DSP Boxing thread. Ding! Ding!

[pk500]

I caught the fights on HBO as I didn't have the OU-Oklahoma State football game on in the area. All three were good fights and well worth it!

Right on, man! Glad you enjoyed an evening with the sweet science.

[Rodster]

I had a damn good live feed last night although it was in spanish. Great fight, solid non-stop action, too bad JMM couldn't get the same results with PBF. I would love to see his a$$ on the canvas once before he retires.

[pk500]

Where did you get the feed? I had Lampley, Merchant and Steward on HBO on my feed.

[Rodster]

I can't remember if it was Justin TV? I went to my usual places and clicked on the only link available which happened to be the Spanish feed.

[Rodster]

PK it was BOXLIVE.TV

[10spro]

Does Mosley know what he's getting into by fighting Pacman in May?

[pk500]

Does Mosley know what he's getting into by fighting Pacman in May?

A career-ending defeat in a bout that excites no fight fans, including me.

Pacquiao's next fight should have been a third bout against Marquez. It's the best fight, the fight that hardcore fans wanted. It's a fight between two legitimate top-five pound-for-pound fighters.

But Bob Arum's lazy tentacles prevented that fight from being made. He would rather promote a bout among two "name" fighters, even if one of those names is 39 and fading, than put in the actual work to promote a great fight. I find it funny that Arum considers Marquez to be less of a name than Mosley. Marquez is a star in Mexico and with the Hispanic population, vital demographics in boxing.

This is a sh*t fight. Pacquiao by stoppage in the middle rounds. Boxing suffers. I weep.

[Rodster]

Any news regarding Manny v PBF?

[pk500]

Any news regarding Manny v PBF?

Zero. Mayweather is so deep with legal troubles that I think it's a whirlpool that may suck him under for a while. If he fights at all in 2011, I think it will be in the fall.

But I won't be surprised if Money doesn't fight next year. His bankroll may not be able to erase his legal transgressions this time.

I guess I'm one of about seven people in the world who could care less if Pacquiao fights Mayweather. It will be a boring fight. Manny will try to attack from angles, and Mayweather will parry with his speed, his shoulder turn and counter from time to time to blunt Manny's charges.

Excuse me while I yawn. I could care less if they ever fight. I'd much rather see another chapter of Pacquiao-Marquez than Pacquiao-Mayweather. If Alvarez continues to develop, I'd rather see Pacquiao-Alvarez at a catchweight of 150 than Pacquiao-Mayweather. I'd rather see Pacquiao-Williams than Pacquiao-Mayweather.

There were six fights in the last month that were more exciting than a prospective Manny-Money matchup: Lopez-R. Marquez, Soto-Antillon, J.M. Marquez-Katsidis, Martinez-Williams, Khan-Maidana and Hopkins-Pascal.

There's way more to boxing than Pacquiao-Mayweather. Problem is, boxing promoters are among the worst marketers in the world. They couldn't sell sand in the Sahara, and the proceeds from any sand that was sold only would line their pockets.

[Jackdog]

There were six fights in the last month that were more exciting than a prospective Manny-Money matchup: Lopez-R. Marquez, Soto-Antillon, J.M. Marquez-Katsidis, Martinez-Williams, Khan-Maidana and Hopkins-Pascal.

There's way more to boxing than Pacquiao-Mayweather. Problem is, boxing promoters are among the worst marketers in the world. They couldn't sell sand in the Sahara, and the proceeds from any sand that was sold only would line their pockets.

Amen!!!

[pk500]

Man, the more I think about this Pacquiao-Mosley fight, the more it pisses me off.

I don't know who to blame for this debacle.

Arum is an easy target. "F*ck the fans" is more than just an exasperated outburst for this guy; it's the way he does business.

There's no question Arum had one opponent hand-picked for Pacquiao before the sweat even dried on Pacman's head after the Margarito fight: Mosley. Arum's claims that he flew to the Philippines to "negotiate" with Pacquiao is utter garbage, as Kevin Iole wrote today at Yahoo! Sports.

But doesn't Pacquiao have enough leverage to exert more influence over Arum in selection of his opponents? He is the largest cash cow at Top Rank, by far. He should be able to dictate his terms as the supernova of the sport.

Freddie Roach didn't want this fight against Mosley. The public didn't want this fight against Mosley. One would think that a third Marquez fight would be more of a "legacy sealer" for Pacquiao than a fight against Mosley.

Yet Arum was able to roll Pacquiao easily into accepting in the Mosley fight.

My respect for Pacquiao has dwindled a bit with his acceptance of this fight because it's his third consecutive fight against a fading stiff or a no-name. Clottey is a nobody with a strong chin, and Margarito never has been the same without plaster of Paris in his gloves. He's a plodder with a strong chin.

Pacquiao's last legitimate test came against Cotto in November 2009. The lack of quality of his opponents in 2010 was masked by the hype of winning a ninth belt, of promoting the larger physical stature of Clottey and Margarito.

Physical size means little if you're as fast and talented as Pacquiao. Yet P.T. Arum was able to successfully sell that as a legitimate story line and promotional point TWICE in 2010, when it's really a load of sh*t.

Sure, skeptics will counter that Pacquiao is fighting only those who are available to him. But that's not true.

Marquez is available as a legitimate top-five pound-for-pound foe. It would be a great fight at 140. Manny would have no problem making that weight.

It's ironic that Pacquiao and Roach have no problem climbing weight classes for fights, but they're incredibly reluctant to return to 140 even though Pacquiao only has fought heavier than that weight four times in his entire career, all in the last two years.

Even though I think he's overrated, Berto would be a more interesting foe for Pacquiao than Mosley. HBO continues to promote Berto as a rising star, and he's a belt holder. So let's put him in there with the best fighter in the world and see how good he really is.

And if P.T. Arum really wants to play the size angle, put Pacquiao in the ring with Paul Williams at 147. Sure, Williams has a huge reach and height advantage, but he's not a muscled guy who can take a huge punch, as proven against Martinez. He's a weak physical specimen as a welterweight.

This whole situation just sucks like a Hoover.

[Jackdog]

I can't really add much more Paul. I'm not the least bit interested in this fight.

[pk500]

Some major bombs dropped and huge hammers making impact in this cool video:



Happy Boxing Day!

[pk500]

Phenomenal video. Explosions in the Sky and boxing -- WOW!



Happy Boxing Day!

[pk500]

My 20 wishes for boxing in 2011:

1. Manny Pacquiao to take the fight he wants, not the fight P.T. Arum wants.

2. Lucien Bute to fight the winner of the Super Six.

3. Carl Froch or Glen Johnson to win the Super Six. Both are infinitely more interesting characters to me than Andre Ward.

4. No more marination of Gamboa-JuanMa. Get it on this year, please.

5. Someone to write a script about the life of Edwin Valero and move it toward production. It might make "Million Dollar Baby" look like a comedy.

6. Gale Van Hoy, Patricia Morse Jarman and Laurence Cole to get nowhere near a boxing ring.

7. The Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota to receive more funding and support from the boxing industry. If you've been there, you know what I'm talking about. Ed Brophy and his staff do a GREAT job at the Hall with the funding and support they have, which is pitiful compared to Canton, Cooperstown, Springfield and Toronto.

8. Nick Charles whipping cancer's ass.

9. ESPN's "Friday Night Fights" getting the credit and funding it deserves as the true last bastion of televised boxing for the masses in America.

10. Joe Tessitore recognized as a peer of Jim Lampley's as a boxing announcer. Joe Tess is among the very best.

11. Yuri Foreman back in the ring in a meaningful fight. He showed great courage against Cotto, especially considering the reprehensible officiating by Arthur Mercante in that bout.

12. Saul "Canelo" Alvarez to go in tough at least once in 2011 to justify the hype.

13. Thomas Hauser to write about boxing until he takes his last breath. And please live long past 2011, Tom!

14. The mainstream media to look at facts and stop with the inane proclamations that "boxing is dead."

15. More weight-class tournaments from Showtime.

16. Don King to re-emerge as a viable, powerful promoter so good fights can be made despite the Top Rank-Golden Boy feud, which has less of a chance of resolution in 2011 than peace between Palestine and Israel.

17. More fights on HBO for Michael Katsidis.

18. For one prominent unbeaten contender to stand up to their promoter and demand the best fight possible, even at the risk of losing. One of boxing's biggest recent scourges is the belief by some networks, promoters, media and fans that the first loss -- hell, any loss -- is the start of the end of a fighter's career. News flash -- Muhammad Ali lost in his prime and still produced a pretty fair body of work during his career.

19. More devastating body punching in all fights. A knockdown from a body shot is one of the most gorgeous things in boxing. You had to be awed by Amir Khan's liver drop on Marcos Maidana, for example.

20. Rachel Cordingley to start a porn career.

[pk500]

Oops. Linked to a fight that was streamed last night, not tonight! Sorry.

[Rodster]

Is the Chris Arreola vs Joey Abell bout at 10:00PM worth watching?

[pk500]

Is the Chris Arreola vs Joey Abell bout at 10:00PM worth watching?

If you have little else to do. I'm watching it, but then again, I watch more than 100 fights per year.

Arreola is saying all the right things. He's in shape. He's reverting to the "old Chris," using combinations to knock out guys instead of aiming for one nuclear punch. New trainer Ronnie Shields is helping him.

We've heard it all before from Arreola. I'm a doubting Thomas: I want to see before I believe. His opponent, Joey Abell, has some pop, but he's fought a long string of tomato cans. This is a fight for Arreola to regain his footing after a 2010 in which he was exposed as not ready for world-class status due to flawed technique and lack of dedication.

The co-feature of Mike Dallas Jr. and Josesito Lopez at 140 could be better than the Arreola fight, so there's another reason to watch.

[Jackdog]

Alexander vs Bradley was a joke. What a boring fight. At this level,why doesn't Bradley know how to throw a right hand? throwing windmill punches like a tough man contest. Don't even get me started on Alexander's b*tch move to basically quit. I want that hour of my life back.

[pk500]

Alexander vs Bradley was a joke. What a boring fight. At this level,why doesn't Bradley know how to throw a right hand? throwing windmill punches like a tough man contest. Don't even get me started on Alexander's b*tch move to basically quit. I want that hour of my life back.

Absolutely.

This was a very disappointing fight. Yes, it was fairly close on the cards, but Alexander showed a distinct lack of ring nous.

It's hard to blame Bradley for the head butts. He likes to move inside aggressively while ducking and rising, his standard strategy for a while. That should have been no surprise to Alexander.

But instead of using his jab and longer reach to hold Bradley's lunges at bay, Alexander instead chose to clinch. Memo to Devon: Clinching and tying up often involves clashes of heads even against fighters much less aggressive than Bradley, so what did you expect?

Where was Alexander's jab to repulse Bradley's bull rushes? Where was Alexander's uppercut to try and cut down Bradley's advances?

There was way too much clinching in this fight. These guys both have a lot of skill, and the endless clinching and tying up never really let them string together good sections of action or let their hands free for any extended period of time.

This was a tactical fight in which Bradley showed more experience and ring smarts than Alexander, who either isn't as good as advertised or was poorly prepared for Bradley's tactics.

I'm with Larry Merchant: I will shed no tears if the rematch clause isn't exercised for this fight for a long time.

It was funny to hear Bradley call for a fight against Pacquiao after this bout. Be careful what you wish for, Timothy: Pac Man would destroy you.

[Jackdog]

Good take as always Paul. HBO needs to replace Larry with you. Manny would eat Bradley alive.

[pk500]

A star is born in boxing, as Nonito Donaire CRUSHED Fernando Montiel with this counter left hook Saturday night to win their highly anticipated 118-pound matchup in the second round:



Donaire is a charismatic, likable Filpino-American. Probably will move up to stacked 126-pound class very soon. I put Donaire No. 4 on my pound-for-pound list behind Pacquiao, Mayweather and Martinez. The kid is so skilled, and he proved his power Saturday night.

[GB_Simo]

Being English and having no specialist knowledge of boxing, I've no idea if Sir Henry Cooper means much to American fight fans, but being ahead of Muhammad Ali on points twice must have been worth something, even if cuts would ultimately get the better of Our 'Enry. With that in mind, I thought the passing of a gutsy fighter and fine gentleman at the age of 76 was worth recording:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/boxing/13256045.stm

[pk500]

Henry Cooper was a great fighter. One of the best non-American heavyweights of his era.

Two nice pieces about his passing:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/others ... fault.html

http://www.badlefthook.com/2011/5/1/214 ... -1934-2011

[Jackdog]

F*ck Bernard Hopkins. Racist prick.

http://articles.philly.com/2011-05-11/s ... van-mcnabb