Boxing News Boxing News
The mid-summer doldrums are upon the boxing world in full force, as evidenced by an underwhelming card at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, CT as main event of the weekend.
The show was headlined by former light heavyweight and cruiserweight world champ Tomasz Adamek, 49-2 (29), who continued on his quest to repeat that success in the heavyweight ranks.
The 36 year old Pole faced late replacement Dominick Guinn, 34-10-1 (23), over the full scheduled 10 rounds after original opponent Tony Grano dropped out due to injury.
Guinn surprised Adamek in the early going last night behind an ambitious plan led by sharp right hands but once Adamek got the timing of “The Southern Disaster”, he rode out the rest of the bout essentially outboxing Guinn, who hasn’t won a meaningful contest since 2008.
After a two year campaign at heavyweight, which saw “Goral” cut a swath through second and third-tier opposition, culminated in a lackluster bid to topple WBC king Vitali Klitschko in 2011, Adamek has had a mixed level of success although he has won all five of his post-Klitschko bouts.
One reason for this is that Adamek has faced better opposition in that time, mainly in the shape of former cruiserweight opponent Steve Cunningham and Eddie Chambers.
Cunningham gave Adamek genuine problems in their rematch in December, arguably doing more than enough to win while losing a split decision and Chambers proved very difficult for Adamek even after fighting without the left hand after suffering a biceps injury in the first frame in June, 2012.
Adamek is currently rated in the WBC and IBF top ten, so if he is to get another shot at world honors it will likely be against IBF boss Wladimir Klitschko, who faces longtime mandatory challenger, WBA “regular” champion Alexander Povetkin in October.
But, Adamek will have to face a hurdle before that matchup could even occur, and that is meet the winner of Kubrat Pullev vs. Tony Thompson later this month.
That likely will be Pullev, who should be too agile for the tough but rather lumbering Thompson, and Adamek could come out the winner in that one if he can successfully time right hands against the predictable one-two sequences with the occasional left hook, that Pullev favors.
If that outcome does occur, however, expect another Klitschko disappointment for Adamek.
The most interesting bout on the bill last night was the cruiserweight debut of the aforementioned Eddie Chambers, 36-4 (18), who was facing former South African and current ABU cruiser champ Thabisco Mchunu, 14-1 (10), losing a shocking and wide verdict.
The 6’1 Chambers towered over his 5’8 southpaw opponent and the American attempted to intimidate the stocky South African with that size. This approach was flawed, however, by the distinct lack of punches from Chambers due to the distance maintained by the unheralded Mchunu.
When Chambers did let his hands go, the far quicker Mchunu easily avoided the leather, round after round. The smaller man managed to take the points decision by launching just enough “get in and then right back out” offense to win rounds enroute to a 99-91, 99-91 and 97-93 decision.
The result is fantastic for Mchunu but disastrous for Chambers, who is now left in a sort of career no-mans land.
The third bout of some significance on the bill was for the vacant NABF middleweight crown, which Curtis Stevens, 25-3 (18), won by immediately flattening Mexican chinny banger Saul Roman, 37-10 (31), with left hooks in the first round.
Stevens has now gone 4-0 since dropping down from super middle and winning the NABF strap raises his standings in the WBC rankings, headed by their champion, Sergio Martinez, although Stevens has called out WBA kingpin Gennady Golvkin.
Martinez definitely is not the fighter he was at his prime but still should be crafty enough to turn back Stevens, who should not enter the ring against heavy-handed Golovkin.
