Much like the welterweights earlier this year, the lightweights are now on the threshold of providing some clarity to a stacked, competitive division. In the 147 pound division, Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s retirement, for however long it lasts, loosened things considerably while taking Oscar De La Hoya out of the picture with him when their September fight was scratched.
Mayweather was the universally recognized welterweight champion and WBC titlist and a genuine talent, but let’s face it, both he and Oscar long ago placed cash ahead of competition. Both have expressed a desire to become billionaires; neither has expressed any desire to climb into the ring with Antonio Margarito.
So, as long as Floyd was around the division was at a competitive standstill.
Meanwhile, some good matchups have taken place to thin the field. WBA belt holder Miguel Cotto won a close unanimous decision over Shane Mosley last November. Paul Williams, who defeated Margarito in July 2007, lost to Carlos Quintana by UD in February, and then blasted out Quintana in round one of the rematch in June.
Margarito starched Kermit Cintron in April and then went on to stop Cotto in 11 rounds in July. Lastly, to a slightly lesser degree of importance, Joshua Clottey won a technical decision over Zab Judah for the vacant IBF belt.
Bottom line– Margarito stands alone at 147, but he’ll never truly be The Guy until he beats Williams. Clottey and Mosley are right behind competitively. We’ll withhold judgment on Cotto until we see how he rebounds from a crushing defeat.
Now in a two week stretch in early September, the lightweight picture may similarly come into focus. On the 6th, Juan Diaz, the former IBF/WBA/WBO champion makes his return to the ring in his first appearance since losing his belts to Nate Campbell in March. Juan is now with Golden Boy after a contentious breakup with Don King. Diaz will be facing Michael Katsidis, an exciting brawler/bleeder who was last seen getting starched by Ring Magazine champ Joel Casamayor this past March.
The fight is for the vacant IBO lightweight title, not a big surprise here since the IBO had made overtones to Diaz when his promotional problems almost led to his being stripped.
I’ve always believed that the 28 year old Katsidis is exciting but grossly overrated, while Diaz, at 24, has yet to hit his peak. Just how much the ongoing squabbling with King prior to the Campbell fight contributed to his defeat may be arguable, but the fact is that he took a solid licking.
Katsidis is out of his league here, but he is a perfect opponent to rejuvenate Diaz’ confidence.
Campbell is defending his titles on September 13 against Joan Guzman. At age 36, and after finally hitting the jackpot against Diaz after years of toiling on the fringes of success, he wanted to collect and this is not the fight he wanted. He really wanted Juan Manuel Marquez, obviously for financial reasons.
Guzman, crafty and cute but not particularly fan friendly, is not a good box office draw. But he was the WBO super featherweight and super bantamweight titlist and when he moved up to 135 he became the #1 contender, even though Amir Khan had already won an eliminator for the privilege.
Guzman will be no picnic. He’s undefeated at 28-0 (17) and can make the best of opponents look bad. But he hasn’t scored a KO in 4 ½ years as he’s moved up from 122. Campbell will be able to take his shots, but will he be able to catch Guzman, who will likely run like a rabbit? I still favor Campbell, but he’ll need to be in top shape.
So Campbell gets stuck with Guzman in Biloxi on Showtime Championship Boxing while Marquez gets Casamayor at MGM Grand in Las Vegas on HBO PPV, in other words, where the money is.
Despite Casamayor’s impressive victory over Katsidis, the fact remains that at age 37 he’s closing in on the end game. Katsidis came dangerously close to winning by knocking Joel clear out of the ring in round six, but Casmayor came back to win a TKO in the 10th.
Marquez, moving up from 130 at age 35 is still one of the best boxing technicians of recent times.
The fight represents a trifecta of sorts. You have Marquez and Casamayor, two Golden Boy fighters, fighting on HBO PPV for the Ring Magazine title.
Now that’s covering all of your bases.
In any event, it’s early in the game but I have to like Marquez against Casamayor, probably by a unanimous decision.
So if all goes according to form, Diaz, Campbell and Marquez will be the last men standing after September. Add Manny Pacquiao to the equation and any combination of matchups would be mouth watering.
It goes without saying that Marquez would just love to have another shot at Manny. He has a draw and a razor thin decision loss for his efforts thus far, and many experts feel that he could well have won both fights.
Then there’s the matter of Pacquiao and De La Hoya, a farce in my book but for some reason the fight that fans most want to see. Usually if you turn down a deal with Golden Boy, they scratch you off their list. The fact that they are still willing to negotiate tells me that Oscar and his 19 plus pound weight advantage really wants this fight, primarily for the obscene financial rewards that are certain to roll in.
Besides, no one really wants the Sergio Mora nuclear option. In the first place, I doubt that he can get past Vernon Forrest again, and even if he did he would still be one sorry opponent for Oscar’s farewell.
I’m a curious sort and I can’t help but wonder why Forrest’s name has never even been mentioned. I can’t believe the Golden Boy brain trust is leaving it to Mora with so much money on the line. Ouch.
Maybe Oscar promised his wife Millie that he would never fight anyone from Atlanta.
Michael Swann can be reached at mswann4@aol.com