|
Join Our Busy Boxing Message Board Today
Where the boxing fans have a voice
Boxing Talk | Ask the Trainer | UK Boxing | Off Topic | MMA
All Boxing Articles’ Articles
 | |  | | |
By Nick Chamberlain October 6th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
© Lawrence Lustig
The latest edition of Prizefighter, Heavyweights III, was highly entertaining with well-known fighters in the equation of Audley Harrison, Danny Williams and Scott Gammer. The tournament had decent domestic talent in the mix despite Michael Sprott's withdrawal.
Harrison and Williams were touted to meet each other in the final. Williams, the current British Champion, and Harrison, who was heading for great things once upon a time, had met twice before with a points victory for Williams and a stoppage victory for Harrison on the books. Both were looking for redemption.
Harrison has always been the most frustrating fighter, in the respect that we all know he has the skills of a counter punching skilled southpaw, but he just decided to never use them. He would prefer to put a couple of rounds in the bank and then coast nice and safely to victory by holding and spoiling, which aggravates the fans, and after he was knocked out by Sprott in 2007, it seems he was scared of it happening again so never fully engaged.
Worse was the fact that he never seemed to understand why the British fight fan never got behind him, when it was quite obvious, and he continued to speak of this ever elusive world title that he craved so much. More...
| |  |  |  |
| | | | |
By Bruce Dingo October 1st, 2009 All Boxing Articles
This Saturday sees the comeback of former heavyweight contender David Tua, who headlines a night of boxing at Mystery Creek Events Centre in Hamilton, New Zealand.
It could be a changing of the guard in respect to just who is the kiwi heavyweight king as old guard Tua, 49-3-1 (42), tangles with up and coming slugger Shane Cameron, 23-1 (20).
Tua's past history is well documented elsewhere but hasn't faced a world class competitor since drawing with Hasim Rahman during an IBF title eliminator in 2003.
The real story however is that the soon to be 37 year old has been absent from the ring for two years following a second round TKO win in a tune up bout against Cerrone Fox. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Al Bernstein September 29th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
 Not surprisingly, the aftermath of the Floyd Mayweather-Juan Manuel Marquez match has produced some very simplistic commentaries about the commerce of the fight.
The very good buy rate that topped 1 million has been viewed in a number of different ways. Many of them so absurdly one dimensional that it boggles my mind.
The black and white mentality of commentators in both sports and news is astonishing. There is no more gray. And, I hate to break it to them and the people who buy into their messages, but, most things are in the gray area. Usually there are several factors that make something happen, not just one.
First, the huge buy rate is good news for boxing and it’s good news for Floyd Mayweather, who has long struggled to provide evidence that he can carry a pay per view. In this case, Marquez brought a following, but it was incumbent upon Mayweather to provide the bulk of the interest.
The other specific point that this huge buy rate demonstrates is that, as I suggested in my special commentary (which you can watch below on my boxing channel), when a major match gets the appropriate amount of coverage from the mainstream media, it will flourish and fans will be interested.
That was the case with this fight. Because of Mayweather’s return to the ring, this match got good coverage from newspapers, television and radio. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Danny Wilson September 23rd, 2009 All Boxing Articles
© Jan Sanders / Goossen Tutor Promotions
As fight night nears for Vitali Klitschko's WBC heavyweight title defense against challenger Chris Arreola this Saturday at Staples Center in Los Angeles, the champion continues to work the pr angle.
But is he preparing as hard in the gym?
Recent press releases have displayed Klitschko rubbing shoulders with such high profile L.A. personalities as film star Denzel Washington, soccer kingpin David Beckham and even Los Angeles Dodgers manager Joe Torre. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Jane Warburton September 22nd, 2009 All Boxing Articles
© Jane Warburton / Saddo Boxing
Joe Calzaghe may have retired the undefeated super middleweight and light heavyweight champion but it seems that his footwork on the dance floor doesn’t match up to that in the ring.
This weekend saw the start of BBC‘s ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ and Joe made his debut alongside professional dancer and blonde beauty Kristina Rihanoff.
“I never really danced before,” stated the Welsh Boxer, “so I was pretty nervous taking this up - probably more nervous than when I step in to the ring for a fight! More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Jose Espinoza September 17th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
Miguel Angel Cotto is climbing his way back to the top of the boxing world after a difficult loss to Antonio Margarito.
Since that devastating loss, the fighter from Puerto Rico has fought against Michael Jennings and Joshua Clottey. In both cases, Cotto has been victorious and demonstrated through his domination in the ring that he is capable of taking on top ranked opponents.
When the opportunity came along for a fight between Cotto and Manny Pacquiao, both parties understood the immense potential to make lots of money and deliver one of the biggest fights of the year.
This fight is so important to Cotto’s career that he took less than 50 percent of the money and agreed to go down in weight for the fight.
There is no question that Cotto is willing to do what’s necessary in order to face Pacquiao, but the question remains; does he have the necessary skill to beat the best fighter in the world in a 12 round assault?
Most boxing analysts have already spoken in favour of Pacquiao. There is too much skill and ability on the side of Pac Man that it’s difficult to make a case for Cotto winning the bout. However here are few elements to take into consideration when making your prediction for the fight.
Bob Arum has stated publicly that he is expecting to see an all-action brawl when the two fighters get together on November, 14, 2009. If Arum’s prediction holds true, an all out brawl will benefit Cotto. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Al Bernstein September 16th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
Floyd Mayweather Jr. is a little like the National Basketball Association. That seems a strange analogy, but it’s really not.
In recent years the off-season of the NBA has been really entertaining. There are blockbuster trades, player feuds, always more than our share of police blotter stories involving players, and at least a half a dozen paternity suits to spice things up.
Then the season begins and all that sizzle becomes a staid 82 game schedule with a style of play that must give all the players of the 70’s and 80’s heartburn.
Fast break opportunities are ignored to instead see guards walk the ball up the court, dump it into the low post and while everyone stands around that low post player goes one on one with not always sensational low post moves.
The product on the court somehow does not live up to our expectations.
And, that describes Mayweather Jr. to a tee. Outside the ring everything about him leading up to a fight is entertaining. His family is boxing’s version of the Osbournes. The break-ups and reconciliation’s come at a dizzying pace.
Most family members are soundbite machines that fuel the media with juicy stuff. And, add to that the inevitable legal entanglements that seem to find Floyd Jr. as often as cameras find Paris Hilton.
And, with HBO’s new penchant for making reality shows now before Mayweather fights, well, it’s all just too entertaining…much like the NBA. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Curtis McCormick September 15th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
© Jane Warburton / Saddo Boxing
Promoter Frank Maloney unexpectedly found star super middleweight prospect Darren Sutherland dead yesterday in Sutherland's home in Bromley, England.
Maloney, who also managed Sutherland, went to pick the boxer up for a news conference but found that Sutherland looked to have committed suicide by hanging. The 55 year old was subsequently taken to hospital for a suspected heart attack.
Sutherland had won a Bronze Medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and had won all four of his professional contests to date in dominating fashion.
The 27 year old originally from Dublin was well-liked outside the boxing ring, tremendously talented in it and expected to eventually contend for a world title.
The SaddoBoxing community extends its deepest sympathies to Darren Sutherland's family.
Leave comments here
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Al Bernstein September 11th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
The boxing schedule for the last quarter of the year is ridiculously good. Big matches abound, starting with next week’s Floyd Mayweather Jr’s comeback fight with Juan Manuel Marquez.
There is another mega fight in Manny Pacquiao vs. Miguel Cotto, then three great matches in the Super Six World Boxing Classic and Paul Williams vs. Kelly Pavlik. Throw in Glen Johnson vs. Chad Dawson and you have an amazing schedule.
By the time we get to December, it would be understandable to see a dip in the boxing product. But, it is in that month that we may find two gems - two fights that might get a little less universal hype, but have almost can’t miss tags on them.
The first is December 5th when WBO Light Welter Champ Tim Bradley defends his title against Lamont Peterson. Between the two of them, they have not one single loss. They are both young and both in their primes. They are also both extraordinary boxers.
I have had the pleasure of announcing Bradley’s last several match-ups sand have seen his development as a young champion. Peterson, who survived a torturous childhood on the streets of Washington DC, is as skilled a fighter as you would ever see.
And reportedly, he recently gave Mayweather all he could handle in a now legendary sparring session in Las Vegas. This is an even match and having a real conviction on who will win is not an easy thing to do.
This fight has 12 rounds of really good action written all over it. I am not sure either man can knock the other out, and they they both have such good offense that they will throw a lot of punches and land a lot. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Jose Espinoza September 10th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
There are few boxers in the business who have the charisma and ability that Jean Pascal demonstrates. The 26 year-old fighter from Montreal is living the life and enjoying every minute of his well deserved fame.
No one will forget Pascal’s form against Carl Froch in a WBC super middleweight title contest that is still being talked about as one of England’s best fights of the year.
Unfortunately for Pascal, he lost the fight but won the respect of many boxing fans and established a name for himself as a fearless fighter.
During the summer, Pascal won the WBC light heavyweight belt from an undefeated Adrian Diaconu by unanimous decision.
On September 25, 2009, Jean Pascal will face Italy’s Silvio Branco at the Bell Centre in Montreal. This will be Pascal’s first title defence and he is looking in great physical form, with lighting fast movement and a good hard punch. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Daxx Kahn September 9th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
Over 35 years now I have either been a devout fan of boxing or involved with the sport one way or another. I have met boxing royalty, trained fighters, owned a gym and ignored every other sport there is because of my love of boxing.
It is almost unexplainable the grasp boxing can have over a person, be it a fighter, trainer, promoter and even the writers who sit down day after day in front of their computers typing out article after article pertaining to the sport.
You learn about what drives these warriors to put their bodies and health on the line, year after year, mostly for minimal reward considering the sacrifices they make and it brings you to a whole new level of admiration.
Growing up, my parents taught me that in life, no matter how passionate you are about something, there will be good and bad to go along with it. They taught me that if you have a true passion, you must accept the bad but in no way does that mean you have to condone it and if the day comes that you turn a blind eye to it, you're doing nothing more than an injustice to not only yourself but all those involved.
Even if you don’t have the power to change things, make sure you voice your opinion, even if it is for nothing more then self satisfaction.
I have defended the sport time and again during controversy, bogus rankings, second rate main events and everything in-between. I make great efforts not to express my dissatisfaction with this sport at times; I usually go out of my way to only write about the good side of boxing and its associates.
As a writer, for one reason or another, I feel it is my duty to only focus on the positive, but there comes a time when the negative needs to be addressed, though this is the first time I HAVE to address it. If for nothing more then my own personal piece of mind and strangely enough, its because of a wrong doing to a fighter that more often then not, I look forward to him getting a good punch in the mouth. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Jane Warburton September 7th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
**With Slideshow**
© Jane Warburton / Saddo Boxing
Saturday night, at the Eaton Hotel in Edgbaston, England, the Midlands Area Council for the British Boxing Board of Control hosted their Annual Boxing Awards Dinner.
The event has been running for 20 years but the Midlands are still the only region to host such an occasion.
Guests stood for the traditional ten-bell tribute in honour of three losses to the boxing community: Willie Wilson (Nottingham), Chris Elliott (Leicester) and the ’Voice’ of boxing - Reg Gutteridge.
This was followed by a lovely three course meal.
I shared a table with Bob Plant and female boxer Lyndsey Scragg of the Wednesbury Boxing Academy, her family and PC Andrew Whitehall and his wife. I think I was on the best table because I laughed quite a lot!
Once the meal was over, there was an auction of boxing memorabilia before it was time for the presentation of awards. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Nick Chamberlain September 4th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
Sat on the canvas straight after eight hard fought rounds for the Commonwealth Featherweight belt on January 16 of this year, John Simpson and Paul Truscott were conducting an interview for Sky Sports and had agreed
that a rematch should be put into place, after the referee had stopped the fight due to cuts suffered by Truscott.
The rematch is due for tonight and after the first fight, we should have a good scrap on our hands with these two.
Simpson 19-6 (7), and is a tough little pressure fighter, and has fought some good opposition like Derry Matthews and Paul Appleby, albeit both of which he lost, but the experience is good to have under his belt.
Paul Truscott 13-1 (1), is a fast, flashy boxer who is good on the counter and can give some opponents trouble but looking at his record, it's plain to see where the experience lies in this rematch
In the first fight, just as it was stopped, the contest seemed to have turned a corner and was going into Simpson territory, Truscott having only been the full 12 rounds once in his career.
Of course, we never got to see that as there was some bad swelling under, and not a massive cut but a cut all the same, over Truscott's right eye, leading the referee to the doctor, who confirmed the stoppage.
The first bout was a good fight, with Truscott controlling a lot of the pace with his jab and catching Simpson coming in with quick straight rights, flashy hooks and uppercuts. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Al Bernstein September 1st, 2009 All Boxing Articles
I can count on one hand the times in my 30 year career that I have expressed disagreement with any of my broadcasting colleagues in a public forum.
Mind you, I have often disagreed, but seldom if ever have I spoken out. My style as a communicator is not built on argument or confrontation and I don’t really understand “media feuds.” And, I am certainly not trying to ignite one here.
All that having been said, I feel called upon to strongly disagree with some of the opinions expressed by ESPN commentator Teddy Atlas in a recent interview I read on the internet.
I’ll further qualify this (how much qualifying can one man do?) by saying that Teddy and I have never had any issue with each other on a personal basis, and we have many mutual friends.
So, this column is really a reaction to his comments and there is nothing else behind it.
In this recent interview, Teddy makes some all inclusive comments about the internet that I think are very unfair and inaccurate. In the process, he diminishes one of the strengths of the sport, in much the same way uninformed members of the mainstream media have been doing in recent years.
First, even though the interview he did was with an internet writer and was dispensed on the internet, he completely dismisses the internet as a means of providing accurate or meaningful information.
Here is some of what he said:
“I don’t read any boxing internet articles unless someone sends me something or faxes me something, which I really don’t care to read in the first place. There is just so many boxing websites that I wonder how they survive. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Nick Chamberlain August 24th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
When Oscar De La Hoya walked away from the sport of boxing in April, 2009, he only walked away as a fighter, and in doing so left his own individual legacy he had forged over 17 years.
17 world champions had fallen before him, he had won 10 world titles in six different weight classes and had earned a huge - and I mean astronomical - amount of money; pay per view alone figures are reportedly estimated around $696 million.
Yes, it is safe to say that Oscar did all right for himself; in fact, it is fair to say he has probably generated more money than any other boxer in the history of the sport.
With the Golden Boy name still ringing out after all these years, we still think of Oscar whenever we hear it.
When you hear it now though, it could be because you are watching one of the fighters Golden Boy owns, from the super famous and well respected i.e. Bernard Hopkins, Shane Mosley, Juan Manuel Marquez; to the up and coming prospects i.e. Victor Ortiz, Danny Garcia or Erislandy Lara.
It could be because you are sat at a MMA event that Golden Boy collaborated on, or an article you might be reading in The Ring magazine or one of the many publications that Golden Boy own.
What Oscar has done has transcended way beyond the realms of boxer turned promoter. At one point, he was boxer and promoter, for his own fights, which always stuck me as humorous as no one stepped forward during the Oscar vs. Manny Pacquiao fight to stop it…well, that was everyone's boss in there…would you have wanted to? More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Lee Bellfield August 19th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
72 years ago this month, the world championship career of arguably the greatest heavyweight in history began.
The "Brown Bomber", Joe Louis, aged 23, had just defeated James J Braddock and had become the first black man since Jack Johnson thirty years previously to win the richest prize in sport.
Joe's first defence would come just two months after his title win when he would face a gritty British challenger in Tommy Farr.
Farr from Tonypandy, Wales, was one year younger than Louis and had been a pro since 1926. Initially a light heavyweight, Farr would go on and challenge for domestic honours in his native Wales, winning the Welsh Title in 1933. He would also repeat this feat in the heavyweight division, winning both the Welsh and British titles.
At the start of 1937, the World Heavyweight Champion was James J Braddock. As an underdog in 1935, "The Cinderella Man" had outsmarted the heavy betting favourite Max Baer over 15 rounds to become the surprise champion. That same Baer later in 1935 would also be dismantled in four rounds by an up and coming Joe Louis.
Baer in 1937 was still anxious to get another shot at the World title held by Braddock and in April that year, agreed to fight Farr. Baer, like he did against Braddock, took this chance lightly and slipped to a points defeat.
Louis in 1937 had suffered just the one defeat to German Max Schmeling and many thought Braddock would defend the title against Schmeling. However, in the tense political climate Braddock would sidestep Schmeling to a bigger money matchup against Louis. More...
| | | | |
| | | | |
By Al Bernstein August 18th, 2009 All Boxing Articles
This weekend, I hosted a pay per view telecast headlined by the WBA Interim Super Flyweight title match, featuring Nonito Donaire vs. Rafael Concepcion.
Everything that happened in the days before the match and in the first round suggested that Donaire, a rising star and potential superstar, was going to provide a dominant win that would further market himself.
Concepcion was rumored to be having terrible making weight, and, in fact came in a whopping 4 ½ pounds over the 115 pound limit. That did not bode well for his conditioning for the fight and it made an already motivated Donaire more angry and he vowed to beat Concepcion no matter what his weight.
Concepcion was fined part of his purse and Donaire received half that fine—but the Donaire camp did not demand that Concepcion try hard to make the 115 pounds. They were worried about a replay of the Joan Guzman-Nate Campbell fight of last year, when Guzman came in over the weight and tried to lose the weight, but was too weak to fight.
This pay per view had been set up a star vehicle for Donaire and Nonito and his management did not want his fight canceled.
The fight went on and true to his word, Donaire came out smoking. He was so dominant in the first two minutes that it looked like a monstrous mismatch. Conception had lost the year before to Jorge Arce in a war and Arce at that point had somewhat diminished skills.
If Donaire fought Arce he would be a prohibitive favorite. So, common sense told us that Concepcion was not in Donaire’s league—and round one was proving the point. More...
| | | | |
Search Saddo Boxing | Boxing News Archives
|
|
