Stevie Forbes says Contender© is treating him like Rodney Dangerfield

Steve Forbes “I Want Out of the Contender Contract!”
“2 Pounds” Fed Up with Getting Robbed and Jobbed
www.boxingconfidential.com
John Chavez
4/17/2007

So I was sitting in class dozing off, struggling to keep my eyes open due to the jager, shiraz filled evening on Sunday. Yes, for some reason I was coerced into chugging shots of jager in between sips of some Fat Bastard, Shiraz wine. I need some new friends. Maybe I should join this thing called myspace to find some sober, health conscience humans to hang out with.

So as I’m struggling to keep my eyes open during a ridiculously boring presentation about water bottles, I see my phone ring. It’s none other than Steve Forbes. I’m thinking, hmmm there must be some interesting news for “2 Pounds” to give me a ring with nothing specifically on the near horizon.

I think to myself:

Maybe the blatant robbery he was a victim of this past March 17th was being investigated and they found that all three judges were bribed with New York steaks and cases of Cazadores tequila. I know I wouldn’t have been able to resist that type of bribe.

Maybe the people around Oscar saw what I’ve been saying for quite a while now that “2 Pounds” would provide the “Golden Boy” with the best sparring preparation for his showdown with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

So as I get out of class I give Mr. Forbes a call to see what the deal is.

BB: “Whaddup 2 Pounds!!! What’s going on man?”

2 Pounds: Man, I just read the article on Boxingconfidential about The Contender doing a supposed investigation of the Peter Manfredo stoppage. What’s up with that? They didn’t do a damn thing when I got robbed last month. I fought my heart out and everybody saw it.

BB: Yeah, that was some serious bullshit. So Contender didn’t do anything about that whole thing?

2 Pounds: They said they were gonna do some sort of investigation but nothing ever happened. You know what John, I want out of the Contender contract. Not one person from there was in Vegas to support me for the fight. Not one. They were there for Manfredo in Wales and even Bravo when he got knocked out by Andre Berto. It kinda just shows me how much they respect me.

BB: Damn man, that’s pretty messed up. I mean out of all the guys on the Contender series, you are pretty much the only guy that the hardcore fans respect. You’re the one guy who brought some serious credibility to the show. A former world champ with some old school slickness.

2 Pounds: Thanks man. I don’t know what it is. I’m ready and willing to fight anybody. Anybody at 140 pounds and there’s nothing lined up.

BB: What happened to the Arturo Gatti fight?

2 Pounds: It already got turned down twice.

BB: That doesn’t surprise me. In all honesty, Gatti would have to be stupid to fight you bro.

2 Pounds: We’ll see what happens. Check this out man. I’m not even ranked in the top 10 in the IBF or any of the organizations.

BB: What, are you dead serious man? This is the type of shit I expect but it’s getting on a another level of stupid. What can ya do man? The only thing is hopefully somebody will step up to make a big fight happen. The winner of Hatton-Castillo is the fight that should happen later this year. I as well as a good number of real boxing fans wanna see that fight go down.

2 Pounds: I hope so man. All I know is that the Contender isn’t and hasn’t been showing me any respect. I mean it’s not like they don’t support all their fighters, it just seems like they overlook me or something. I don’t know why.

BB: That’s all bad man. You’re pretty well known and are in a pretty hot division. There’s no reason that the big fights shouldn’t be happening. I’m still pissed about the robbery and I’m not gonna let it die. I can hold a grudge forever and those judges sparked something that just hasn’t died. So what you got going on right now man?

2 Pounds: Well I’m about to take a little vacation with my wife. We’re gonna be hanging out in Jamaica for a bit and we’ll see what happens when we get back.

BB: Sounds good man. You sound like you definitely need one.

2 Pounds: (Chuckling) I think so. I guess we’ll see how it all goes down but I just wanna let everybody know how I’ve been treated and that I’m willing and ready for anybody at 140 pounds. ANYBODY.

BB: Alright “2 Pounds”. Enjoy your vacation and hopefully the rest of the year is a good one.

2 Pounds: Thanks John. I’ll holler at you soon.

So as I think to myself as to the misfortune of what I consider to be one of the most underrated fighters in boxing today, I feel a sense of frustration. The frustration stems from the fact that the corruption and or ineptness of boxing judges affect lives in more ways than one. I’m tired of seeing injustices occur in this sport that I love and having to just shrug it off as part of the game. It isn’t just part of the game. It is part of having no morals or ethics in addition to not having to be held accountable for being a corrupt douchebag.

Let me ask this simple question: “What would have happened to Bernard Hopkins’ career had he gotten blatantly robbed against Keith Holmes?

Think about it for a second, maybe a minute, or even an hour.

Never mind, I’ll think about it for you.

Maybe the world wouldn’t know who the “Executioner” is today. Maybe he would have been swept under the rug having to start his career over. He might have retired out of frustration due to the unfairness and corruptness of the “system”. Sure the media would have given the judges hell and praised Bernard for being the true victor of the bout for a week or two but unfortunately it wouldn’t have mattered. Bernard would have never have gotten his shot against Felix Trinidad and he might never have received the credit he so rightfully deserved.

Corrupt scoring is more than just putting an additional notch in a fighter’s loss column. It affects lives, careers, families and the fan’s perception of the sweet science. It will continue to plague this precious sport we all love if we learn to accept these mistakes as part of the game. I refuse to accept it. I’ll beat this dead horse until the maggots stop flying. For those of you that know me personally, you know I’m just getting started…

As for the Contender and how they’ve treated Steve Forbes I really don’t know what to say. From what I’ve heard and seen, most of the Contender fighters are considered more hype-jobs than anything. Hardcore fans don’t take them seriously and mainstream fans have been privy to some pretty embarrassing defeats. Forbes is pretty much the one guy that can give the Contender series any sort of credibility and the fact that they’re not taking care of him seems rather foolish on their part. They basically have nothing to point to in regards of their fighter's accomplishments.

Norberto Bravo got starched by Andre Berto in one.

Peter Manfredo got bludgeoned by Joe Calzaghe in three.

Sergio Mora won’t even step in the ring with Jermain Taylor.

Forbes is the only one who defeated a hot prospect in Demetrius Hopkins and yet they aren’t looking to piggy back off his success? I know I’m a rather foolish, stupid, and belligerent gorilla on a consistent basis but if I was looking to showcase the Contender’s talent, I’d be making sure Forbes was taken care of.

Imagine making a Ricky Hatton-Steve Forbes fight this fall in Manchester. The exposure would be ridiculous and there’s no doubt in this internet hack’s mind that the fight would be nothing but blood and guts from beginning to end. Win, lose, or draw that fight is something that would be good for boxing and showcase the potential talent that future Contender fighters might possess. Even a fight between the winner of the upcoming battle between Juan Diaz and Acelino Freitas would be an intriguing match-up. Then again, what do I know?

All I have to say is… Robert “110-118” Hoyle, Glenn”110-118” Trowbridge, and Dalby “111-117” Shirley, I got something for ya coming soon enough…