Casamayor Hangs On and is Handed Stoppage Over Katsidis

Cuban expatriate Joel Casamayor is the linear 135 lb. titleholder and Ring Magazine consensus champion and while he finally fought like one (after losing the last time out, no matter what the judges said), I would much rather have seen Michael Katsidis take his crown. In fact, Katsidis was well on his way to doing just that when Casamayor got Katsidis in trouble in the tenth and the referee jumped in before Katsidis was floored again, perpetuating a disturbing trend of protecting a fighter who is clearly not too far gone. This trend was evident in the Friday Night Fights main event, which pitted the Irish Lee against a leads-with-his-face Contender series veteran.

First, to this fight in particular. Katsidis was in trouble in the tenth to be sure. He looked wobbly and the stoppage wasn't that bad, but...he deserved the chance to go on. He'd taken a few flush shots in a row, it's true and he was totally defensive but I would have preferred to allow an undefeated fighter fighting for a consensus world title who had acquitted himself well enough that he was ahead on the scorecards a chance to weather the storm. Katsidis earned that chance by coming off the canvas after two first round knockdowns to dominate much of the rest of the fight including an arguable 10-8 round the previous round (on a low blow deduction against Casamayor) and a knockdown of Casamayor in the sixth. He pressed the action, landed the cleaner shots and didn't allow Casamayor to rest for round after round.

I would also like to have seen the classier fighter get his due and that fighter is definitely Katsidis. Not only am I soured on Casamayor's counterpunch, smother and hug style...I saw him lose this "linear title" the last time out. In that previous fight, Casamayor was clearly outpointed and walked away with a robbery, so seeing him with his hand raised again against an arguably worthier opponent is all the more distasteful. He's refused to fight the best in the division, sitting on his title and waiting on a fight he thought was an easy win. He thought Katsidis would be just that and boy was he wrong.

Casamayor taunted Katsidis when Katsidis entered the ring in his Trojan battle helmet, getting in his face and jawing at him. This was just the beginning. Katsidis started the fight holding his right hand low and payed dearly for it. Casamayor took advantage with a left hook that dropped Katsidis and when he rose, Casamayor took advantage again, shooting a straight left through his guard to drop him again. He then proceeded to grab, butt and attempt to humiliate Katsidis by dropping his hands to his sides as he boxed plainly intent to show how much better he thinks he is than Katsidis. It was Katsidis who almost got the last laugh.

Adapting, Katsidis kept his right up to guard against those left hands and began chasing the retreating, mocking Casamayor around the ring. Casamayor's cockiness turned to cover-up as he realized Katsidis was not only not going down or having his will broken but asserting his own control over the fight. At age 35 and as a veteran counterpuncher schooled in using every dirty trick in the book, Casamayor expected he'd cowed the young warrior. He hadn't. Katsidis relentlessly pursued the veteran around the ring as Casamayor butted him, shoved him, grabbed him and bullrushed him to blunt his aggressiveness. It didn't work. It should be noted in fairness that Katsidis himself plainly showed up willing to butt right back. Happily, neither fighters head-wagging tactics caused cuts or swelling that affected the fight.

Katsidis took rounds three through nine on my card and while three of those rounds were close enough to call close, my card had the challenger Katsidis ahead 5 points up going into the 10th round. Interspersed in those rounds was a 10-8 sixth where Katsidis sent Casamayor through the ropes and a 10-8 ninth where the referee took a point from Casamayor for low blows. These extra points resulted in the breadth of the lead on my card, though that ninth might reasonably have been scored 9-9 (for Casamayor).

Katsidis had dropped Casamayor in the sixth and despite the post-fight protestations from Casamayor that he had not been hurt, he was clearly put through the ropes by punches and no loss of balance as he claimed. Driven back, Casamayor was hurt and fell seated onto the bottom rope where the pursuing Katsidis nailed him on the side of the head, knocking him completely out of the ring. In fact, a long count from the referee who stopped after counting ten because Casamayor was in the act of climbing back through the ropes, is the only thing that kept Casamayor from losing right then. His losing then would have been just. Unfortunately, the ref let him get back in the ring and fate didn't punish Casamayor the way it did Katsidis a little over three rounds later: the bell sounding the rounds' end was less than ten seconds away. He survived.

In a way, Katsidis has himself to blame, but he's such a dedicated warrior that he can not only be forgiven, but we're saddened that the villain won out again this time. Katsidis forgot to keep his right hand high going into the tenth and got caught very early in the round. The count from the ref for Katsidis this time was slow (and that was fair) and Katsidis was still clearly wobbly as Casamayor waded in, intent on finishing him. This time however, the ref wasn't slow...he jumped in waving his arms after only a few punches and while Katsidis was clearly wobbly and Casamayor's punches were finding their mark, I sure would have liked to have seen Katsidis be given a better chance to get his bearings. Katsidis was ahead 86-81 on my card at the time the ref stopped it, awarding a TKO to Casamayor, who danced around the ring and was hoisted aloft as if he'd earned the win.

Okay, so my prejudice is showing through. I am prejudiced against Casamayor not only because he was outboxed the majority of the fight, but because he has such a dirty, grabbing, butting, hugging noncombative boxing style. He was forced out of his comfort zone by the hyper-aggressive Katsidis and outpointed for the majority of the fight. Now...I can see perhaps three of the rounds going the other way, but even then Katsidis is up by two after being floored twice in the opening frame. I do tend to think that I gave Katsidis those three close rounds because he was pressing the action and because I dislike Casamayor's style so much, but they were there for the taking.

Further, Katsidis is so much classier than Casamayor. When asked if he felt he could have continued and specifically if he felt the judge had made a mistake stopping it when he did, Katsidis offered the classiest answer available: that's the refs job and I'm in no position to question it. That's the answer of a worthy fighter and while class alone does not win titles, when combined with the heart of a lion that Katsidis displays, it wins fans and ought to merit a better chance to recover than he was given (again, considering he was ahead on points late in this close fight).

I dislike Casamayor too for the very reasons that were exposed in the post-fight wrap up. Despite being knocked through the ropes, he claimed he was unhurt. Rather than giving his opponent his due, he denigrated him as not being a hard puncher. Despite Nate "The Galaxy Warrior" Campbell having just removed the fighter (Juan "Baby Bull" Diaz) that Casamayor had been obviously ducking from the immediate unification picture, he made clear he has every intention of ducking Campbell too. He's a classless punk of a blown-up amateur and his hugging Katsidis as his interview was about to start didn't make up any ground with me. Here's hoping Pacquiao is not too undersized when he comes up five pounds to blast Casamayor back into obscurity and out of contention where he belongs.

Now, to briefly address the opening of this post. In this fight, as in a horrible stoppage on FNF of the Emmanuel Steward fighter Lee, is there a trend in denying worthy fighters who've earned the right to go out on their butts their chance to do so? Lee was so clearly outboxing his ex-Contender opponent in that FNF main event that it was a joke for much of the fight. Lee looked the worse for wear, but what Irish fighter doesn't? The opponent absorbed an amazing amount of flush punishment, was down and was allowed to continue. Now...I don't mean to denigrate that kind of heart...it's surely as laudable as any pug who can absorb punishment and keep coming, but toughness is only one component of the sport and a complete and utter lack of defense is not something to be rewarded. Lee on the other hand controlled the pace of the fight until the seventh, punishing his opponent for his naked aggressiveness and got in trouble really only once. For the referee, that was all it took. When Lee went briefly defensive after a knockdown, the ref jumped in and I was left staring at my TV screen and dumbfoundedly wondering aloud, "oh my gosh...why are you stopping this? why are you stopping this?" His opponent jumped around the ring as if he deserved the gift he'd just been handed.

My heart goes out to Lee who earned the right to absorb some more punishment and slip punches until he could recover. Unlike Casamayor, this guy's punches weren't accurate and while I didn't like the Katsidis stoppage, the Lee stoppage was far more deeply unjust. It similarly took away an undefeated fighters "zero" and makes me pine for some mechanism that would prevent this kind of injustice. I know there isn't one, but we can dream. We're at the mercy of the third man and here's hoping that these men have their actions reviewed vigorously before they're allowed to climb back in the ring and strip deserving fighters of their best and perhaps only chances at scaling glory's heights in the misguided guise of protecting them from their own courage. It's a tough sport and an undefeated fighter who is ahead on the cards and acquitting himself with valor should be allowed to literally go down under fire before he's counted out.

Pacquiao Concludes His Conquest of Mexico

Having bested the icons of Mexican boxing at 130 lbs, Manny Pacquiao concluded his domination of the best Mexico has to offer in the weight class by defeating Juan Manuel Marquez, effectively preventing Marquez from staking his own claim to Mexican boxing immortality. If it had been a horserace though, it would have been a photo finish.

"Pac man" and Marquez had unfinished business after their only previous fight, a draw in 2004. Having since convincingly defeated Mexican hall of fame shoo-in warriors Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales, only Marquez stood between Pacquiao and a claim to complete domination of a weight division flush with the elite of Mexican boxing. Having knocked Marquez down three times in the first round of the 2004 fight, Pacquiao had been soundly outboxed for practically the complete remainder of that fight, eking out a draw that many (this author included) thought should have gone by decision to Marquez. This time Marquez was back to prove not only that he could avoid for twelve consecutive rounds (instead of eleven) the big left hand that had thrice floored him before, but that he could salvage Mexico's claim to supremacy at 130 lbs.. He made a good run at both, but still came up short.

The fight started tactically with the fighters staying at range, a model that clearly favored the boxer Marquez. The better counterpuncher, Marquez kept Pacquiao at range and exploited the openings created by Pacquiao's aggression. By the third round opening bell, it felt as if the tone of the fight was set and that Marquez was going to have the upper hand all night. I think Pacquiao felt it too because for the first time, he began to take risks. Jumping in and seeking chances to land flush shots, Pacquiao was eating leather for his trouble while seeking that one shot that could cripple Marquez. For any fighter but a fighter of Pacquiao's natural skill, this would be a recipe for disaster. Not for Pacquiao, though. He finally landed his shot with about 20 seconds left in the round. Flooring Marquez with a clean shot to the chin, Pacquiao retreated to the neutral corner...then, being a finisher, he stepped on the gas until the final bell. It came too soon for Pacquiao to finish him, but Marquez was definitely dazed, following Pacquiao back to his corner for a few moments after the bell. The tide was turned...for the moment.

Pacquiao came out blazing in the fourth and pressed his advantage for the first two minutes, but Marquez proved resilient and over halfway into the round, Pacquiao let up a bit when it became clear that Marquez was not any more likely to wilt this time out than he was the last time. The break allowed Marquez to get his wits about him and he came storming back in the last thirty seconds of the round. It wasn't enough to win the round on my scorecard, but it was enough to turn the tide back yet again in his favor and the fifth and sixth both reverted to the same tactical boxing match that favored Marquez and he indeed took both rounds on my card.

Perhaps again sensing the fight slipping away on the cards (and with trainer Freddy Roach telling him as much in the corner), Pacquiao found his aggression anew in the seventh, jumping in and out to give himself opportunities and taking the round as a result on this scorer's card. That jumping in and out though, caused the almost inevitable clash of heads (in fact, they'd butted noticeably several times up to that point) between the southpaw Pacquiao and the righthander Marquez. This time, Marquez suffered a cut outside his left eye. This cut, unlike a later cut, wouldn't bother him much.

Coming out after his first cut in the eighth, Marquez showed a renewed determination to force a tactical fight and in doing so cut Pacquiao with a punch in a bad spot, under his right eyelid. The cut occurred early in the round and clearly affected Pacquiao. Ever the good tactician, Marquez pressed his advantage, going after the eye and forcing the action. Pacquiao stayed away and battled back where he could, waiting for the bell so his corner could assess the damage. When they did, between the eighth and ninth, they did an amazing job of stopping the flow of blood. While it swelled, it never really flowed again for the remainder of the fight and Pacquiao wasn't bothered by it.

Marquez' turn came in the next round, when a Pacquiao punch cut him over his right eye. This time referee Kenny Bayless, noticing how deep, wide and dangerously placed the cut was right away stopped the action and ordered the ringside physician to examine the fighter. The fight was allowed to go on, which at the time, once I saw the cut between rounds, I felt was the wrong decision. It looked to be nearly two inches long, in the swollen underside of the eyelid and clearly separating and deep. I said aloud "stop the fight...", as much as I didn't want the result. I was wrong. In fact, the cutmen in both corners did incredible jobs of stopping the blood flow from both fighters' cuts, but the Marquez cutman was a magician. In a move I'd never witnessed (and unless my eyes decieved me) he actually put in and left in a piece of string (?), sending his fighter back into the 10th with the string actually inside the open wound. It worked. Unbelievably, the cut was not a factor from that point on.

However, Marquez' momentum was gone and in the first half of the 10th, he was visibly shaken by a clean shot from Pacquiao and though he fought back valiantly toward the conclusion of that frame, lost on my card. The 11th was so close that it could have gone either way. After the bell ending the round sounded, I still couldn't decide and as the break ticked away, I tried to come down on one side or the other. I finally gave it Pacquiao based on the momentum he had carried into the round and maintained in the first half and because he seemed to answer the counters by Marquez that were turning the tide, but it easily could have been scored for Marquez. That round was a round that, had I scored it for Marquez, would have flipped the result on my card. The final round went to Marquez based on his being more effective and landing more clean shots.

The official judges came out 112-115 for Marquez, 115-112 for Pacquiao and the final tie breaking judge in the split decision scoring it 114-113 for Pacquiao. My scorecard matched this third judge and I can't help but wonder if his card was like mine: that 11th round, that was so close that it was practically a coin-flip, went to Pacquiao and gave him the fight. If so, it is a cruel fate indeed for a fighter to come so close to the kind of redemption that Marquez forever sought in the eyes of the Mexican fight fans...and yet to fall short. That said, it was hard to feel sorry for him when he was less than charitable in the post-fight interviews through an interpreter. I must admit that, were I a fighter, I too would find it very difficult to hide my own disgust if I'd worked so singlemindedly for a goal that was within my grasp, only to feel it had been unfairly denied me by the judges. But then...this is the fight game and if your dominance is not proven by having the other fighter stretched out on the canvas by the time the final bell tolls...then it goes to the cards. I've seen many competitors work like madmen to the final bell, suffer questionable decisions, then shrug the robberies away...knowing that once the result left their hands that anything could happen.

Marquez had room to complain, but ironically not nearly as much as the last time out. This time, he'd not consistently outboxed a much technically improved Pacquiao. He'd showed his counterpunching brilliance at times, but he'd still landed on his butt in the fourth, clearly badly shaken and been rattled noticeably again in the tenth. Noone can question his resilience and his commitment, but he had not similarly jarred Pacquiao even once. For his part, Pacquiao still ceded the edge in footwork and tactical skill to Marquez, but not nearly by as wide a margin this time out. As was noted by the HBO commentators (who did another fantastic job), Marquez was always set to punch, while Pacquiao was frenetic, in and out and punching from unset positions. But, as also noted by the HBO team, Pacquiao's edge lies in his punching power. He has "heavy hands", and even glancing blows tend to stun and even drop his opponents. That is the kind of talent that can't be taught. When combined with boxing skill, that innate talent makes a formidable prizefighter indeed. This night, Pacquiao had improved enough as a boxer to stay close enough when it was a boxing match and still exploit his natural talent when the opportunity presented. He deserved the win and may now move to 135 lbs. Here's hoping he does, because he's certainly paid dues enough for two hall of fame careers at 130lbs.

Peter Gets a Seat at the Table and the Galaxy Warrior Outworks Diaz

That Juan "Baby Bull" Diaz could be outworked was the surprise of the Saturday night March 8, 2008 HBO card. That Sam Peter could knock out Oleg Maskaev was no surprise at all.

With this win, Sam Peter vaulted himself into position to demand a rematch (that sadly, he probably won't get right away) with Wladimir Klitschko. Here's to once again hoping that Vitali Klitschko suffers yet another training injury and retires so that we don't have to wait for the WBC chicanery to sort itself out while the elder Klitschko tries to steal a title shot he hasn't earned to attempt to win a belt he won't meaningfully defend (against his own brother in a unification bout). Welcome to boxing politics. To the fight...

This fight ended exactly as predicted, but it didn't get there as anticipated. Maskaev didn't come out smoking the way I expected he would. While he and Peter didn't exactly pose the first round away, each spent time testing the others speed and quickness. I felt Peter got the better of it because he landed a big shot where Maskaev let his hands go a bit, but didn't manage to land much. As I wrote in this space before the fight, there was no strategy employable by Maskaev that would get him out of that ring in one piece with his title.

That may be a little unfair to Maskaev, who definitely earned his spot in the ring by knocking out Hasim Rahman 16 months before...but Rahman is no Sam Peter. Maskaev is a sound boxer, but again showed that he's no champion. He does nothing so well that it stands out. Boxers like him do indeed get to hold belts for a while, but they invariable fold to talents like those of Sam Peter.

Maskaev got in trouble in the 3rd, but rebounded. He clearly thought that he'd have his best chance counterpunching, but since he isn't faster than Peter, he couldn't move around him to outbox him. Since he isn't stronger than Peter, he couldn't walk him backward. So he tried to stay just out of range and counterpunch. That was a recipe for disaster and though that recipe took nearly 18 full minutes to cook all the way through, when it did it...Maskaev was completely done (and undone).

The open scoring format that had the announcer telling the crowd (and the fighters) at the beginning of the 5th round that Peter was ahead by 2 rounds already by that point surely destroyed Maskaev's confidence in his strategy to try to outbox Peter. He might have deluded himself that it was working, if not for that cold bucket of reality. Perhaps that caused him to stay in the pocket a bit more, but if it did I didn't notice it. I only had one of the first four rounds close, but I had given the 4th to Maskaev (which made my score 39-37 matching two of the three official judges). He could not have known that and for that reason, among so many others, open scoring is an amazingly bad idea: it materially affects the fight. That's topic for another day though. In this fight, frankly it probably didn't matter.

While it was a more tactical fight than I expected until Peter knocked Maskaev out, the result was the same. I was frankly glad not to see the Peter of three years ago, flailing away with roundhouses at the opening bell until his opponent wilts. He can't keep that up at this level and there's a puncher's chance that even against Maskaev, that bravado could have had Peter end up the one flat on his back. Peter showed more restraint than that, which was a vast improvement over his short-notice fight against Jameel McCline. Against McCline, he so clearly underestimated McCline and failed to respect him that he reverted to his old self and indeed did get caught and dropped before rising, collecting himself and grinding out a decision. He was only capable of that because McCline stupidly thought he could coast on 4 rounds of good work. Peter wasn't about to let that happen this time. As expected, he'd prepared for Maskaev.

For his part, Maskaev played up every angle. He complained and gestured at the back of his head, trying to take advantage of Peter's earned and mildly unfair reputation for rabbit punching. Peter loops his hooks and Maskaev, like every opponent, bobs forward to duck and takes a whack behind the ear. Now...this doesn't explain every rabbit punch that Peter throws, but he gets dinged for it a lot more than he deserves. Guys duck and get nailed. Maskaev was transparent in his efforts to get a point deducted for what he was trying to have judged a foul. It was unseemly, but then again Maskaev was the one in the ring with Sam Peter and trying to exploit every advantage can be forgiven to some extent when one is so clearly outmatched. While the outcome seemed uncertain at times because of the tactical nature of the fight, you only had to consider who was stalking and who was trying to counterpunch from safety to see in whose favor the odds were stacked. It was just a matter of time and sure enough, at the end of round 6 Maskaev got caught and Peter swarmed in. Peter is a good finisher and Maskaev never stood a chance. But that was true from the beginning. This was the fight Maskaev massaged every available angle to avoid. Now we know why.

The other big fight of the night was the fight in which I predicted that Nate "The Galaxy Warrior" Campbell was a very bad matchup for the champion Juan "Baby Bull" Diaz and if I were Diaz' promoter, I would never have let him fight. But when I wrote that I honestly forgot that Diaz' promoter is Don King. Let me put it this way: notice where Don King was standing after the fight...behind Nate Campbell. Now in some fights you could forgive the promoter for not standing in behind the loser...but promoting both fighters and then standing behind the new champion during the interviews and leaving the battered young champion who'd just taken his first loss because of your machiavellian matchmaking standing alone to explain his loss...priceless Don.

Diaz actually looked like he had an off night, but it may well have been because Nate Campbell was just too strong and too motivated. Diaz' calling card is his punch output and his go-forward style. He leaves himself open as he wades in working the body, throwing in great combination and not stopping to breathe...but he had never been made to pay for his lack of defense until this fight. Campbell, 12 years Diaz' senior, at age 36 surely knew this was his last shot at being in the lightweight mix. For whatever reason, Don King decided to give Nate his dream shot and match his young, articulate and up-and-coming champion with tons of upside against a desperate super tough bomb dropping pro who would be the toughest possible fight for Diaz with the smallest possible upside.

I'm going to guess (because I don't know) that Don King's contract with the Baby Bull is limited or coming to an end. I'm also going to guess that Don's contract with The Galaxy Warrior is ironclad and weighted toward Don in such a way that Don is the one with the upside if Nate comes out on top. Don now gets to keep his WBC title in his stable and deal a crushing blow to a career that was just about to leave his control (perhaps for Golden Boy?). I should again add that I don't know the truth or falsity of this...but it just adds up.

In any case, Campbell fought the right fight. He outworked Diaz and when he cut Diaz over his left eye, he worked to swell it and keep the blood flowing. Campbell threw his head around in the clinches and rolled his shoulders around while leaning in on Diaz. He stayed in the pocket all night and came prepared to outfight Diaz at his own game. That's exactly what he did. He outworked the volume puncher and since he hits harder, he did a lot of damage. Diaz is a young man with a bright future (not just in boxing) and since he doesn't hit hard, here's hoping he takes some time off, gets a new promoter and regroups. He's got a few years left on a career like his and his style is so exciting that he should stay in and make some money before getting out but let's hope he keeps his promise to his mother and gets out with enough marbles to make it through law school. His story is only inspiring if it doesn't end up with him selling pencils out of a cup on a streetcorner.

The split decision went 114-112 Diaz and 115-112 and 116-111 Campbell. I had it 115-112 for Campbell and I had Campbell pitching a shutout from the 6th round on. Campbell was acceptably gracious at the post-fight interview to Diaz' face, but otherwise he was almost totally without class. That's a shame, so perhaps the next thing someone will teach him is how to behave like a champion now that he's earned the right to call himself one. He earned that right in the ring Saturday night. I should add that at no point do I mean to imply that Don King handed Nate Campbell the title. He did not. Campbell earned it by outhustling, outhitting and outperforming a fighter who had made it all the way to the top impressively by outhustling everybody he fought. Diaz had worn down every fighter he'd ever faced, but he couldn't wear down Nate Campbell.

The last fight of the night took place on the other network. If HBO is the classy call girl network of pay channel boxing, then Showtime is the skanky whore. You only go to Showtime if HBO isn't working and you know what to expect ...and although it's what you bargained for...it's almost always disappointing. Okay...so the analogy isn't perfect...but calling Showtime boxing a skanky whore is.

On Showtime, a cruiserweight that I had heard of knocked out another cruiserweight I'd never heard of. They were both Brits and of mild interest was that the loser was trained by Enzo Calzaghe, father of Joe. Until now, I'd thought I'd understood that Joe was trained his whole life only by his father...which may still be true...but I was surprised to see that the father was taking the time train other championship (I guess) level fighters.

Anyway...David "The Hayemaker" Haye (the guy I'd heard of) made pretty short work of the other guy Enzo Macaranelli (yes, Enzo was training Enzo...weird, huh? is that a popular name over there that hasn't caught on here? maybe it will...like the Beatles...). Haye was quicker and despite showing a deeply flawed style that I think is going to get him annhilated against the elite level of the heavyweight division, he clearly overmatched this Macaranelli guy. Haye waited on the other guys' jab and slipping it, he brought his big straight right hand in over the top and cracked him, but good. It took two such good shots to put him in a position to be finished off at 2:02 of the second round.

They fought the fight at 2 am London time, presumably to get it on Showtime at 9pm for a US audience and after the second round knockout, Haye fell all over himself thanking Showtime for airing it. He also took the opportunity to repeatedly arrogantly refer to himself in the third person as "The Hayemaker" and call out the entire heavyweight division: "look out...the Hayemaker is comin'!"

Now...as to how "The Hayemaker" will do against...let's not even say Sam Peter (3rd round KO, at best)...let's put him in against any one of the recently vanquished heavyweight champions. Either Maskaev or Sultan Ibragimov make 8 round work of Haye. Why? Because he carries his left hand low and hangs his chin out over his front foot to try and land a jab that he brings up from his waist. That pretty face of his will get battered (he's apparently done some modelling?) by a technician and if Haye thinks heavyweights are slow, he doesn't realize that most of the guys he's been fighting are fighting there because they either don't have the skills, the weight or the punch to come up to heavyweight.

The guys up there aren't slow...not at the level of guys he's calling out (or even right below). I think Haye gets exposed before he can make a dent at the highest level of the heavyweight division. That said, Haye may well be the best cruiserweight in the world. He now holds the WBA, WBC and WBO belts and understandably proudly donned the Ring belt too in the ring after the fight. But let's not forget that the cruiserweight division was created as boxings equivalent of an afterthought to give guys who were unfairly matched against what is an unlimited weight class right above them. Only one fighter has ever climbed from cruiser to meaningfully contend as a heavyweight and he was at ringside: Evander Holyfield. Generally speaking, being the best fighter in the world at cruiserweight is like being the best thief in the whole prison.

Predictions for Saturday March 8th, 2008

Oleg Maskaev v. Sam Peter - Finally, Sam Peter gets old Oleg in the ring. I have little doubt that we'll see the reason that Maskaev has been ducking Peter for as long as he's held this alphabet heavyweight belt and Peter has been the mandatory challenger. Peter will come prepared to take the title away and since he'll have his eyes on the prize, he'll relentlessly pursue Maskaev and pound on him.

While it's true that Maskaev can box and hits hard enough to discourage any heavyweight, Peter has a very solid chin and can box a bit too...when he wants to. That's not going to matter much and I doubt Peter will see the need to break out any of the real boxing skills he showed in Toney II. Where Peter has the advantage here is his power. He can knock out any heavyweight with one punch and hits hard enough that even glancing blows do serious damage. By comparison, Maskaev has be sitting down on his punch and catch an opponent flush to do close that kind of damage. Peter can knock a man to his knees off his back foot. It's the difference between a guy who throws a 92 mph fastball and a 100 mph fastball. One guy has to learn to throw two other pitches and hit his spots to stay in the show, while the other just goes out an blows batters away at every level. Peter has that gift and when he pays attention, he brings it to bear. He'll pay attention because this will be his best chance yet to meaningfully get in the mix in the heavyweight division, get an alphabet belt and therefore a place at the table in the unification discussion that will get him his coveted rematch with Wladimir Klitschko.

The erstwhile champion Maskaev has the two options that any boxer has against a huge puncher: 1- try to back him up, keep him fighting uncomfortably off his back foot all night and either knock him out or keep him defensive or; 2- get on his horse and stay away, pile up what points he can get from range, stay out of danger and look for counterpunching opportunities and go for a points win if no real plum opportunities present.

Maskaev's problem is that he's not a good enough (or more to the point, energetic enough) boxer to pull off number two and if he stays in the pocket to try to do number one, he'll probably get knocked out quickly. He's not nearly as physically imposing as Peter, their reach is probably about the same (Maskaev may have a slight advantage) and Peter is probably quicker. Their chins are about the same. Maskaev on the other hand is technically sound and he hits hard, but he doesn't do any one thing particularly well or particularly poorly. He's a solid fighter, but no champion. That's what sets Peter apart...he does do one thing exceptionally well: he knocks guys out. We learned he can box too...but sadly I doubt we'll see as much of that as we'd like. I had high hopes after watching Peter outbox James Toney in their rematch, but I came back to earth after watching an underprepared Peter squeak by Jameel McCline.

I think what we'll see is Maskaev come out aggressive to try and get Peter's respect. He may get it, but he's just as likely to get knocked out in the first round. If he survives standing in the pocket and trying to back Peter off, he'll fail after two or three rounds and he'll start backing up and boxing, looking for counterpunching opportunities. They will be too few and far between . Peter will pursue and absorb some counters for his trouble, but he'll eventually cripple Maskaev with a big shot and it will all become academic. I see this fight ending by KO in Peter's favor by round 8 at the latest. If Maskaev stays away, content to lose on the cards, it will be a lopsided decision win for Peter. On paper, this is a no-win situation for Maskaev and in fact that is the very reason he's been hoping that time, the sanctioning body, a substitute opponent (Jamel McCline almost gave him his wish), a big Vitali Klitschko comeback (and a bigger money fight in which to lose the title) or a random bus would prevent this matchup. He's run out of excuses and he's going to end up handing over the belt...probably from flat on his back. I'll be very surprised by any other outcome. But then...that's why they fight the fights.

Juan "Baby Bull" Diaz v. Nate "The Galaxy Warrior" Campbell - This a far more dangerous fight for Diaz than I would have made for him at this stage. He's got too much to lose and too little to gain. Nate Campbell is a proven guy with a very good chin and he can punch. That's not to say that Diaz is out of his league, but putting your undefeated record, title and future earning potential (at least in part) on the line against a guy only the die-hard FNF fan knows is a risky decision. I do see Diaz winning, but definitely by decision and definitely absorbing a lot more punishment than would be ideal for a guy with his upside and fighting style. Now...I recognize that the sentiment above is completely unfair to Campbell. He is a guy who's made his bones and deserves his shot. It's just that if I'm Diaz' promoter... there's no way I give that shot to Campbell. Diaz could get knocked out and all that upside would be shattered...and as anyone who watches the fight game knows...once humpty dumpty's undefeated record is gone by KO, too often all the king's horses and all the king's men can't put humpty together again. That said, I'll play the percentages and take Diaz and his workrate wear'em out style over Campbell's bombs and call it for Diaz by decision 8 rounds to 4.

David Haye v. Enzo Macarenelli - Okay, I'll be honest...I'm not even sure I'm spelling Enzo's name right. I don't know him and from what little I've read about Haye, I know he's a former male model who looks cut, hits hard and has tried to rehabilitate his image after a loss derailed him a while back. They're both supposed to be punchers and at cruiserweight that should be worth watching. Since it's on Showtime, I'll fast forward to the fighting. They both take knockdowns, but Haye by KO in 6.

Vasquez v. Marquez III: What a fight! Now Tune in For MMA!!!

While the title of this article is actually intended to mock the Showtime announcer/carnival barker Steve Albert, in fact it's true: what a fight! It's nice when a fight lives up to it's billing and when it's the rubber match of a trilogy between two Ring top ten P4P fighters, it's all the better. This past Saturday night just such a fight was shoddily broadcast on Showtime and the quality of the matchup and the hearts and skills of the fighters shone through.

Everybody who watched the first two fights knew that Vasquez hits harder. Marquez knew it. Marquez also knew he was a little faster and a bit better boxer. So that's why we witnessed the power puncher Vasquez chase Marquez almost all night. The "almost" applied to the last two rounds when, while Marquez seems to be saying he coasted (when he shouldn't have), Vasquez finally wore Marquez down. What Marquez tried to spin in the post-fight as calculating care was obviously to the observer a fighter who could run, dodge, dance and jab for 10 rounds...but not for all 12.

These guys fought all night. Marquez stuck and moved, while Vasquez relentlessly advanced. Vasquez ate a lot of leather for his trouble and you've got to be a very tough man to absorb as many clean shots from a fighter of Marquez' caliber, walk through them and keep pursuing...but that's exactly what Vasquez did. From the outset, Marquez' jab was sharp and he circled, beating Vasquez to the punch over and over. But as early as the second round, it was clear that the reason he was moving so much was to stay off the ropes and to avoid getting caught. Now...this is a legitimate boxer's tactic and on balance a good one against a puncher whom you can't walk down. But there's no easy road against a hard puncher and of the two ways to go, staying away and outboxing a puncher is the more tiring. By fight's end, Marquez' choice showed and although he'd done a lot of damage himself, the damage he'd absorbed showed more clearly. He'd done what he could to even it up...even bending the rules, but it wasn't enough.

Marquez hit Vasquez low. Was it to slow him down? Well...Vasquez never did it and they were in the same ring. Marquez hit low in the 3rd. He was warned. Marquez hit low in the 6th. He was warned. Marquez hit low in the 10th. A point was taken and to watch Marquez you'd have thought he was being pickpocketed. He didn't low again, though. How about that? Marquez did inflict some damage here and there though. Vasquez went down in the 4th, stunned. He stood and dominated the rest of the round and were it not for Marquez' refusal to let an accumulation of blows put him to the canvas, he would have been down himself.

Marquez moved all night. Sometimes he was able to escape Vasquez and sometimes not but when he couldn't, the damage began to pile up. In the 12th, for the first time all fight, Marquez grabbed Vasquez. He was shot. For his trouble, Vasquez pounded him every concievable way. He worked him high, low and in between. He staggered him and then...for the first time all fight and in the 12th and final round and with only 4 seconds left in the fight, he put him down. Marquez' behind or gloves didn't touch the canvas...but he fell defenseless into the corner post, driven back by punches, his legs splayed out and he caught a big punch flush before being held from the canvas by the post and ropes. At that moment, the referee stepped in because no matter how little time remained, he saw a fighter in deep trouble.

After the fight Marquez protested the standing eight count he received, but once he watches the tape, he'll probably be ashamed at the fuss he made. At the time in the fight when he should have been trying to finish, he was holding on while Vasquez was finishing. As between two very tough, talented and dedicated fighters, the better man won.

I gave the first three rounds to Marquez, but the fourth only went to Marquez 9-8 despite his knockdown of Vasquez because the knockdown seemed to energize Vasquez. Vasquez dominated the remainder of the round thoroughly. He caught Marquez flush repeatedly as Marquez dropped the boxing and foolishly tried to finish Vasquez. In the fifth, Marquez picked up where he left off and by the end of round 5, I had Marquez ahead by 5 full rounds. In a 12 round fight that is a huge mountain to climb...but on my card, Vasquez did it.

Getting hit low in the 6th, he seemed to be catching up to Marquez and landing more solidly. Unlike Marquez, when Vasquez landed, the effect was noticeable. Marquez would slow almost imperceptibly, back off...try to regroup...but Vasquez always gave chase. Relentless, Vasquez turned the tide, himself reeling off three of four straight rounds. At this point, I must admit that some of these rounds were so close with both men punching and connecting so much that they could have gone either way. I literally marked all of the first eleven rounds as close rounds on my card. This fight though, like many fights, has a life all it's own...an ebb and a flow...and the fighters go with it or fight to turn it. I had the 7th so close that I literally couldn't call it...only reluctantly later giving it to Marquez based on a check mark I'd placed next to his 10 of an otherwise 10-10 round.

In the 9th and 10th Marquez was on his horse again, sticking and moving and he turned the tide back and won the 10th on my card, only to lose it again by drawing it to a 9-9 round based on his low blow (a point that deserved to be taken, in case my earlier point was missed). That seemed to finish Marquez, but even he didn't know it. Ten rounds of staying away from Vasquez was all he had in him. His left eye was closing and Vasquez saw it through his own swollen but open eyes. Vasquez began to work overhand rights and land both hands as Marquez went defensive in an effort to survive a fight he seemed to say afterwards he felt he had won. Well...he would have been right if he hadn't faded so very badly.

If a fighter doesn't clinch...not once, for the first 33 minutes of a fight, it's so very obvious when he does so repeatedly in the final 3 minute frame. As Vasquez chased Marquez around the ring beating him down, Marquez stopped only to grab and hold. Spreading his arms to free himself and show that he was not initiating or perpetuating the clinches, Vasquez separated himself as soon as he could and continued his singleminded quest: to win the 12th round so big that he could overcome any hole he'd dug. He did just that. He was trying to avoid it going to the cards and if he'd had 30 more seconds or if the ref hadn't stepped in with seconds to spare, he would have knocked Marquez out. He didn't have to. He beat him so thoroughly that he took the 12th on my card 10-8 before the standing 8 count, making the final round on my card 10-7.

When I added up my card, I found mine matched the tie-breaking card of the third judge: 113-112 for Vasquez. The other two judges saw it for each fighter 114-111 and it was close enough most rounds that I could understand those scores even if I don't agree. That means a two round swing and two judges went opposite directions in two respective rounds. As I've said, apart from the 12th, every round was close, if not exactly a pick'em (except the 7th...toss a coin for that one).

Now to the disgrace that is Showtime boxing. Okay...that's a little harsh. I subscribe and tune in, so how bad could it be? Pretty bad. I can live with the TV camera ogling of the ring card girls. They're a part of boxing and if I were there live and they were good looking, I would stare too. Showing them between every round in a boxing broadcast (instead of, for example, cherry-picking the cutest girls to showcase) is kind of cheesy. But after, all...it's boxing...like Ricky Hatton often says in a completely different context...it's not a tickling contest, is it now?

I can even live with the classless pre-fight interviews by the clueless stiff of a barbie doll shamelessly promoting Elite XC fighting by interviewing MMA fighters to promote (I guess to boxing fans?) that newest venture by Showtime. I find it repugnant, but at least I can TiVo fast forward right past it. With a Showtime broadcast, I make sure to leave enough lead time.

The show promotions that litter the bottom 20% or so of the screen during actual rounds is just disgusting. I want to reach out and (metaphorically) punch the producer of the show right in the mouth. If I want to see the Tudors or the L Word or Dexter (which I do in fact, enjoy), I'll tune in...but exactly what demographic are you trying to reach here? I think no thought at all is put into it. I think it's just low class carnival barker salesmanship.

Now, speaking of carnival barkers, Steve Albert has got to go. How did this guy get this job? We've already tuned in. Please stop screaming at us. Please stop telling us how great the fight is that we're already watching. Do you think we'll all tune away unless you remind us how great the fight is? Clearly you do. In the 6th round, having to listen to "they make for such great entertainment! It's almost beyond belief!!! shouted so loudly you'd think he were standing next to a jet engine is hardly worthwhile comment. If by the 10th round of this fight in particular anyone has tuned out, I don't think that this nugget is going to keep them interested: "Jack Nicholson! Taking it all in!! You know it's a good spectacle when he's here!!!" I would prefer they trained a monkey to screech incessantly between rounds, then Al Bernstein could still punctuate those screeches with the same comments between the monkey's breaths and we could drop the pretense altogether.

Speaking of Al, he is the sole redeeming part of the broadcasts...but he's so overwhelmed by the crap that he's like Archie Manning on the 1970s Saints. It's hard to see how good he is because he has zero supporting cast. Al astutely pointed out that he didn't have it all that close after the 5th, mildly doing his best to answer the caterwauling of Albert that the fight was so close it was the greatest single spectacle in the history of mankind. In fact, to that point...while it was indeed an exceptionally good fight...Marquez was winning all of the rounds. One knock on Al and it's a mild one: In the 10th, Al said that he felt the fight was so good that he almost didn't care how it was scored. Well...Al, come on and commit. If it's that great a fight, say you don't care. It's okay. That shows respect for the fighers efforts. That's what you meant to say, isn't it?

This was a great fight. A definite early contender for fight of the year. The boxer versus the puncher. Two great fighters in the prime of their careers, matching skills, wills and fists for the WBC (and concensus Ring) championship at 122 pounds. These were little men with big hearts and heavy hands. I appreciate it being brought to me not on pay per view, I'll say that. It worked out for Vasquez that he indeed has the heavier hands. It worked out for all of us that we got to witness it. What a fight!