How to Beat a Mayweather

by Paul Magno

As Shane Mosley and Naazim Richardson prepare for the daunting task of trying to beat one of boxing's modern day masters, The Boxing Tribune has set out to aid the duo and help establish the blueprint for beating Floyd Mayweather.

No fighter is undefeatable and, while not an easy job at all, Mayweather is surely not invincible.

Sure, all of this is easier said than done, but the point is that it can be done...It's just going to take a hell of a fighter to put it all together:

It's not you, it's me

There is one major mistake trainers make when preparing for Floyd Mayweather- They put too much focus on Mayweather. They study tapes, dream up strategies and make plans to counter and befuddle Mayweather's unique style. I'm not saying that this is a bad thing. Mayweather opponents should familiarize themselves with Mayweather's style and trainers should come up with a proper strategy to nullify it.

But the answer to the Mayweather riddle doesn't lie within Floyd's steel trap defense or sharp focus. Frankly, there are no weaknesses to exploit, no glaring lapses in technique.

Instead of focusing on Floyd, a trainer would be better suited focusing on his own guy, making him sharp and as error-free as humanly possible. Taking a fighter and making him a flawless paragon of his own style is key.

Play the Angles

Mayweather employs the famous “shoulder roll” style that turns traditional boxing geometry into a null and void jumble of missed shots and uncomfortable angles.

Fighters learn their craft in 1-2 steps...Mayweather works on 1.5, 1.7, 2.3...Off to the side and always at odd angles, Mayweather is a mystery to most....and as the fight progresses and desperation sets in, that mystery deepens.

What anyone fighting Floyd has to understand is the basic logic taught to us in Geometry: The shortest distance between two points is a straight line.

The fighters who have success with Mayweather are those who can throw sharp, tight, straight punches. A sharp jab has been pointed to as a key to solving the riddle, but sharp, compact straight rights and lefts can also lead to success.

Swinging for the fences will lead to zero success against Floyd; Tight, straight compact shots, at the very least, will cut the distance and put some leather on Mayweather.

Waste not, Want not

Mayweather feasts on wasted movement. When his odd angles throw opponents off balance or his defensive stance forces foes to over-commit, his job becomes frighteningly easy; It's really just a matter of stepping off and unloading on off-balance, defenseless targets.

Make no mistake about it, if you overpursue, you will get pot-shot to death from a supremely quick-fisted and always in command Mayweather.

Fighters who have found success against Floyd have been mature, fundamentally sound boxers who don't burn through logic and reason by trying to take the fight to Mayweather. Instead, they focus on what they do best, stay within their own skill set and don't make a counter puncher's job easier by deviating off the script.

These are the types of fighters who make Mayweather's life miserable. These are the guys who Mayweather, in order to ensure the victory, has to go after and beat rather than just wait for exploitable errors to take advantage of.

The “Money” Mayweather of 2010 has become spoiled and has relied too much on being so much more fundamentally sound and technically superior to his opposition; He hasn't been made to force the issue against a fighter who simply refuses to give Floyd anything to exploit and counter.

Jose Luis Castillo, Oscar De la Hoya and Zab Judah are examples of fighters who “wasted not” and, as a result, gave Mayweather some of his closest battles.

“Think Buddha”

“There is nothing more dreadful than the habit of doubt... It is a thorn that irritates and hurts; it is a sword that kills.” -- The Buddha

To beat Mayweather, one has to focus on the here and now. You have to take each exchange as it comes and focus on doing the right thing on a case by case basis.

Be fundamentally sound, don't waste punches or movement, keep punches short and straight, make Mayweather take the intiative and make him pay for every exchange you get into...Those are the nuts and bolts keys to beating Floyd Mayweather.

The psychological key to the entire task, though, may be just as vital. Anyone fighting Mayweather will be frustrated and demoralized at times...The secret is being strong enough to push those moments aside and focus on the big picture.

Beating Mayweather is no easy task and it becomes increasingly more difficult when doubt begins to creep in and affect the sharpness of a fighter's performance. Mayweather's vanquisher will focus on winning rounds and will have the maturity to put the setbacks aside, little by little, taking the fight away from Floyd and forcing him to deviate from the script.

“A jug fills drop by drop.” -- The Buddha

This Saturday, May 1^st, we'll see if Shane Mosley has the mental and physical goods to handle this huge task.

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10 Most Influential People In Boxing

More often than not, the most influential people in the industry are men or women who have never stepped between the ropes and traded punches.

But their opinions make a difference, from the match-ups being made to the unique ideas to revamp the sport. Here are the 10 most influential people in boxing.

1. Bob Arum, chairman, Top Rank - Top Rank has the best stable of fighters and is by far the most innovative. If Arum doesn't like the contact offered by Showtime or HBO, he'll spend the money to broadcast the fight on his own, Latin Fury and Pinoy Power to name just a few. We’ve all seen how Arum spins stories so his team can look good, and you can strongly argue that he controls the boxing media.

2. Oscar De La Hoya, promoter, Golden Boy Promotions - The Golden Boy is the most powerful individual former boxer in the sport. He's the head of Golden Boy Promotions, which, along with Top Rank, is one of the game's two leading promotional companies. De La Hoya pretty much gets what he wants when it comes to television dates, venues and opponents.

3. Ross Greenburg, president, HBO Sports - HBO are the best broadcasters in boxing, simple as. Greenburg controls the budget, which is four times larger than their closest rival. This allows Greenburg to choose whatever fights he wants to air on HBO.

4. Richard Schaefer, CEO, Golden Boy Promotions - Schaefer is Oscar De La Hoya's right hand man and has proven to be one of the best negotiators in the game. He’s one of the reasons Golden Boy Promotions are as successful.

5. Floyd Mayweather Jr., boxer - Mayweather argues that he’s the pound-4-pound king, which is unclear as of now, but he is definitely the biggest draw in the sport. As he charismatically says, “all roads lead to Floyd Mayweather.”

6. Al Haymon, manager – Haymon handles Mayweather’s career, giving him the best options for the least risk. He seems to have healthy connections with HBO, which not many managers and promoters can say in the game today.

7. Ken Hershman, vice president of Showtime sports - Hershman doesn’t have the budget Greenburg has, but some might argue he does a better job. The Super 6 Boxing Classic has earned him the highest respect from fans, easily making him one of the most influential men in the sport without mentioning other attributes.

8. Manny Pacquiao, boxer – Pacquiao has risen to become a box office hit, recognised as the best boxer on the planet at this point in time. His influence can be seen in his stranglehold in negotiations, with his contractual demands displaying his dominance over fighters. His large fanbase also gives him power.

9. Bruce Trampler, Top Rank Matchmaker – One of the masterminds behind Pacquiao’s rise is Trampler. His mapped plans for any Top Rank fighters are usually the best option possible, and Pacquiao is a prime example.

10. Jose Sulaiman, WBC President – The impact Sulaiman can have on promoters by just making a stance is ridiculous. Nobody appreciates his work to the extent of others on the list, but his reward for keeping the WBC afloat is power.

Knocking on the door: Cameron Dunkin, Manager; Leonard Ellerbe, CEO Mayweather Promotions; Don King, Chairman, Don King Productions; Larry Merchant, HBO broadcaster; Wilfred Sauerland, Sauerland promoter;

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Picture This: Oscar Loves McNuggets!

From a Press Release:

This event – one of three that happened at McDonald’s locations across the country – served as the kickoff for the “How Do You McNugget?” Sweepstakes, an online sweepstakes that will give one grand prize winner a chance to have their own golden moment: a trip for two to the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games.

Customers can log online to www.mcdonalds.com/howdoyoumcnugget and must correctly identify how Olympians and athletes at these local events “McNugget.” They can find the answers by watching Olympian videos online at www.mcdonalds.com/mcnuggets and following the #HowDoYouMcNugget? hashtag feed and event updates on Twitter. In the photo, Oscar De La Hoya is showing consumers how he “punches it and crunches it” for his McNuggets.

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Pacquiao in Perspective

by Paul Magno

He puts on the kind of exciting performances that make people take note and he certainly has the public support and positive publicity to become an even bigger star, but as Manny Pacquiao achieves yet another milestone with his blow-out against Miguel Cotto this past Saturday, the call to place him among boxing's all-time greats is louder than ever.

Now that the standing ovation has settled down, we can take a closer look at where Manny stands in history by looking at how his career holds up among his peers.

As a frame of reference, we'll take a look at Pacquiao's career compared to the previous Big Man on Campus, Oscar De la Hoya's. We'll look at Manny as compared to Oscar in the area of major championship bouts and title reigns, with a breakdown of titles, defenses and attempts at unification:

Manny Pacquiao

Championships

Flyweight- Beat Chatchai Sasakul
defenses- 1 (Gabriel Mira)

Super Bantamweight- Beat Lehlohonolo Ledwaba
unifications 1- (draw w Agapito Sanchez)
defenses- 4 (Jorge Julio, F. Rakkiatgym, Emmanuel Lucero, Draw with A. Sanchez)

Super Featherweight- Beat Juan Manuel Marquez
defenses-0

Lightweight- Beat David Diaz
defenses- 0

Welterweight- Beat Miguel Cotto
defenses-0

Other notable opposition: Marco Antonio Barrera (2 wins), Ricky Hatton, Erik Morales (2-1), Oscar Larios
Record in officially recognized world title fights: 4-1-2

*It should be noted that, although not recognized as official world title bouts, Pacquiao beat lineal champs Barrera and Hatton at Featherweight and Jr. Welterweight respectively for the Ring Magazine title.

Oscar De la Hoya

Championships

Super Featherweight- Beat Jimmi Bredahl
defenses- 1 (Giorgio Campanella)

Lightweight- Beat Jorge Paez
unifications- 1 ( w over Rafael Ruelas)
defenses- 6 (Carl Griffith, John Avila, John Molina, R. Ruelas, Genaro Hernandez, James Leija)

Jr Welterweight- Beat Julio Cesar Chavez
defenses -1 (Miguel Angel Gonzalez)

Welterweight- Beat Pernell Whitaker
unifications- 1 (L against Felix Trinidad)
defenses - 7 (David Kamau, Hector Camacho, Wilfredo Rivera, Patrick Charpentier, Julio Cesar Chavez, Ike Quartey, Oba Carr)
lost title to: Felix Trinidad

Jr. Middleweight- Beat Javier Castillejo
unifications- 1 (w over Fernando Vargas)
defenses- 3 (Fernando Vargas, Yory Boy Campas, Ricardo Mayorga)
lost title to: Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Middleweight- Beat Felix Sturm
defenses- 0
lost title to: Bernard Hopkins

other notable opposition: Shane Mosley (2 Losses), Manny Pacquiao (L), Arturo Gatti
Record in officially recognized world title fights: 24-5

*********
Summary

So, is Pacquiao ready to be tossed into the mix with names like Sugar Ray, Armstrong and Ali? The sober truth for the Pacquiao true-believers is "no."

But he definitely stacks up with De la Hoya and that puts him at, or near, the top of modern day greats...and Manny still has a few fights left in him...Not bad for a skinny kid from the slums of General Santos City.

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Five Fights That Define Manny Pacquiao

Manny Pacquiao KO 2 Ricky Hatton, 5/2/2009

Manny had already shown what he could do against a much larger De la Hoya, now this was to be his second fight as a major player and attraction on the world stage.

Ricky Hatton was the lineal Jr. Welterweight champion and a fixture in the division since 2001. Despite a loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2007, Hatton had never been defeated at his natural weight of 140 lbs.

Pacquiao flattened Hatton in a brutal stoppage that had Hatton stretched out on the canvas for several minutes.

Excellent win for Manny and a strong second chapter to the book entitled, "Manny Pacquiao, Superstar."

Manny Pacquiao RTD 8 Oscar De la Hoya, 12/6/2008

Not his best performance, but certainly his biggest. Manny beat and humiliated The Golden Boy before forcing De la Hoya to quit between rounds eight and nine. Alot has been said about De la Hoya's physical condition coming into the fight and that may or may not detract from the victory for some, but coming into the bout, De la Hoya was a huge favorite and the idea of a Pacquiao win was the punchline to a bad joke for most experts.

Thus began the transformation from Manny Pacquiao, "Fight Fan Favorite" to Manny Pacquiao, "Superstar."

Manny Pacquiao TKO 10 Erik Morales,
1/21/2006

Maybe Morales was on a losing streak when this rematch took place, but there was no denying that this was still "El Terrible."

This was a big match for Manny, who had been beaten by this same man just about a year earlier. It was the official announcement to the world that Manny Pacquiao was for real.



Manny Pacquiao L UD Erik Morales, 3/19/2005

Pacquiao, for the first time in his career, was fighting someone who wasn't looking to walk right through him; Morales was a veteran champion who boxed perfectly and used flawless technique to keep a hard-charging Pacquiao at bay.

What most defined this fight was not Pacquiao losing, but Pacquiao's desire to keep chugging along in his career. He would come back to beat Morales twice in rematches.


Manny Pacquiao TKO 11 Marco Antonio Barrera, 11/15/2003

Manny was unknown by all but the most hardcore of fans and was expected to be just a "stay busy" fight for Barrera. The Mexican warrior was at the height of his fame after having beaten Hamed, Morales, Tapia and Kelley in 4 of his previous 5.

Plans changed drastically, however, as Pacquiao tore into Barrera and beat him at every aspect of the game. He literally steamrolled the "Baby Faced Assassin" and forced Barrera's corner to stop the contest in the 11th.

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Arturo "Thunder" Gatti: A Career in Review

As strange details begin to emerge regarding the death of Arturo Gatti, I think it's only proper to spend the same amount of time talking about his life...and, in this case, his professional life.

So, here, in a nutshell, is a review of the Arturo Gatti we all came to know and respect inside the ring:

Gatti won his first belt, the USBA Super Featherweight Title, back in 1994 against the tough Pete Taliaferro via TKO in the first round. He would go on to defend the belt twice before moving into position to challenge for his first world title.

In his first ever try for a world title, he took on the well-regarded IBF Super Featherweight Champ, Tracy Harris Patterson, adopted son of Floyd Patterson, and scored the upset via UD.

Gatti's first defense came against tough Dominican, Wilson Rodriguez and it very nearly cost him the title on his first defense...With Gatti's right eye swollen shut, a huge gash over the left eye, and the referee looking to step in at any moment, Gatti fought on with little sight and eventually stopped Rodriguez in spectacular fashion via KO 6.

Following the Rodriguez war and a non-title tune-up, he gave Tracy Harris Patterson a rematch...This time he won more convincingly, opting to display his underrated boxing skills.

After the second Patterson win, Gatti fought a non-title affair with veteran former champ, Calvin Grove, winning via TKO 7. A title defense against the tough and tested Gabriel Ruelas followed. Once again, Gatti defied the odds and TKO'd Ruelas after 5 rounds of a back and forth war that was latered declared Ring Magazine's Fight of the Year for 1997.

Then, Gatti slid into a slump, losing his next three in a row- one against Angel Manfredy and two vs. Ivan Robinson (The first Robinson fight was named Fight of the Year and Upset of the Year by Ring Magazine in 1998). The fact was clear that while Gatti was game against everybody, speed was a huge thorn in his side and he simply struggled with quick-fisted movers.

Following the 3-fight slump, Gatti fought 4 tune-up bouts against mostly journeyman-level fighters, although his 2-round destruction of Joey Gamache was shrouded in controversy due to the fact that Gatti had put on 19 lbs. by the day of the bout- essentially turning the contest into a Middleweight vs. Jr. Welterweight bout. The violent KO of Gamache ended his career and resulted in him slipping into a coma for a day and having to stay in the hospital for a week. After this controversy, boxing commissions began to more closely monitor the amount of weight gained between the weigh-in and the day of the contest.

Then, in 2001, Oscar De la Hoya came calling and Gatti moved up to Welterweight to fight The Golden Boy. De la Hoya dominated the bout and won via TKO 5, but it was, by far, the biggest payday in Gatti's career up to that point.

After a tune-up, Gatti would meet the tough fringe contender, "Irish" Mickey Ward and the two would engage in one the greatest series of battles in the history of the sport. Ward would take the first bout via MD, but Gatti would take the series by winning the last two contests by UD. The Gatti-Ward Trilogy has since become legendary and a favorite among all fight fans. It also won both warriors the honor of being named Ring Magazine's Fight of the Year in 2002 for Gatti-Ward I and Fight of the Year in 2003 for Gatti-Ward III.

After the brutal trilogy with Ward, Gatti won his second world title by capturing the vacant WBC Jr. Welterweight title via UD against veteran Italian champ, Gianluca Branco in 2004.

Gatti would go on to make two successful defenses of the crown, against Leonard Dorin and another veteran toughman, Jesse James Leija, stoping them in the 2nd and 5th rounds respectively, before losing the title to Floyd Mayweather Jr. by TKO 6.

In the final stages of his career, Gatti moved up to Welter once again to beat Thomas Damgaard for the lightly-regarded IBA Welterweight Title. He would go on to lose that belt against WBC Champ, Carlos Baldomir, in his next bout.

In the final fight of his career, with Mickey Ward working his corner, Gatti was manhandled by club-level Alfonso Gomez and lost via TKO in the 7th. As evident in this last bout, Arturo Gatti had given his all to the sport and to the fans...he simply had no more to give.

Arturo Gatti would end his career with a record of 40-9 (31 KOs)...Two World Titles, 4 Ring Magazine Fights of the Year and an eternity of memories...Thank You.

RIP "Thunder"

A Tribute to Arturo "Thunder" Gatti:

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Can Golden Boy Survive the Decade?

You could feel the tension in the air as the tide started turning against Golden Boy prospect, Victor Ortiz, this past Saturday at the Staples Center.

And, when Ortiz eventually caved in under the pressure of Marcos Maidana in the sixth, the frustration exploded as Shane Mosley gave Ortiz a few tense words, shortly followed by a second tongue lashing from Golden Boy boss, Oscar De la Hoya.

But you could hardly blame them for their frustration. The Ortiz loss was just the latest in a series of unfortunate turns for De la Hoya and his promotional company.

2009 began in outstanding fashion for GBP as Shane Mosley shocked the boxing world by easily handling Welterweight kingpin, Antonio Margarito.

Now, just about six months later, momentum has shifted away from the promotional company that, at one point, boasted veteran legends such as Mosley, Bernard Hopkins, Marco Antonio Barrera, Juan Manuel Marquez, Ricky Hatton and De la Hoya himself.

The Golden Boy of the recent past was on top of the world, snatching up as many veteran names as boxing headlines and brokering a deal with HBO which would essentially give them carte blanche to fill a lion's share of the available TV dates with fights and fighters of their choosing.

The boxing world, literally, was thrown at their feet and they most definitely had a plan for world domination.

Even with De la Hoya having been retired by Manny Pacquiao at the end of '08, the strategy would be simple: Mosley and Hopkins would build off of their remarkable wins against Margarito and Kelly Pavlik respectively while the entire promotion crossed its fingers that Ricky Hatton could somehow find a way to beat Pacquiao.

In the downtime between headline-grabbing fights by future Hall of Fame inductees, Golden Boy would satisfy the fans by highlighting their next generation of stars, all on the verge of greatness...or so they would have you believe.

Leading the GBP surge for future dominance were James Kirkland, Victor Ortiz, Robert Guerrero and Abner Mares.

Unfortunately, the boxing world is often not the most predictable and in a matter of just a few months, GBP would find the heavy-handed Kirkland behind bars for parole violation, Mares being nursed back to health following eye surgery and Ortiz and Guerrero being tagged with the label of being quitters in what was to be their "coming out" parties on HBO.

And to make matters worse, their "bankable" talents, Mosley and Hopkins, have not been able to find the type of fight they feel they need at this stage of their careers. Mosley has been desperately searching for a fight with an indifferent Pacquiao while Hopkins' only legit attempts at a fight were a half-hearted offer to Cruiserweight champ Tomasz Adamek and a rumored bout with the UK's Super Middleweight world champ, Carl Froch.

In the meantime, HBO has been saddled with mostly luke warm events that generate mediocre ratings and cost a relative fortune to stage. With the exception of Mosley-Margarito and Golden Boy/Top Rank promoted Pacquiao vs. Hatton, you'd be hard-pressed to find any positive Golden Boy events on HBO.

Don't think this fact is lost on HBO executives and don't think it's lost on Golden Boy's promotional rivals, either.

“They [HBO] gave their dates to one promoter, who's stable has now been wiped out. They made a bad mistake. They are not evil people, and I can't blame Golden Boy for grabbing those dates, but it shows that it wasn’t the wisest thing for them to do,” said Bob Arum of Top Rank.

Another blow to GBP is the fact that, in order to make the marquee fights for their established stars, they will need the cooperation of the other promoters who, at this point, have been driven to resentment by Golden Boy's perceived status as HBO's pet promotion.

So, with their best and brightest pretty much taken out of the equation and legit future stars, Erislandy Lara and Danny Jacobs, still too far away to be a factor, questions about the immediate future of Golden Boy have to be raised.

Will HBO grow frustrated with the poor showings and make Golden Boy go back to booking dates on a fight by fight basis?

And if HBO does this, will GBP be able to compete with a company like Top Rank who has a much deeper roster and a keener matchmaking eye at this point?

Can Oscar's company survive the decade? Probably, but expect a major re-tooling of the promotion and a reluctant admission from them that they do indeed need to co-exist with the other promotional companies in order to stay afloat.

2010 will be an interesting year for the sport and a crucial one for Golden Boy.

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Madcow's Standing 8 Count (6/29/09)

by Madcow

Aside from actually being written, this week's column will be a little different.

Last week, as you all know, Michael Jackson died. I have had a special relationship throughout my life with Jackson. No, I never got to visit Neverland ranch as a child and I was never able to share a can of Jesus Juice with the "one-gloved-one."

My connection with Jackson isn't even about music. Actually, I'm luke warm to his talents.

No. My link with Jackson goes directly through Lori C, Madcow's first love and a very fine looking High School Junior with bubble gum lip gloss and a teddy bear backpack.

I had taken "Ms. C" to the Junior Prom and, to spare all the details, that was the night your favorite bovine became a man.

On the way home, I turned on the radio in my clunker in absolute glee and the first song on the radio was "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson. Not my type of music, but on that particular night, it was the greatest song I had ever heard.

So, this column is dedicated to Michael Jackson, "Billie Jean," and beautiful Lori C, who was more woman at 17 than all 3 of my wives put together. But enough with this sappy crap.

In a "Thriller," Marcos Maidana overcame knockdowns and all obstacles to force Victor Ortiz into submission. Now, after an embarrassing quit job and a non-fighter-like post-fight interview, Ortiz has to seriously take a look at the "Man in the Mirror" and decide if he really wants to continue fighting or if he just wants to "Beat It."

"Smooth Criminal," Oscar De la Hoya desperately tried to spin Ortiz's quit job into something quite the opposite, but nobody is buying it. Overall, it hasn't been a good time to be a Golden Boy prospect. Abner Mares split, Ortiz was just crushed and "King of Pop," James Kirkland is eating bologna and mayonaise sandwiches behind bars.

"Remember the Time" when PPV dates were reserved for only the elite fights, the best of the best? The Latin Fury show this Saturday was just, plain "Bad." I would like to run into the chump who paid 35 bucks to see this suck-fest so I can sell him some bumper car tickets at Neverland Ranch. Wake me up when Juanma Lopez starts fighting someone with a pulse.

Arthur Abraham defended his title against some guy named Oral on Showtime Saturday. I'm sorry, but the only thing I'm watching with the name "Oral" on it is a PPV movie from The Spice Channel.

Everything else this Summer has been a big let-down. Cancelled or postponed fights, combined with weak matchups. Boxing is in a serious "Jam" and needs to fix things fast or, maybe next year, there won't be anyone buying these shows for broadcast.

Well, seeing that its been a slow news Summer and that I've exhausted my Michael Jackson references, I think I'll end this special edition of Madcow's Standing 8 Count.

Besides, I've just called the escort service and told them to send their best; Doesn't matter if they're "Black or White," I just "Wanna be Startin' Somethin'." Now, "Leave Me Alone."

RIP Michael

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The BTBC News Wire (6/19/09)

(Updated Throughout the Day)

Oscar De La Hoya on Who Manny Pacquiao Fears!
Mosley Sounds Off on Arum, Cotto-Pacquiao Bout
Team Pavlik Lashes Out Over Rumor
The Klitschko-Chagaev Clash Won’t Re-establish Lineage
Ricky Hatton Hinting That He Might Fight Again?
Enzo: I turned down fight
Wladimir Klitschko and Ruslan Chagaev Deserve a Hand
Mosley vs Clottey, Arum is Interested in The Fight
Minto To Face Holmes, Hires Freddie Roach as Trainer
Paul McCloskey Faces a Very Tough Test Against M'Baye
Universum Counters False Information About Chagaev
Mahir Oral is Very Confident of Beating Arthur Abraham
Kell Brook, Kevin Mitchell Added To Khan-Kotelnik Card
Cancelled Fights Have A Considerable Impact On Boxing
Roach Says Kotelnik Faked Toothache in Khan Withdrawal

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Fight Night Club Numero 1

by Charlie 21er

Today I had a rare day off, and decided to attend Golden Boy’s “Fight Night Club” at club Nokia, a nightclub venue located near the Staples Center. Tickets were $28, ticketmaster fees were around $10, parking was $5, and Budweiser was $8. So if you go to the next one, meet me in the parking lot for a pre-game.

Despite the unusual choice of venue, I was pleased to find that the place was small enough that there really wasn’t a bad seat (or spot, since the cheap tickets were standing room only), and when I found myself in a bad spot, I just moved a few feet over for a better view. The ring was located on the main stage, and the pit area is located a few steps lower than the surrounding floor, allowing us in the back to get a good view of the action. Security was tight, so I am not sure if the balcony seats are worth the $60, but I can’t imagine they were any worse than being on the ground floor. Overall, I was very satisfied with the view.

The turnout was also pretty good, and only got better as the night went on; considering there was a Lakers game going on simultaneously, I was surprised at how many people made it out, true fight fans. By the end of the night, the place was comfortably filled: plenty of people without feeling crowded.

Those of us who were there were treated to five fights, and a chance to see Bernard Hopkins in person (I left before he came out).

In the first bout, Ricky Lopez 4-0 (2) took on Rufino Serrano 1-1 in a decent four rounder. The first thing I noticed was that Lopez is SHORT, but it didn’t matter much. Lopez was quick to get on the inside behind an accurate right hand lead in the first two rounds, and landed good hooks when he was close enough to his man. Lopez slowed down a little in the third and was on the back foot for most of the round as Serrano came forward and fired away; nothing landed of note, really, from either guy, but I gave it to Serrano for the aggression. Round 4 was a recap of the first two rounds with Lopez countering Serrano’s looping punches. The judges scored it 40-36, all for Lopez. BTBC had it 39-37 for Lopez.

The second bout had Charles Huerta 11-0 (7) against Noe Lopez Jr. [until tonight, undefeated, but currently 4-1 (3)] in a featherweight scrap. Both fighters were cautious in the first round, with some good exchanges, but nothing of particular note landed. In round 2, Lopez went down and the referee ruled it a slip. From my position I couldn’t see a punch landed so it seemed a reasonable call, but after Lopez got up, he wasn’t the same. Huerta jumped on him and began landing the hard stuff until the bell ended the round. In the third, Huerta continued where he left off and landed a teeth-exploding right hand that resonated throughout the club (the crowd responded appropriately) and dropped Lopez. Lopez beat the count, but when the pressure was turned on again, he took a knee without being hit. After he got back up, Huerta jumped on him and knocked him down again, causing the referee to call an end to the fight at 1:03 of the third round.

Luis Ramos took it to Baudel Cardenas in a lightweight 6-rounder that didn’t go the distance. Ramos looked the best of all the fighters on the card with his smart, accurate, punching, and steady bodywork. In the first round, he nailed Cardenas with a straight left to the stomach that put him down. Cardenas gamely got to his feet, but his body was a consistent target throughout the fight. In the second, Cardenas 18-17-2 (6) showed his experience as he bullied his opponent and worked him on the inside. Ramos tied up when necessary and landed solid blows to Cardenas’ head, knocking grease into the audience. Cardenas took it rather well. This continued for the next two rounds: Cardenas doing solid work on the inside, Ramos getting his distance and rocking Cardenas’ brain and mixing it to the body. Round five looked like a repeat of the last three, until the last minute when Ramos backed Cardenas against the rope and fired a quick 1-2 upstairs that dropped Cardenas along the ropes to the canvas. Cardenas looked out of it as his mouthpiece fell out of his mouth and he crawled to all fours. The ref waved it off at 2:26 and Ramos advanced to 11-0 (6)

In the main event, another six rounder, David Rodela 13-1 (6) and Juan Garcia 14-3 (5) went at it for the coveted “Quakerstate Durability Championship Belt,” the same one you could get a picture taken with in the corner (along with two HOT-T-T ring card girls). Despite the belt on the line, the fight was pretty good. The first two rounds went to Rodela as he used his jab smartly and worked Garcia to the body. Round three went to Garcia as it seemed that Rodela abandoned his jab in favor of powerpunches. Garcia avoided a lot of them and found his range, staggering Rodela at the end of the round. Rodela decided not to hang on, and instead fired back until the bell. Good stuff. In round 4, Rodela hit Garcia with a bomb that caused him to bend over at the waist against the ropes. It looked like he was going down, and Rodela backed off…until Garcia decided that he wouldn’t go down and Rodela jumped on him again with uppercuts. It reminded me of Jack Dempsey hovering over Jess Willard, except in this version Willard comes back, and Garcia recovered, somehow, and continued to exchange until the end of the round. In the last two rounds, Rodela kept looking for a knockout and Garcia just got in close and countered the wild punches from Rodela. Rodela was awarded a split decision. BTBC had it a draw. Judges Ray Corona and Alejandro Mapula were on drugs with the ridiculous score of 59-55 for Rodela.

After the cameras turned off, we were treated to the last bout between Ramon Flores 3-5 (3) and Jose Roman 4-0 (3). Flores knocked Roman down in the first round, but Roman recovered quickly and boxed smart. Flores was clearly the cruder of the two, and frequently missed wide punches, hooks from the outside and Darchinyan uppercuts that weren’t accurate in the least. In round two, I wrote down “ZERTUCHE-PAVLIK!!! GOTZ-DAMN!” in my notebook, because Roman clocked Flores along the ropes and put him to sleep on his feet. Flores turned off like a robot and teetered forward for a second before Roman went to town and put a few hard uppercuts and hooks into his head for good measure. Flores was done-for, and lay on the canvas for a solid 5 minutes before they had him up on a stool. A stretcher was used to extricate him from the premises, and just as well, because that guy was on queer-street, and will probably be there for a few days still.

Overall, a good time. $28 is a solid price for the fun of watching a live card with excited fight fans. Apparently there was a $1000 bonus for the two fighters who put on the best fight, this may have influenced the fighters, because all 5 bouts were pretty action packed. There will be a “Fight Night Club” once a month for the next 3 months. Check it out, and drink in the parking lot.

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BTBC News Sack (6/11/09)

(Updated Throughout the Day)

RingTV.com kicks off new feature: Live stream of Fight Night Club
IBF Was in a Bind Ordering Donaire-Mthalane Rematch
Banks vs Butlin On The Klitschko-Chagaev Undercard
Too much hate for Pacquiao, Floyd Jr, Mosley and Boxers?
Insider Notebook: Israel Vazquez Dispute, Margarito Comeback, Pavlik-Sturm and Cotto Too
Witter-Alexander is Pushed Back, Pulled From July 11
‘The Ghost’ Returns
Diacanu vs. Pascal: Marlon Wright Named as Ref
Arce returns June 20!
Malignaggi-Diaz is a Done Deal, Weight of 138.5 on 8/22
Siaca calls out Mundine!

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It's Official! Floyd Mayweather Jr. Is Back!

According to anonymous sources close to the 5-time/5-division former pound-for-pound king, the official return of Floyd Mayweather Jr. will be announced on Saturday either before the scheduled Ricky Hatton/Manny Pacquiao bout or immediately after.

The comeback fight will take place on July 18th and Mayweather's opponent will be current lineal Lightweight Champ, Juan Manuel Marquez. HBO PPV will air the broadcast.

The winner of Pacquiao/Hatton will then likely take on the winner of Mayweather/Marquez at some point in the Winter in a bout that will be hyped as a battle for the mythical Pound-for-Pound title.

Mayweather retired following his 10th round TKO over Hatton in December of 2007, completing a year in which he made approximately 50 million dollars in massive PPV successes against Hatton and Oscar De la Hoya.

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