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A dozen moments since 2000
These are not in any order. These are the twelve moments since 2000 that made me happiest I was a boxing fan.
Bernard Hopkins Takes Out Felix Trinidad-I'd seen 25 BHOP fights before this and this was the first time it struck me that BHOP might be an all-time great fighter. It wasn't that he defeated Tito. It was HOW he defeated him. As clear a display of boxing IQ manifested as you will ever see. Tito did himself proud in defeat, ferocious and full of heart to the end.
Michael Carbajal Goes Out a Champion-The great Carbajal is way past his prime and on his last legs. He has been a glorious ring presence for over a decade and has grown up as a fighter before my eyes. But now? A young champion Jorge Arce is beating him from pillar to post, has won every round and has left Carbajal bloodied and bruised after ten rounds. Carbajal was valiant and overmatched. But somehow in the eleventh, one magical right hand and Carbajal retires on top.
Israel Vasquez-Rafael Marquez III-Simply a fight for the ages. Great courage combined with great action is not all that uncommon in the ring. But it is rarely, rarely joined by great skill and competing ring generalship. Two likely HOFer's put on a legendary display and forever bind their names.
Ricky Hatton Stops Kosta Tzsyu-Those who think Kosta was used up heading into this fight are badly mistaken in my view. His shoulder had clearly healed given his last few performances and he fought well this night. He could not resist the relentless force urged on by his countrymen that exploded into prominence this night.
Felix Trinidad Forever Ruins Fernando Vargas-This fight operated at a level of ferocity rarely seen. Why? It simply causes too much damage for the human body to absorb without permanent impairment. The courage Vargas showed in surviving round one was exemplary. To then knock Tito down? Remarkable. Tito buys time by going south of the border. Vargas finally is bankrupted in the twelfth. A glorious display by both men.
Joe Calzaghe Wrecks Jeff Lacy-I'd only seen snippets of Calzaghe prior to this. His unique style in the ring, overwhelmingly athletic, almost intellectual in design just jumped off the screen that night. Lacy looked like a caveman by comparison. The speed of both hand and foot, the understanding of distance and angles and the sheer exuberance in the ring was startling. A strange and wonderful talent.
Chico Corrales and JL Castillo-The most amazing thing about this extraordinary fight was that Chico never stopped thinking. Never.
Marco Antonio Barerra Runs Naseem Hamed Into A Ringpost-The difference between an all-time great ring craftsman and someone who has gotten by on extraordinary athletic ability and a big freaking mouth. It wasn't nearly as close as the judges saw it. MAB schooled Naseem.
Manny Pacquioa Arrives-Lehlo Ledwaba was a very good 122, one of the three or four best in the world. I'd seen him KO Eduardo Alvarez the year before. Manny was a late replacement who had yet to fight in the US. Holy crap! Who IS this? He has NO idea what he's doing in the ring but Lord is he fast and athletic and ferocious!
Thailand and Tehran-Mahyar Monshipour defends his 122 strap against Somsak Sithchatchawal. The champ is down in the first but gets up and the two put on as action-oriented a fight as one could possibly ask for. Ten rounds of barely controlled violence.
Erik Morales-Marco Antonio Barerra I-Bitter enemies in a ring classic. What I loved best about this fight was Morales' interview after he won a contested decision. "It was a very close fight, yes he hurt me several times, yes he is a wonderful fighter and I am done at 122. But if he will come up to 126 he deserves a rematch." You cannot ask for more than that from a fighter.
Finito Cements His Legend-Bufalo Alvarez shows up younger, stronger and missing weight by TWO divisions! A fading Lopez insists on going ahead with the fight. He is cut in four places, dealing with a superior athlete and simply refuses to lose. With ten seconds of the rest period remaining Ricardo Lopez is already in ring center, hands up, so he doesn't lose a second getting after his foe. A champion’s heart on display.
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Originally Posted by captainanddew
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