It's very rare in boxing that we see the fighters regarded as the male and female pound-for-pound #1's in action on the same day though that's exactly what we got this Saturday and although both won their bouts they each did so in distinctly different ways. The first pound-for-pound ruler to be in action was boxing queen Cecilia Braekhus (26-0, 7) who made history by becoming the first ever female fighter to unify the so-called "Big 4" world titles. Braekhus's was as dominant as they come as she thoroughly out boxed, out punched and out classed Ivana Habazin (13-2, 5) to add the IBF female Welterweight crown to her collection of the WBA, WBC and WBO belts. Whilst we know female boxing is the "second class citizen" of the boxing world Braekhus still deserves full credit for achieving something only previously done by Bernard Hopkins, who did the same in the Middleweight division. Universally regarded as the #1 pound for pound fighter without a "Y" chromosome Breakhus is a genuinely special fighter who really has no equal in, or around, her division. Several hours after Braekhus had shown off her skills to her loyal Scandinavian fans we then got the chance to see the male pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather (47-0, 26) in action. Mayweather was fighting just his second ever rematch as a professional and was battling against Argentina's Marcos Maidana (35-5, 31). The first fight between the two had been great, competitive and exciting with both showing their dirty sides in what was a genuinely good bout. This time around however the fight lacked something as referee Kenny Bayless became too involved, breaking the men repeatedly through the course of 12 rounds. The breaking was not only killing any chance of Maidana making the bout competitive but also breaking any flow of the bout which was haunted by holding throughout. Over the course of the 12 rounds Mayweather did more than enough to retain his WBA and WBC Welterweight crowns and even hinted at a Pacquiao bout next time out, it was clear however that he is not the fighter he once was. We'll be controversial and state that we don't think Mayweather actually is the #1 any more, in fact we tend to feel that Nicaraguan sensation Roman Gonzalez is the top fighter irregardless of weight. If you've not seen the little Nicaraguan terror you're really missing out on one of the sports truly terrific offensive fighters. Prior to the Mayweather bout there had been 4 televised bouts, 3 of which were part of the pay-per-view broadcast. The first of the televised bouts from the card saw the show's most exciting bout as former world champion Humberto Soto (65-8-2-1, 35) out pointed the all-action John Molina (27-5, 22) in a thoroughly fun, though foul filled, bout. The fight saw Soto using his experience and edge in skills to clearly win a number of rounds against the one dimensional Molina however the bout also saw numerous low blows. The low blows saw deducted 2 points and Soto deducted 1 point. Despite the low blows and deductions the bout was really good and a brilliant way for Soto to prove he is still relevant on the world scene. The first of the PPV bouts again saw low blows as James De la Rosa (23-2, 13) scored a career defining victory over the now shot looking Alfredo Angulo (22-5, 18). We loved watching Angulo in the past though he looked a shadow of his former self and was dropped in round 2 by De la Rosa en route to a relatively one sided loss. Angulo was deducted a point for low blows in round 7 and although he made a strong comeback in the final rounds he was a clear, clear, loser of the 10 round non-title bout. Although we did love watching Angulo in his prime we really wish to see him, and for what it's worth Juan Manuel Lopez, retire before taking more punishment. "El Perro" is no longer a marauding beast of a man and is actually going to take a lot of damage if he continues to get in the ring, even against limited fighters. Sadly the second bout on the PPV was among the worst bouts we've seen this year. The bout saw Mickey Bey (21-1-1-1, 10) take a very controversial split decision win over Miguel Vazquez (34-4, 13) to claim the IBF Lightweight title. The bout a real stinker and we'd suggest using it as a cure for insomnia, or a torture method for captured enemy spies, trust us they would break if you showed them this fight on a loop. Although the bout was a stinker it's action, or rather lack of, was massively over-shadowed by the frankly disgusting card of Robert Hoyle who awarded the bout to Bey with a score of 119-109. The bout had been close and although we felt Vazquez had won it was close. To hand in a score of 119-109 for the bout isn't just questionable but it looks as close to corrupt as any card in recent memory. Genuinely atrocious bout with an atrocious score card. The penultimate PPV bout, prior to the Mayweather/Maidana bout, saw WBC Super Bantamweight champion Leo Santa Cruz (28-0-1, 16) make very light work of the over-matched and under-sized Manuel Roman (17-3-3, 6). Roman was stopped in the second round of what was really a farce. For those who paid the PPV price for the Mayweather show, we feel really sorry for you and hope that the American scene will wake up and realise it's killing it's own fan base. PPV it's self isn't terrible but a poor quality product at an over-inflated price, as we had tonight, is awful for the sport and we'd not be surprised if this PPV seriously failed to deliver the numbers hoped for. Hopefully a poor number of sales will help either reduce the cost of the sport or even help move bigger fights back to the cable networks, afterall the sport is growing in countries where the fights aren't on PPV, countries like Germany and Japan being notable examples and both being able to interest a huge fan base. As well as the action in Denmark and the US we also had action from the UK as WBA Super Bantamweight champion Scott Quigg (29-0-2, 22) successfully defended his title with a 3rd round stoppage of Belgium's Stephane Jamoye (26-6, 16). Jamoye, known for his relatively recent loss to Shinsuke Yamanaka, took the fight to Quigg though was out muscled, over-powered and eventually stopped with a sickening body shot. On paper a 3rd round TKO over Jamoye does look impressive for Quigg, though Jamoye was a late replacement for Paulus Ambunda and got only around 3 weeks notice for the fight. Quigg seemed to hint at a possible clash with Carl Frampton though in all honesty we'd steer Quigg away from that fight as we'd strongly favour the Northern Irishman who looks the more complete fighter by far. Saying that there are plenty of interesting fights Quigg could have, such as a battle with Leo Santa Cruz, Chris Avalos or Shingo Wake, all of which would be very good bouts. (Image courtesy of Badlefthook.com)
0 Comments
Some days are marked on your calendar weeks, if not months, in advance. It's fair to say boxing fans world wide marked September 13th on their calendars weeks ago due to the day being one of the most important boxing days of the year. The importance of the day can be summed up in one word. "Mayweather". That's because American mega-star Floyd Mayweather Jr (46-0, 26) returns to the ring to defend his WBA Welterweight title and his WBC titles at both Welterweight and Light Middleweight against Argentina's big punching Marcos Maidana (35-4, 31). The fight is a rematch from their contest this past May, a bout that saw Mayweather narrowly beating Maidana in one of the toughest bouts of Mayweather's career, and although many Mayweather to win it's obvious that Maidana has the ability and attitude to make life difficult for the American fighter. Whilst the main event is well worth getting excited about the rest of the show looks lacklustre to say the least. One of the chief support bouts will see the talented and unbeaten Leo Santa Cruz (27-0-1, 15) defending his WBC Super Bantamweight title against the limited and much smaller Manuel Roman (17-2-3-1, 6). Roman is a capable fighter but not a world class one and he has gone 3-2-2 in his last 7 bouts with only Randy Caballero really being a notable opponent during that stretch of bouts. With sounding harsh really expect Santa Cruz to mow Roman down inside 7 rounds and it's a huge shame Santa Cruz couldn't get a more notable opponent in the ring such as Shingo Wake or even Shinsuke Yamanaka who was talking about a bout with Santa Cruz earlier this year. Another world title bout on this show will see the talented but frustrating Miguel Vazquez (34-3, 13) defending his IBF Lightweight title against the well schooled but unexciting Mickey Bey (20-1-1-1, 10). Bey, for all his skills, lacks power and has serious question marks over his chin. Vazquez also lacks power but has the ability to neutralise opponents strengths. With the fighters involved we expect this one to be a sleep inducing contest so if you're staying up for the main event you may want a few coffees prior the Vazquez/Bey bout which we think could cure insomnia. Although the main support bouts are disappointing we are looking forward to an under-card bout between Mexican veteran Humberto Soto (64-8-2-1, 35) and the limited but fun John Molina (27-4, 22). We had hoped to see Molina fight a rematch with Lucas Martin Matthysse though this isn't a bad alternative given the styles of the two men involved. The Santa Cruz/Roman bout isn't the only Super Bantamweight title bout of the day and in the UK British fans will get the chance to see WBA champion Scott Quigg (28-0-2, 21) defend his belt against Belgian fighter Stephane Jamoye (26-5, 16). Jamoye, who recently fought Shinsuke Yamanaka, will be moving up in weight for this bout though we do actually expect an interesting bout here. Quigg is naturally bigger that Jamoye though the Belgian is rarely in a bad fight and there is a chance these two will go toe-to-toe for a few rounds of real excitement before Quigg's natural strength over-comes Jamoye. In a female bout in Germany fans will get the chance to see an historic contest as the great Cecilia Braekhus (25-0, 7) attempts to add the IBF female Welterweight title to her collection of belts and complete the set. In the opposite corner to Braekhus will be current IBF champion Ivana Habazin (13-1, 5) who will be looking to score the biggest win of her career. With the WBA, WBC, WBO and IBF titles all up for grab here this bout is arguable as important to female boxing as the Mayweather/Maidana bout is to boxing in general. (Image courtesy of http://www.mydish.com) Mayweather, Khan, Broner and Love all win decisions in the US whilst Abraham defends in Germany5/4/2014 This past Saturday was the biggest day in boxing so far this year. It had the biggest name in boxing, it had two men who split opinion like no other, it had one of the most fan friendly fighters in the world, it had a heavy handed champion and it had a major upset. Of course the day, or rather night, was about money, Floyd "Money" Mayweather (46-0, 26) who faced Argentina slugger Marcos Maidana (35-4, 31) in a WBC/WBA Welterweight unification bout. The contest was widely seen as a mismatch but Maidana made sure to turn it in to a war and gave the #1 pound-for-pound fighter on the planet one of, if not the, toughest bout of his career. Maidana took the action to Mayweather and put him under the type of pressure that Mayweather isn't used to. This pressure made the contest compelling from the opening round though unfortunately the scoring left a lot to be desired. On watching the Mayweather/Maidana bout it seemed Maidana started like a house on fire and Mayweather played catch up. On the scorecards however things were different with two of the judges having Mayweather in the lead from round 3 onwards in what can only be called mystifying. We wouldn't argue with a close Mayweather victory but the cards really left some major question marks. Prior to the Mayweather/Maidana bout we had had 3 other bouts on the PPV broadcast. The first of those saw J'Leon Love (18-0-0-1, 10) go through a hell-like 5th round to take a decision over Marco Antonio Periban (20-2-1, 13). The bout was one that had great moments though out felt like Love's jab was the key punch as he took a fair decision, albeit one with odd scores again. The second bout on the show saw the return to the ring of Adrien Broner (28-1, 22) who over-came Carlos Molina (17-2-1, 7) in a bout that was very competitive despite what the score-cards suggested. The cards were basically filled in before the opening round though Molina gave a great account of himself and really gave Broner a serious test in what was supposed to be little more than a confidence builder for Broner, a former 3-weight world champion. On this performance Broner is there for the taking by any top 10 fighter at 140 or 147. Whilst the Mayweather/Maidana bout stole the show with some really good action one man who shared the plaudits was Britain's Amir Khan (29-3, 19) who over-came the tough Luis Collazo (35-6, 18) in a mature and controlled performance. Khan showed a new found intelligence to his boxing, holding up close, boxing on the move and and surprisingly dropped Collazo 3 times in a dominant and self assured display. It was one of the best performances of Khan's career, though it was also one of Collazo's worst with the American fighting like an idiot with his hands down. The whole US card was open for criticism, as seen in Takahiro Onaga's recent "Taka's Title Shot" article, but on the whole the main event was exciting enough, and controversial enough, to keep fans talking about it suggesting it was a show plenty enjoyed even if they aren't in full agreement about the scoring. Prior to the US action fans had been given the opportunity to see WBO Super Middleweight champion Arthur Abraham (40-4, 28) defend his title for the first time since reclaiming it from Robert Stieglitz. Abraham took on the game, albeit light hitting, Nikola Sjekloca (26-2, 8) and took home a decision. From watching the bout we felt Abraham deserved the victory, despite not looking his best, unfortunately we saw another judge who seemed inept at his job as he scored the contest 119-111 to Abraham, a score was simply indefensible. (Image courtesy of http://www.sho.com) When May comes around there seems to only be one man worth talking about, Floyd "Money" Mayweather (45-0, 26). The unbeaten American generates money, attention and debate like no other active fighter. Some have described him as being bigger than the sport, others have suggested that when he retires boxing will be sent into a dark age until a new star is born. He is one of the two faces of a boxing generation alongside Manny Pacquiao and it seems that if you like one you must hate the other with a passion. Mayweather will be continuing his trend of fighting on the first weekend on May as he battles Argentinian slugger Marcos Maidana (35-3, 31) in what will be one of, if not the, biggest money fight of the year. The bout is "all about Benjamin's" for many though it's a bout that will unify the WBC and WBA world titles at 147lbs and give Mayweather a chance to avenge the loss of his "baby brother" Adrien Broner who was shocked by an inspired Maidana last year. We're not giving Maidana much of a chance though we're hoping he gives a better effort that either Saul "Canelo" Alvarez or Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero did in recent bouts with Mayweather. Neither Guerrero or Alvarez really put forth much of an effort and seemed to resign themselves to losing before the first bell, hopefully Maidana goes in with the bad-ass intentions that he is known for. On the same card the Mayweather/Maidana fight we have several other interesting bouts, two of which feature former Maidana opponents. One of those will be the aforementioned Adrien Broner (27-1, 22) who will be hoping to bounce back from his loss to Maidana when he battles Carlos Molina (17-1-1, 7). Molina, not to be confused with the Light Middleweight of the same name, isn't very good and has been picked as a "safe opponent" for Broner. Lets not forget just a year ago people were christening Broner as the heir to the Mayweather throne and future face of boxing, he is now fighting for his career and for this bout his career really should be very safe. A man who beat both Molina and Maidana, and was actually in the running for the fight with Mayweather, is Amir Khan (28-3, 19) who has a tricky assignment himself. Khan, one of the most famous names in boxing right now, will be in a serious crossroads fight with the resurgent Luis Collazo (35-5, 18). Collazo is an unlucky fighter who ran both Ricky Hatton and Andre Berto close in fights many felt he deserved to win, though in recent bouts he has been in form winning his last 4. For Khan this is a must win and anything but a stirring performance will see him ruled out of a Mayweather fight in September. The next most significant bout to the trio on the American show is in Germany as multi-time world champion Arthur Abraham (39-4, 28) defends his WBO Super Middleweight title against the once beaten Nikola Sjekloca (26-1, 8). It's hard to view this as anything but an "easy" first defence for Abraham however Sjekloca did prove his toughness in an entertaining scrap with Sakio Bika last year. Bika dominated Sjekloca but couldn't finish him and we'd be a lil shocked if Abraham could finish him inside 12 rounds. (Image courtesy of The13thround and Golden Boy Promotions) |
InternationalWe know that not every fight involves an Asian fighter but a lot of fights do affect Asian fighter. As a result we've decided to add this new section to Asian boxing where we look at selected International bouts. Archives
December 2015
Categories
All
|