I take my hat off to Katsidis and Bika!!!

[DaxxKahn]

Yes they lost but both men never stopped trying and gaver all the guy across could handle, they accepted the decision with class and they acted like champions in the after fight presser.....They showed us just as much out of the ring after the losses as they did in the ring...

Bika gave one of the sports youngest and talented fighters a scare and helped him add a new angle to his game...Her also accepted the scores be it they were a little over the top...The fight was more like a 3 or 4 point difference not the 8 and 9 the judges made it out to be..

Katsidis showed he is a true warrior even dropping the great JMM once...Never giving up even when taking a hel;l of a shellacking...Neither man made a big scene about the final result either nor did they speak poorly about thier opp afterwards....Classy to the end.,...

Even in a loss these two men came out winners....IMO thier stock rose big last night!!! Look for them in high profile bouts soon....

On a side note not that it matters but it was a low move on the part of HBO with the questions they asked Mike in the ring about his brother...I mean it was only 40 days ago and we have to put some shit out about "Well you dedicated this fight to your brothert but yuou didn't win do you think he is proud of you right now".....Why not just rub salt in a wound!!!

[Gandalf]

I agree, especially regarding the Marquez fight. It was a great scrap. I also thought it was a bit much to ask directly about the brother as you could see Katsidis was emotional ansering the question about whether he was dissapointed or not, so at that point Merchant could have restrained himself. It's not reality television, you don't really need to induce somebody's tears after the loss of a family member. Not really neccessary.

[armin]

Agreed Bika and Kats gave it they all, both of them usually come to fight but thus far have fallen just short of the top. I can see kats making it once jmm leaves lw or retires. As for bika don't see it happening, just so much talent around his weightclass but who knows stranger things have happened. Don't know what the hell merchant was doing asking those questions, just congratulate kats on a fight well fought where he gave it his all and give condolences for his loss, not the crap he was spewing.

[milmascaras1]

i'd love to see michael katsidis scrap with brandon rios. would be a great fight because brandon rios has never really fought anyone in katsidis' class. i like katsidis and think he's a warrior but i'm afraid he's going to become a gatekeeper of sorts because of his poor defense and the way his face gets mangled. still, great show man and hope he does someday win a world title.

[MMASUX]

Yes much respect to both fighters. I read over on ESPN that after the JMM-Katsidis fight, Katsidis wanted to give JMM a gift of his boxing shoes he wore during the fight. So they met up in JMM's suite, and exchanged autographed shoes, and JMM gave Katsidis his shorts from the fight, and signed items for each others camp. Cool that they could hang out after beating each other up. Two very classy guys.

From Rafeals blog:

In international soccer competition, players often trade jerseys with members of the other team after a game. Katsidis wanted to give Marquez his shoes from the fight. A call was made and a bit later Katsidis and crew were in Marquez's suite, where a postfight celebration was taking place.

Katsidis and Marquez had just gone through hell with each other in the ring, but now here they were hanging out. They traded their autographed shoes from the bout, and Marquez also presented Katsidis with the autographed trunks he wore in the fight. They talked for a bit and took pictures with each other. Their teams also took photos and signed autographs for each other.

[milmascaras1]

good to hear both marquez and katsidis exchanged pleasantries and personal items. katsidis, bless his heart, is one of a kind and win or lose, he pours his heart into every fight. what a great Greek warrior!

[Ant Live]

Katsidis won "in" that fight. People will want to see him fight again. On top of it all, he didn't have any excuses and gave JMM his props. Didn't blame the ref for the stoppage.
Katsidis is the perfect undercard fighter.
Katsidis vs Diaz next!!!


Bika is and will always be a rough fight for any fight. The contenders is really making a name for themselves!(ha ha ha)