Erik Morales on Saturday will have a chance to do something no other Mexican national has ever done – win a championship in a fourth weight classes.
THINKING OUT OF THE BOX
July 31, 2007 By Leave a Comment
HATS OFF TO LARRY
Larry Hazzard, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board commissioner is among the most progressive commission leaders in boxing today, a no-nonsense type of guy who is unafraid to exercise his authority and take the bull by the horns. Hazzard recently gave a demonstration of his willingness to assert himself in the recent Arturo Gatti-Alfonso Gomez fight. In the seventh round Gatti was getting hit with everything but a lead pipe before slumping helplessly to the canvas. With no response from Gatti’s trainer, Mickey Ward, and with referee Randy Neuman engaged in his 10 count, Hazzard jumped into the ring and stopped the fight himself.
Morales and Vazquez: Obeying boxing’s worst adage
July 29, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Because of its nature and history, boxing has more great maxims than most sports. Baseball and golf are really its only competition – so far as maxims go. But boxing also has its bad sayings. The worst are those that endanger fighters. And no maxim endangers more than this one: “Every great fighter has one last great fight in him.”
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VERNON FORREST UNPLUGGED
July 26, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Vernon Forrest faces Carlos Baldomir this Saturday, July 28, at the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Washington, in a battle of 36 year old ex-welterweight titlists fighting for the vacant WBC junior middleweight belt. The fight will be televised on HBO’s Boxing After Dark series at 10:15 ET/PT. The contest was originally scheduled as an eliminator but became a title bout when Floyd Mayweather Jr. relinquished the title that he won from Oscar De La Hoya.
Arum and Top Rank preparing for big fights
July 24, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Promoter Bob Arum was in Los Angeles on Tuesday. But since yours truly is suffering from a nasty case of the flu, it was best that a conversation with him took place via telephone.
DISCIPLINARY ACTION NEEDED FOR HOPKINS’ HYPE JOB
July 23, 2007 By Leave a Comment
After HBO analyst Max Kellerman began his post fight interview by asking the victorious Bernard Hopkins to assess his victory over Winky Wright before some 8,600 fans at the Mandalay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Hopkins greeted some friends out there in TV Land and then fully took over.
Ah, checkmate?
July 22, 2007 By Leave a Comment
After 36 minutes of maneuvering, butting, holding and occasionally punching Winky Wright – playing Bernard Hopkins’ version of chess, in other words – Hopkins awaited the judges’ scorecards. He didn’t look confident. Then he heard the result and smiled broadly. It was the night’s one suspenseful moment.
THE WELTER BELTERS
July 19, 2007 By Leave a Comment
As if the talented welterweight division wasn’t already backed up with enough possibilities, HBO’s Larry Merchant revealed that Oscar De La Hoya was planning to return as a 147 pounder. That could mean a lot of things given the big names in that division but it could also mean that Ricky Hatton will be joining him there.
Hopkins & Wright will be coming to fight
July 18, 2007 By 42 Comments
There we were, a group of reporters sitting at a table during the social hour phase of Bernard Hopkins’ retirement party last September in a banquet room at MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
HBO, CINTRON, WILLIAMS BIG WINNERS IN AN ALMOST PERFECT WEEKEND
July 16, 2007 By Leave a Comment
As expected, last Saturday was a moment of triumph for HBO. They have every justification for allowing a button or two to pop off their corporate vests this week after their sensational, flawless, bi-coastal, all welterweight tripleheader presentation. A certain columnist here might also have to restrain the desire to boast a bit after picking the winner in four of five major fights on that date, so he understands and hopefully both HBO and the columnist are on their way to a big second half of the year.
Williams and Margarito: Prizefighters not MBAs
July 15, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Turns out neither Antonio Margarito nor Paul Williams is much of a businessman. By choosing to defend his WBO welterweight title against a dangerous mandatory challenger rather than sign a contract extension with his promoter, Margarito just lost his chance at an enormous payday. And by decisioning Margarito rather than feasting on hand-picked opponents, Williams just ensured no other welterweight titlist will want to fight him.
BOXING COAST TO COAST AND AROUND THE WORLD
July 11, 2007 By 42 Comments
This Saturday HBO Boxing is airing an ambitious split-site welterweight tripleheader that might define their course for the near future. HBO has been criticized, rightfully I believe, for the quality of its boxing programming. But this week we should get a glimpse at what can happen when the cable giant operates on all cylinders.
Luevano and “Grandpa” Garcia looking for a title in England
July 10, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Robert Garcia stood next to the ring inside La Colonia Boxing Club in Oxnard, where he trains fighters along with his father, Eduardo, and their assistant, Francisco Navarro.
“FILIPINO FLASH” FLATTENS FAVORITE DARCHINYAN IN UPSET OF THE YEAR
July 9, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Showtime presented another winner this past Saturday night, presenting two title fights on its World Championship Boxing series, with the title changing hands in both. Without the “benefit” of long term contracts, guaranteed dates to promoters, high powered advisors, or even a huge operating budget, the network consistently serves up fan friendly, exciting, well matched fights on the first Saturday of every month.
This will be no sparring session
July 8, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Antonio Margarito’s hands are not fast. His footwork is not dazzling. His style is this simple: Margarito comes forward, and he throws left hooks. He’s easy to hit, too. How then can anyone call Margarito boxing’s “most feared” fighter? Better still, how can such a limited pugilist be about to defend a world title?
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Who Needs Siegfried? Roy Tames Tyger All By Himself!
July 3, 2007 By Leave a Comment
He’s Back.
It was a packed house Saturday at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi. Roy Jones Jr. entered the ring wearing a gladiator costume while mouthing the lyrics to his very own “And Still”. The wait was finally over. Weeks of questions, “is there anything left in the tank”, “is he crazy for fighting a young, hungry, undefeated prospect”, were finally ready to be answered at the opening bell.
DARNELL WILSON’S “KO OF THE YEAR”
July 2, 2007 By Leave a Comment
ESPN 2 provided yet another great show on “Friday Night Fights,” airing a war between Darnell “The Ding-A-Ling Man” Wilson and heavy hitting Emmanuel Nwodo for the latter’s USBA cruiserweight title. Wilson won the battle and the belt at 2:00 of the 11th round by landing a bone crunching left hook smack on the chin that put Nwodo to sleep before he hit the canvas in the fight held at the St. George Arena in Staten Island, NY. It was one for the highlight reels.
Ibragimov vs Chagaev: Russian for “progress”
July 1, 2007 By Leave a Comment
Name something Mike Tyson, Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis have in common. Here’s one: All three were heavyweight champions who fought title-unification bouts. A trait Shannon Briggs, Nicolay Valuev and John Ruiz share? All three were heavyweight champions who did not fight title-unification bouts.