Not having seen Eddie Chambers fight before this Saturday, I was intrigued to see him go up against Alexander Povetkin. The announcers made it sound like Povetkin had the edge because of his extensive amateur background and the tougher competition he had faced thus far in his pro career.
Early on though, it looked like Chambers was the slicker boxer, showing good movement, an ability to deliver quick and accurate counter shots and good defensive technique that allowed him block a majority of Povetkin's punches. Povetkin's strategy was to keep up a high volume and keep coming forward behind combinations all night, and while it didn't work that well for the first few rounds, it proved to be too much for Chambers in the long run.
I'm not sure if Chambers just couldn't figure out how to beat Povetkin to the punch or, as the announcer suggested, he tasted some power shots from Povetkin and decided he just couldn't get hit. Regardless, he looked like a boxer who did not have a Plan B in case his Plan A failed.
A lot of people are drawing similarities between Chambers and Chris Byrd, but I'm not so sure I see them. Both men would rather counter-punch than push the action and both are smallish heavyweights. That's about it. They fight from different stances, and while Chambers showed some good 'D' by blocking punches with his guard up, Byrd in his prime was a true defensive wizard who was adept and blocking, slipping and just plain evading leather thrown his way. I know when I saw Byrd fight Evander Holyfield back in 2002, he pulled off some ridiculous moves that left Evander swinging at thin air. Nothing like that jumped out at me from Chambers Saturday night.
Assuming that Wladimir Klitschko gets past Sultan Ibragimov next month - and I think that's a safe assumption - a lot of people are already talking about Povetkin getting the next shot at Wlad. After what I saw this weekend, he's also going to need a Plan B, or else Klitschko is going to knock him out. Wlad is just an all-around better boxer than Chambers at this point, and if he figures out how to land some counter shots, they will hurt.
28.1.08
26.1.08
Round by Round: Povetkin Vs. Chambers
We're not quite live on HBO's Boxing After Dark for a heavyweight showdown. First up though, a replay of last week's Roy Jones-Felix Trinidad fight. Since I didn't see it live, here are my quick impressions: neither man looked horrible, but neither looked great either. Roy just looked too fast on offense and too big for Tito's punches to have enough effect. Both guys look like they can keep fighting. I still like Joe Calzaghe over Jones if they do meet up in the near future, and I thought it was interesting hearing the announcers speculate that Trinidad may face Oscar De La Hoya again down the road. Max Kellerman says they can hold onto that card and play it later, as their names would sell the fight regardless of what happens in the meantime.
More from Kellerman on Jones-Trinidad: he thinks last week's fight may have been a pretty good indication of what would have happened if they fought in their primes. Also he thinks De La Hoya at a catch-weight may make more sense for Jones than Calzaghe, Kelly Pavlik, etc. Lennox Lewis likes Povetkin in tonight's fight thanks to his amateur background and better pro competition.
Very dramatic opening with Michael Buffer introducing the White Lion, Alexander Povetkin. Scantily clad goose-stepping girls wave flags for Povetkin as he walks out through a hallway that looks like it came from a video game. I'm not making this up. Eddie Chambers comes out to "Good Life" by Kanye West. Buffer always does a nice job learning his foreign languages, by the way.
Rd. 1
Povetkin opens with some jabs. He finds the range with both hands early. Now Chambers scores with a right and a left upstairs. Povetkin works the body, backing Chambers up. Povetkin throwing more but Chambers is pretty good on defense. Chambers lands to the body right before the bell.
Franchise: 10-9 Chambers
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 2
Super polite fans; you can hear individual voices. Povetkin is much busier early but Chambers' gloves catches most of them. Counter lefts are scoring by Chambers, but not very often. Povetkin finally slips a few through upstairs. Lennoz thinks Eddie should be busier. Chambers good right hand. Nice exchange right before the bell. Mouse starting to form under Povetkin's left eye.
Franchise: 10-9 Chambers
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 3
Povetkin opens with his best combos so far. Left by Chambers and Povetkin scores in return. Both men score on counter shots. Good right hand upstairs by Chambers. Another right just glances off by Eddie. Povetkin working the body but not all scoring.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 4
Another mean counter right by Chambers. Jabs by Eddie and Povetkin's return fire is once again mostly blocked. Good right by Povetkin knocks Eddie off balance. Double lefts by Chambers; Povetkin is starting to fidn the range now too. Good left by Eddie but he can't capitalize with any follow-up shots. Very close round.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 5
Chambers starts this round with a little more urgency. Lewis wants more jabs. Povetkin tries to trap Chambers on the ropes, but no dice. Two quick counter lefts land from Chambers. Body work by Chambers in the middle of the ring. Povetkin finds the range with lefts downstairs and up. The jab is working for Eddie, especially this round. Both men just miss with big shots at the bell.
Franchise: 10-9 Chambers
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 6
Povetkin controls the opening seconds, still throwing in volume. Ref tells Eddie to keep them up. Chambers finally starts scoring about halfway through the round. More of Povetkin's combo shots are getting through now. Good right hook by Povetkin. Chambers just not busy enough, and Povetkin has found a few chinks in the armor. Good right at the bell by Eddie but that was Povetkin's best round so far.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 7
Povetkin just misses with a huge right. Volume still heavily favoring Alexander. Nice right at the end of a combo; Chambers seems unhurt. Now Chambers finds the target with a few lefts. Pretty uneventful round with Povetkin looking a little tired and Chambers still not throwing enough.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 8
Povetkin changing heights but Chambers finally trying to answer. Uppercut inside by Chambers but Povetkin answers. Lewis thinks Povetkin has to be careful about punching himself out. The uppercut is starting to become an option for Chambers. Both guys get hit by a shot at the end of the round.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 9
Povetkin seems to have lost some starch on his punches; Chambers lands a right hand. Quick 1-2 by Eddie. Inside combo mostly lands by Chambers. Eddie trying to come forward a little more, but Povetkin still making it almost impossible to get off first. A couple more light shots by Chambers to end the round. That was another tough round to score.
Franchise: 10-9 Chambers
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 10
Close range exchange which hasn't happened often tonight. Also some holding. Povetkin's work rate seems to be carrying this round as well. Uppercut by Chambers but nothing else behind it. Good combo by Povetkin and a couple land. Hook inside by Chambers; Povetkin closes out the round strong though.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 11
Chambers' corner tells him he needs a KO now. He isn't exactly throwing caution to the wind though. Combo from Povetkin with a little more behind it now. Body work by Povetkin and a right upstairs snaps Chambers back. Crowd giving Povetkin more energy now. It's admirable, but Povetkin is probably taking more chances than he needs to at this point. He's fighting like the guy who thinks he needs these last rounds.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 12
Alexander looks really winded but all he has to do is hold on and I think he's got it. Chambers missing the counter shots he would have landed earlier. Povetkin still working. He goes to town along the ropes, spurred on by the crowd. It's three-shot combos and back out for Povetkin, and Chambers has no answer.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Franchise scores it 116-112 Povetkin, Uatu scores it 115-113 Povetkin. The judges score it 117-111, 116-112 and 119-109, all for the winner, Alexander Povetkin.
More from Kellerman on Jones-Trinidad: he thinks last week's fight may have been a pretty good indication of what would have happened if they fought in their primes. Also he thinks De La Hoya at a catch-weight may make more sense for Jones than Calzaghe, Kelly Pavlik, etc. Lennox Lewis likes Povetkin in tonight's fight thanks to his amateur background and better pro competition.
Very dramatic opening with Michael Buffer introducing the White Lion, Alexander Povetkin. Scantily clad goose-stepping girls wave flags for Povetkin as he walks out through a hallway that looks like it came from a video game. I'm not making this up. Eddie Chambers comes out to "Good Life" by Kanye West. Buffer always does a nice job learning his foreign languages, by the way.
Rd. 1
Povetkin opens with some jabs. He finds the range with both hands early. Now Chambers scores with a right and a left upstairs. Povetkin works the body, backing Chambers up. Povetkin throwing more but Chambers is pretty good on defense. Chambers lands to the body right before the bell.
Franchise: 10-9 Chambers
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 2
Super polite fans; you can hear individual voices. Povetkin is much busier early but Chambers' gloves catches most of them. Counter lefts are scoring by Chambers, but not very often. Povetkin finally slips a few through upstairs. Lennoz thinks Eddie should be busier. Chambers good right hand. Nice exchange right before the bell. Mouse starting to form under Povetkin's left eye.
Franchise: 10-9 Chambers
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 3
Povetkin opens with his best combos so far. Left by Chambers and Povetkin scores in return. Both men score on counter shots. Good right hand upstairs by Chambers. Another right just glances off by Eddie. Povetkin working the body but not all scoring.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 4
Another mean counter right by Chambers. Jabs by Eddie and Povetkin's return fire is once again mostly blocked. Good right by Povetkin knocks Eddie off balance. Double lefts by Chambers; Povetkin is starting to fidn the range now too. Good left by Eddie but he can't capitalize with any follow-up shots. Very close round.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 5
Chambers starts this round with a little more urgency. Lewis wants more jabs. Povetkin tries to trap Chambers on the ropes, but no dice. Two quick counter lefts land from Chambers. Body work by Chambers in the middle of the ring. Povetkin finds the range with lefts downstairs and up. The jab is working for Eddie, especially this round. Both men just miss with big shots at the bell.
Franchise: 10-9 Chambers
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 6
Povetkin controls the opening seconds, still throwing in volume. Ref tells Eddie to keep them up. Chambers finally starts scoring about halfway through the round. More of Povetkin's combo shots are getting through now. Good right hook by Povetkin. Chambers just not busy enough, and Povetkin has found a few chinks in the armor. Good right at the bell by Eddie but that was Povetkin's best round so far.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 7
Povetkin just misses with a huge right. Volume still heavily favoring Alexander. Nice right at the end of a combo; Chambers seems unhurt. Now Chambers finds the target with a few lefts. Pretty uneventful round with Povetkin looking a little tired and Chambers still not throwing enough.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 8
Povetkin changing heights but Chambers finally trying to answer. Uppercut inside by Chambers but Povetkin answers. Lewis thinks Povetkin has to be careful about punching himself out. The uppercut is starting to become an option for Chambers. Both guys get hit by a shot at the end of the round.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 9
Povetkin seems to have lost some starch on his punches; Chambers lands a right hand. Quick 1-2 by Eddie. Inside combo mostly lands by Chambers. Eddie trying to come forward a little more, but Povetkin still making it almost impossible to get off first. A couple more light shots by Chambers to end the round. That was another tough round to score.
Franchise: 10-9 Chambers
Uatu: 10-9 Chambers
Rd. 10
Close range exchange which hasn't happened often tonight. Also some holding. Povetkin's work rate seems to be carrying this round as well. Uppercut by Chambers but nothing else behind it. Good combo by Povetkin and a couple land. Hook inside by Chambers; Povetkin closes out the round strong though.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 11
Chambers' corner tells him he needs a KO now. He isn't exactly throwing caution to the wind though. Combo from Povetkin with a little more behind it now. Body work by Povetkin and a right upstairs snaps Chambers back. Crowd giving Povetkin more energy now. It's admirable, but Povetkin is probably taking more chances than he needs to at this point. He's fighting like the guy who thinks he needs these last rounds.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Rd. 12
Alexander looks really winded but all he has to do is hold on and I think he's got it. Chambers missing the counter shots he would have landed earlier. Povetkin still working. He goes to town along the ropes, spurred on by the crowd. It's three-shot combos and back out for Povetkin, and Chambers has no answer.
Franchise: 10-9 Povetkin
Uatu: 10-9 Povetkin
Franchise scores it 116-112 Povetkin, Uatu scores it 115-113 Povetkin. The judges score it 117-111, 116-112 and 119-109, all for the winner, Alexander Povetkin.
Povetkin-Chambers Round By Round Right Here Tonight
There were plenty of choices to get a round by round internet recap of Jones and Trinidad last week, so thanks to the hundreds of you who checked us out at BoxingWatchers.com. Tonight there will be... well, less choices for Povetkin-Chambers I'm sure, so make sure to bookmark us for later tonight. I'll have the round by round recap, with scoring from Spartan117 and possibly Uatu as well.
25.1.08
It's On, Part II: Margarito-Cintron Rematch On Cotto-Gomez Undercard April 12
April is shaping up to be a sweet month for boxing fans. First we had Calzaghe-Hopkins announced for April 19. Now, Steve Kim of MaxBoxing.com is reporting that Antonio Margarito and Kermit Cintron will meet again April 12 in Atlantic City as the main undercard fight before Miguel Cotto takes on Alfonso Gomez in the main event. Throw in "Bad" Chad Dawson versus Glen Johnson, also slated for the 12th, and we've got ourselves quite a month.
Cintron simply wasn't ready for Margarito the first time they fought back in April of 2005, getting knocked out in five fairly one-sided rounds. The Killer bounced back from his lone career loss in fine fashion, knocking out five straight opponents including David Estrada and Walter Matthysse. He did have a little trouble dismissing his last foe, Jesse Feliciano, but if you saw that fight you know that was due mostly to an incredible display of chin and heart on Feliciano's part. Manager and trainer Emanuel Steward thinks Cintron is a better boxer now, and frankly, so do I.
That's not to say I expect the outcome to be different, because Margarito is coming in with some momentum of his own after destroying Golden Johnson in less than a round his last time out. I'm hedging on making a call on this fight until it gets a lot closer.
For Cotto, who seems to have inherited the title of "most ducked man in boxing" for the time being - something Margarito can relate to - he has to fight someone. So why not former Contender contestant Gomez? He's good enough to give Cotto a bit of a fight, but ultimately I expect the champ's power and underrated boxing skills to be enough to get Gomez out of there.
Edit: BoxRec.com and a few other places are reporting that the Cotto-Gomez card will take place on April 26, so keep an eye on the date. As long as it stays in April, my comment about it shaping up as a heck of a month for boxing fans still stands.
Cintron simply wasn't ready for Margarito the first time they fought back in April of 2005, getting knocked out in five fairly one-sided rounds. The Killer bounced back from his lone career loss in fine fashion, knocking out five straight opponents including David Estrada and Walter Matthysse. He did have a little trouble dismissing his last foe, Jesse Feliciano, but if you saw that fight you know that was due mostly to an incredible display of chin and heart on Feliciano's part. Manager and trainer Emanuel Steward thinks Cintron is a better boxer now, and frankly, so do I.
That's not to say I expect the outcome to be different, because Margarito is coming in with some momentum of his own after destroying Golden Johnson in less than a round his last time out. I'm hedging on making a call on this fight until it gets a lot closer.
For Cotto, who seems to have inherited the title of "most ducked man in boxing" for the time being - something Margarito can relate to - he has to fight someone. So why not former Contender contestant Gomez? He's good enough to give Cotto a bit of a fight, but ultimately I expect the champ's power and underrated boxing skills to be enough to get Gomez out of there.
Edit: BoxRec.com and a few other places are reporting that the Cotto-Gomez card will take place on April 26, so keep an eye on the date. As long as it stays in April, my comment about it shaping up as a heck of a month for boxing fans still stands.
Povetkin vs. Chambers Prediction
When's the last time an American actually won in Europe in a major fight? Lacy, Manfredo, Austin, Byrd, Brewster...of course the match ups may have something to do with it too. Still, the streak continues.
Uatu indicates Povetkin ud 12.
Uatu indicates Povetkin ud 12.
23.1.08
It's On: Calzaghe, Hopkins Will Face Off on April 19
Has Bernard Hopkins finally met his match?
That's the first thought I had today upon reading the AP report that Hopkins will fight Joe Calzaghe on April 19 in Las Vegas. The bout will take place at the Thomas & Mack Center and be televised on HBO.
It's interesting to note that while Hopkins fought most of his career at middleweight, it will actually be Calzaghe who will be going up in weight - to light heavyweight - for the fight. The Executioner has looked pretty comfortable at that class, especially when he dismantled Antonio Tarver in June of 2006, but I don't think Calzaghe will look much different at 175 either.
History has proven that it's unwise to bet against Hopkins, but the 43-year-old will need all of his considerable savvy to fend off Calzaghe. The Pride of Wales is likely to be every bit as strong as Bernard, has an unrelenting style and has shown that he will not tire in the late rounds of close fights. He also comes in off a hard-fought win against Mikkel Kessler, where he showed a full range of offensive and defensive skills.
As far as the entertainment aspect goes, both men should be able and willing to hype the fight. Hopkins has more of a reputation as a trash-talker, but Calzaghe can be pretty quick with a quip too. He's already started, in fact, as the AP article quotes him saying about Hopkins, "I just hope he's not going to run."
Best of all, it's a fight that boxing fans - certainly those of us here at BoxingWatchers.com - want to see. Now HBO, can we please get the "24/7" treatment for this one?
That's the first thought I had today upon reading the AP report that Hopkins will fight Joe Calzaghe on April 19 in Las Vegas. The bout will take place at the Thomas & Mack Center and be televised on HBO.
It's interesting to note that while Hopkins fought most of his career at middleweight, it will actually be Calzaghe who will be going up in weight - to light heavyweight - for the fight. The Executioner has looked pretty comfortable at that class, especially when he dismantled Antonio Tarver in June of 2006, but I don't think Calzaghe will look much different at 175 either.
History has proven that it's unwise to bet against Hopkins, but the 43-year-old will need all of his considerable savvy to fend off Calzaghe. The Pride of Wales is likely to be every bit as strong as Bernard, has an unrelenting style and has shown that he will not tire in the late rounds of close fights. He also comes in off a hard-fought win against Mikkel Kessler, where he showed a full range of offensive and defensive skills.
As far as the entertainment aspect goes, both men should be able and willing to hype the fight. Hopkins has more of a reputation as a trash-talker, but Calzaghe can be pretty quick with a quip too. He's already started, in fact, as the AP article quotes him saying about Hopkins, "I just hope he's not going to run."
Best of all, it's a fight that boxing fans - certainly those of us here at BoxingWatchers.com - want to see. Now HBO, can we please get the "24/7" treatment for this one?
21.1.08
Twenty-Twenty Hindsight: Jones-Trinidad Analysis, The Strange Fascination With Golota, Golden Boy Drama and More
I didn't get to see the Jones-Trinidad fight (need to get off second shift ASAP), but thanks to the excellent first-time round-by-round by our own Spartan117, I was able to get a feel for it. Boxing can hold its share of surprises, times when all of the experts just end up wrong, but this wasn't one of those times. Roy can fight at a higher level than Tito at this particular time - period.
But before he gets feeling too good about himself, he may want to think about exactly what that means. Tito came into the fight after nearly three years of inactivity. And in his previous fight, he barely won a round (indeed, one judge gave him zero rounds) against Winky Wright. Beating Trinidad proved Jones still has something left, but calling out Joe Calzaghe or Bernard Hopkins? That's just crazy talk.
I especially loved Roy's comment that he would "go to Wales" to fight Calzaghe. All that would do is make it even more difficult to win by decision, and there's no way I could see him knocking Joe out. Maybe it would make financial sense, but even then the safer path would be facing Hopkins - he's a bigger name to the casual fan than Joe-Cal, and less likely to do permanent damage to Jones' face. He'll still need to keep that in good shape for announcing after all.
Tito's best days are even further behind him - has it really been eight years since he knocked out Fernando Vargas? - but he is younger than Jones, so maybe we'll see him again. the HBO crew said they'd like to see him at middleweight, but against who? Kelly Pavlik and Jermain Taylor would destroy him, and even younger fighters like Arthur Abraham and Sergio Mora probably have too much for Trinidad. It may be time to say thanks for the memories, but please retire for real Tito.
And speaking of retiring, I wish someone would do just that to Andrew Golota. There's no doubt that there's a segment of boxing fandom that finds the Foul Pole fascinating, I'm just not sure why. It can't be because his fights are exciting to watch (they're not) or because he has a legitimate chance to climb back to the top of the heavyweight division (he doesn't).
Until a younger fighter who actually understands conditioning lays a beating on him, Don King is going to keep trotting him out there on pay-per-view telecasts. So younger heavyweights, here's my challenge to you: do your roadwork, spend some extra time in the gym, and please do your part to get rid of Golota.
Finally, several media outlets are reporting the return of Floyd Mayweather Sr. to Oscar De La Hoya's corner, allegedly for a warm-up fight in May and a rematch with Floyd Jr. Two problems with this:
1) Oscar supposedly had already abandoned the idea of fighting on Cinco de Mayo weekend. And who would he fight? Steve Kim of Maxboxing.com says Dmitry Salita, Paulie Malignaggi and Steve Forbes are possibilities.
2)Do we really need to go through the father-son drama for the Mayweathers? Sounds like something cooked up to sell a new season of "24/7" to me...
But before he gets feeling too good about himself, he may want to think about exactly what that means. Tito came into the fight after nearly three years of inactivity. And in his previous fight, he barely won a round (indeed, one judge gave him zero rounds) against Winky Wright. Beating Trinidad proved Jones still has something left, but calling out Joe Calzaghe or Bernard Hopkins? That's just crazy talk.
I especially loved Roy's comment that he would "go to Wales" to fight Calzaghe. All that would do is make it even more difficult to win by decision, and there's no way I could see him knocking Joe out. Maybe it would make financial sense, but even then the safer path would be facing Hopkins - he's a bigger name to the casual fan than Joe-Cal, and less likely to do permanent damage to Jones' face. He'll still need to keep that in good shape for announcing after all.
Tito's best days are even further behind him - has it really been eight years since he knocked out Fernando Vargas? - but he is younger than Jones, so maybe we'll see him again. the HBO crew said they'd like to see him at middleweight, but against who? Kelly Pavlik and Jermain Taylor would destroy him, and even younger fighters like Arthur Abraham and Sergio Mora probably have too much for Trinidad. It may be time to say thanks for the memories, but please retire for real Tito.
And speaking of retiring, I wish someone would do just that to Andrew Golota. There's no doubt that there's a segment of boxing fandom that finds the Foul Pole fascinating, I'm just not sure why. It can't be because his fights are exciting to watch (they're not) or because he has a legitimate chance to climb back to the top of the heavyweight division (he doesn't).
Until a younger fighter who actually understands conditioning lays a beating on him, Don King is going to keep trotting him out there on pay-per-view telecasts. So younger heavyweights, here's my challenge to you: do your roadwork, spend some extra time in the gym, and please do your part to get rid of Golota.
Finally, several media outlets are reporting the return of Floyd Mayweather Sr. to Oscar De La Hoya's corner, allegedly for a warm-up fight in May and a rematch with Floyd Jr. Two problems with this:
1) Oscar supposedly had already abandoned the idea of fighting on Cinco de Mayo weekend. And who would he fight? Steve Kim of Maxboxing.com says Dmitry Salita, Paulie Malignaggi and Steve Forbes are possibilities.
2)Do we really need to go through the father-son drama for the Mayweathers? Sounds like something cooked up to sell a new season of "24/7" to me...
20.1.08
Hooray! Floyd Sr. returning?
CNNSI says they have confirmed that Floyd Mayweather Sr. will be in Oscar's corner for a May tune-up and for the rematch with Floyd Jr. That is fantastic news from an entertainment standpoint. Uatu was under the impression however, that Oscar was not fighting in May...
19.1.08
Round by Round: Trinidad Vs. Jones
"Bring on the Titans" is the tagline of this ppv fight. I prefer the tagline "Bring on the Paychecks" but HBO didn't go for that.
Almost all analysts agree that this is a fight that would have been huge almost a decade ago but somehow 39 year old Jones and 35 year old Trinidad managed to score a PPV bout today. This is Trinidad's first fight above 160 pounds.
Uatu reports that few people came to the bars to watch this fight. He says that the crowd is on par with the Cotto-Mosley fans, but many less than Mayweather-Hatton.
The crowd at Madison Square Garden is mostly for Trinidad
A confident Jones believes that he still has it and comes to the ring in a gold crown with rapper, Rick Ross. According to Jones, "he wants to look good for his people". Trinidad chooses a more modest entrance. The National Anthems are sung and the fighters are introduced and its time to bring on the titans.
Round 1: It takes about 20 seconds before a punch is thrown. Trinidad throws the first which is blocked by Jones. The crowd starts is "Tito" chant. Jones' takes a careful approach by keeping his faced heavily guarded. Trinidad lands a good left to the body. Jones replies with fast flurries which are absorbed by Trinidad's body. Trinidad tries the left which lands.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Trinidad
Round 2: Trindad starts the round by being very active landing combinations to the head and body. Jones not backing down but not throwing much back. Trinidad looks more technical than in the past and pastes Jones with hard combinations. Jones throwing much less than his opponent. Trinidad looks like the sharper boxer in round 2.
Spartan117: 10-9 Trinidad
Uatu: 10-9 Trinidad
Round 3: Trinidad keeps up the pace with combinations. Jones starts to wake up and throws single punches to the body and head. Both fighters' footwork looks on-point. Trinidad backs Jones into the ropes, but Jones fights out. Jones beats his chest as he gets pushed into the ropes and punched. Jones looks like the Jones of old by dancing and shuffling but so far he's not doing much fighting.
Spartan117: 10-9 Trinidad
Uatu: 10-9 Trinidad
Round 4: Jones gets backed into the ropes again and Trinidad takes his punches to Jones' body. Jones smiles as usual. Jones takes more initiative and lands 2 good shots to Trinidad's head. Jones landing many more punches in the 4th and uses his jab. Trinidad having trouble guarding his head.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 5: The crowd starts the "Tito" chant again. Jones leading with straight right hands that land to the head of Trinidad. Trinidad gets warned for a low blow. The ref tells Jones to shake it off. Jones comes back and backs off Tito with hard jabs. Trinidad's punches look less powerful. Both fighters trade punches at the end of the round that are dangerously close to low blows.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 6: Both fighters throw less in the beginning of the 6th. Trinidad continues to throw low shots that hit Jones right on the beltline. Jones lands 2 hard shots in the corner. Tito shakes them off and comes back with combinations to the head and body. Jones staggers Trinidad with hard hooks and straights to the head. Jones dances from the middle of the ring back to his corner after the bell.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 7: Both fighters stay light on their feet. Trinidad goes back to the body. Trinidad goes down to a short right hand from Jones which is the first knockdown of the fight. Trinidad is slow to get up but makes it before 10. Jones keeps up the aggression and hammers Trinidad with hard head shots. Trinidad shakes off the cobwebs and fights back with hooks. Jones slows down takes a breath.
Spartan117: 10-8 Jones
Uatu: 10-8 Jones
Round 8: Trinidad backs away from Jones for the first minute of the round but keeps eating jabs. Trinidad throws occasional hooks which are blocked by Jones. Jones throwing less in this round. Trinidad starting to get back on track with combinations. Jones unleashes the right hand again which land cleanly.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 9: Trinidad starts the round off with a flurry which is mostly blocked. Jones counters hard with 2 hard shots. Trinidad fights back with combinations upstairs. Jones fights back harder, backing Tito into the ropes and hitting cleanly. Jones knocks Tito's head back with a hard uppercut. Tito continues to backpedal, but does not stop throwing.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 10: Jones continues to back down Trinidad with hard straights. Trinidad's defense looks as sloppy as Winky Wright made it look years ago. Trinidad gets back on the offensive by backing up Jones with hard punches to the head. Jones replies with hooks. Jones loses control of the fight when Trinidad backs him into the ropes. Jones lands a lightning fast straight left and right and knocks Tito down yet again. Trinidad makes it up easily before 10.
Spartan117: 10-8 Jones
Uatu: 10-8 Jones
Round 11: Jones, clearly the aggressor, backs Tito up and lands clean punches to Trinidad's head. Trinidad throws less and Jones takes advantage and throws more. Neither fighter looks tired. Jones lands a leaping left hook. Trinidad gets hit cleanly by a left and right hook towards the end of the round.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 12: The fighters touch gloves to start the last round. Tito realizes he's down and starts throwing more. Jones defense absorbs the punches. Jones stumbles Trinidad with 2 hooks upstairs. Jones punishes Trinidad with 4 hard shots that land cleanly. Jones lands 2 more and Tito does nothing to answer back at the end of the round which is an example of how most of the fight went.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Jones looked very sharp in this fight. Trinidad did not look horrible but his defense was full of holes and was outmatched by Jones tonight. I'm sure we will see Jones fight again in the future.
Jones wins by unanimous decision
Spartan117: 118-108 Jones
Uatu: 117-109 Jones
Judge 1: 116-110 Jones
Judge 2: 117-109 Jones
Judge 3: 116-110 Jones
Jones seemed very lively in his post-fight interview. "I will fight anybody anywhere anytime," he exclaimed. He calls out the winner of Hopkins-Calzaghe saying "I'll go to Wales to fight Joe Calzaghe". Kellerman says afterwards that this would be a mistake.
Trinidad says that he will speak with his father about fighting again. The announcers say they would like to see Trinidad fight at Middlewieght.
Almost all analysts agree that this is a fight that would have been huge almost a decade ago but somehow 39 year old Jones and 35 year old Trinidad managed to score a PPV bout today. This is Trinidad's first fight above 160 pounds.
Uatu reports that few people came to the bars to watch this fight. He says that the crowd is on par with the Cotto-Mosley fans, but many less than Mayweather-Hatton.
The crowd at Madison Square Garden is mostly for Trinidad
A confident Jones believes that he still has it and comes to the ring in a gold crown with rapper, Rick Ross. According to Jones, "he wants to look good for his people". Trinidad chooses a more modest entrance. The National Anthems are sung and the fighters are introduced and its time to bring on the titans.
Round 1: It takes about 20 seconds before a punch is thrown. Trinidad throws the first which is blocked by Jones. The crowd starts is "Tito" chant. Jones' takes a careful approach by keeping his faced heavily guarded. Trinidad lands a good left to the body. Jones replies with fast flurries which are absorbed by Trinidad's body. Trinidad tries the left which lands.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Trinidad
Round 2: Trindad starts the round by being very active landing combinations to the head and body. Jones not backing down but not throwing much back. Trinidad looks more technical than in the past and pastes Jones with hard combinations. Jones throwing much less than his opponent. Trinidad looks like the sharper boxer in round 2.
Spartan117: 10-9 Trinidad
Uatu: 10-9 Trinidad
Round 3: Trinidad keeps up the pace with combinations. Jones starts to wake up and throws single punches to the body and head. Both fighters' footwork looks on-point. Trinidad backs Jones into the ropes, but Jones fights out. Jones beats his chest as he gets pushed into the ropes and punched. Jones looks like the Jones of old by dancing and shuffling but so far he's not doing much fighting.
Spartan117: 10-9 Trinidad
Uatu: 10-9 Trinidad
Round 4: Jones gets backed into the ropes again and Trinidad takes his punches to Jones' body. Jones smiles as usual. Jones takes more initiative and lands 2 good shots to Trinidad's head. Jones landing many more punches in the 4th and uses his jab. Trinidad having trouble guarding his head.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 5: The crowd starts the "Tito" chant again. Jones leading with straight right hands that land to the head of Trinidad. Trinidad gets warned for a low blow. The ref tells Jones to shake it off. Jones comes back and backs off Tito with hard jabs. Trinidad's punches look less powerful. Both fighters trade punches at the end of the round that are dangerously close to low blows.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 6: Both fighters throw less in the beginning of the 6th. Trinidad continues to throw low shots that hit Jones right on the beltline. Jones lands 2 hard shots in the corner. Tito shakes them off and comes back with combinations to the head and body. Jones staggers Trinidad with hard hooks and straights to the head. Jones dances from the middle of the ring back to his corner after the bell.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 7: Both fighters stay light on their feet. Trinidad goes back to the body. Trinidad goes down to a short right hand from Jones which is the first knockdown of the fight. Trinidad is slow to get up but makes it before 10. Jones keeps up the aggression and hammers Trinidad with hard head shots. Trinidad shakes off the cobwebs and fights back with hooks. Jones slows down takes a breath.
Spartan117: 10-8 Jones
Uatu: 10-8 Jones
Round 8: Trinidad backs away from Jones for the first minute of the round but keeps eating jabs. Trinidad throws occasional hooks which are blocked by Jones. Jones throwing less in this round. Trinidad starting to get back on track with combinations. Jones unleashes the right hand again which land cleanly.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 9: Trinidad starts the round off with a flurry which is mostly blocked. Jones counters hard with 2 hard shots. Trinidad fights back with combinations upstairs. Jones fights back harder, backing Tito into the ropes and hitting cleanly. Jones knocks Tito's head back with a hard uppercut. Tito continues to backpedal, but does not stop throwing.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 10: Jones continues to back down Trinidad with hard straights. Trinidad's defense looks as sloppy as Winky Wright made it look years ago. Trinidad gets back on the offensive by backing up Jones with hard punches to the head. Jones replies with hooks. Jones loses control of the fight when Trinidad backs him into the ropes. Jones lands a lightning fast straight left and right and knocks Tito down yet again. Trinidad makes it up easily before 10.
Spartan117: 10-8 Jones
Uatu: 10-8 Jones
Round 11: Jones, clearly the aggressor, backs Tito up and lands clean punches to Trinidad's head. Trinidad throws less and Jones takes advantage and throws more. Neither fighter looks tired. Jones lands a leaping left hook. Trinidad gets hit cleanly by a left and right hook towards the end of the round.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Round 12: The fighters touch gloves to start the last round. Tito realizes he's down and starts throwing more. Jones defense absorbs the punches. Jones stumbles Trinidad with 2 hooks upstairs. Jones punishes Trinidad with 4 hard shots that land cleanly. Jones lands 2 more and Tito does nothing to answer back at the end of the round which is an example of how most of the fight went.
Spartan117: 10-9 Jones
Uatu: 10-9 Jones
Jones looked very sharp in this fight. Trinidad did not look horrible but his defense was full of holes and was outmatched by Jones tonight. I'm sure we will see Jones fight again in the future.
Jones wins by unanimous decision
Spartan117: 118-108 Jones
Uatu: 117-109 Jones
Judge 1: 116-110 Jones
Judge 2: 117-109 Jones
Judge 3: 116-110 Jones
Jones seemed very lively in his post-fight interview. "I will fight anybody anywhere anytime," he exclaimed. He calls out the winner of Hopkins-Calzaghe saying "I'll go to Wales to fight Joe Calzaghe". Kellerman says afterwards that this would be a mistake.
Trinidad says that he will speak with his father about fighting again. The announcers say they would like to see Trinidad fight at Middlewieght.
Round by Round: Golota Vs. Mollo
The last undercard fight of the night includes two heavyweights and the oldest fighter of tonight's card. 40 year old, Andrew "Foul Pole" Golota faces the 27 year old Mike Mollo.
Round 1: Mollo starts out very hard throwing hard lefts and rights. Golota looks out of shape and slow. Mollo focuses on the body. Golota tries to establish the jab but Mollo's defense looks sound. Late in the round, Golota stops Mollo with a jab.
Spartan117: 10-9 Mollo
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 2: Golota gets into trouble for holding and hitting. Mollo stumbles Golota with a straight upstairs but he comes back hard. Golota looks tired already, but manages to stagger Mollo and Mollo holds on. Golota lands 3 hard shots to Mollo's head. Mollo hangs on till the end of the round.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 3: Golota starts by setting up his hard right with jabs. Both fighters slow down the pace. Golota pressures Mollo into the ropes but does not punish Mollo. Mollo gets a hard shot well after the bell.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 4: Mollo works harder at the start, but Golota comes right back and lands a straight left and right. Mollo uses more upper body movement than Golota. Mollo lands two hard right hands which stagger Golota. Golota responds with his trademark low blow which goes unnoticed to the ref.
Spartan117: 10-9 Mollo
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 5: Both fighters are tired. Mollo lands a power punch, but Golota stays on the offensive. Mollo takes a few seconds off by backing away. Golota's left eye starts to swell dramatically. Mollo sees this opportunity and turns up the pressure.
Spartan117: 10-9 Mollo
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 6: Golota's left eye continues to swell almost shut. Mollo lands a quick left on a break. Mollo looks tired and starts clinching often. He spends most of the round holding the waist of Golota.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-10
Round 7: Mollo lands a hard right and the audience erupts. Golota not phased. Both fighters continue to clinch. Both fighters look busy, but not accurate. Mollo throwing more down the stretch. Golota throws 3 rights that are all blocked.
Spartan117: 10-9 Mollo
Uatu: 10-9 Mollo
Round 8: Both fighters start off slow. Niether throwing punches. Mollo lands a left which backs Golota. Golota gets busy by throwing many hooks upstairs most of which are blocked. Mollo spends most of time bent forward at the waist, pushing Golota back. Golota throws hooks at the end of the round but Mollo holds on.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 9: Mollo attempts to hold and hit. The fighters get seperated and Mollo establishes the jab. Golota's eye is a bloody mess and is completely swollen shut. Golota continues to pressure.
Mollo hold on for dear life after taken lots of punishment upstairs. He barely makes it out of the round and walks to wrong corner at the bell.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 10: Mollo's legs are completely gone. He stumbles around the ring taken more and more punishment. I think it was irresponsible of his trainer to send him out for the 10th. Mollo lets his punches go but have nothing behind them because of his lack of legs. Golota now seeing only out of his right eye continue his onslaught. Mollo stumbles after every blocked punch but somehow continues to throw.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 11: Mollo gets some of his legs back over the break but still lacks power and stability. Both fighters stumble around the ring while clinching. Almost all punches from both fighters are wild and way off the mark. Both fighters have little left. The 11th has nothing that would make a highlight reel. I give the round to Golota because Mollo can barely stand.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 12: Golota's eye is a total mess and hard to look at. Both fighters surprisingly realize that it's the last round and come out swinging. Golota backs Mollo into the corner and fires at will. Mollo continues to take punishment but remarkably stays on his feet. Mollo holds his head below Golota's waist recieves punches from that angle. Mollo barely makes it to the end of this sorry example of the heavywieght division.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Golota wins by unanimous decision.
Two things are clear from this fight. Mollo needs to be introduced to a treadmill and there is little hope for the near future of the Heavywieght division.
Spartan117: 116-112 Golota
Uatu: 119-108 Golota
Judge 1: 116-112 Golota
Judge 2: 116-112 Golota
Judge 3: 118-109 Golota
Round 1: Mollo starts out very hard throwing hard lefts and rights. Golota looks out of shape and slow. Mollo focuses on the body. Golota tries to establish the jab but Mollo's defense looks sound. Late in the round, Golota stops Mollo with a jab.
Spartan117: 10-9 Mollo
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 2: Golota gets into trouble for holding and hitting. Mollo stumbles Golota with a straight upstairs but he comes back hard. Golota looks tired already, but manages to stagger Mollo and Mollo holds on. Golota lands 3 hard shots to Mollo's head. Mollo hangs on till the end of the round.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 3: Golota starts by setting up his hard right with jabs. Both fighters slow down the pace. Golota pressures Mollo into the ropes but does not punish Mollo. Mollo gets a hard shot well after the bell.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 4: Mollo works harder at the start, but Golota comes right back and lands a straight left and right. Mollo uses more upper body movement than Golota. Mollo lands two hard right hands which stagger Golota. Golota responds with his trademark low blow which goes unnoticed to the ref.
Spartan117: 10-9 Mollo
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 5: Both fighters are tired. Mollo lands a power punch, but Golota stays on the offensive. Mollo takes a few seconds off by backing away. Golota's left eye starts to swell dramatically. Mollo sees this opportunity and turns up the pressure.
Spartan117: 10-9 Mollo
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 6: Golota's left eye continues to swell almost shut. Mollo lands a quick left on a break. Mollo looks tired and starts clinching often. He spends most of the round holding the waist of Golota.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-10
Round 7: Mollo lands a hard right and the audience erupts. Golota not phased. Both fighters continue to clinch. Both fighters look busy, but not accurate. Mollo throwing more down the stretch. Golota throws 3 rights that are all blocked.
Spartan117: 10-9 Mollo
Uatu: 10-9 Mollo
Round 8: Both fighters start off slow. Niether throwing punches. Mollo lands a left which backs Golota. Golota gets busy by throwing many hooks upstairs most of which are blocked. Mollo spends most of time bent forward at the waist, pushing Golota back. Golota throws hooks at the end of the round but Mollo holds on.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 9: Mollo attempts to hold and hit. The fighters get seperated and Mollo establishes the jab. Golota's eye is a bloody mess and is completely swollen shut. Golota continues to pressure.
Mollo hold on for dear life after taken lots of punishment upstairs. He barely makes it out of the round and walks to wrong corner at the bell.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 10: Mollo's legs are completely gone. He stumbles around the ring taken more and more punishment. I think it was irresponsible of his trainer to send him out for the 10th. Mollo lets his punches go but have nothing behind them because of his lack of legs. Golota now seeing only out of his right eye continue his onslaught. Mollo stumbles after every blocked punch but somehow continues to throw.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 11: Mollo gets some of his legs back over the break but still lacks power and stability. Both fighters stumble around the ring while clinching. Almost all punches from both fighters are wild and way off the mark. Both fighters have little left. The 11th has nothing that would make a highlight reel. I give the round to Golota because Mollo can barely stand.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Round 12: Golota's eye is a total mess and hard to look at. Both fighters surprisingly realize that it's the last round and come out swinging. Golota backs Mollo into the corner and fires at will. Mollo continues to take punishment but remarkably stays on his feet. Mollo holds his head below Golota's waist recieves punches from that angle. Mollo barely makes it to the end of this sorry example of the heavywieght division.
Spartan117: 10-9 Golota
Uatu: 10-9 Golota
Golota wins by unanimous decision.
Two things are clear from this fight. Mollo needs to be introduced to a treadmill and there is little hope for the near future of the Heavywieght division.
Spartan117: 116-112 Golota
Uatu: 119-108 Golota
Judge 1: 116-112 Golota
Judge 2: 116-112 Golota
Judge 3: 118-109 Golota
Trinidad-Jones: Undercard LiveBlog
The 2nd undercard bout is at 154 pounds between Roman Karmazin and Alex Bunema. These fighters are reaching the twilight of their respective careers, Karmazin at 35 years old and Bunema 32. This fits the theme of the of tonight's main event.
The fight starts off slowly. Both fighters start with the strategy of inactivity and commentator Jim Lampley shares his distaste.
Karmazin's trainer Freddy Roach uses an interesting tactic of having Karmazin stand between rounds rather than sit on the stool. Whatever the reason, this is not helping Karmazin keep his hands up during the fight which are often found below his waist band but Bunema is not capitalizing.
Bunema uses very good head movement to dodge Karmazin's wide punches. Both fighter's punches look lackluster. If Bunema is winning rounds it is solely on defense and not accurate, hard punches.
In the middle rounds, the fight is unexciting. Both fighters look hesitant to throw, and the punches that are thrown look weak and rarely land flush.
The 7th is Karmazin's best round so far. Unfortunately it wasn't anything spectacular. Karmazin landed many jabs that land flush the the head of Bunema. Bunema is not phased.
Lampley continues to roast both fighters.
In the later rounds Bunema turns up his energy and Karmazin follows suit. I see no reason why they waited until the 10th round to fight.
Karmazin goes down to a hard left by Bunema in the 10th but Karmazin gets up before the 10 count. Bunema continues to pressure Karmazin and lands 2 hard shots and Karmazin falls into the corner and the ref calls it.
Bunema wins by TKO in the 10th.
_________________________________________________________
St. Louis native Devon Alexander fights a seasoned Demarcus "Chop Chop" Corley at 140 pounds for the vacant WBC Continental Title. 20 year old Alexander has an undefeated record of 13 and 0, while Corley has 7 losses.
Alexander undoubtedly the busier fighter in the first rounds.
Alexander backs down Corley in the middle round 3 with a strong flurry. Corley takes the defensive, but survives the round.
Alexander keeps the strong offensive and continues to stagger Corley with straight lefts. Alexander is warned twice for low blows. They appear to be unintentional.
Towards the middle of the fight Corley looks tired. His punches are not connecting and when they do they lack power. Chop Chop is simply out-matched.
Corley gets his most punishing round in the 8th. Alexander lands several hard shots to Corley's head, but surprisingly stays up.
According to the Lederman Card and my personal opinion Corley hasn't won a round going into the 11th. Corley shows some signs of life but his punches are easily blocked by the defense of Alexander.
Alexander gets a point deducted in the 12th for a low blow. I seriously doubt that this will endanger his chance for a victory tonight. A bruised Corley does little to show that he wants to win the fight in the last round.
Alexander wins a unanimous decision and establishes that he is a new comer with skills.
The fight starts off slowly. Both fighters start with the strategy of inactivity and commentator Jim Lampley shares his distaste.
Karmazin's trainer Freddy Roach uses an interesting tactic of having Karmazin stand between rounds rather than sit on the stool. Whatever the reason, this is not helping Karmazin keep his hands up during the fight which are often found below his waist band but Bunema is not capitalizing.
Bunema uses very good head movement to dodge Karmazin's wide punches. Both fighter's punches look lackluster. If Bunema is winning rounds it is solely on defense and not accurate, hard punches.
In the middle rounds, the fight is unexciting. Both fighters look hesitant to throw, and the punches that are thrown look weak and rarely land flush.
The 7th is Karmazin's best round so far. Unfortunately it wasn't anything spectacular. Karmazin landed many jabs that land flush the the head of Bunema. Bunema is not phased.
Lampley continues to roast both fighters.
In the later rounds Bunema turns up his energy and Karmazin follows suit. I see no reason why they waited until the 10th round to fight.
Karmazin goes down to a hard left by Bunema in the 10th but Karmazin gets up before the 10 count. Bunema continues to pressure Karmazin and lands 2 hard shots and Karmazin falls into the corner and the ref calls it.
Bunema wins by TKO in the 10th.
_________________________________________________________
St. Louis native Devon Alexander fights a seasoned Demarcus "Chop Chop" Corley at 140 pounds for the vacant WBC Continental Title. 20 year old Alexander has an undefeated record of 13 and 0, while Corley has 7 losses.
Alexander undoubtedly the busier fighter in the first rounds.
Alexander backs down Corley in the middle round 3 with a strong flurry. Corley takes the defensive, but survives the round.
Alexander keeps the strong offensive and continues to stagger Corley with straight lefts. Alexander is warned twice for low blows. They appear to be unintentional.
Towards the middle of the fight Corley looks tired. His punches are not connecting and when they do they lack power. Chop Chop is simply out-matched.
Corley gets his most punishing round in the 8th. Alexander lands several hard shots to Corley's head, but surprisingly stays up.
According to the Lederman Card and my personal opinion Corley hasn't won a round going into the 11th. Corley shows some signs of life but his punches are easily blocked by the defense of Alexander.
Alexander gets a point deducted in the 12th for a low blow. I seriously doubt that this will endanger his chance for a victory tonight. A bruised Corley does little to show that he wants to win the fight in the last round.
Alexander wins a unanimous decision and establishes that he is a new comer with skills.
18.1.08
Prediction: Roy Jones, Jr., vs. Felix "Tito" Trinidad
RJJ, easily. Tito looks a tiny bit spongy. Ironically, he weighed more than Jones. Uatu indicates RJJ, UD 12.
And Uatu cares not for the undercard and won't be watching it.
The Franchise says...
Most of me want to say that this is yet another in a string of fights that would be a lot more compelling if we could hop in a time machine and drag the past versions of these fighters to the present. Still, I thought the Mayorga-Vargas fight would be a debacle, and it turned out to be pleasantly entertaining. In that case both men were pretty evenly matched, or more precisely, they had faded from their primes at about the same rate.
I'm not so sure that's the case here. As hard as it is for me to shake off the mental images of Jones getting dropped by Antonio Tarver (which was stunning) or Glen Johnson (not as surprising but more brutal), my educated guess is that Roy simply has more left in the tank at the present time.
And that's what a fight like this comes down to: who has declined the least. My pick is Jones UD 12, probably easily enough to do as much showboating as he wants in the late round. Bolo punch, here we come! Maybe even the chicken wing...
Since Uatu passed on the undercard, I'll take a stab at it. I'm skipping Chop Chop Corley's fight though, as I simply don't know enough about his opponent, Devon Alexander.
In the other fights, I like:
Karmazin KO Bunema
And what the heck, Mollo KO Golota
And Uatu cares not for the undercard and won't be watching it.
The Franchise says...
Most of me want to say that this is yet another in a string of fights that would be a lot more compelling if we could hop in a time machine and drag the past versions of these fighters to the present. Still, I thought the Mayorga-Vargas fight would be a debacle, and it turned out to be pleasantly entertaining. In that case both men were pretty evenly matched, or more precisely, they had faded from their primes at about the same rate.
I'm not so sure that's the case here. As hard as it is for me to shake off the mental images of Jones getting dropped by Antonio Tarver (which was stunning) or Glen Johnson (not as surprising but more brutal), my educated guess is that Roy simply has more left in the tank at the present time.
And that's what a fight like this comes down to: who has declined the least. My pick is Jones UD 12, probably easily enough to do as much showboating as he wants in the late round. Bolo punch, here we come! Maybe even the chicken wing...
Since Uatu passed on the undercard, I'll take a stab at it. I'm skipping Chop Chop Corley's fight though, as I simply don't know enough about his opponent, Devon Alexander.
In the other fights, I like:
Karmazin KO Bunema
And what the heck, Mollo KO Golota
Weigh-in Report: Jones vs. Trinidad
Update: per ESPNNEWS - Jones 169.5, Tito 170
predictions to come.
Uatu tuned in at 2:54, which is late.
At this point people are swearing and arguing over what appears to be the gloves.
Some one is yelling about clearing the stage.
Did the weigh-in happen, or not?
It doesn't look like it has started yet?
At one point someone yelled that there would be no fight, and some talk about having signed contracts. Hard to say what's going on.
Well, Mike Mollo has just hit the scales at 222.
Golota, 237.
Neither gentleman looks particularly ripped in terms of physique, but both looked reasonably toned and muscular considering they don't have to cut weight.
Now Don King is doing his thing. No need to transcribe his words.
But he does say that Jones and Trinidad are indeed arguing over gloves.
Bunema - 153
Uatu is thinking that Jones Trinidad weighed in first.
Too bad.
Karmazin - 151 3/4
Uatu would prefer "forged in hell" as opposed to "made in hell"
The announcer says St. Louis hats can only mean one thing. Alexander the Great.
St. Louis hats mean Cory Spinks normally, so that's garbage.
Alexander 138
Chop Chop 138 1/4
Now they are moving on to Collazo so it is clear they are moving down the card. Uatu would prefer rising action to crescendoing with Jones-Trinidad and not the other way around. This post ends unless anything worthwhile takes place.
predictions to come.
Uatu tuned in at 2:54, which is late.
At this point people are swearing and arguing over what appears to be the gloves.
Some one is yelling about clearing the stage.
Did the weigh-in happen, or not?
It doesn't look like it has started yet?
At one point someone yelled that there would be no fight, and some talk about having signed contracts. Hard to say what's going on.
Well, Mike Mollo has just hit the scales at 222.
Golota, 237.
Neither gentleman looks particularly ripped in terms of physique, but both looked reasonably toned and muscular considering they don't have to cut weight.
Now Don King is doing his thing. No need to transcribe his words.
But he does say that Jones and Trinidad are indeed arguing over gloves.
Bunema - 153
Uatu is thinking that Jones Trinidad weighed in first.
Too bad.
Karmazin - 151 3/4
Uatu would prefer "forged in hell" as opposed to "made in hell"
The announcer says St. Louis hats can only mean one thing. Alexander the Great.
St. Louis hats mean Cory Spinks normally, so that's garbage.
Alexander 138
Chop Chop 138 1/4
Now they are moving on to Collazo so it is clear they are moving down the card. Uatu would prefer rising action to crescendoing with Jones-Trinidad and not the other way around. This post ends unless anything worthwhile takes place.
17.1.08
Franchise Thoughts: C.R.E.A.M.
The title stands for Cash Rules Everything Around Mayweather, in case you're wondering. And while it's not terribly creative (but does show my love for Wu-Tang Clan), it does summarize pretty nicely where things stand right now with regards to the most talented boxer on the planet, Floyd Mayweather.
Forget that talk about Money dabbling in Mixed Martial Arts, at least for now. Among other sources, ESPN.com is reporting that Mayweather is close to facing Oscar De La Hoya again, either on Sept. 13 or Sept. 20 of this year.
Yes, the first fight broke all kinds of records at the gate and on pay-per-view. Yes, it went into the books as a split decision (though this observer thought otherwise). But is the boxing world really clamoring for a rematch? I'm thinking probably not.
The ESPN article all but admits that a second De La Hoya-Mayweather fight won't do as well as the original, but Ricky Hatton's KO loss left Pretty Boy as Oscar's most lucrative opponent. Sorry, Miguel Cotto, but it looks like both halves of this match-up are avoiding you.
For Floyd, it's all about the money too. MMA can wait, as can thoughts of any opponent who might test Mayweather's entire range of skills. This is another safe fight, because really, with each passing month, the chance that the aging Golden Boy can pull off an improbable upset grows smaller.
People will watch, even us here at BoxingWatchers.com, because it's what we're sworn to do. That doesn't mean I have to be too gung ho about it though.
Forget that talk about Money dabbling in Mixed Martial Arts, at least for now. Among other sources, ESPN.com is reporting that Mayweather is close to facing Oscar De La Hoya again, either on Sept. 13 or Sept. 20 of this year.
Yes, the first fight broke all kinds of records at the gate and on pay-per-view. Yes, it went into the books as a split decision (though this observer thought otherwise). But is the boxing world really clamoring for a rematch? I'm thinking probably not.
The ESPN article all but admits that a second De La Hoya-Mayweather fight won't do as well as the original, but Ricky Hatton's KO loss left Pretty Boy as Oscar's most lucrative opponent. Sorry, Miguel Cotto, but it looks like both halves of this match-up are avoiding you.
For Floyd, it's all about the money too. MMA can wait, as can thoughts of any opponent who might test Mayweather's entire range of skills. This is another safe fight, because really, with each passing month, the chance that the aging Golden Boy can pull off an improbable upset grows smaller.
People will watch, even us here at BoxingWatchers.com, because it's what we're sworn to do. That doesn't mean I have to be too gung ho about it though.
12.1.08
Thoughts...
All over the internet it is being reported that Calzaghe vs. Hopkins is a go. Uatu thinks that this might finally be a convincing loss for Hopkins. Joe Cal throws tons of punches and Hopkins does not. The thought here is that Joe Cal just completely outworks B Hop. Bernard will never be hurt or staggered or floored but will lose on points. Uatu also thinks that Joe Cal may actually be knocked down or at least shaky at some point from a lead right from Bernard.
After watching FNF, Uatu also thinks that Miranda will KO Pascal.
After watching FNF, Uatu also thinks that Miranda will KO Pascal.
5.1.08
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