing program is something can certainly be implemented in boxing and the MMA both from a cost and feasibility standpoint.”
The debate of Olympic-style versus state commission testing is not specific to the Pacquiao, Mayweather confrontation. In June of 2010 mixed martial arts fighter Josh Koscheck suggested Olympic-style testing for his bout against George St. Pierre for the their match up following The Ultimate Fighter 12 reality series conclusion. St. Pierre agreed to the change in standards. The UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) like boxing, typically uses the state commission standards.
After the St. Pierre/ Koscheck pre-fight interview UFC President Dana White was quoted in the Vegas Sun as stating, “I think that’s what an athletic commission is for. The athletic commissions have been around for a long time. When fighters start talking about other guys being drug tested? Shut up. Worry about you.”
Is State Athletic Commission Urine Testing Adequate?
By Bryanna Fissori
Legal Analyst
In 2009 Floyd Mayweather accused Manny “Pac Man” Pacquiao of using PEDs (Steroids) based on a dispute over the style of drug testing that would be used before and after the fight. Since then Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Sr. have continued to assert that Pacquiao is on PEDs. Pacquiao has since filed suit against Mayweather Jr. and Sr. as well as Roger Mayweather, Mayweather Promotions, LLC., Richard Schaefer and Oscar De La Hoya. You can read more about the litigation at BoxingInsider.com.
The two fighters began negotiating for a welterweight title fight which was tentatively scheduled for March of 2010, but never evolved due to the drug testing hold up. Mayweather insisted that Pacquiao agree to Olympic-style blood testing, which is more rigorous than the Nevada State Athletic Commission and that of other state commissions. According the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), Olympic-style testing allows for blood to be drawn at any time pre or post fight. The agency also asserts that blood testing is a more complete method of searching for PEDs because substances such as Human Growth Hormone (HGH), synthetic hemoglobin and erythropoietin which cannot be indentified in urine. It is undisputed the Pacquiao has never tested positive for steroids or any other drugs in his 15 years or so as a fighter.
In May of 2010 Pacquiao agreed to submit to blood testing up to two weeks prior to the bout and immediately after. Various media sources over the last several years have asserted that part of Pacquiao’s hesitation stems from both superstition about giving blood close to the fight and anxiety about the actual procedure, which is a fear a vast number of people can relate to. Top Rank Promotions politely denied an interview to confirm or deny the assertions due to their relativity to the active litigation.
In 2005 Fans may recall that Pacquiao submitted to a random blood test two days prior to his bout with Erik Morales. Pacquiao lost the fight. Coupled with the blood drawn, the Pac Man also lost a good amount of blood in the ring, not that it is any excuse for the loss, but it seems logical that testing after the bout would be just as adequate.
It appears that the Mayweathers may be a bit out of touch with mainstream media as they must not be reading the same articles as the rest of boxing’s followers. Last month (March 2011), Roger Mayweather stated in an interview with the Philippines Daily Inquirer, “I’m not saying that Pacquiao is not a good fighter but what I am saying is this. A guy fights with something in him, he ain’t basing that on his skills and ability as a fighter, he’s basing that on something that energizes him to do what the f**k he’s doing.”
The language of the quote asserts as a fact, that Pacquiao is using something internally to better his skills implying PEDs. Given that the pending lawsuit relates to very similar statements, perhaps no one has explained to the Mayweathers what the legal term “defamation” means, though it does not appear that there has been a motion granted for an injunction to cease furtherance of such assertions by the defendants. And there has definitely been no ceasing.
In BoxingInsider.com’s interview with Travis Tygart, Chief Executive of the USADA he stated, “In order to most effectively detect and deter the use of performance enhancing substances in sport, as well as protect clean athletes’ rights to compete on a level playing field, the development of a testing plan takes into consideration a number of factors including; available information on doping trends in a particular sport; scientific research indicating at which point in a training regimen a prohibited substance might provide the greatest performance-enhancing benefits, and specific intelligence on doping practices. USADA uses all available information to determine when and where attempts to cheat sport are most likely to occur.”
When Mayweather fought Shane Mosley in May of 2010, Mosley agreed to Mayweather’s demand for Olympic-style testing. Each fighter was tested eight times. Results of all testing by the USADA are available to the public and the samples will be stored with the USADA for eight years in the event that they may need to be re-tested. Pacquiao will face Mosley next month in the ring.
According to Tygart and the USADA, “What we see in sport, is that it is extremely difficult to both police and promote a sport. When a sport body takes on the primary task of promoting events, drawing fans, and raising revenue, there will be a natural reluctance and tension to put in place a stringent testing program which could remove a fighter from competition and ultimately negatively affect one of these greater priorities. An improved anti-doping testing program is something can certainly be implemented in boxing and the MMA both from a cost and feasibility standpoint.”
The debate of Olympic-style versus state commission testing is not specific to the Pacquiao, Mayweather confrontation. In June of 2010 mixed martial arts fighter Josh Koscheck suggested Olympic-style testing for his bout against George St. Pierre for the their match up following The Ultimate Fighter 12 reality series conclusion. St. Pierre agreed to the change in standards. The UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) like boxing, typically uses the state commission standards.
After the St. Pierre/ Koscheck pre-fight interview UFC President Dana White was quoted in the Vegas Sun as stating, “I think that’s what an athletic commission is for. The athletic commissions have been around for a long time. When fighters start talking about other guys being drug tested? Shut up. Worry about you.”
Lewis says he would beat Zbikowski in the ring
There's no question on who is the better football player between Ray Lewis and Tom Zbikowski.
And there's no debate when it comes to the boxing ring, if you ask the Pro Bowl linebacker.
"Zbikowski would lose," Lewis said in a blog on the NFL Network. "We’ve already talked about that. Zbikowski is a realist when it comes to the sport. The locker room talk is always that about who can beat who. He’ll be the first to tell you he’s not going to get in the ring with a 250-pound person. That’s crazy!"
Zbikowski is 3-0 as a professional boxer, beating two heavyweights this year. His next scheduled fight is April 23 against cruiserweight Blake Warner.
There's no question on who is the better football player between Ray Lewis and Tom Zbikowski.
And there's no debate when it comes to the boxing ring, if you ask the Pro Bowl linebacker.
"Zbikowski would lose," Lewis said in a blog on the NFL Network. "We’ve already talked about that. Zbikowski is a realist when it comes to the sport. The locker room talk is always that about who can beat who. He’ll be the first to tell you he’s not going to get in the ring with a 250-pound person. That’s crazy!"
Zbikowski is 3-0 as a professional boxer, beating two heavyweights this year. His next scheduled fight is April 23 against cruiserweight Blake Warner.
Salido wants to take Lopez into deep water
by ringtv
An upset-minded Orlando Salido recently arrived to Puerto Rico, where he will challenge featherweight titleholder Juan Manuel Lopez at Ruben Rodriguez Coliseo in Bayamon on Saturday.
The undefeated Puerto Rican star is heavily favored to beat the former belt holder from Mexico, but a confident Salido told the local media that he plans to win Saturday’s Showtime-televised fight.
“I have everything to gain and nothing to lose, all the pressure is on him,” Salido told the press at a media workout in Guaynabo on Tuesday. “He is the champion. He’s fighting at home and everyone expects him to win. Let’s see if he can deliver. I did not come all this way to lay down for him.”
Salido (34-11-2, 22 knockouts) is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Yuriorkis Gamboa last September. The Mexican veteran was outclassed and dropped twice in the final round, but he also managed to knockdown the respected ultra-talent from Cuba.
Fans are clamoring for a showdown between Lopez and Gamboa, which would give the sport a true featherweight champ. Salido already views Lopez as the top 126-pounder, although he plans to dethrone the Puerto Rican by taking him into the late rounds of what he expects to be a battle of attrition.
“I do believe that he is the best featherweight in the world and a great champion, but he also likes to fight and that will be to my advantage,” he said. “We both have power and will test each other all night.
“I know it will be a war and that it will be tough for both us. I know ‘Juanma’ comes with everything in the first few rounds and I will have to be smart and stay focused at all times. I believe that the longer the fight goes it will be to my advantage. I know that he is not the same fighter in the end that he is in the beginning.”
by ringtv
An upset-minded Orlando Salido recently arrived to Puerto Rico, where he will challenge featherweight titleholder Juan Manuel Lopez at Ruben Rodriguez Coliseo in Bayamon on Saturday.
The undefeated Puerto Rican star is heavily favored to beat the former belt holder from Mexico, but a confident Salido told the local media that he plans to win Saturday’s Showtime-televised fight.
“I have everything to gain and nothing to lose, all the pressure is on him,” Salido told the press at a media workout in Guaynabo on Tuesday. “He is the champion. He’s fighting at home and everyone expects him to win. Let’s see if he can deliver. I did not come all this way to lay down for him.”
Salido (34-11-2, 22 knockouts) is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Yuriorkis Gamboa last September. The Mexican veteran was outclassed and dropped twice in the final round, but he also managed to knockdown the respected ultra-talent from Cuba.
Fans are clamoring for a showdown between Lopez and Gamboa, which would give the sport a true featherweight champ. Salido already views Lopez as the top 126-pounder, although he plans to dethrone the Puerto Rican by taking him into the late rounds of what he expects to be a battle of attrition.
“I do believe that he is the best featherweight in the world and a great champion, but he also likes to fight and that will be to my advantage,” he said. “We both have power and will test each other all night.
“I know it will be a war and that it will be tough for both us. I know ‘Juanma’ comes with everything in the first few rounds and I will have to be smart and stay focused at all times. I believe that the longer the fight goes it will be to my advantage. I know that he is not the same fighter in the end that he is in the beginning.”
By Sean Leahy, USA TODAY
Tom Zbikowski is blazing a path to the ring that other NFL players are now following.
Minnesota Vikings DE Ray Edwards became the latest footballer to sign up for a pro boxing gig on Tuesday. Edwards, 26. agreed to a two-fight stint with his debut coming on May 20 in Minnesota.
Ray Edward
"It's something I've always wanted to do in my life," Edwards told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
"I can't put my eggs all in one basket, waiting for the NFL to settle the lockout. You never know when this lockout is going to end."
Edwards and all other NFL players are prohibited from interacting with teams because of the lockout.
At 6-5, 268 pounds, he is due to earn $5,000 plus 50% of the gate revenue at his May 20 fight.
Tom Zbikowski is blazing a path to the ring that other NFL players are now following.
Minnesota Vikings DE Ray Edwards became the latest footballer to sign up for a pro boxing gig on Tuesday. Edwards, 26. agreed to a two-fight stint with his debut coming on May 20 in Minnesota.
"It's something I've always wanted to do in my life," Edwards told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
"I can't put my eggs all in one basket, waiting for the NFL to settle the lockout. You never know when this lockout is going to end."
Edwards and all other NFL players are prohibited from interacting with teams because of the lockout.
At 6-5, 268 pounds, he is due to earn $5,000 plus 50% of the gate revenue at his May 20 fight.