Good ESPN article:
Jaw-Dropping Stuff
Ever since Arthur Abraham outpointed Edison Miranda in their grueling middleweight title fight in Germany two years ago, there has been a sense of unfinished business.
The fight was one of the most controversial in years. Abraham courageously fought through the pain of a broken jaw from the fourth round to the finish, but the Miranda camp had many complaints about the way the fight was handled.
Miranda's manager, Steve Benbasat, believes that the New Jersey referee, Randy Neumann, harshly deducted far too many points from the Colombian -- five in all. He feels that the ringside doctor was actually treating Abraham when examining the German fighter's jaw -- some might say the doctor was wiping away blood to get a better look at the damage.
The Miranda camp also feels that the fight would have been stopped anywhere in the world apart from Germany due to Abraham's jaw injury, which is quite possible, although Muhammad Ali famously fought with a broken jaw against Ken Norton.
All this is in the past. On Saturday, Miranda finally gets the chance, in his eyes, to set the record straight when he meets Abraham in a 12-round rematch that will be televised on Showtime from the Seminole Hard Rock casino in Hollywood, Fla.
If Abraham had things in his favor last time, the advantage is with Miranda on Saturday. His promoter, Warriors Boxing, is putting on the show, and the catchweight of 166 pounds is considered helpful to the big-framed Colombian, who had long struggled to make 160 pounds.
It speaks of the Abraham camp's confidence that they are willing to take the return bout on Miranda's home ground and at a weight that suits the opposition.
Abraham believes that if it hadn't been for the broken jaw, he would have beaten Miranda in a much more convincing manner.
Miranda seeks to right what he perceives as an injustice, but Abraham means to show what he can do when he isn't fighting under the handicap of injury.
The fight is immensely important to both men, but perhaps even more so to Abraham. The undefeated, Armenian-born fighter is being talked up as a future opponent for Kelly Pavlik, which would be a hugely attractive fight between rival middleweight champions.
Also, Abraham is in effect fighting to show that he is a true champion and answer those skeptics who say he has only been successful because he has had things all his own way in Germany. Abraham is taking a gamble, but his people see it as a calculated risk that is well worth taking because a victory will bring rich rewards.
The first fight between Abraham and Miranda was open to varying interpretations. The Miranda camp alleges unfair treatment, of course, while the Abraham faction accuses the Colombian of blatant fouling when things weren't going his way.
This time, everyone will be hoping for a sportsmanlike fight and a clear-cut outcome no matter who wins.
In the last fight, Abraham triumphed with superior boxing technique and clever use of the ring. Miranda was aggressive and heavy-handed, but Abraham was effective with quick bursts of punches in a hit-and-get-away strategy.
Obviously, Abraham had to box in a manner that minimized his chances of getting hit on the damaged jaw while at the same time scoring enough points to win rounds.
Miranda's lack of big-fight experience showed. He let his emotions get the better of him.
Since that fight, Miranda has beaten Allan Green and been stopped by Kelly Pavlik at 160 pounds. He has knocked out his past two opponents as a 168-pounder, and showed definite technical improvement in a third-round knockout win over "Contender" competitor David Banks.
david banks
In that fight he was a patient pursuer, effectively using his jab to open the door for the big right hand that crumpled Banks in a classic one-punch ending.
There is no doubt that Miranda will be taking the fight to Abraham -- that's guaranteed -- but perhaps in a somewhat restrained manner initially. What Miranda doesn't want is to get into the same sort of fight as last time, when he was running into counters in his eagerness to land telling blows.
Abraham will no doubt fight his usual fight, which is to keep his guard high, explode with barrages of punches, then tuck up behind the defensive shield again. This works well for him because he is good at gauging exactly when to let the shots go.
Miranda is perceived as the big hitter in Saturday's contest -- he is the only fighter to stop Howard Eastman, who went the full 12 rounds with Abraham.
The German fighter can punch, too, though.
In his first fight with Miranda it is quite likely that the jaw injury obliged Abraham to be more defensive than he would have wished. "King" Arthur -- as he calls himself -- might be much more offensive-minded this time. He certainly appears to exude confidence. In a German-produced promotional video, he says cheerily into the camera: "Edison, greetings from your king -- I will punish you again."
I think Abraham senses a tendency in Miranda to get easily rattled, and it would suit him very well to have the Colombian fighting a wild, undisciplined type of fight. A little bit of prefight taunting could help him in this regard.
Miranda, of course, looked tremendous against Banks, but in Abraham he is fighting at a vastly higher level. Banks was game but he couldn't hurt Miranda or really challenge him. On Saturday, it will be different.
Abraham is physically and mentally strong, a seasoned, well-conditioned fighter with a lot of experience in 12-round bouts. He seems to be able to take a very good punch -- I cannot remember seeing him rocked or hurt.
Miranda's chin, though, might be a little questionable. It is no disgrace getting stopped by Pavlik -- and Miranda bravely took some hefty hits before finally going out -- but his legs were buckled by Eastman and he suffered a knockdown against Allan Green, although to his credit he came back strongly in each of those bouts and showed impressive recuperative powers.
So, while Miranda is perceived as the puncher in the fight, I think he could just as easily be the one who gets caught and hurt; the risk runs both ways.
The Florida location obviously helps Miranda, and in theory so does the match weight. Yet it could benefit Abraham not to have to lose those stubborn last few pounds as he has to do when making the middleweight limit -- when Pavlik fought Jermain Taylor in the rematch, although the catchweight of 164 pounds theoretically favored Taylor, it was Pavlik who was coming on strong down the home stretch. German promotional powerhouse Sauerland Event would not have risked Abraham in a fight at 166 pounds unless they were very sure of what they were doing.
I believe Abraham's camp sees Miranda as a beatable fighter who is the perfect opponent to introduce the German superstar to the American viewing public. The opposing faction, naturally, is of the opinion that a stronger, improved Miranda, on friendly territory this time, is going to be the big winner.
It will be fascinating finding out which side has got it right.
My view is that if Abraham could beat Miranda while boxing the last eight rounds with a broken jaw, he should be able to do so again without fighting under the hindrance of such a bothersome burden.
Miranda is a formidable aggressor, but I think that Abraham is the fundamentally superior, more adaptable fighter. I believe the German boxer's defense and movement will once again thwart Miranda's best efforts to blast him out of the fight, and I envisage Abraham boxing and countering his way to victory, most likely by decision and hopefully in a fight that this time is devoid of dispute.
