posted at boxingcapital.com on 5 april 2009
[link]

Eight years ago, people thought that then 33-0 Diego Corrales (40-5, 33 KOs) had a great chance of ending Floyd Mayweather's (39-0, 25 KOs) undefeated streak. The reason was that the crafty super featherweight was a dominant force in the ring who has yet to meet anybody who would give him a very tough night in the ring, while on the other hand, Floyd, although seen by many as a defensive wizard, was pretty much untested. At the end of the fight, Mayweather emerged victorious via a brutal tenth round KO win that saw Coralles hitting the canvass too many times for a supposedly dominant force.

A landmark win, Mayweather announced to the world that he was more than just a play it safe kind of fighter with 1001 ways to bore people to death. He was, okay, a complete fighter with brute power and a heavily fortified wall of defensive tricks and maneuvers characterized by lightning quick reflexes and unparalleled speed. The available adjectives may not even be enough to illustrate his talent that's so rare and mythical and was being described by seasoned observers as one that borders to perfection.

Beyond the apparent speed and reflexes he constantly exhibited from Corrales to Carlos Hernandez (43-7-1, 24 KOs) to Zab Judah (37-6, 25 KOs) to Oscar De La Hoya (39-6, 30 KOs) and to Ricky Hatton (45-1, 32 KOs), was a very strong ring awareness and a masterful ability to shift game plans and execute the same with precision.

He was a legend in the making. He knows it and has even claimed his legendary status despite of the obvious lacking result to back it up. He has solid wins against Corrales, Hernandez, Jose Luis Castillo (57-9-1, 49 KOs), Arturo Gatti (40-9, 31), Judah, De La Hoya and Hatton but the reputation that followed some of his biggest win will continuously haunt his name and ultimately hold back his critics in recognizing his place among the legends.

His propensity to leave divisions without cleaning them up first and the tendency to take the path of least resistance will forever taint his resumé, until he acts and finally erase all doubts about his legacy. Good thing he's back, as claimed by numerous articles around the net, as he has the chance to steer his career towards that legendary legacy he wanted so badly that he even deluded himself into thinking that he already has it.

Sugar Ray Leonard (36-3-1, 25 KOs) has Roberto Duran (103-16, 70 KOs), Thomas Hearns (61-5-1, 48 KOs), Wilfred Benitez (53-8-1, 31 KOS) and Marvin Hagler (62-3-2, 52 KOs); Ray Robinson has faced everybody and defeated the best fighters in his time. Who has he got? An over the hill Gatti? An unmotivated Judah? A very limited Carlos Baldomir (record)? A good but past his prime Oscar who actually beat him? Hes a very promising all time legend but he just doesn't have the sufficient result to claim it. Hes undefeated with six titles in five divisions but that is not enough to finally seal the deal. Rocky Marciano's (49-0, 43 KOs) undefeated record is doomed to be placed in endless scrutiny precisely because of the shallowness of the competition found in his era; he may have wanted to be in a highly competitive bout but the best fighters available in his time were either past their primes or bloated heavyweights or both.

Something that goes in stark contrast with Mayweathers attitude as he had Miguel Cotto (33-1, 27 KOs), Antonio Margarito (37-6, 27 KOs), Paul Williams (36-1, 27 KOs), and 'Sugar' Shane Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) -- the first three were all, and are still, in their prime while the last one was/is an anomaly in his biological age -- but he, well, simply snubbed the cries to fight any of them. That is what separates the other pound for pound kings of their times from him. Floyd can learn from De La Hoya and Manny Pacquiao (48-3-2, 36 KOs) a thing about the heart of a true champion.

At the very least, Pacquiao and De La Hoya clearly edges Mayweather in terms of heart -- the willingness to take the most hazardous fights. This is prizefighting, and we gauge fighters not just by their talent and the numbers in the parenthesis that followed their last names. We also gauge them by the heart in facing the toughest competition available there in. The enthusiasm to face the best available out there and the eagerness to prove to the boxing world that you are the true and rightful owner of the throne, that is the heart of a true champion that seals legacy.

Going with the old cliché in boxing, in order to be the best, you have to fight and beat the best. In Mayweathers case, it is about erasing all doubts as to his supposed place among the all time greats. Leonard, Duran, Hearns and Hagler have called out and faced each other; Mayweather would retire before facing any of the top welters at that time. While it's true that none among Cotto, Margarito, Williams and Mosley hold a record that matches or comes close to his -- which might be giving Floyd a false notion that there is little to prove in fighting them -- they happen to be the most formidable fights for him then and now. And because Mayweather did not even bother to look at any of these names when he hung up the leather, calling himself as the greatest is an utter disrespect to the all time greats.

After a year and a half of self-imposed exile, Floyd is reportedly back and is now training secretly. He's reportedly eyeing Juan Manuel Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs), Pacquiao, and Mosley among a host of others. Add Williams and Cotto to the list and take out Marquez (as he hasn't gone through junior welterweight yet) and Floyd have a list of formidable fights. Two wins against any of them surely silences his critics and ensures his place among the legends.

FIVE MOST EXCITING FIGHTERS

posted at boxingcapital.com
[link]

If you're buying the idea that the heavyweight division is the flagship of boxing, you've definitely been thinking that the sport is dying. The rationale is pretty much elementary. The health of the heavyweight division is supposed to dictate the health of the sport in its entirety. And what happens if you have a bunch of mediocre big guys that not only lacked the talent and power of the great heavyweights who have been considered as faces of boxing in their respective eras, but also the charisma (read: utmost machismo) that sells the sport even to novice bystanders? You have a sport that needs reviving, badly.

While I find the logic above to be a little bit ridiculous -- as the widely considered greatest of them all, Sugar Ray Robinson (173-19-6, 108 KOs), could only go and fight competitively as high as the middleweight -- I think the sport is losing popularity. It is not what it used to be like during the circa 70s and 80s when even casual pedestrians talk about Muhammad Ali (56-5, 37 KOs), George Foreman (76-5, 68 KOs), Ray Leonard (36-3, 25 KOs), and Marvin Hagler (62-3, 52 KOs) among a host of great others. For one, it now pales in comparison to the attractiveness and popularity that MMA fights have been gaining since its conception. Go check the PPV buys and you'll get a drift of what I'm talking about.

To hook others into the sport, we need them to see fighters who have the ferocity in the ring that spells excitement, the power that spells blood, and the talent that spells methodical violent end to the other guy in the ring. Here are my top five exciting fighters I greatly recommend to beginners (and none of them is a heavyweight):

5. Vic Darchinyan (32-1-1, 26 KOs) - A brutal power that sends people into coma, an unorthodox but very tentative lunging style and a glass jaw, Armenian Darchinyan by way of Australia is a highly entertaining fighter who can end a fight with just a swing, or a single whack in his chin. Put this super flyweight in the ring against somebody with a scary hook and you get an action packed thriller that you would wish it doesn't end early. But with his murderous power, weak chin and questionable defensive ability, the probability of his fights lasting the distance is very little.

But that's excitement: a huge left thrown from his unorthodox stance and its over; or a well-timed left hook connecting to his chin and it's all over. His last two fights though, which happen to be his career defining bouts, have been both entertaining and brilliant. His raw power and all-out offensive style have proved to be too much for Christian Mijares (36-5-2, 15 KOs) and Jorge Arce (51-5-1, 39 KOs), whom he was able to overwhelm with accurate punches from a variety of angles. It's important to note that those two he decidedly defeated by brutal stoppage are fighters of contrasting styles. One is a very quick and scientific operator; the other is a powerful brawler. That says everything about the new found talent of Vic Darchinyan which helped him become the first fighter in history to unify the three major belts of the super flyweight division. And yeah, I love the way he taunt his opponents by his awkward dances.

4. Miguel Cotto (33-1, 27 KOs) - A dangerous pressure fighter who throws bombs on both hands with pinpoint accuracy, this Puerto Rican welterweight will surely raise you on your seat when he steps on the gas and intensifies his aggression further. You know when he had his man hurt. He'll be all out on offense, throwing bombs after bombs, even trading huge punches at sometimes, and increasing the pressure even more by pressing it forward which leaves him open in the process. With his brute power, quick hands and accurate punching, he built his reputation as an aggressive pressure puncher by slashing through the junior welterweight and welterweight divisions and capturing and depending titles via brutal stoppages and action-packed but brilliant decisions until finally letting go the "O" in his record courtesy of the iron-chinned Antonio Margarito (37-6, 27 KOs).

Cotto is a talented and a very dangerous fighter that his ways of ending a fight ranges from a good boxing performance, to savage beating using barrages of punches, to a single body shot. Don't get deceive by his reputation of being a fighter-gentleman who exemplifies the true, the good and the beautiful about boxing. He can throw unintentional low blows too.

3. Ricky Hatton (45-1, 32 KOs) - A heavy hitter who never takes a backward step whenever he performs, the junior welterweight Hitman of Manchester, England, can only maneuver forward and he's very-very good at it. He loves to trade it off and he's not really hard to find, Hatton is excitement personified. His undefeated record at junior welterweight is a testament of his pressure punching prowess that takes it out of you even if you're a seasoned fighter ranked so highly in the pound for pound list. His landmark win against Kostya Tszyu (31-2, 25 KOs) can be described as both brilliant and ugly as he was able to overwhelm the elite fighter with his swarming offense while clinching a lot to prevent him from retaliating with his own. But one word never leaves when describing his performances: excitement.

You want to see an all out war? Put him in the ring against anybody of whatever styles and hell be charging forward in an all out action. His recent brilliant win against slick boxer Paulie Malignaggi (25-2, 5 KOs) has revealed something about his style. His quick left jab can catch you at any angle. That's great as he would be needing lots of it when he squares off against the reigning pound for pound king on May 2. By the way, you're forgiven if you call him a wrestler and Hatton is forgiven too for doing some clinching that sometimes borders to being excessive as his willingness to draw action, trade punches, and end a fight with a bang is his major trait.

2. 'Sugar' Shane Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) - He's brilliant, relentless, powerful, very much willing to take a punch and he's 37 years old. Who says this Californian welterweight no longer has what it would take to beat a hard-nosed Mexican brawler in Margarito who was widely recognized as the one of the most avoided fighters? Well, he did not only beat him, he destroyed him! He treated him like a kid, spanking him with precision punches, took him to school with his superb ability to control distance with his beautiful jabs and footwork and eventually KOed him after a round after round of non-stop beating that saw a night raining with countless overhand right that would make Thomas Hearns (61-5-1, 48 KOs) damn proud, with Margarito unable to land anything meaningful. Even with his advancing age and despite of the many brutal wars he has endured, Mosley proved to the world that he's still the Sugarman we all remember trading punches at lightweight and mercilessly clubbing his man around the ring.

What I love the most about this guy is his willingness to stand toe to toe and trade punches off even with dangerous punchers yet we all know he can easily beat them with his lightning quick reflexes, excellent jabs and brilliant footwork. A purist with an insatiable desire for blood and action, I can't wait to see him back in the ring again, hopefully against his conqueror Cotto or against Floyd Mayweather Jr. (39-0, 25 KOs).

1. Manny "Pac-Man" Pacquiao (48-3-2, 36 KOs) - I can't remember seeing him giving us a dull fight, even during his OPBF (Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation) days. It's either its him getting rough-up by fighters with superior talent or its him delivering a violently overwhelming offense. Either way, the Filipino lefty thrills us with his capacity to end a fight with just a punch, especially during the early days of his championship career, as well as his trademark distance punches that none (so far) could handle. The guy who has journeyed through ten weight classes while twice leapfrogging divisions has vastly improved from Chatchai Sasakul (65-4, 40 KOs), to Marco Antonio Barrera (65-7, 43 KOs), to Juan Manuel Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs) to Oscar De La Hoya (39-6, 30 KOs).

By learning how to combine patience and footwork with his ferocity, he has now fully upgraded himself from being a one handed fighter to an even more dangerous well-rounded fighter, which could only add up to the excitement he offers every time he steps into the ring. He belongs to a rare bred of fighters who constantly moves up in weight and yet exhibits a remarkable ability to carry his power and speed at each stops. The Filipino southpaw whose left hand was once described by his first trainer as "may sa demonyo" (literally translates to "possessed by the devil"), is such a very dangerous swinger that he delivers his goods with blinding speed and lethal power. That he was the first and only guy to floor and beat Erik Morales (48-6, 34 KOs) by stoppage, and the only guy to utterly dominate De La Hoya all through out the fight and eventually force him to quit on his stool tell all about it.

And whats more? He came as a heavy underdog on his biggest fights and greatest wins. Beat that.

Is Khan ready for Barrera

posted at boxing capital dot com on march 3, 2009

[link]

Name the tools: quick hands, footwork, power, ability to throw punches from a variety of angles-and this guy is easily the next big thing in lightweight. After all, he's an Olympic hero who performs explosively when he's laced up. Include in the list a sizeable quantity of fan base and its safe to say that he indeed has it all. Well, almost all.

Amir Khan (19-1, 15 KOs) is fun to watch. His talent alone, a delightful combination of fluid movements and quick short punches, spells bright future. We can't blame the boxing fans for elevating him to a status too high for his level and accomplishments. For he's a fine fighter and a thrilling performer that every time he steps into the ring, somebody gets hurt. And it's sometimes him.

Maybe the religious wise saying that you can't be blessed with everything suits Khan perfectly. He's cursed with a weak chin, a very-very weak chin. A hard jab and he's stunned. A huge overhand followed by a vicious hook and he's dead. It's foolish to believe you're untouchable with that kind of chin. Breidis Prescott (21-0, 18 KOs) made it clear to him on their fight September last year. And if the knockdowns he suffered against average punchers like Willie Limond (31-2, 8 KOs) and Michael Gomez (38-9, 25 KOs) earlier were any indications, he should have known he couldn't hold on with the "o" in his record for long. Not with the kind of chin and defence he has, no matter how seemingly fluid his footwork is. Those knockdowns have spelled out clearly not only the fact that he can't take a punch, but also the defensive flaws in his style.

If a wide punch can catch you clean on as early as the first 23-25 seconds of the opener, there's something wrong with your "D". The devastating and embarrassing first round knock out loss he suffered from the hands of Columbian Prescott has definitely put to rest any arguments there may still be about his chin. To say that his chin is average is a blasphemous overstatement. He has no chin at all, period. He can't take a punch, and that became a precise call after he tasted the first defeat of his well-hyped career at the hands of little-known and completely out-of-the-scene opponent. If it's any consolation, it's good to see him sticking his left guard where it should be whenever, on his last fight, Oisin Fagan (22-6, 13 KOs) throws a hail-mary right hand. It was a defensive adjustment he learned after the highly regarded Freddie Roach, his new trainer.

However, Fagan is not even a shadow of the kind of calibre that was Marco Antonio Barrera (65-6, 43 KOs). The Baby-Faced Assassin of Guadalajara, Mexico, despite of his advancing age and seemingly wearing body, is still better than any fighter Khan has ever shared the ring with. He may be past his best but he's far from being shot. He's faster, stronger, technically superior, smarter and more experienced than any names in Khan's resume. His losing efforts against current pound-for-pound elite Juan Manuel Marquez (50-4, 37 KOs) still speaks of the brilliance we all remember Barrera for. He can still pick his spots pretty well, slip precise counters, stand there at the middle and bang and he can send you to the canvass with just a short swing. His last two fights, of course, were made to keep him busy and maybe help him adjust his body to the lightweight class before taking on any big names.

If anything, the choice of fight for Amir Khan in Barrera on March 14, 2009 at Manchester, England rings as a shocker. There's a big risk written all over it. Barrera is past his best, old and dangerous while Khan is young, quick and china-chinned. It's hard to see where Khan is going if he lose this one. A Barrera defeat could send his career, as brilliant and promising at the onset, to spiral down the limbo. On the other hand, it can be said that Roach, the guy who has defeated the Assassin twice through his most prized fighter Manny Pacquiao (48-3, 36 KOs) may have seen something in Khan and Barrera that we don't know of. After he's proven the world wrong about his choice of fight for Pacquiao in Oscar De La Hoya (39-6, 30 KOs) at welterweight, it's hard to argue against him.

One thing that's going their way is that Khan and Roach is fighting Barrera at lightweight, the division where Khan has made a name. Barrera, for his part, is practically a newcomer in the division, having fought only two short bouts at the weight, and against tomato cans.

Roach is obviously banking on two things: first, Barrera is on the slide; and two, Barrera is small at lightweight. While the first one is correct and precise, the second one remains to be seen. In the same manner as the efficacy of the defensive adjustments Khan would adopt for an offensive monster like Barrera, it remains to be seen. What doesn't need further assessment is how Khan's chin would react if it gets hit flush. Barrera has done it against a technically gifted Juan Manuel Marquez and the near shut down and one-sided beating he handed on Khan's compatriot Naseem Hamed (36-1, 31 KOs) on 2001 can still be as fresh as he would want it to be. To spell the fact once more: he's past it, but he's not over the hill yet. He's far from being shot. He is still dangerous.

Khan's pronouncements before the Prescott fight about him being untouchable is forgivable-no matter how incredible and amusing those words may sound to be-provided he proves his defence and chin against his most dangerous opponent yet two weeks from now. After all, it was the hard hitting Pacman himself who said that Khan has done well in their sparring sessions, where Khan has stated that he was never battered once.

Vic Dar: Of Metamorphosis

published at boxingcapital.com
[link]

Whoever said Vic "The Raging Bull" Darchinyan (now 32-1, 26 KOs) was still a one-dimensional fighter even after the Mijares fight and nothing more than a wild swinging lefty should now re-assess that view. With his incredible late-fight stoppage win over iron-chinned Jorge "El Travieso" Arce (now 51-5, 39 KOs) by systematically breaking him down throughout eleven rounds of solid action with a combination of never-before seen ring savvy and his trademark left hammer, the Armenian has announced to the world his new self a fine craftsman in the making.

While the Armenian super flyweight three-belt holder could not yet be mistaken as an excellent blend of a sweet boxer and a heavy puncher, Darchinyan showed remarkable improvements in his style and overall ring craft on Saturday night. For one, Darchinyan can now combine his left mallet with refined footwork, improved mobility, greater concentration and lots of patience - something he needs to rule the very competitive division furthermore and deliver his much publicised payback goods to his flyweight conqueror Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire (20-1, 13 KOs).

The way he hammered the Mexican - himself a ferocious puncher who won his previous fight via a brutal fourth round stoppage - into complete submission demonstrated the serious skills Darchinyan is honing. The last five rounds of the fight were a beauty to watch for the fans of the hard hitting Armenian. He took Arce to school by pummelling him with power shots from the outside, countering effectively and slipping gracefully behind the shots to deliver his vicious uppercuts. It was easily the best rounds in Darchinyan's entire career as he looked to be virtually unstoppable with his new found sweet footwork. On the other hand, Arce, who tried to press on the fight from round three onwards in a bid to force Darchinyan to commit a mistake, was rendered ineffective by Darchinyan's skills, tightened defence upstairs, surprisingly better lateral movement and improved combinations of punches and counter-punches.

The first two rounds of the fight were easily Darchinyan's rounds as he literally bullied Arce with big shots that forced the Mexican to backpedal. Round three was the most brilliant round for El Travieso, perhaps his only round in the fight, as he was able to connect with cracking left hooks that visibly hurt the Armenian who withdrew momentarily and went on the defensive. Arce had now discovered he could gain some success by pressing it onwards rather than fighting Darchinyan from distance. Arce tried to work out some inside game on the next two rounds but the guy who had been chasing him for three years proved to be too much for him, even during the inside exchanges. Darchinyan got the better of the exchanges during these close rounds.

Of course, there was still that awkward act of changing stance while lowering his guards to taunt his opponent, funny antics that could easily be exploited by quick swingers. But overall, it was a Darchinyan incarnate that we saw performing in a first defence of his undisputed WBA, WBC and IBF super flyweight belts Saturday night. All the judges scored the fight 109-100 for Darchinyan at the time of the stoppage; the ringside physician stopped the fight at the end of round 11 due to cuts on Arce's eyes.

The next logical step for Darchinyan to cement his current status as the top dog of the division was to fight Donaire next, a fight the fans could not see in the near future as Gary Shaw, Darchinyan's promoter was against it. "You don't reward disloyal people" Shaw referring to Donaire who decided to move out of his ward last year after the longest pause of his career which was an almost year round of inactivity.

Donaire, for his part, was not impressed by the apparent improvements in Darchinyan's game. He said in interviews that Darchinyan still "looked the same, fought exactly the same" and that the result should they fight again would probably go the same way as their previous encounter. Donaire sports a big knockout win against the Armenian southpaw, which happen to be the only lost in his career.

But no. While the Raging Bull was still very open on most angles and still reckless when charging in, he has vastly improved since his humiliating KO defeat against the Filipino punisher in July 2007. He has now revised his over-reliance on his left hand. He's now throwing more combinations, real combinations from both hands (not just a long left, followed by a long left and another long left). His uppercuts now look crispier and his left hooks are now sharper than before. And more importantly, he can now use angles to deliver his deadly bombs to better effects. That should make the Donaire rematch all the more interesting as the flashy Filipino has that beautiful counter punches perfect for anybody who lunges in too tentatively. Donaire, who is now currently preparing in the high altitudes of Baguio City, the Philippines for his March 22 outing against undefeated Texan Raul "Cobra" Martinez (24-0, 14 KOs), has stated several times his interest in fighting Darchinyan again.

Bad news as Gary Shaw won't let it happen.