This Week in Boxing.
The past three weeks have been great for our beloved sport. We saw the legends of Castillo and Corrales grow as they put on a thriller. Then, we witnessed the culmination of years of hard work for Ronald “Winky†Wright as he completely befuddled Puerto Rican Monster, Felix “Tito†Trinidad. And, last night, we were treated to a jaw-dropping knockout, courtesy of “Relentless†Lamon Brewster, as he blasted perennial contender Andrew Golota into oblivion, and possibly retirement. Well fight fans, the “Foul Pole†may indeed retire, but we at SaddoBoxing.com soldier on.
We start our “Magical Mystery Tour†on Tuesday as ESPN 2’s Tuesday Night Fights series brings you a light middleweight bout between “Smooth†Rodney Jones and Teddy “Two Guns†Reid. It is a crossroads fight for both combatants as Reid needs to make a statement if he wants to get a title shot, and the ageing Jones, at thirty-six-years-old, can not afford a loss. Both warriors can pop, so it should make for a solid main event. On the under-card, “El Ciclon†Agapito Sanchez continues his quest for whatever it is he is seeking as he takes on super bantamweight contender Artyom Simonyan. This is Simonyan’s come back fight after suffering his first professional loss in December 2004, against IBF titlist Israel Vasquez. It is gut check time for Artyom, as the first taste of defeat can really mess with a young fighter’s mind.
We move from “real†fights on T.V., to “Reality†T.V., as “The Contender†will air its series finale, which is live from Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, and you can tune in on NBC. The show will feature Peter “Junior†Manfredo against “The Latin Snake†Sergio Mora in a middleweight contest for one million dollars (I was going to do the Doctor Evil bit, but nah), and the “Contender Belt.†Hey, if the WBU, and IBO titles are considered real belts, then why should the contender one be any different? It is as viable as those two organizations.
The tour continues its route on Thursday, in San Antonio, Texas, as super flyweight contender Jose Navarro returns to the ring against a nondescript opponent, after being jobbed in his first title attempt against WBC titlist Katsushige Kawashima in the champion’s backyard. We will see how Navarro looks in his first fight back.
That same night, from Buenos Aires, Argentina, home of my favorite boxing character, Jorge “La Hiena†Barrios, the ageless warrior, Jorge “El Rona†Castro will make his 142nd start against Silvio Branco, in a WBA light heavyweight title eliminator. It is amazing that Castro, a former middleweight titlist, is still active and can still be a real test for anyone in the light heavyweight division. Also, he turned professional in 1987, and remains active by today’s standards, as this will be his second fight of this year. On the under-card, another title elimination bout pits former WBA super flyweight champion, “El Explosive†Alexander Munoz against “Chupete†Julio David Roque-Ler. The winner will be in line to face current WBA super flyweight titlist Martin “El Gallo†Castillo.
Moving on to Friday, as ESPN 2 Friday Night Fights series brings you the exciting Kendall Holt, against “El Martillo†Jaime Rangel, in a super lightweight tilt that should be entertaining as both of these pugilist can whack and are no strangers to the canvas. Rangel, a former title challenger, is trying to break a three-fight losing streak, as he desperately needs a win if he wants to get back in the title picture. In the televised portion of the under-card, Ben “Wonder†Tackie makes his welterweight debut as he takes on the unknown Puerto Rican, Edwin Algarin. I do not know why the show opted to televise this fight, but they have.
On the same night, at the Arco Arena in Sacramento, California, super featherweight prospect Vicente “Chente†Escobedo makes his return to the ring as he takes on Alfonso Guzman. We will see how the young Escobedo looks as he continues his climb up the fight later. Jetting over to England, as former WBU light heavyweight titlist (whatever that means) Tony “Oakey Kokey†Oakey challenges current English light heavyweight belt holder Peter “The Daddy†Haymer. I do not know who Nat King is, but he pretty much slapped Haymer around twice in the past, so we will see if Oakey can do the same.
The tour continues into Saturday as Top Rank and Showtime’s pay-per-view boxing series bring you the “Adios†(English: Farewell) fight of the legendary “El Leon De Culiacan†Julio Cesar Chavez, as he takes on “Mighty†Ivan Robinson. I love Chavez as much as anyone does, but it is really time for “J.C. Superstar†to call it a career. Now, the televised portion of the under-card represents some great match-ups. The chief supporting bout gives us IBF bantamweight boss Rafael Marquez putting his hardware on the line against tough contender Ricardo “Chapo†Vargas. This fight should be entertaining and could end at anytime, as Marquez is a monster. The fight that I cannot wait for is a WBC super featherweight title eliminator between the rugged Jesus “El Matador†Chavez against Carlos “El Famoso†Hernandez. This fight should be its own main event and is worth shelling out the cash for this pay-per-view card. Also featured on the under-card is none other that Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. The undefeated super lightweight prospect is going to fight some unknown as his opponent is one of those “to be announced†types. I do not know about you guys, but I do not buy that J.C. Jr. is a day over twelve-years-old. Still, he is making a lot more money than me, so who am I to judge.
Well fight fans there you have it. It is going to be another busy week for our sport and SaddoBoxing.com will be there to bring you up to date reports, information and interviews with the best fighters in the world today. Stay tuned for fight results, analysis, and everything else that is important in boxing. Until next week, “adios!â€
Sergio Martinez can be reached at srg_mrtnz@yahoo.com