I have a few thoughts regarding the recently proposed deal for a two-fight series between Carl Froch and Lucian Bute.  The idea involves a two fight series, one fight in each fighter’s hometown.  First off, nice try in getting us to forget that the big fight in the Super Middleweight division is Andre Ward vs. Lucian Bute.  Perhaps someone looked at the numbers and realized that Bute vs. Ward has a problem.  Both men sell tickets in their home regions, and nowhere else.

Neutral ground made no sense, and perhaps neither was willing to give up home ring advantage, as that fight is likely to go to the scorecards.  While the matchmaking done in the Super Six 168lb tournament should be an inspiration to us all, it was a series that did not display a ton of knockouts.  There were two to be exact… Johnson over Green, and Abraham over Taylor .  Overall it was a positive experience.  There was drama, a few upsets, and not really any outright lousy decisions.

While the set-up forced most people to fight outside of their home turf, it did not really make a star out of anyone in a new region.  Andre Ward won the whole tournament without leaving his home country.  In fact, he did not even leave his home state until the final.  He didn’t even leave his hometown until the semi-final.  He is now the legitimate champion at 168lbs, but he is still largely unknown in Europe , as is the number one contender, Lucian Bute.  Bute does not need to beat Carl Froch to prove this further, either.  This is merely delaying the inevitable at least 7-8 months, if not a full year, as injuries and postponements are very likely.

Yoan Pablo Hernandez vs. Steve Cunningham 2
The first fight highlighted all weaknesses, but that is what a Cunningham fight is.  He rarely dominanted, and never gets dominated.  Every fight is an adventure, and I do not believe this to be any different.  Although both men have the same promoter, Hernandez is where the money has been spent, and where the interests lie.  The winner of this fight still ahs to get past Troy Ross (no easy task), but uinification with Marco Huck, and the Ring championship should be what happens by years end.  Hernandez will box more carefully this time, and not even press the advantage should he hurt Cunningham.  This may be end of the line for the underappreciated Philly champ.  Hernandez by split decision.

Andre Berto vs. Victor Ortiz 2
Ortiz won before, so there is no reason to believe he cannot win again.  There are, however, plenty of reasons to believe he WILL not win again.  Berto was hit behin gthe ear early on, and that looked to affect him the entire fight.  Without that equilibrium-alterer, the bout may have been quite different.  He also looked absolutely tenacious against Jan Zaveck, and he is quite hungry again. Ortiz is likely viewing this bout as a consoltation bout for his disapoiting performance against Mayweather, and is probably unmotivated.  He doesn’t have much to win, and not even much more to lose.  His pride may carry him uinto the late rounds, and he will hurt Berto again, but tenacity will make the difference.  Berto picks up a late round TKO, probably from cuts or swelling.

Marcos Maidana vs. Devon Alexander
Alexander is coming off of a close win, and an embarrassing loss.  He ahs the pressure to deliver in St. Louis , the most unforgiving hometown in recent memory (Alexander has had two close shaves there, and Spinks has lost all 3 titles at home). 

Ok, now that the message boards and Twitter are lighting up with scribes and fans complaining about the Amir Khan – Lamont Peterson conspiracy allegations, let me just remind everyone of something.  This is a corrupt world, and an even more corrupt sport.  I am inclined to believe any allegations until proven false. I know our justice system operates in the opposite fashion, and I am not going to suggest it do otherwise, but let’s look at the facts, as they are coming out.  A representative, who was not credentialed for the fight, was handling scorecards.  He was also celebrating with one fighter after the match.  The scorecards have also allegedly been mysteriously “misplaced”.

As far as I am concerned, that is enough evidence for a conviction, let alone a trial.  Amir Khan is not even asking for that.  He is not asking that the decision (a bad one in my view) be overturned, even though there are substantial grounds for him to do so.  That would actually diminish both men’s legacies.  Avenging a defeat is more memorable and valuable to one’s legacy than calling back a defeat.  That will damage you in people’s eyes.  And why rob Peterson of a chance to say he was world champion for a while… if it ends up helping you both?

I believe Khan can win the rematch, with a different referee and judges.  That is why he is making a lot of noise about the controversy.  Nobody wants to work hard for something, only to have it taken away in corrupt fashion.  Let me also remind the fans that there is no reward for silence. 

Now, I know this category is no longer the exclusive property of ‘Ring’ Magazine.  Nearly every writer puts in a list, and I am no different.  It has not been a stellar year for boxing.  The big matchup eluded us, while belt situations only got muddier.  Martinez is still middleweight champion, but landed no big fights.  Khan and Bradley may now never happen, and the Klitschkos scarcely lost a round.  Maybe I can at least create a new catgory or two, but familiar names are involved.  2011 did offer some surprises and some thrills.

Fighter of the Year
Andre Ward.  With two dominating (despite what two judges scored) wins over championship level opposition, in Carl Froch and Arthur Abraham, Andre Ward gets the nod with consistency.  He hasn’t had a KO in quite a while, and will not likely have many more.  However, he seems to effortlessly beat top-tier opposition again and again.  Ever since his gold-medal run in 2004, Ward seems to accomplish things that most American fighters have difficulty with.  He gets foreign judges to score for him.  He sells boxing tickets in the Bay Area.  He beats European fighters.  He is also a multi-styled fighter who does not appear confused when implementing that.  No matter how young he is, he always looks like the boss in there.

Fight of the Year
Delvin Rodriguez D10 Pawel Wolak.  Rodriguez has had a hard time with judges, and does not trust fights going to the cards.  Wolak is an all action fighter, no matter the circumstances.  This was one of those great fights that everyone knew would be great going in.  Something out of the ordinary would have to happen for this to not be a barn burner.  While the up and down drama of Berto vs. Ortiz was not present, the non-stop action puts this above and beyond anything else that happened in 2011.

This is a hard one for me, but I have quite a history of telling fans, writers, and bloggers alike not to allow their fandom to doctor their opinion.  Of course it will, and only published writers are ultimately held to any level of journalistic integrity, but it’s nice to see the effort made.  In this day of mass communication and information, an unbiased call of the action one has witnessed is what sets an intelligent, informed opinion apart from a glorified stadium sign-maker.

I was cheering for Pacquiao to defeat Marquez.  He did so.  However, there was quite the uproar, and I made sure to watch, and rewatch the fight, to see what my score was.  This is a practice in which I have engaged, ever since the Leonrad-Hagler match.  I watched that fight in real-time when I was 11 years old, and at least a dozen times since.  At first, I was defending my close scorecard, as many people at the time were saying Leonard clearly won.

People don’t like to admit that now, but as time has passed, Hagler’s legend has only grown since his retirement, while Leonard may have tarnished his a bit with subsequent performances.  In recent years, I have had to defend the fact that I had Leonard winning at all… which he did, and I still believe that.  I had Leonard by one point, but many people now say that Hagler won.  I had a similar score for Pacquiao-Marquez.  Manny by one point.  I have had to make sure, but I do believe that.

Lucian Bute’s dominating win over Glen Johnson was impressive, as was Peter Quillin’s dominance over Craig McEwan.  Unfortunately for the two of them, two things will overshadow their victories.  First off, the story post-fight will be more of what happened to their respective opponents.  Craig McEwan was visibly hurt in the sixth round of the Quillin fight, and had lost every round, but was given absolutely no chance to defend himself.  The referee stepped in laughably early to stop the bout.  In a measurement against Andy Lee, it seems to be a good victory for Quillin, and he was likely on his way to a later TKO or decision win, anyway.  However, no matter of mere dominance would measure up against what was coming in the main event.

For Bute, he was the main event, but most of the discussion will be about Glen Johnson’s either not showing up, getting old overnight, or making a ridiculous strategy error.  To abandon the hook was bad enough, but Johnson also spent the bout circling the wrong way, and trying to stay and jab at a distance.  If those 3 mistakes aren’t bad enough, he also showed the failure to realize the futility of this strategy, and made no adjustments.  If he is simply no longer able to do what he does best, or if Bute was too good for him to do so, that much is not clear… but his behavior is distracting us from Bute being only the second man ever to dominate Johnson.

Bute’s win shares the spotlight for another reason.  Pier-Olivier Cote, a Quebec City raised prospect made his HBO debut, with an exhilarating 2nd round KO of Jorge Teron. Not a world beater, Teron went rounds with Brandon Rios, and was at least expected to be competitive.  He also had a height advantage over Cote , something the Canadian should not be used to giving up to that level. 

It's not as if Don King fighters are super-busy... but why have Francisco Palacios and Guillermo Jones wait around any longer?  They should be fighting each other.. not tune-ups.  Just hold your tourament outside of Sauerland, and get a real network to cover it.  Who do you think James Toney and Antonio Tarver are going to come to?  German promoters to get screwed like Cunningham?  or Don King, where they can get screwed right here at home.  I don't think Cunnigham wants to stay in Germany much longer, either.

Speaking of Toney, if he makes weight, he's already won.  Something tells me that if Jones was able to hang tough with Lebedev, while having only minimized reflexes, Toney's better chin will get things done here.  He still might be too old, but he was good at cruiser, and I'm starting to think he could pull it off.

Speaking of making weight... is no one else going to bring up the NYSAC not allowing Donaire and Narvaez to be weighed by the HBO crew?  Why on earth would that be, unless there was something to hide? Looks like Joey Gamache's lawsuit for a similar incident involving his fight wtih Gatti, may have actually accomplished very little.

Lucien Bute vs. Glen Johnson
This is one is not tough to call.  If you’re for real, you beat Johnson.  If you’re not, you don’t.  Bute has already proven he is for real.  The questions that remain are of chin and stamina.  These have not been tested since the first Andrade fight, since Bute has been so dominant and powerful of late.  Johnson will provide a test for both of those attributes, while still putting a W on Bute ’s record.  Bute by an 8-4 decision that may be scored even wider.

Timothy Bradley vs. Joel Casamayor
Casamayor vs. Bradley? This one will be dirty.  The old tricks are among the last things to go, and Casamayor will need them.  He may have found new legs recently, but it won’t be enough to take out a determined Bradley.  Unless “Desert Storm has garnered some serious ring rust, we can expect him to dominate the old Cuban champion.  While a knockout wouldn’t surprise me, I will never pick one with Bradley… Bradley by UD or late round TD.

Danny Green vs,. Krystoff Wlodarczyk
These last two fights are shameful, because a fighter is being rewarded for a loss with a shot at a belt.  Shame on the WBC for both of them.  Tarver and Molina should be fighting for titles, not Cintron and Green.  Yet in a belt that has recently added diamond, emeritus, silver, interim, and in-recess to their vocabulary, nothing is surprising.  I would normally pick the Pole to retain his title, since Green is coming off a bad beating, but he’s such a pretender to the throne, that I cannot in good consciousness pick him. 

James Toney vs. Denis Lebedev
Well, for all Roy Jones has slipped, he still has a bizarre hold over past opponents.  Once Roy holds a win over you, even if you go on to achieve your own greatness, you never seem to forget it, and end up chasing a ghost.  Hopkins , Tarver, and now Toney… all chasing either Jones himself, or other Jones conquerors.  To prove what?  I am not sure.  Toney might just be trying to prove he can still make Cruiserweight.  Toney vs. Tarver would be a fun fight at any weight, and the winner might sneak into a title shot at Cruiser or Heavy.  Toney would earn a number 1 ranking with the win, but my gut tells me this is the fight where he ages too much.  Lebedev by narrow UD.

Alfredo Angulo Vs. James Kirkland
Many people think this fight would have been more impressive before Angulo’s loss to Cintron, and subsequent exile.  It definitely would have been better before Kirkland was imprisoned, then KO’d in the first round by light-hitting Noburo Ishida, right?  I disagree. This is one of those fights that will actually be even better because both men have something to prove.  Trainer and promoter difficulties, losses, exiles for different reasons, etc.  The 154-160 landscape has moved on without them to create ‘Viva Mexico ’ stars, but are both still wide open besides them.  Neither man would beat Sergio Martinez, but they are live with anyone else.  Their recent losses will also make them more marketable to avoidance-monsters like Alvarez and Chavez Jr.  Any pick would be logical here, because each man will be forced out of a comfort zone.  However, my guess is, much like Rios-Antillon, it’s going to come down to chin.  Angulo has one.  Kirkland doesn’t.  Angulo by 4th round KO in a wild slugfest.

Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Manny Pacquiao 3
The third installment of this trilogy isn’t coming too late chronologically, as it’s only been 7 years since the first match-up, yet as far as what has transpired in the interim, the two are worlds apart. 

With the dominance of the Klitschkos, the heavyweight division is running out of worthy challengers.  Not only are fighters losing to Vitali and Wlad, they are doing so in such a way, that their credibility is shot for quite a while.  Their are some tournaments going on to establish new challengers, but they are mostly being done with the wrong contenders.  What has Dimnitrenko done to deserve inclusion?  And don't get me started on Jonathon Banks and Jean-Marc Mormeck... men with chin problems at cruiserweight!  Let's do a tournament the right way... MY WAY!

Cris Arreola vs. Eddie Chambers
They are both still in ESPN's bottom of the top ten.  While they are both vital contenders, they have already lost to a Klitschko, which renders them much less interesting.  However, if Haye gets another shot, so do they.  Chambers counterpunching skills make him a live underdog, but after suffering his first knockout to Wladimir, we know what can happen if his temple gets tagged, which Arreola will do, repeatedly, no matter how sloppy it looks.  Arreola by late round TKO.

WBA
What if your “super champion” is called such because he owns the WBA and IBF belts.  Then, the IBF strips him (which happens a lot).  Is he still a super champion?  What if you’ve already crowned a “regular” champion in his absence?  Does that guy get stripped, or demoted to “interim”?  What if you already have a super champion, and your regular champion also unifies with another belt holder?  Do you now have 2 super champions?  Would you still crown yet a 3rd “regular” champion?  Are any of these champions mandated to ever fight each other?  What about Chris John and Yuriorkis Gamboa?  Are they ever going to be forced to fight?  And if Gamboa was the most recent one to unify, why is he not the super champion?  What about Felix Sturm?  I don’t recall him unifying at all.

WBC
Timothy Bradley and Sergio Martinez are “emeritus” champions, correct?  Therefore, they may come back whenever, no matter what is going on the division, and challenge your current WBC champion for their belt.  What about the new regular belt-holder’s mandatory?  Is he still next in line for the winner?  Does he fight for a “silver” title?  If so, is he still in line, or does this consolation prize belt mean the champions are exempt from fighting them?  What the hell is a “diamond” belt?  If you are a Mexican with a star name or billing, are you just handed a WBC belt for your lineage?

IBF
Is there any circumstance for which a champion may be temporarily exempt from a mandatory?  Or do you just strip your new champion every six months, regardless of what kind of better offers they receive?  Are unified champions ever given a chance to defend against the other sanctioning body’s mandatory?  If not, why even bother allowing unifications?  Bravo to allowing Wladimir Klitschko to get away with it for this long, but we have a feeling the useless mandatory you’re about to saddle him with, will put an end to all of that.  Clock is ticking on Amir Khan’s new belt, too.

Floyd Mayweather vs. Victor Ortiz – Ortiz has barely gotten to enjoy anything he has accomplished in boxing before he gets knocked down a peg.  He was barely an unbeaten prospect, when a bizarre dq ended that run.  He was barely the next great Mexican-American star, when Marcos Maidana derailed him.  Now, he will get to enjoy being WBC Welterweight champion for a whopping 5 months.  Granted he will be paid very well to surrender the belt to Floyd, but that is just what he will do.  Ortiz is tough, skilled, and might buzz Floyd occasionally with a straight left, yet he may not win a round.  His heart will not come into question, as Mayweather’s backward moton will make it look as if Ortiz is trying.  The ‘Vicious’ one will gradually be worn down, however, and perhaps even stopped.  Gut instinct tells me, that Floyd won’t press the issue enough to score the KO.  Mayweather by wide unanimous decision.

Saul Alvarez vs. Alfonso Gomez
Well, I guess the next step in building a contender into a star without him actually facing any threatening competition, is the perennial contender who occasionally pulls off an upset.  They are not about to risk Erislandy Lara or Carlos Molina for young “Canelo”, but Gomez is the perfect foil.  He is another Mexican, who is popular in Los Angeles .  Gomez also is an exciting fighter who will not run, but who also has a good jab.  He will test Canelo, but not beat him.  Gomez would have to fight the perfect fight, and not get caught, or busted up.  Highly unlikely, given the increasingly good offensive skills of the young Mexican.  Gomez’ toughness does, however, almost guarantee another decision win for Alvarez.

I didn’t get a chance to make an official prediction here, as the fight was thrown together in less than two months time.  I am glad that it was, as I think the lead time most fights endure is not necessary.  Now I will join the tradition most fight writers engage in… making a detailed analysis the week of a fight.

Just when you think Zab Judah will not get any more chances, he does.  I find it odd that Shane Mosley has a handful of upsets to his credit, yet is doubted for attempting another.  Surely, he did not give a good account of himself against either Mayweather or Pacquiao, but those are the two best fighters in the world.  He has a history of fooling us, yet is not given the benefit of the doubt that he may do so once more.  Judah has no such history, yet keeps getting chances.

Other than winning 2 of the first 4 rounds from Mayweather, and avenging a defeat to Cory Spinks, has Judah ever really surprised us?  If so, he surprised us by losing.  His close shave with Lucas Matthysse is looking all the more forgiveable now that Devon Alexander had the same difficulties with the Argentinian. However, his win over Mabuza was not that impressive, given the competition, yet we are ready to anoint a second coming for the Brooklyn native.  Judah is a solid fighter, and legitimate former champion of the world, who loses against the hall-of-famers he fights.  So, why the excessive love?

Punchers are born, not made.  We hear this all the time.  Perhaps this is true, but one glance at many a fighters record will confuse any fan who buys into this.  Some fighters start out as punchers, then stop (Paulie Malingaggi KO’d his first 3 opponents, Pernell Whittaker 6 of his first 7, etc).  Others develop their power slowly.  Some blame this on “sitting down” on punches, as one transitions to a pro style from an amateur style.  Others cite confidence.  Let’s look at 3 modern examples:

Diego Magdaleno – The most recent entry into this list may not look like he belongs yet.  At first glance, 7 KO’s in 19 wins does not a puncher make.  However, when one sees that 4 of those have come in his last 4 fights, it looks a bit more impressive.  Add to that, the fact that they have come early, he looks a bit more powerful.  Then the final ingredient appears in the form of his knockouts coming as he is stepping up in class.  Funny thing is his other 3 KO’s happened in his first 6 fights... so the amateur style is not to blame.  Perhaps it’s just a matter developing his confidence.

Robert Guerrero – One of the most physically strong featherweights in the last 20 years, Guerrero has grown into a full lightweight, who is now making his debut at 140lbs.  People who are fans of the Gilroy , CA native’s recent fights, however, may be surprised to know that only 3 of his first 12 fights ended by KO.  He followed this up with a tear of first round KO’s, meaning once he had sat down on his punches, his powerful style soon developed.  That early run of distance fights, however, is to thank for his ability to box, and go the distance with confidence.

Abner Mares vs. Joseph Agbeko
A fight I believe will be well worth the wait, it is one of those where betting hearts and heads will be pitted against one another.  Both fighters have shown the ability to box or slug, and be different fighters on different nights.  The difference is Agbeko’s slight experience edge, as well as his superior skin and chin.  Mares doesn’t exactly have a major deficiency in those areas, but he is average.  Agbeko is unhurtable.  Mares will have to fight the perfect fight, both inside and out.  This is not out of the realm of possibility, and for the future of the division, it may be a better thing.  Mares is very marketable due to his heritage, promoter, location, age, and style.  Agbeko enjoys virtually none of those advantages.  However, the winner is the logical opponent for Nonito Donaire.  This is a fight that will happen if Mares wins; not necessarily if Agbeko wins.  There are so many reasons to hope Abner pulls it off, but hope does not equal expectations.  Agbeko by unanimous decision… in a fight where Mares hangs tough, and shows heart to make it to the final bell.

Kelly Pavlik vs. Daryl Cunningham
This is not a great fight for Pavilk.  He won without looking impressive last time out, and he needs a talented, yet vulnerable opponent to get us talking about him again.  This is not that fight.  Cunningham is not a puncher, but a southpaw boxer, who has two decision losses early in his career to unimpressive opposition.  His best win is a shutout decision over former title challenger Rubin Williams.  He will likely box well until Pavlik traps him and unloads.  Once again Pavlik will win, but look awkward and slow until he either takes over with aggression, or lands a big shot.  Pavlik by late-round TKO.

So, Floyd Mayweather is taking on Victor Ortiz.  I, for one, am actually glad this fight is taking place.  While I think Mayweather-Martinez would have been more historic, and pushed Mayweather past Pacquiao in the respect category, this fight still does make sense.  For those of you saying that Ortiz is getting this shot as much for his deficiencies, as he is for his strengths, I would say there is some truth to that.  However, a look at fighter’s records is a bit misleading here.

Certainly there is no comparison in the experience category.  This is Ortiz’s first recognizable belt.  Mayweather has won them in 5 weight divisions.  For those looking at unbeaten records, however, things are not as they seem.  A further analysis is necessary.  Mayweather is legitimately unbeaten, but his fights with Castillo and De La Hoya were certainly close, and perhaps may have gone the other way.  Ortiz, on the other hand, has not had the best luck.

Disqualified in his first loss, for a shady ‘Evander Holyfield in the 1984 Olympics’ style technicality, he lost his unbeaten record young.  His first draw was also in the first round, and of the technical variety.  Most people had him winning the Peterson draw, and he was ahead on all cards, having scored 3 knockdowns, when eye injuries forced him out of his fight with Maidana.  Everyone was so distracted by his unfighter-like comments after the Maidana loss, that we forgot what had transpired prior.

Lucas Matthysse is not nearly the victim he is making himself out to be.  Sure, he is doing a great job of selling the idea that he was robbed against Judah and Alexander, but let’s look at these fights objectively.  In both cases, he took rounds off when he could ill afford to.  He was cleanly outboxed in at least 1/3 of the rounds.  He has no jab, swings wildly, tries to steal rounds in the last 30 seconds, and has lousy defense.  A guy like that is never gonna look like he is dominating someone.  Also, while he may score the occasional knockdown; much like his countryman Maidana, if he cannot shorten up the punches, he is not going to stop anyone at this level.  Maidana vs. Matthysse is one of the best fights to be made in boxing.  However, that is due to their shortcomings, as much as their strengths.

Speaking of shortcomings, Guillermo Jones should just retire  Fabrice Tiozzo did the honorable thing when promoters could not get him fights.  He was incredulous that he had a title, and could not get a fight.  Therefore, he walked away.  Jones finally got two fights scheduled within the same calendar year, and he has an injury.  Just walk away, “Felino”.   You’re in your late thirties, won a belt, made some money, and had a hometown defense.  Anything more is just not meant to be.

June 24th, 2011 was Friday Fight Night at the Don Haskins Center. The featured bout was David Rodriguez Versus Owen Beck for the FeComBox Heavyweight Championship. The promotion entailed too much waste of time.

I don’t feel as if it’s a bad thing at all that Saul Alvarez is being brought along slowly.  He probably doesn’t deserve to be paid as much as he is to do so, but that’s the nature of fame in any business.  It is only a problem, if his record is being padded for money, and not for development.  I think he looked great against Ryan Rhodes, because he showed improvement in every category in which he had been criticized.

Yes, he only got the stoppage in a technical fashion, but did he really need to prove his power?  Knocking out iron-chinned Carlos Baldomir with one punch pretty much is the last test your power should ever have to take.  The areas of improvement left to see are: can he handle a slick boxer, and can he mix his offense and defense well, when another puncher is willing to trade with him.  He is almost 21 years old, and to be honest, a loss would do him good.  Look at how well Victor Ortiz has recovered.  Here are the most likely candidates to hand Alvarez that loss at 154lbs:

Paul Williams – Not the perfect opponent for Alvarez in any other way except that a loss to Williams would be highly forgiveable.  Depending on how well Williams does against Lara, it may not even be a fight Alvarez would lose.  He has the punch to hurt ‘The Punisher’.  We know that now, but he’s certain to look awful until he starts landing, and maybe even after.

It is with deep sadness and a broken heart that I write this article, in my years of writing I have written tributes and articles about the passing of people in and around the boxing world, but never in a million years could I ever have imagined that I would be paying tribute to my best friend Bob “Scooter” Carroll.

I met Bob about four or five years ago (cannot pinpoint the date because speaking with Bob one hour felt like you knew him an eternity), but I was working publicity for then heavyweight contender Brian Minto when Bob submitted a request to have Minto on his radio show Fightin’ Words Radio. As usual I botched the request so Minto’s manager took care of that, but I began speaking with Bob and he asked me to come on the show with he and Butch. I did so thinking it would be a one time deal and be done with it. But it turned out to be a life changing event that has been going on for several years now.

It was more than a radio show; it was the beginning of a bonding friendship that even death cannot break.

Ok, for the ones who are saying, who is Bob?

No he was not a heavyweight champion, this big time portrait in boxing, but he was one of the best friends that a guy could ever have. A born bread Philly fan that stayed true to his teams win lose or draw. Bob was also a long time fan of the sport of Boxing. His love as well as my passion brought us together, now our opinions on which “America’s Football Team” was, that was a bit different. Bob stayed true to his Philly roots and I stuck with mine as a Dallas Cowboy fan. Man, the debates we would have!

Boxing has been living on the outskirts of sporting fame for a few decades now.  This is a sad truth that while one star usually makes it to the mainstream (one at a time anyway), most members of the general public cannot name more than 3 active boxers, if that.  The abandonment of network television is the biggest culprit, alongside the disappearing act of the U.S. heavyweight.  While many theories are given as to the reason for this, I can trace it all back to four very important events.  Oddly enough, all of them took place 29 years ago.

Muhammad Ali Showing Wear and Tear
Not only did we have to lose him in the ring, but 1982 was the first year where we really got to see that we were slowly losing him on the microphone as well.  He’d always been slowing, and people close to Ali knew for years, but the permanence of his damage was becoming obvious.  The absence of the voice of boxing was perhaps more damaging than his retirement, as we can assume many people would tune into fights just to hear him speak.  He is still the most recognizable personality in the world, without the benefit of sound bites. We needed this in 1982, because faces and voices were disappearing fast, like…

The knockout mesmerizes people.  It is often the only way a boxer can enter the general sports highlight reels on news channels.  Sergio Martinez winning a close one over Paul Williams would have made a nice story of revenge, but we’d all be talking trilogy.  Instead, because 'Maravilla' flattened a previously rock-chinned opponent, he made everyone’s p4p lists, while Williams has dropped out of sight.  While Manny Pacquiao and Andre Ward’s recent victories have signaled an end to the string of upsets, they have not set the sporting world on fire.

Andre Ward has won 4 times in dominating fashion, since entering the Super Six tournament.  On 3 of those 4 occasions he faced a fighter with a very good chin, so the decision wins are piling up.  On the other, however, he could not put a weakened Allan Green away.  He was also recently criticized for not stepping on the gas to take out Arthur Abraham.  Pacquiao too, has had trouble with defensive minded fighters feeling his power and going into survival mode.  Now, are we to blame their extraordinary talent, combined with the lack of heart of today’s challengers?  Perhaps, but the “good enough” mentality may turn out to fall well short of enough, if we want to make true stars out of fighters.