20-20 Hindsight: End of the Road for Byrd, Boxing Creeping Back Into the Mainstream and More

One of the first title fights I ever had a chance to attend in person took place six years ago when Chris Byrd met Evander Holyfield for the IBF heavyweight belt at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. As I was just becoming a serious boxing fan at the time, I wasn't that familiar with Byrd, though I knew his reputation as a crafty defensive wizard.

I knew Holyfield was nearing the end of the road, but I was still impressed with Byrd's skills on that December night. He was more than just elusive, he actually had Holyfield swinging at thin air on more than one occasion. And though he didn't have much power, he could throw some crowd-pleasing combinations when he let his hands go. That performance and the fact that Byrd hailed from my mom's birthplace of Flint, Michigan were enough to win me over.

So it was with a little bit of sadness that I watched Byrd get knocked out by Shaun George this past Saturday. Already a strange sight slimmed down to 175 pounds, it was even stranger still to see him without any kind of movement in his upper or lower body. George had him lined up with right hands whenever he chose, and Byrd had nothing in the way of his own offense in most rounds.

My hope now is that Byrd hangs up the gloves. He had a successful and courageous career, campaigning against bigger foes at heavyweight more often than not and capturing two championships. You also can't argue against the competition he faced: both Klitschko brothers (Wladmir twice), Ike Ibeabuchi, David Tua, Holyfield, Fres Oquendo, Andrew Golota, Jameel McCline and Alexander Povetkin. This certainly isn't the greatest era in the heavyweight division, but Byrd fought nearly everyone it had to offer.

As for George, he looked good, but not good enough to think he'll be scaring the bigger names at 175. You got the feeling that he was there to be hit by someone with more weapons in the arsenal than Byrd had. We may get to find out down the road, as beating Byrd may open up some doors for him.

Switching gears for a minute, there was an interesting piece by Eric Raskin over on ESPN.com today. The central argument is that boxing is creeping back into the mainstream consciousness, thanks to fighters like Floyd Mayweather seeking out crossover opportunities and Ricky Hatton appearing on regular cable TV.

I agree that boxing is enjoying a mini-renaissance of sorts, but to continue to move forward, a few more things need to happen:

1. More boxing on free TV and less B.S. pay-per-views - The Hatton fight on Versus is a good start. My brother Spartan117 made a good point this weekend when he asked the bartender to put on Friday Night Fights at a bar in Florida and saw a bunch of people take interest. Casual fans will watch more boxing if they are exposed to it more often. On the PPV front, in a perfect world, only top match-ups between the biggest names would qualify for that treatment. Anything else makes hardcore fans have to decide how to spend their money - unquestionably a bad thing. It also weakens the sport in the eyes of less dedicated viewers when they see crappy fights on pay TV.
2. The heavyweight division needs to get its act together - For whatever reason, the big guys have always been able to capture the imagination of the general public. It's tough to see boxing ever making permanent strides without some real drama and compelling championship fights at heavyweight.
3. More personalities need to emerge - Love him or hate him, Floyd has been able to make a name for himself over the past few years because his flashy, cocky persona makes for good entertainment. It's something he didn't always understand, and he's now reaping the benefits. The next generation of champions will have to learn from his example and start to sell themselves as personalities early on. Hardcore fans will always appreciate the sport on its own merits, but the mainstream needs a little sizzle with its steak.

Some would argue that it doesn't matter if the mainstream latches on to boxing again as long as great fights are put on for those of us who care. But that's a whole different question, one that probably deserves its own column to explore.

Round By Round: Chris Byrd vs. Shaun George

We're just about set for Chris Byrd's return to light heavyweight, taking on Shaun George on the main event of Friday Night Fights. A video package explores the former heavyweight champion's weight loss, as he dropped almost 40 pounds to go down two divisions. The reactions of other boxers upon seeing the slimmed-down Byrd - especially the look he got from Roy Jones - are pretty amusing. At his heaviest, Byrd fought a fight weighing 222 pounds; tonight he comes in at 174.

George comes in riding a three-fight winning streak. The trainers share some thoughts on the boxers' fight plans: Byrd needs to use his speed, George has to let his hands go and throw combinations. Referee Jay Nady gives the instructions and we're good to go.

Round 1

George comes out firing while Byrd is a little more cautious. Byrd paws with the right hand and George throws quick counters. Body and head combos by George. Now a nice counter left from Byrd. Sharp right upstairs wobbles Byrd. He gathers himself but looks pretty clueless at this point. A right hand to the body sends Byrd to the canvas, and though he hops up quickly, the announcers think he looks hurt.

Franchise: 10-8 George
Spartan117: 10-8 George

Round 2

Guest announcer Shannon Briggs says he's already worried about Byrd. He looks a little more aggressive but George is ready to return fire with multiple right hands. A hook starts off another combo for George. Byrd switches to a conventional stance but still has few answers. George looks like he can land the right any time he wants. Byrd tries to find the range with left hands before the bell but that was George's round all the way.

Franchise: 10-9 George
Spartan117: 10-9 George

Round 3

Byrd follows George around but can't land anything of consequence. Now Byrd gets off a combo and George is quick to respond. Briggs says George has the whole package but sometimes loses focus. Byrd ducks away from a few punches and tries to establish the jab. Left from Byrd; George scores with several rights. George looks too quick and too strong.

Franchise: 10-9 George
Spartan117: 10-9 Byrd

Round 4

Both men reaching with jabs. Byrd shakes his head and he looks a little more bouncy in this round. His biggest problem is an inability to land any power shots. Quick right-hand counters from George. Left to the body and right to the head by Byrd. George fighting more in spurts now; tough to tell if he's tiring or just staying cautious. Closer round.

Franchise: 10-9 George
Spartan117: 10-9 Byrd

Round 5

Brian Kenny touts Burd's willingness to fight the best at heavyweight but wonders about the harm it did him. Tarver is impressed with George but thinks he needs to close the show. George stays mobile and lands a right upstairs. Byrd finaly lets his hands go inside to the delight of the crowd. Byrd scoring with light punches while George looks for the big shots. Shaun finds the mark with more right hands; it would be nice to see something else with them. Byrd continuing to come forward but not throwing enough, and as Briggs points out, his jab is completely absent.

Franchise: 10-9 George
Spartan117: 10-9 George

Round 6

Now George uses a jab and throws the right behind it. Left uppercut and some more rights. Byrd lands some lefts but they look weak. A nice exchange in the center of the ring sees both men land. Byrd finally unleashes a combo along the ropes. He's also jabbing more. George may have lost that round by inactivity over the final two minutes.

Franchise: 10-9 Byrd
Spartan117: 10-9 Byrd

Round 7

Byrd told the announcers between rounds that he looks like crap. George shows a little more fire in the early going. Byrd's defense looking a little better as he picks off some shots with his gloves. He lands a right-left combo upstairs. Now he covers as George throws more rights. Not a real impressive round for either man.

Franchise: 10-9 George
Spartan117: 10-9 George

Round 8

George scores to the head with a right. Another one makes Byrd grimace. Nice left and right by Byrd and George tries to respond to the body. Joe Byrd Sr. thinks his son is getting old. Quick jab by George helps keep Byrd at bay. George's head looks like it's there to be hit but Byrd can't take advantage.

Franchise: 10-9 George
Spartan117: 10-9 George

Round 9

George tries to say he was hit low, but the ref says fight on. He doesn't look hurt too badly. George's trainer thinks his man should be doing more to get Byrd out of there. This round is being fought more in the center of the ring, and Briggs thinks a right hand hurt Byrd. He's still coming forward though. Nice left uppercut followed by a straight right and Byrd goes down again. Crushing lefts and rights put Byrd down a third time in the corner, and Nady calls a stop to it. George calling out Tarver and others as he yells into the camera.

The winner, by TKO at 2:45 of the ninth round, Shaun George. At the time of the stoppage, Franchise had it 79-72 for George, Spartan117 had it 77-74 for George.

Tarver says George has inserted himself as a major player in the light heavyweight division and that he expected this. He likes George's movement and the way he was able to land counter shots. The Magic Man doesn't think Byrd's fate was due to his weight loss as much as his long, punishing career at heavyweight.

George joins Brian Kenny and Briggs, and he says he had more motivation for this fight and trained harder than ever before. He was not surprised that he could hurt Byrd early, and though he says he's willing to fight anyone, he really wants Glen Johnson or the winner of Tarver-Chad Dawson.

Byrd's shoulder is injured, quite possibly when he landed awkwardly during the second knockdown.

Friday Night Fights Report - 5/16/08 - Chris Byrd, Antonio Tarver in Studio and More

We've got quite an intriguing episode of Friday Night Fights on tap tonight. Former heavyweight champion Chris Byrd makes his return to light heavyweight against Shaun George after dropping two weight classes and almost 40 pounds. Always outspoken Antonio Tarver is scheduled to be the guest, and with Teddy Atlas off for the week, Shannon Briggs is helping out on commentary.

The first fight from Las Vegas features undefeated prospect Rulslan Provodnikov taking on Brian Gordon. Briggs says Provodnikov reminds him of Kostya Tszyu, at least in appearance and demeanor. Gordon has turned pro after two tours of duty in Iraq.

Provodnikov is the aggressor in the first round. Both men eat some hard shots but the Russian starts to find the range more often toward the end of the frame. Back in the studio, Tarver says he'd be surprised if we don't see the old Chris Byrd tonight.

The second round sees Provodnikov start to land some punishing body shots. He's definitely eating some shots in return but Gordon looks like he's coming out of the bad end of most exchanges. Briggs says he'd like to see Provodnikov jab his way in more instead of just walking forward. Gordon winces from several right hands as the second round winds down.

Gordon is definitely game, and he even opens up a cut on his opponent in the third round. But Provodnikov is throwing bombs to the body with both hands and mixing in some shots upstairs. The Russian goes down in the fourth but it is an obvious slip and is scored accordingly. Briggs gives all of the first four rounds to Provodnikov, though he admits they are tough rounds. He scores an even fifth round.

Gordon snaps Provodnikov's head back with a stiff right early in the sixth and final round. "He is Army tough, for real," quips Briggs. Both guys continue to trade until the final bell and we're going to head to the scorecards. Scores are 59-55, 58-56 and 60-54, all for the winner, Provodnikov.

Back to the studio for more with Tarver. They go over the Magic Man's resume, showing a clip from Rocky Balboa that gets him smiling. Tarver says he'd like to do more acting, but he's focused right now on his boxing career, with the specific goal of unifying the light heavyweight titles. They discuss his poor showing against Bernard Hopkins and his two victories in 2007.

Tarver is asked about his war of words with Clinton Woods leading up to their fight earlier this year, and he laughs, saying people thought he was acting. The clips are classic Tarver, and he says Woods came down with a case of "Post-Tarver Syndrome" after losing to the Magic Man.

Tonight's second fight matches Koba Gogoladze and Ji-hoon Kim in another six-rounder. Kim comes out aggressively but gets hammered by left hands from Gogoladze. But surprise, it's Kim who catches Gogoladze with a left hook and sends him down. Koba answers the count, but Kim strikes again with a sharp left and right to the head and it's all over. Kim is only 21 and he scores a nice win in his first fight in the U.S.

In the studio, Tarver weighs in on tonight's main event. He says Byrd used to have outstanding foot movement but hasn't been showing that in his last several fights after taking a pounding campaigning at heavyweight. Tarver thinks if Byrd can recapture some of his old mobility, George will have a lot of trouble with him.

Cotto, Margarito Sign for "The Battle" in Las Vegas

It wasn't much of a surprise, and it didn't get much in the way of a creative name, but fight fans aren't likely to care. A bout that already has the boxing industry buzzing became a reality late Wednesday night when Miguel Cotto officially agreed to take on Antonio Margarito.

The fight will take place on July 26 on HBO PPV from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas - a slight disappointment to the staff here at BoxingWatchers.com, who certainly would have been up for attending it live had it ended up in Atlantic City. The collision between the undefeated Puerto Rican champ and the exciting Mexican challenger has been dubbed "The Battle," which is fitting if not terribly original.

"I get really excited about a fight like this because I know it can't be anything but great," Top Rank promoter Bob Arum told ESPN earlier today. "That's why we're calling it 'The Battle.' It's a tough-ass fight. Two real men fighting. There won't be any playing around. No ducking or dodging. These are two guys who will go at it. That is their style."

A press conference is expected for next week to start hyping the fight. In the meantime, everyone can start speculating about whether Cotto will finally run into a foe he can't handle, as no one on his impressive career hit list has come at him with the combination of volume and power he'll face from Margarito.

Uatu has already weighed in with his early thoughts. And while it's too early for me to make a prediction, I will say this: if you were thinking about gathering your friends who aren't boxing fans for a pay-per-view, do it for this one.

Alex Arthur to Become WBO Champ... Without Fighting

Think it's crappy when the sanctioning organizations that award titles in boxing can't get their acts together and put on meaningful championship bouts? How about when they award belts without even having boxers, you know, box for them?

That looks like it's about to happen with the WBO junior lightweight belt. Joan Guzman, the former titlist at 130 pounds, announced yesterday that he was relinquishing his belt because he and his team were tired of waiting for a fight to be made with mandatory challenger Alex Arthur. Since Arthur was the WBO's interim titlist (and someone needs to explain to me exactly what that means), Dan Rafael of ESPN is reporting that the sanctioning body is expected to simply name him the champ.

What a novel concept: if you want to win a world title, simply become the mandatory opponent, then stall long enough for the champ to get tired of waiting for you. He leaves, you get the gold. Brilliant!

I don't feel too bad for personal favorite Guzman, who's on to bigger (for sure) and better (hopefully) things at 135. But this does underscore why I consider The Ring magazine champs to be the real deal. The "Bible of Boxing" only allows a belt to change hands when someone dethrones the man who holds it, declaring it vacant if the champ retires or changes weight classes. A vacant belt can only be won if the number one and two (or occasionally number three) men in the rankings fight each other. It's not a perfect system, but it adds a heck of a lot more legitimacy to the sport than whatever the WBO's of the world cook up.

Andre Dirrell - a new BoxingWatchers Favorite?

Uatu decided to watch Andre Dirrell vs. Anthony Hanshaw on Showtime OnDemand today, and he was very impressed. Unlike his fight with Curtis Stevens of Chin Checkers fame, Dirrell was offensive-minded and exciting. He is ultra-fast with his hands, has some quick footwork and does the switching back and forth between sides thing, but unlike Junior Witter last night, he does it effectively. He punished Hanshaw before getting the mid-round TKO victory.

He is also from Flint, Michigan, where the BoxingWatchers have family residing. So he is a fighter to keep an eye on, and looks to have a bright future at 168. At the very least, he will hold a title at some time. Any time he is on TV from now on the BoxingWatchers will be, of course, watching.

Round by Round: Witter v. Bradley

Witter v. Bradley is tonight's fight at the junior welterweight class. Timothy Bradley is 24 years old from Palm Springs, CA, and comes in tonight undefeated. Junior Witter is from England and 34 years old. His record is 36-2-1.

The fight is in Nottingham, England. The British fans in attendance show their distaste for the American national anthem. Witter doesn't feel that it's necessary to remove his hat during God Save the Queen."

The crowd is hyped for this one as the introductions are made and it's time to get started.

Rd 1: Both fighters try to establish the jab in round 1. Witter swings with a very wide hook and Bradley ducks away. Nobody connecting with anything big. Bradley attempts to work the body. Bradley counters with 2 hard hooks that score. Bradley's defense looks good as he catches Witter's jabs and hooks.

Spartan: 10-9 Bradley
Uatu: 10-9 Witter

Rd 2: Bradley is trying to be the counter puncher in this fight. Witter stands in a very awkward southpaw stance. It looks uncomfortable. They clash heads hard; so far no cut opened. Bradley trying to work the body again and gets in with some good jabs. Witter switches back to orthodox. Both fighters swing wildly but neither connects. Bradley scores with a right hook upstairs.

Spartan: 10-9 Witter
Uatu: 10-9 Bradley

Rd 3: Bradley switches to southpaw and then switches back again in the first seconds. Witter lunges forward but doesn't connect. Its pretty cautious in the first half of the round. Witter connects with an uppercut. Bradley doesn't look hurt. Bradley now swinging for the fences and missing. Bradley gets in with a good hard jab followed by a straight right. Witter continues to switch stances.

Spartan: 10-9 Bradley
Uatu: 10-9 Witter

Rd 4: Both fighters clash again in the beginning. Lots of clinching, lots of stumbling around the ring. Witter gets hit with a hard jab and straight and then they tie up again. There's a lot of toe to toe fighting. Bradley now showing his head movement and dodges 2 straights. Tough round to score.

Spartan: 10-9 Bradley
Uatu: 10-9 Bradley

Rd 5: Bradley counters and connects. The two tie up again and again. Witter keeps running in and grabbing. Witter looks very awakward in the ring. Bradley now starts throwing hard again. A bruise starts to grow over Bradley's eye, possibly from a headbutt.

Spartan: 10-9 Witter
Uatu: 10-9 Witter

Rd 6: Witter not lunging in to get inside . Not many clean punches landing in this fight. Bradley throws a long right hand and misses. Bradley gets in again and clocks Witter with a solid cross. Bradley not landing at a higher percentage but Witter still looks fine. Witter comes into a hard counter. Bradley lands a huge overhand right hand and Witter goes down. He gets up but he looks hurt.

Spartan: 10-8 Bradley
Uatu: 10-8 Bradley

Rd 7: Bradley now looking for the KO. Witter looks scared and he runs. Witter now looks tired. He falls but its clearly a slip. Bradley is swinging wildly - he might punch himself out. Witter is barely punching at all. Bradley tries the overhand bomb again but it doesn't land cleanly. Now Witter is swinging hard again, some of it connecting. I still think it was Bradley's round.

Spartan: 10-9 Bradley
Uatu: 10-9 Bradley

Rd 8: The fighters start off slowly. The ref is warning Bradley for a headbutt. Witter gets a hard left hand in but Bradley doesn't back down. Both fighters are headhunting and looking for the knockdown. Bradley is trying, throwing hard bombs and it's a matter of time before one lands. The two start tying up again.

Spartan: 10-9 Bradley
Uatu: 10-9 Witter

Rd 9: Witter comes in awkwardly and pays with a counter. Now the fighters slow the action and wait for the other to throw a punch. Witter does not look like he can find a rhythm. This is the sloppiest round yet. They keep lunging forward and tying up. Bradley gets Witter against the ropes but Witter blocks everything. Hardest round to score yet.

Spartan: 10-10
Uatu: 10-9 Witter

Rd 10: No surprise, they start the round out with a clinch. Both fighters jab at each other in the clinch. Bradley lands a hard right hand, Witter looks a little hurt. Witter starts throwing low blows. The ref tells him to keep the punches up. He goes for the low blow again and gets another warning. Bradley is now loading up his right hand, but just missing. Bradley wins this one.

Spartan: 10-9 Bradley
Uatu: 10-9 Bradley

Rd 11: Bradley now looking for a way to get inside. Bradley gets in a jab. Both fighters now flailing and missing. Bradley now connecting more. Witter looks tired and not landing much. Now he tries to come up with something and lands some small punches. Bradley looks fresh and confident. The commentators are ripping into Witter. Bradley lands another wide hook.

Spartan: 10-9 Bradley
Uatu: 10-9 Bradley

Rd 12: Witter looks miserable in his corner. He looks like he has nothing left. Bradley now looking strictly for the knockout. Witter stumbles back after blocking. Witter doesn't look like he has any interest of attempting to win this fight. Bradley still loading up with his overhand right. Now it's turning into a street fight - both swing very wildly fighting out of clinches and spinning around the ring. Both fighters raise their hands at the end of the fight.

Spartan: 10-9 Bradley
Uatu: 10-9 Bradley

Spartan117 scores it 118-110 Bradley. Uatu scores it 115-112 Bradley. The judges score it 115-112 Witter, 115-112 Bradley and 114-113 Bradley. The winner by split decision and new WBC junior welterweight champion, Timothy "Desert Storm" Bradley.

Bradley says he stayed and prayed and thanks Jesus for his victory. He says he felt good throughout the whole fight. He says he got a little reckless but then he slowed down. He said he noticed Witter was fading and he turned the pressure up.

Updates (Not Quite Live) for Witter-Bradley Tonight

Want to see if Junior Witter is everything he's cracked up to be? Here at BoxingWatchers.com, we do too. That's why we'll be tuning in tonight to catch his tape-delayed fight against Timothy Bradley tonight. And just to stay in practice, we're doing round by round updates. Bookmark us here and come back later to see how the fight shakes down in Nottingham.

Quick Thoughts on Witter-Bradley

Uatu may be in the minority, but he has been looking forward to seeing Witter on US TV for some time now. Mostly Uatu has only read about him badgering Ricky Hatton for a fight. In the US, he is most famous for a horribly boring performance against Zab Judah many years ago, but he has been on a serious roll since, gaining a title. He sounds exciting with an unorthodox and switching style of fighting from the left and the right. He has intrigued Uatu for many years as a possible diamond in the rough.

Bradley is built like a superhero. He too is a somewhat unknown quantity, even here in the US.

So it's absolutely a fight worth watching, and luckily Showtime agrees.

Franchise Thoughts: Why I'd Rather See Jones-Silva Than Mayweather-De La Hoya II

It may not yet be officially official, to coin a phrase, but it's all but certain that Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Oscar De La Hoya will meet for a second time in September. At this point, all that remains is for i's to be dotted and t's to be crossed.

Financially speaking, it only makes sense. Why wouldn't the two biggest names currently in the sport want to face each other again? People will watch, though maybe not quite as many as the first time they fought.

Mayweather is the most talented fighter in the game, and De La Hoya is a former multi-division champion still in possession of most of his tools. They fought to a fairly close (though undeserved, in the eyes of this fan) split decision last year. There's no question the fight will be contested at the very highest skill level.

What it won't be, though, is particularly compelling. Despite some chatter about the "new and improved" De La Hoya after his win against Steve Forbes and promises from the Golden Boy camp that they have a game plan to win, there isn't any reason to think he'll fare any better this time around.

And if you thought the Forbes fight looked like a sparring match at times, there's bound to be more of that come September. Since Oscar and Floyd are doing business together, it's just hard to believe there's any real enmity left between them. On top of that, neither man is likely to put himself in real jeopardy, since Floyd is notoriously risk averse and Oscar is looking ahead to life after boxing.

The Mayweather family circus will add some entertainment value, but otherwise this is a bout without much in the way of drama, of questions to be answered. Meanwhile, there's a potential fight that doesn't look like it's going to happen which would be chock full of just those qualities.

I'm talking about Roy Jones Jr. and mixed martial artist Anderson "Spider" Silva, both of whom have expressed interest in fighting each other. UFC head honcho Dana White seems determined to keep it from coming together, and Yahoo! Sports writer Kevin Iole, whose opinion I really respect, says it "would be a freak show."

Maybe so, since Silva has fought only two pro boxing matches. Iole doesn't even think a state commission would approve him to fight Jones due to his inexperience. I'd like to think his other fighting experience - he's at or near the top spot on every MMA expert's pound-for-pound list - would count for something.

Whether Silva could make a smooth transition from the octagon to the ring would just be one of the storylines that would create interest in the fight. There would also be a question of how much gas Jones had left in the tank, and whether fighting for the honor of their respective disciplines would bring out the best in both men. And, of course, the big one: who would win if a highly skilled boxer and an equally talented MMA fighter went at it?

It's foolish to think one match would settle that question, but that wouldn't stop people from tuning in. Even in the twilight of his career, Jones may be the third-biggest draw in boxing, and Silva is a big name in his sport. Pay-per-views would be sold and plenty of money would be made. Boxing could get that little bit of reassurance that it's still relevant and MMA could continue its reach into the mainstream consciousness.

The purist in me may cringe to admit it, but a Jones-Silva fight would have plenty of hooks to suck me in. A lot more, as it turns out, than a Mayweather-De La Hoya rematch. Sorry about that Floyd and Oscar.

Zab Judah's Fall Cancels May 31 Fight With Sugar Shane Mosley

Looks like the top poll question here is going to need to be replaced. The AP and other media outlets are reporting that the Shane Mosley-Zab Judah fight is off after Judah fell and injured his right arm, requiring 50 stitches.

Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, is quoted as saying that efforts will be made to reschedule the fight. You have to wonder, though, if Mosley can afford to wait for Zab to heal. At 36, he's closing in on the end of his career, and unless he doesn't have any other options that make sense, he may not have the luxury of remaining inactive until Judah is ready to go. The AP story says Judah will have to miss training for four weeks.

An interesting side note to the story concerns exactly how Judah suffered the injury. Early reports claimed he hurt it while training, but MaxBoxing/BoxingScene.com now has a source that reports he fell in the shower.

20-20 Hindsight: What We Learned From De La Hoya-Forbes About Oscar's Next (Last?) Two Fights

Oscar De La Hoya's fans in California seemed to enjoy Saturday's fight against Steve Forbes - until the final round, when you could hear some boos - but they may have been the only ones. Though some dissenting voices felt Forbes might give the Golden Boy a bit of a challenge, he proved to be anything but as Oscar cruised to a lopsided decision.

Forbes showed excellent defense and some good timing with jabs and an occasional body shot, but that was about it. He posed zero threat to knock out De La Hoya and it quickly became clear that he wasn't going to win on the scorecards either.

One of his post-fight quotes was pretty telling:

"I felt strong and it was great to be in there like that and have the opportunity to get in there and not go down," Forbes told the Associated Press.

Indeed, the HBO announcers mentioned several times that Forbes was pretty proud that he has never been knocked down in his career. It would be easy for us to criticize that attitude from the safety of our seats and couches, so I won't do that here. If that's what Forbes wants to be remembered for when he hangs up the gloves, who am I to judge?

Oscar and Floyd Mayweather Sr. seem to think (publicly anyway) that the plan the Golden Boy followed will allow him to have a realistic chance of upsetting Floyd Jr. in their all-but-signed rematch this fall. Others think otherwise - Hall of Famer Alexis Arguello for one - and I'd put myself in that category. Oscar will give a good account of himself, certainly, but there wasn't anything on display on Saturday that should cause Floyd Jr. to lose any sleep.

Even more worrisome is De La Hoya's alleged wish to end his retirement tour by taking on Miguel Cotto in December. Unless he's really feeling it, Oscar may want to rethink trading body shots with the WBA welterweight champ. Cotto is a lot more offensive-minded than Mayweather, and while De La Hoya will have the edge in boxing skills, it won't be as wide a gap as some may think. Make no mistake, Mayweather will beat De La Hoya, but Cotto will punish him.

But Oscar's earned the right to fight anyone he damn well pleases as he winds down his career. And since a common criticism of some big name fighters of this era (Mayweather, for instance) is that they don't fight the most challenging competition, at least we'll be able to look back and say De La Hoya went out fighting the best. That and several dozen more millions in the bank should help ease the sting if he ends up with two more notches in the loss column to show for it.

Round By Round: Oscar De La Hoya vs. Steve Forbes

The telecast is on from the Home Depot Center in Carson, California, as Oscar De La Hoya gets set to take on Steve Forbes. Jim Lampley says 27,000 fans are on hand for the bout, which is pretty impressive if it's true.

It's interesting that the announcers are selling it like Oscar is doing the fans a favor by putting this fight on HBO. They mention his close call against Felix Sturm from a few years ago, plus the Mayweather family melodrama that swirls around this fight.

The first video segment explores the relationship between De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather Sr. Oscar says they work together perfectly even though they are complete opposites. Forbes, of course, also has a Mayweather connection, switching from Roger to Jeff for this fight after Floyd voiced his displeasure. He says it was an easy transition between the two brothers.

Classic third-person lines by the Golden Boy: "I think we're going to see a more relaxed Oscar, and that Oscar can be dangerous." More exploration of the Sturm fight, with De La Hoya promising he won't make the same mistake again.

A pre-taped interview plays with Larry Merchant asking De La Hoya about why he's so popular despite some losses, how he won over the skeptical Mexican fans, his three-fight retirement plan, the future of Golden Boy and his personal post-boxing plans.

Celebrities and boxers on hand include Tobey Maguire, Sylvester Stallone, Brooke Shields, Sugar Ray Leonard and Bernard Hopkins. Finally, we start to get down to business with the Mexican and U.S. national anthems. Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls handles the latter.

The tale of the tape shows De La Hoya as the taller but older man. Both fighters officially weighed in at the contractually obligated weight of 150 pounds. Forbes comes out first, entering to "Sweet Dreams" by the Eurythmics. As usual, traditional Mexican music accompanies the Golden Boy's walk to the ring, which is especially long tonight because of the way the Home Depot Center, which is usually a soccer stadium, is set up for boxing.

Michael Buffer does the introductions and the crowd shows De La Hoya plenty of love. And we're ready for action.

Round 1

Both men open cautiously. Forbes comes in behind his jab and is quickly repulsed by lefts from Oscar. One-two to the body by DLH. More jabs by Forbes and Oscar goes back to the body. Good body punches both ways. A stiff jab backs up Forbes. Jab and right to the body by Oscar. Steve getting hit by plenty of body shots in this round. Sudden good combo by Forbes right at the bell.

Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 2

Forbes' corner tells him to try to steal every round at the end. Oscar jabbing his way in and slugging to the body. Body shots and uppercuts slow Forbes, but he comes back firing a left hook. The pace slows in the middle of the round. Body combo by Oscar and no answer from Forbes. Now he goes to the body with a right. The announcers think Forbes is blocking a lot of shots, but he's not busy enough in response. Nice flurry as De La Hoya bounces around. Forbes scores with a left on the chin.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 3

Body combo by Oscar to open the round. Emanuel Steward thinks he looks faster and sharper at this weight. Forbes showing a little more movement but still getting caught by some jabs. De La Hoya showing some wear on the nose and under one eye. Forbes backed up a bit by the jab again. Nice left-right to the head by DLH. Right hand upstairs by Forbes; Steward thinks he's gaining confidence.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 4

Forbes flurries and backs DLH to the ropes. Body shots and a left upstairs. Oscar gets the fight back in the middle and goes back to the jab. Forbes tries the body as they tie up. Oscar throws a combo that's mostly blocked. Now Forbes is backed up but his defense looks solid. Both men land to the head. Neither lands anything significant in the last 10 seconds.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 Forbes
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 5

Oscar opens working faster but Forbes is right there with him. A jabbing contest breaks out. Forbes goes to the body. DLH comes in but Forbes ducks away. This round slows into a chess match as no one wants to leave themselves open. DLH doubles up on the jab and uppercuts inside. Forbes covers up to weather an Oscar flurry. Forbes is fighting a smart fight but just not landing enough shots to win rounds.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 6

Right-left combo and more jabs from Forbes. Nice left by Oscar in the middle of an exchange. Forbes flurries and DLH blocks most of it. Oscar punches his way inside to the delight of the crowd. Forbes is cut outside the right eye. Short left stops Forbes from coming forward. Nice left upstairs by DLH, then a right. That may have been Oscar's best round yet.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 7

Oscar returns to the jab and right to the body. Lots of swinging and missing inside. Forbes goes to the body but eats a jab. Nice body-head combo by DLH makes Forbes wince. Good feint by Oscar and he scores with a quick left. Lefts to the body inside by DLH. Flurry along the ropes and Forbes has to scurry to get away. Another great round for Oscar.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 8

Slower start to this round. Forbes trying to jab. Nice little flurry; he's still game. Oscar piskcs off some shots and settles back in. Left to the body by DLH. Quick left catches Oscar coming in. Repeated lefts to the body by Oscar, who refuses to be tied up. Forbes escapes some fire in the corner. Kind of a cruise control type of round there.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 Forbes

Round 9

Is Oscar slowing or did he just take most of Round 8 off? Forbes jabs and throws a right to the body. Oscar goes back on the attack and drives Steve back. Two lefts score on the chin of Forbes. Now Forbes lands a few lefts and a quick right. Oscar still looking comfortable, landing jabs and hooks.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 10

CompuBox says Forbes landed only seven punches last round - that's not going to get it done. Two nice jabs by Oscar. Combos back Forbes up again. Now he comes forward though doesn't land much. Right uppercut starts a combo by DLH. Body shots by Forbes and they tie up. De La Hoya throwing from all angles now. Fans cheer as there's an exchange in the center of the ring.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 11

Looks like Oscar will cruise to the victory from here. Forbes stays busy but can't do much damage. Oscar tries some power lefts and returns to the jab. Both men go to the body. Flurry by DLH but Forbes shows he's not hurt. Sharp punches by Oscar with Forbes backed into the corner. They touch gloves at the end of the round.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Round 12

Jeff Mayweather tells Forbes to leave everything in the ring, but I can't see him going out on his shield. Nice lefts to the body and head by DLH. Big left to the body by Oscar as Steve jumps in. The crowd urges Oscar on as he looks to box all the way until the end. One minute to go. Now some boos as fans realize there won't be an explosive finish. Good right by Forbes but way, way too late. De La Hoya throws one final flurry as the fight winds down.


Franchise: 10-9 De La Hoya
Spartan117: 10-9 De La Hoya
Uatu: 10-9 De La Hoya

Franchise scores it 120-108 De La Hoya, Spartan117 and Uatu score it 119-109 De La Hoya. The judges score it 120-108, 119-109 and 119-109, all for the winner by unanimous decision, Oscar De La Hoya.

Oscar says that he was disapointed with his that he could not win by knock out or even knock him down but says that he knew it would be difficult to accomplish this. He says that he was glad he got to test an aggressive style. Oscar states that he wants to go after Mayweather but says the deal isn't set.

Live De La Hoya-Forbes Round By Round Updates Tonight

Will Steve Forbes simply be the tune-up Oscar De La Hoya wants before his rematch with Floyd Mayweather later this year? Or will the former Contender contestant and Mayweather family pupil prove a tougher out than expected? If you can't see the fight, catch live round by round updates right here tonight on BoxingWatchers.com.

Predictions: Oscar De La Hoya Vs. Steve Forbes

The Franchise says...

My stepfather refuses to order any more Oscar De La Hoya pay-per-views, and he may not watch him fight on HBO this weekend either. Why is this relevant? Bear with me for a second, I'm getting to that.

The grudge held by my stepdad against the Golden Boy dates back to the summer of 2004, when De La Hoya fought Felix Sturm. As you may remember, that was supposed to be a warm-up bout that would keep Oscar active for a fall showdown with Bernard Hopkins. As you may not remember, Sturm jabbed De La Hoya to death and nearly stole the fight, losing by narrow 115-113 scores on all three cards. My stepfather is convinced the judges were too scared to do the right thing for fear of sabotaging the big payday with B-Hop, and to this day he's stubbornly refused to watch De La Hoya fight again.

Maybe that has nothing to do with tonight's fight, but one has to admit that the circumstances are eerily similar. A huge fight (maybe his last) looms for De La Hoya this fall in the form of a rematch with Floyd Mayweather. Like Sturm, Forbes is seen as a huge underdog - Vegas has Oscar as an 18-1 favorite - and while he may not have one great weapon like Sturm's jab, he does bring some skills to the table.

Throw in a dose of Mayweather family drama for good measure, with Forbes switching trainers from Roger to Jeff after Floyd complained about a conflict of interest. As Kevin Iole recently pointed out, that was just an example of a strange series of events that's led us to this point.

Still, there's not much on Forbes' resume to suggest he can pull off the upset. He's smaller than De La Hoya, for starters, though his bouts on The Contender were fought at 150. He hasn't exactly been scintillating since his runner-up finish on that show either, getting beaten handily by Demetrius Hopkins and eking out a split decision over Francisco Bojado in his two fights last year. Most troublesome of all, he has only nine career knockouts, suggesting he'd need to beat Oscar the way even Sturm couldn't: on the scorecards.

That's probably not impossible, but it is highly unlikely. Despite this feeling that Oscar is ripe to be beaten, Forbes isn't the right man for the job. I expect De La Hoya to box him evenly at worst, plus do a lot more damage when he lands his signature left hook. That should be all he needs to keep his future plans intact. In other words, Oscar by fairly uneventful unanimous decision.

De La Hoya - Forbes Weigh In report

live from hbo.com

Bernard and JMM on the stage as the legendary Michale Buffer does the speaking.

Stevie Two Pounds Forbes out first. He's in a sweatsuit and headband.

Golden Boy is out next. Sweatsuit as well.

Forbes weighs in. It's great how Bernard is always over everyone's shoulder like he's seriously watching the weights for funny business, which he probably is. But he gets within inches of the opposing fighters as they weigh in. He does it for every fight and he gets right in their business.
Forbes: 150 even.

MAB is on stage now too.

Oscar 150 1/2 pounds.
Oscar took his socks off and got back on as Buffer was introducing MAB. No further announcements of weights though.
What's the limit for this fight? 150? Uatu not sure exactly what happened there.

Oscar is full of his usual theatrics and fist shaking. Photo op and that's it for the big timers.

De La Hoya - Forbes Weigh-in Time Difference - Advantage Oscar?

Uatu usually watches the weigh-ins live on hbo.com on the Friday before a big fight. Most of the fights are out of Vegas and go off at 5:30pm over here on the East Coast. Imagine Uatu's surprise when he went to Hbo.com and saw that today's weigh in is actually at 3:30 over here on the east coast. Is the extra two hour difference for Oscar to have more time to rehyrdate? Does the two hours even make a difference? An honest explanation could be because the fight is in LA and not Vegas. Just wondering aloud.

BoxingWatchers.com Boxing Power Rankings - April 2008

We've been doing these rankings for a minute now, but for those new to the party, here's the disclaimer: this is not a pound-for-pound list. Instead, it's a pseudo-scientific measure of who's hot right now, with points earned for activity, winning decisively and facing opponents with good records. For another view, read one of our first posts: How Our Rankings Work.

Now that we've got that out of the way, here's a fresh batch of power rankings that's been shaken up a bit from all of the big fights over the past two months. Even so, there's a familiar name on top...

1. Miguel Cotto - 24.74 - He's probably not the best boxer in the world, but he does put in consistently excellent performances against tough competition. He'll have to do that again to get past Antonio Margarito in July.

2. David Haye - 24.15 - The Hayemaker has knocked out his last four foes and currently rules the cruiserweight division with two iron fists. Time will tell if he's biting off more than he can chew by moving up to heavyweight.

3. Kelly Pavlik - 19.51 - The Ghost should only increase his score in June when he steps in against Gary Lockett. Who? Exactly.

4. Wladimir Klitschko - 19.00 - Tony Thompson is up next for the heavyweight champ. It can't possibly be as dull as the Ibragimov fight... can it?

5. Manny Pacquiao - 16.61 - He got past Juan Manuel Marquez, but just barely. Pacman could flash his KO power of old against David Diaz in June.

6. Joe Calzaghe - 16.00 - A victory over Bernard Hopkins is impressive, no matter how razor-thin the margin. Calzaghe's immediate future seems to hold several lucrative possibilities.

7. Floyd Mayweather - 15.60 - What's the world's best boxer doing all the way down here? Not enough boxing, that's what.

8. Samuel Peter - 15.27 - The Nigerian Nightmare slugged his way past Oleg Maskaev and is all of a sudden looking scary good.

9. Israel Vazquez - 15.16 - This guy really needs to think about fighting someone other than Rafael Marquez. Not because we wouldn't love to see them go for four - we would - but because doing that on a regular basis can't be good for his health.

10. Chris John - 15.05 - Perhaps someday this guy will fight here in the U.S. so we can see if he's really as good as his record makes him appear.

The next 7: Arthur Abraham, Ricky Hatton, Juan Diaz, Nate Campbell, Antonio Margarito, Junior Witter, Shane Mosley

20-20 Hindsight: What's Next for Calzaghe and Hopkins, Close Doesn't Mean Controversial and More

Even though it was much more of a chess match with boxing gloves than a slugfest, Saturday's fight between Joe Calzaghe and Bernard Hopkins wasn't totally devoid of drama. From the time that Calzaghe hit the canvas thanks to a quick but powerful right to the moment the split decision was announced, there was definite suspense.

It wasn't the type of fight to show to friends who aren't boxing fans to try to sell the sport though, and that's due in large part to Hopkins' defensive wizardry. Even in his 40's, The Executioner is quite simply the best defensive boxer I've ever seen, adept at not only blocking, slipping and evading punches, but also at controlling tempo and spacing. It's nearly impossible for opponents to line him up for anything significant, and his ability to fire off the ropes at the very last second is remarkable. Add in his timely clinches and his subtle (and not so subtle) tactics at extreme close range and it becomes an intimidating package for any opponent.

Against Calzaghe, Hopkins just didn't have enough offense to go with it. Too much jumping in without scoring, not enough of the jab and a real lack of weapons other than his counter right and body shots in close. You got the feeling that the fight was there for Bernard to win if he had just summoned up a little bit more of an attack, especially in the middle rounds when he admitted to pacing himself.

And lest we get too carried away with what Hopkins didn't do, proper credit needs to be given to Calzaghe for what he did. Joe is a rarity in the fight game in that he's a pressure fighter who can actually make in-fight adjustments. So many guys who come forward with high work rates just don't have a Plan B if things start going wrong - we've seen it recently with Paul Williams and Juan Diaz. Calzaghe's shown that he has a deeper bag of tricks against Mikkel Kessler and now against Hopkins, and that's what makes him the champ that he is.

As for the decision, there are no doubt people who think Hopkins should have won. There's nothing wrong with that, as there were a number of close rounds that were tough to score. But calling the decision controversial is just plain wrong, just as it was when Glen Johnson did it after his loss to Chad Dawson. A true robbery happens when one boxer clearly outclasses the other - say, nine rounds to three - but loses on the scorecards. That didn't happen to Johnson and it didn't happen Saturday either. Close doesn't equal controversial.

Hopkins asserted after the fight that the fans know he won the fight, but I don't expect a public outcry, and I'm sure he knows that deep down inside. He understands so many facets of the boxing game that he must realize his style just isn't fan-friendly, especially at this point in his career. If this is indeed the end of the road, he won't be able to say he never lost, but he will be able to say he couldn't be beaten decisively, and with the competition he's faced, that's saying something.

Calzaghe seems to have plenty of options for his next fight, though my brother Uatu made a good point when he suggested that he should really be thinking about only one or two more big fights before calling it quits. So much was made of Hopkins' age that it was easy to lose sight of the fact that Calzaghe is 36.

A fight with Kelly Pavlik would be appealing but dangerous for Calzaghe because even though he has the skills to befuddle The Ghost, getting caught by a right hand in that one would probably mean lights out. For financial and name recognition reasons, Roy Jones makes even more sense, and offers the Pride of Wales the best chance to put another big-name win on his resume.

Round by Round: Joe Calzaghe vs. Bernard Hopkins

The broadcast is off and running with Jim Lampley and Max Kellerman hyping tonight's bout between Joe Calzaghe and Bernard Hopkins. Max suggests that if Floyd Mayweather is upset by Oscar De La Hoya later this year, the winner of this one will be considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

Emanuel Steward ponders whether or not Calzaghe's lack of experience fighting in the U.S. will be a factor, and a video segment takes viewers inside JoeCal's world. Calzaghe says he wants to retire undefeated - no easy feat when you take on the likes of Hopkins, even at his current age.

Steward thinks B-Hop may have trouble with Calzaghe's speed. Now there's some discussion about the mind games Hopkins has been trying to play, and Kellerman states that this fight turns racial stereotypes of boxers on their heads. The next video package explores the mental aspect of Hopkins' game in more detail, including his treatment of the Puerto Rico flag before he fought Felix Trinidad and his "white boy" comment in the build-up to tonight's fight.

Celebrities at ringside include Whitney Houston, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Jay-Z, Jim Belushi, Pete Sampras, Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Sir Tom Jones handles the national anthem of Wales, while Ray J. does the same for the U.S.

The tale of the tape shows Hopkins with a slight height advantage and Calzaghe with a slight reach advantage. They both weighed in at 173 pounds.

Calzaghe makes his way to the ring, and the announcers say that while his fans have traveled well, he doesn't have the same fanatical following as Ricky Hatton. Hopkins gets a mixed reaction as he comes in. His robe says "Executioner" but his mask from his early career is definitely missed.

Joe Cortez is tonight's referee. Michael Buffer handles the introductions and we're all set to go.

Round 1

The opening seconds are cautious as the announce team talks about head butts. Calzaghe tries to get inside and they tie up. Joe trying the jab but no dice so far. Hopkins lands a right to the chin and Calzaghe goes down! That didn't look like it hurt him, but it did surprise him. Calzaghe can't figure out how to get in while punching. Joe misses a big left and B-Hop ties him up again. Calzaghe may be bleeding from the nose already. You couldn't script a better start for Hopkins.

Franchise: 10-8 Hopkins
Uatu: 10-8 Hopkins
Spartan117: 10-8 Hopkins

Round 2

Calzaghe has to make Hopkins work or this is not going to be close. Lots of roughhousing in close which definitely favors Bernard. Joe lands to the body but nothing significant. Cortez warns Joe for hitting behind the head and Bernard lands a right coming out of the break. Now Hopkins tries to come in and Cortez calls time for a low blow by Calzaghe. This fight may break the record for most clinches broken up by the ref, and Cortez is earning his money tonight.


Franchise: 10-9 Hopkins
Uatu: 10-9 Hopkins
Spartan117: 10-9 Hopkins

Round 3

CompuBox says Calzaghe has landed no jabs so far. Hopkins hit by a lead left but Hopkins gets an uppercut off inside. Hopkins goes to the body and clinches. Now a left by Calzaghe. Back against the ropes, B-Hop fights Joe off of him. Calzaghe flurries but Hopkins stands his ground. Steward thinks Joe will still get back into it. The announcers say it's a distance game right now, and it's hard to disagree. Left hands in the clinch by Joe and body shots; Hopkins scores with a counter right. Another ugly round that probably favors The Executioner.


Franchise: 10-9 Hopkins
Uatu: 10-9 Calzaghe
Spartan117: 10-9 Hopkins

Round 4

Joe lands a left coming into the corner but nothing else. Hopkins is just masterful at fighting the way he wants to fight. Bernard pawing with the jab; the crowd roars every time Joe scores whether it does damage or not. Cortez warns both men for rough tactics. Now they finally trade along the ropes. Calzaghe tries to duck in and throw the left but that's not working too well. Joe almost finds the range before the bell but still looks too cautious.


Franchise: 10-9 Hopkins
Uatu: 10-9 Calzaghe
Spartan117: 10-9 Hopkins

Round 5

Harold Lederman has this fight much closer than I do. Calzaghe finally finds a home for a few jabs. Hopkins tries to flurry but JoeCal is covered up. Left along the ropes by JoeCal. More clinches. Hopkins comes in to no avail. Bernard not quite as accurate with the counter shots in this round. Big swing and a miss with a JoeCal left. Right to the body by Hopkins but he hasn't done much offensively this round, and Calzaghe lands a left at the end of the round.


Franchise: 10-9 Calzaghe
Uatu: 10-9 Calzaghe
Spartan117: 10-9 Calzaghe

Round 6

The Welsh fans start a little singing in-between rounds. Steward says this fight will be difficult to score. Calzaghe's left is becoming more of a factor, but here's a flurry by B-Hop. Both men trade along the ropes in a roughly even exchange. Right by Hopkins answered by a Calzaghe left. Hopkins counters effectively now with a left. Straight left and right to the body by Joe. Calzaghe tries to steal the round with a late flurry and he may have won it anyway.


Franchise: 10-9 Calzaghe
Uatu: 10-9 Hopkins
Spartan117: 10-9 Calzaghe

Round 7

Left coming in by Calzaghe again. He looks much more relaxed now. Hopkins throwing one punch every time. He comes charging off the ropes but can't find much. The announcers are talking again about how tough the scoring will be. Jab by Joe and right to the body by Bernard. Good counter shots by Hopkins backed against the ropes. Calzaghe tries to surprise Hopkins quickly off the clinch. Both men flurry and come up mostly empty. Big exchange before the bell and Calzaghe almost stumbles down.


Franchise: 10-9 Calzaghe
Uatu: 10-9 Calzaghe
Spartan117: 10-9 Calzaghe

Round 8

Now Joe opens up with a flurry. Welshmen starting to get into it again. Jabs landing by Joe as Bernard ties up. Nice left upstairs by Calzaghe. Good counter by Hopkins, then both men land clean. Another left by Joe is answered by a right. Nice combo by Joe and he escapes the return fire. Nice dancing by Hopkins, and it looks like he landed a punch after the bell.


Franchise: 10-9 Calzaghe
Uatu: 10-9 Calzaghe
Spartan117: 10-9 Hopkins

Round 9

Nice right to the body by Bernard. Enzo Calzaghe really laid into his son between rounds. Good left to the head by Joe, then a jab. Flurry both ways along the ropes. Hopkins jumps forward and gets whacked in the side of the head. Plenty more wrestling if you like that sort of thing. Quick combo by Joe, then a hard right by Bernard. Left hand gets Hopkins' attention. Twin lefts by Calzaghe and counter right by Hopkins.


Franchise: 10-9 Calzaghe
Uatu: 10-9 Calzaghe
Spartan117: 10-9 Calzaghe

Round 10

CompuBox is having things go more and more Calzaghe's way, not that that means anything. Hopkins goes down but it looks like it was a low blow. Cortez gives Bernard five minutes to recover, but no point deduction seems to be coming. On replay, it's apparent Bernard pulled Joe's head down. It's quite possible Bernard is stalling for time. Calzaghe is loving it, playing to the crowd. It didn't slow Joe down, that's for sure. Hopkins lands a straight right coming in, then another jumping into the body. He's become more aggressive but it may be for naught. Calzaghe tags him coming in this time. Slapping punches both ways. Good lefts but Hopkins stands his ground. Both men let it fly at the bell, mostly for show. Ugly round.


Franchise: 10-9 Hopkins
Uatu: 10-9 Hopkins
Spartan117: 10-9 Hopkins

Round 11

A rare exchange in the center of the ring. Hopkins needs these last two rounds to be comfortable. Calzaghe finds the range coming in. Three clinches in a row. Hopkins pleading about getting hit in the back of the head. JoeCal backs Hopkins up a step. More grappling in the corner and B-Hop tries to plead for another low blow. Cortez says fight on. B-Hop is fired up now. Nice theatrics there by both guys.


Franchise: 10-9 Calzaghe
Uatu: 10-9 Calzaghe
Spartan117: 10-9 Calzaghe

Round 12

Left stuns Hopkins as they flurry. I think this one might be up for grabs. Enzo Calzaghe was still spurring his son on. Both men miss as they tie up. Good left by Joe and Bernard tries to counter. Hopkins looking a little more aggressive but it's not all effective. Exchanges along the ropes are mostly for show. Steward seems to think JoeCal's style will play with the Nevada judges. Ten seconds left and Bernard holds on. We'll go to the scorecards now and I wouldn't be surprised by anything.


Franchise: 10-9 Calzaghe
Uatu: 10-9 Calzaghe
Spartan117: 10-9 Calzaghe

Both men play to the crowd as we await the scores. That was more of a chess match than a brawl, but it was not without some drama.

Franchise scores it 114-113 Calzaghe, Uatu scores it 115-112 Calzaghe, Spartan117 scores it 114-113 Hopkins.

The judges score it 114-113 Hopkins, 115-112 Calzaghe and 116-111 Calzaghe. Your winner by split decision and new linear light heavyweight champion of the world, Joe Calzaghe.

Hopkins has a look of disbelief on his face, but that's to be expected. CompuBox had Calzaghe landing more punches against Hopkins than any opponent in his illustrious career. It also had Joe throwing more, landing more and connecting at a higher percentage. Take that for what you will.

Calzaghe says he was not really hurt by the first-round knockdown. He gives due credit to Hopkins for how tough a fight it was, and he admits he was wary of B-Hop's right hand. Joe doesn't think he was hurt at any time in the fight, and he makes a wry comment about the supposed low blow that had Hopkins complaining in the 10th round. He also says he doesn't know who he'll fight next, but does hint at Roy Jones. Steward would like to see that one.

Kellerman does get Hopkins to speak, and he says he was pacing himself in the middle rounds. He says all the fans except the Brits know he won the fight by picking up enough rounds. B-Hop says he was never hurt but did daze his foe several times. He says the fans are the real judges and know he won the fight. They watch the replay of the low blow together and Hopkins keeps pleading his case. Will this be it for him? The Executioner says he'll talk to his Golden Boy partners and let this fight marinate in the minds of the fans.

Some Boxing Thoughts

Roy Jones was on Friday Night Fights.
He says he still wants to fight Anderson Silva, the MMA fighter, in a straight boxing match, but the UFC President, Dana White, will not allow it. That would be an interesting event. HBO and Spike could Countdown the heck out of that story line.

Chris Byrd was on too and is ridiculously skinny. He looks like a totally different person. He says he can make 168! Here's to hoping Byrd has a serious run at one of the lighter than heavy divisions.

Kevin Johnson won in the main event. To say that he is ultra-confident is an understatement.

O'Neill Bell suprisingly retired during his fight with Tomasz Adamek, which Uatu caught live on ESPN Classic. Completely one-sided affair.

Live Round By Round Coverage of Hopkins-Calzaghe Tonight

Well we really couldn't call ourselves BoxingWatchers.com and not cover a fight billed as the "Battle of the Planet," could we? As always, if you can't make it to a TV that carries HBO tonight, bookmark us here for live round by round updates as Bernard Hopkins and Joe Calzaghe square off in Las Vegas.

Predictions: Hopkins vs. Calzaghe

The Franchise says...

This is the kind of fight that boxing fans always hope for but seems to come together so rarely. It features two fighters who are at the very top of the sport, each with something different to prove.

Smart money would seem to favor the younger fighter, and a big majority of fans who voted in our BoxingWatchers.com poll like Joe Calzaghe to come away with the win - though he's no spring chicken himself, and he's not accustomed to fighting in the United States. Add in the fact that Bernard Hopkins has made a career of foiling both Father Time and his opponents and you've got all the ingredients for a toss-up.

Unlike many other bouts between big name fighters, this one seems like a good combination of styles as well, with Calzaghe applying constant pressure and Hopkins looking to use his superb defensive and counter-punching skills. But both men are capable of playing the other side as well, as Calzaghe showed an improved jab and patience in his decision victory over Mikkel Kessler last November, and Hopkins proved he still has an aggressive streak in his last two wins against Antonio Tarver and Winky Wright.

Still, it makes sense that both men will go with what comes most naturally to them, meaning Calzaghe should be the busier and more successful fighter in the early rounds. Look for The Executioner to eventually figure out how to exploit any weaknesses he senses and turn it on as the fight goes deeper.

That means the biggest questions will be whether or not Calzaghe can build enough of an early lead and whether he has the heart to pull out what should be an exciting and close bout. It's a tough call but I think the Pride of Wales will answer both of those questions affirmatively, and that B-Hop will finally bite off more than he can chew. I'm calling for Calzaghe to win a close, possibly split decision.

Uatu says...
Hopkins to win a close, possibly split decision.
Uatu likes Hopkins ability to shut down the other fighter's game plan. Consider this- Hopkins still has not lost convincingly since the mid 90's. In the recent fights that includes Tarver, Wright, and Taylor, which is better than Kessler, Lacy, and somebody else.

Hopkins vs. Calzaghe Weigh-In

Checking out the weigh-in over at hbo.com.

Buffer healthy and back at it again sounding great.

Michael J. Fox and Sly Stallone in the house.

They are wasting no time.

JoeCal -173.

Bernard in the omni-present Affliction shirt.
Marco Antonio Barerra must have everything smoothed out with Golden Boy as he is behind Bernard for support.
173 for Hopkins too.

Looks like Enzo Mac is on stage too.

forehead to forehead posturing.
Huge grin from JoeCal.

Joe is all smiles. Bernard doing some pointing. Frank Warren and Schaeffer attempting to separate.
And off they go. The whole spectacle was less than five minutes.

Not the most exciting weigh-in, but still, they never fail to build excitement. Weigh-ins are a nice little touch that makes boxing so great, the fact that the two combatants have to meet face-to-face publicly the day before a fight.

Roy Jones in the house too. He goes on stage and shakes MAB's hand.
Shelley Finkel on stage shaking MAB's hand.

That's all, that's it.

Bernard Hopkins Correspondent for Jim Rome is Burning on ESPN

Bernard is acting as guest correspondent for Jim Rome today in order to create more interest for his big fight against Joe "Calzog" - (running joke from earlier post).

Jim describes him as reigning Ring Light Heavyweight Champ. So I guess Rome buys into the Ring too?

Some words from Nazim Richardson first. The ususal about Bernard always being on weight.

Freddie Roach describing B Hop as a true pro and super focused. Bernard knocks the wind out of Roach sometimes as Bernard is still very strong.

Lots of good training footage in LA.

Bernard says he is blessed to have three teachers at this point in his career.

The segment was very short. Seriously two minutes. Pretty much a super short version of Countdown minus any footage of "Calzog".

Still, as always, any boxing coverage on the major outlets is always a good thing.

Joe Calzaghe Not Quite a U.S. Household Name Yet

Just a little factoid for you to let you know that JoeCal isn't quite that famous in the U.S. yet.

During the radio spots advertising the Hopkins-Calzaghe fight here on the local sports talk radio station, they refer to JoeCal as "Calzog," rhyming with log. On TV he has always been called "Calzogee." If it is indeed "Calzogee," then it's kind of pathetic that the radio ads for the fight can't even get half of the main event's names pronounced correctly.

Some Quick Thoughts on Countdown to Hopkins - Calzaghe

Believe it or not Uatu has already watched the countdown show three times. This edition was much better than the one for Taylor - Pavlik or Pacquiao - Marquez.

Especially interesting was watching Hopkins go through Mackie Shilstone's tests.

Here's an interesting question for everyone.
How come people say Mayweather and Oscar can basically train themselves at this point and their current trainer of choice is not important, yet, Hopkins has not one, not two, but THREE trainers! Hopkins is supposedly a master boxer, and he still feels it essential to have input from trainers. Good for Hopkins. This is a man who is still humble enough to value others' opinions and still dedicated enough to leave no stone unturned. Very impressive character.

First Thoughts on Cotto vs. Margarito

Of course Gomez is no Margarito, but Cotto continues to impress. Every fight he wins Uatu over a little more. He is creeping up to "best boxer on the planet" status. A fight in July is not that far away. There won't be any time for Cotto to get drastically out of shape or to be distracted. Margarito is a serious challenge for anyone. He may very well be the second best welterweight out there. But not the best. Cotto has more dimensions, is just as rugged, and probably is quicker and hits harder.

Cotto will stay undefeated.

Round by Round: Cotto v. Gomez

The second fight tonight is the welterweight match up is Cotto v. Gomez. Both fighters are 27 years old. Gomez is coming off of his knockout victory against Arturo Gatti. Cotto's last bought was against Shane Mosley where Cotto won by decision. Gomez is 18-3 with 8 KO's. Cotto is 31-0 with 25 KO's.

The crowd is definitely pro Cotto.
They start a Cotto chant and its time to fight.

Rd 1: Cotto starts out as the aggressor and throws fast hard shots upstairs. Gomez comes back and shows his punching speed. Most of the punches are blocked by both fighters. Cotto lands 2 hard body shots to Gomez against the ropes. Gomez's face starts to show red from punches landing by Cotto. Cotto looks to be on his game tonight. Cotto is beating Gomez to the punch in the first round. Gomez lands a good counter punch and backs Cotto off.

Spartan: 10-9 Cotto
Uatu: 10-9 Cotto

Rd 2: Gomez comes out throwing his jab. Cotto backs up Gomez with almost every punch that lands. Cotto's punches are hard and landing flush. In the words of Jim Lamply, "Cotto is treating this fight like a sparring session." Cotto lands a hard body shot and Gomez looses his balance and goes down. He makes it up well before the count. The knockdown was almost a slip but was caused by a punch. Great round for Cotto.

Spartan: 10-8 Cotto
Uatu: 10-8 Cotto

Rd 3: Cotto starts to come in more confidently. Cotto switched to southpaw earlier but no goes back to orthodox. Cotto now lands hard uppercuts. Gomez shouldn't be able to take more punches like these. Cotto now switches momentarily back to southpaw but switches back. Gomez goes down in the last 3 seconds of the round by a very hard body shot. He looks hurt but makes it up for the break.

Spartan: 10-8 Cotto
Uatu: 10-8 Cotto

Rd 4: Gomez comes out in this round strong, but Cotto continues to back him up. Cotto has complete control over this fight. Gomez's face is red and swollen. Cotto lands at will now. Gomez's trainer should throw in the towel at this point. Gomez finishes the round on wobbly legs.

Spartan: 10-8 Cotto
Uatu: 10-9 Cotto

Rd 5: Cotto again comes out hard. Gomez goes down after a swift punch in the second minute but makes it up again. He goes back in and takes hard punishment again. Cotto looks very comfortable and goes back to work.

Spartan: 10-8 Cotto
Uatu: 10-9 Cotto

The ref finally stops the fight after the 5th round in the corner.

Cotto wins by TKO

Cotto says if Mayweather wants to fight him, he will fight him.

Round By Round: Clinton Woods vs. Antonio Tarver

We're almost set for the second half of the light heavyweight twin bill on Showtime, as Clinton Woods makes his way to the ring. He did a refreshingly honest interview earlier when he said he never expected to make it this far in the sport.

Antonio Tarver gets to enter second even though he is the IBO champion, which is to say not really a champion at all. His hometown crowd is definitely showing him some love. The announcers wonder whether any of his psychological games have had any effect on Woods. Clinton has slight advantages in youth, reach and weight.

Round 1

A cautious opening with Tarver jabbing and Woods trying to jump in. Woods throws to the body and AT dances back. Straight left by Tarver. Woods comes in to the body, then lands a nice shot upstairs. Tarver lands an uppercut, then another. Good left by Tarver; Woods tries to respond but hits mostly air.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 2

Now Woods looking to jab more. Tarver throws a combo but gets backed into the ropes by Woods. Left downstairs by AT. Woods managing to come forward more but his work rate isn't what I expected. Tarver goes to the body and back to the head; Woods looking for body shots as well. Woods walks through some fire and lands a nice right, he also switches to southpaw for a bit. Tarver finishes strong with an uppercut along the ropes.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 3

Woods starting a little faster in this round. Tarver still finding the left. AT goes to the body as Woods throws back to the head. Woods just misses a big counter shot. Tarver hitting then clinching if his foe gets in too close. Now a counter shot gets Tarver's attention. Body work by Woods and Tarver is off balance trying to respond. That was Woods' best round so far but still probably not good enough to get the nod.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 4

Nice uppercut by Tarver is the first good punch to land. The jab is there for Woods but he needs to throw it more. Right hand in the corner by Woods but Tarver escapes. Straight left by Tarver. Nice combo by Tarver stuns Woods a bit. Lots of wrestling along the ropes. The crowd boos a bit because the round dragged a little in the second half.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 5

Tarver still throwing combos in spurts while Woods is reduced to throwing one shot, though he's getting in closer this round. AT isn't fighting a pretty fight but he has been effective. Woods comes forward behind body shots from both hands. Woods gets caught with a left coming in. The hand speed difference is noticeable, especially in this round.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 6

Woods finally manages to corner Tarver for a second but he still needs to let his hands go. He gets whacked with a left coming off the ropes. More Tarver lefts find the mark. Woods is bleeding from the nose now. AT goes back to the jab and follows with lefts. Nothing of real consequence in the last minute of the round.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 7

Interesting that a press row judge has given two rounds to Woods; I'm not seeing that. Tarver is finding a pretty easy target if Woods stands still. Woods fires back to the body. His right to the body has been about all he's been able to do. Tarver dances around and makes this round look easy.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 8

Woods' best chance to get back in it is to look for one big punch. Finally he throws a combo. Tarver goes to the body then back upstairs. Woods lands a counter and he needs more of that. Left uppercut scores by Tarver. The crowd is booing again; perhaps they were spoiled by that great first fight. More body punches by Woods. This was his best round but still not good enough to take it.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 9

Now Woods is showing a bit more urgency, but it may be too late. He digs to the body and tries to press his advantage along the ropes. Big combo by Tarver as he lands multiple shots upstairs. Body work by Woods is answered upstairs by Tarver. Sharp combo by Tarver to the head. He's jabbing as Woods comes forward again. That was the first close round of the fight in my opinion.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Woods

Round 10

Tarver fighting right-handed this round. Woods jabs in as Tarver covers up. Nice quick shots upstairs by AT. Woods lands a left as Tarver backs up. Woods gets inside but can't quite figure out how to land an uppercut. Nice right and a left by Tarver. Woods lands a few shots along the ropes. Body work by Tarver. Good left by Tarver as he comes in. Woods comes forward at the bell but gets popped in the face for his trouble.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Round 11

I think Woods needs a KO to win but press row has it closer than I do. Nice right by Woods snaps Tarver's head back. Woods jabs in and tries combos. Stiff left gets Woods' attention. Big left by Tarver but Woods says he's not hurt. We'll see. Woods shows some heart and turns much more aggressive. He's swinging away but not connecting with everything. That was a close round but Woods was fortunate not to go down from that big left.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Woods

Round 12

Tarver lands an early left as the crowd roars. Another big left along the ropes. Now another in the center of the ring. Tarver definitely closing the show now. Woods trying to act like he's not hurt but he's really not doing much here. One minute to go. Straight left lands clean for Tarver. Woods is game all the way until the end, but if this fight is close on the cards I'd be shocked.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Tarver

Franchise scores it 118-110 for Tarver. The judges score it 116-112, 117-111 and 119-109, all for the winner and new IBF light heavyweight champion, Antonio "Magic Man" Tarver.

Round by Round: Cintron v. Margarito 2

Part 1 of tonight's Welterweight double header is between Kermit Cintron v. Antonio Margarito. This fight is the second chapter between these two fighters. These fighters are relatively young in boxing terms. Cintron is 28 and Margarito is 30. Margarito is 35-5 with 25 KO's. Cintron is 29-1 with 27 KO's. In their last bout, Margarito was victorious being the only person ever to beat Cintron. It should be a great fight.

During their first fight Cintron was a much younger fighter. After a cut opened on Cintron's eyelid early in the fight, he folded and took punishment throughout the remainder of the rounds. Many believe he will be better prepared for tonight.

The crowd sounds pro Cintron. They have made their way to the ring and it is time to fight.

Rd 1: Cintron comes out with a hard right hook. Both fighters start off pretty aggressive. Margarito lands a hard right and Cintron answers back with a hard uppercut. Neither fighter looks phased. Margarito lands another hard right hand. Margarito turns up the punching output. Margarito establishes his jab to set up other punches. Cintron lands 4 hard punches upstairs with a combination.

Spartan: 10-9 Margarito
Uatu: 10-9 Margarito

Rd 2: Cintron starts swinging early and chooses he punches. Margarito blocks a few but many land. Now Margarito backs Cintron into the ropes and lands 4 hard shots. Cintron looks a bit wobbly. Cintron's defense looks ineffective. Now both fighters trade hard uppercuts. Margarito goes to work at the body. Margarito lands a combo at the bell.

Spartan: 10-9 Margarito
Uatu: 10-9 Margarito

Rd 3: A slight cut opens over the eye of Margarito. Cintron comes out throwing more in round 3. Margarito answers back with a combo upstairs. Cintron lands a hard right hook. Cintron throwing many uppercuts throughout the fight and many of them land. It looks like this fight may be decided by who has the better chin. They are fighting toe to toe in the middle of the ring, both fighters taking a lot of punishment. The ref warns Margarito about a punch to the back of the head. Cintron turns to complain to the ref and Margarito takes advantage with a vicious right hand.

Spartan: 10-9 Margarito
Uatu: 10-9 Margarito

Rd 4: Both fighters keep up the intensity early in this round. Cintron gets backed into the ropes and pays for it, but fights out. Margarito is doing a good job getting through Cintron's defense. Cintron gets clocked with another hard right. Margarito landing more flush punches. Cintron continues to bend at the waist and sometimes gets caught with his back to Margarito.

Spartan: 10-9 Margarito
Uatu: 10-9 Margarito

Rd 5: Cintron now tries to get the jab working. Margarito's defense looks strong. Contron takes more punches. His footwork looks like it could use work. Both fighters now exchanging very hard punches to the head. Cintron keeps taking lots of hooks upstairs I don't know how he is staying up. The Ref stops the action to warn again for punches to the back of the head. Now a cut opens over Cintron's eye. Cintron gets back on his game but Margarito comes right back and lands punches at will upstairs. Easily Margarito's round.

Spartan: 10-9 Margarito
Uatu: 10-9 Margarito

Rd 6: According to compubox Margarito has landed more punches than Cintron has thrown. Cintron comes out with the jab again. Cintron's cut is now flowing. Cintron continues to look towards the ref after getting hit with clean shots. Cintron finally goes down after getting tagged hard against the ropes with a vicious left body shot. He can't get up. It's over. Another fight ended by a hard liver shot.

Margarito in the 6th round by knock out.
Margarito is the new champ.

Round By Round: Chad Dawson vs. Glen Johnson

We're waiting for the first of two light heavyweight fights to start tonight on Showtime. I was talking to the rest of the BoxingWatchers.com staff a little while ago and we were wondering which fight would be first. Looks like it will be Chad Dawson and Glen Johnson.

The announcers think Johnson looks good for 39, and discuss how he probably should have a few less losses because of questionable decisions. Dawson comes to the ring to Lupe Fiasco's "Superstar" and he looks confident.

It will be interesting to see if the crowd is behind Johnson, since he has lived in Florida for a while.

Round 1

Dawson opens with some jabs and Johnson comes forward as expected. Chad looks light on his feet and his hands look fast. He finds the range with a few straight lefts. Johnson lands a few counters as he tries to come in. Dawson also looking to the body. Nice combo to the body and head by Dawson. Now a nice right by Johnson. They trade right before the bell but Dawson landed more punches.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Dawson

Round 2

Dawson lands some quick shots but Johnson is on top of him and lands a few rights. The announcers think Chad is staying inside too much. Nice right-left combo by Chad. Johnson is able to pick off some shots to the head with his arms. Two nice lefts upstairs by Dawson. Johnson comes in behind a right and a left hook; Dawson stands his ground and returns fire. Johnson hit by a number of quick shots right as the round ends.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Dawson

Round 3

Johnson starting to make the jab work a bit though he's getting hit in the body setting it up. Dawson doing a bit better circling instead of going straight back. Johnson lands a few rights; Dawson beginning to find a target with the uppercut. Quick left by Chad and Glen scores with a counter riht. Now a flurry by Johnson and Dawson stands and returns fire. Another great exchange before the bell with Johnson landing a few big right hands. The crowd applauds that action.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Johnson

Round 4

The announcers think Dawson may have been hurt at the end of Round 3. He's throwing but his punches don't seem to be fazing Johnson. Nice right to the body by Glen. Dawson can't stay inside because Johnson is too effective in there. Straight lefts by Dawson and a right to the body. Big punches both ways. Right lands upstairs for Johnson. Now another gets through. Johnson slips at the bell and Dawson tries to jump on him. That was the closest round so far.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Dawson

Round 5

Johnson jabbing away and staying covered up. He lands a left and Chad responds with a combo. Inside rights by Johnson and he eats some coming back. Big right knocks Dawson backwards. Both men land to the body. Some vicious shots thrown by Johnson and they take some of the starch out of Chad. Now a left hook and a right upstairs. Johnson took control from the middle of the round onward.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Johnson

Round 6

I have to imagine Dawson is losing on the cards and Johnson hits harder, which is a tough combo to beat. Johnson finds the range with both hands inside. Now Dawson goes back to circling. Both guys throw lefts in the middle of the ring. Dawson digs to the body as Glen continues to stalk. The crowd boos because Dawson is retreating. He's picking his spots much better in this round. Johnson tries to steal the round at the end but I think Dawson fought that round very well.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Dawson

Round 7

Both boxers are getting very good advice from their corners. Dawson comes out moving and jabbing. Johnson goes to the body. Chad unleashes a combo but it was more sizzle than steak. Right by Johnson but Dawson's right in response is even bigger. That was the first time Glen's looked stunned so far tonight. Dawson looks like he's regained some confidence. Quick combo to the head by Chad. Johnson still coming forward but not throwing as many punches, and his jab has gone away. Both men trade with Johnson landing the biggest punch and Dawson landing quantity.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Dawson

Round 8

Dawson showing very good movement but Johnson looks more determined this round. His volume has definitely picked back up. Dawson tries a few lefts. Chad slips a right and goes back to his jab. He lands a few shots to the head in succession. Another quick combo that at least looks good. Body and head combo and Johnson lands a straight right in response. Right uppercut by Dawson. A nice exchange both ways. Johnson gets inside but Dawson throws back at the bell. Close round.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Dawson

Round 9

Johnson's corner told him he needs every round. He comes out like he thinks that's true. Nice right upstairs by Johnson and another. Dawson throws a combo and Johnson is caught off balance. Glen gets back inside and Chad dances away. Both guys find the range in the center of the ring. Nice straight left by Dawson. Right to the body by Johnson. Dawson goes upstairs as the round ends, and that was another close one.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Dawson

Round 10

Dawson's corner screaming at him to box and not get trapped inside. He lands early and circles away from Johnson. Chad works the head and body but the punches aren't that hard. Johnson goes to the body with a right. Nice left by Johnson but it's in the middle of a Dawson flurry. Big right by Johnson staggers Dawson and he's hurt! He's trying to close the show but Dawson is showing some heart. Wow, the action goes all the way to the bell and Dawson hangs in there.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Johnson

Round 11

We're going to learn something about Dawson now. He looks steady early on and is throwing with both hands. Johnson gets inside and lands some rights. Dawson soldiers on but he might be hurt again. Uppercut by Glen with Chad leaning on him. Now Dawson finding the range. Incredible action as both men are throwing bombs inside. Left hook by Johnson and he goes to the body. Dawson shows some late zip but Johnson lands a right to knock Dawson back. That was a fantastic round and very even.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Johnson

Round 12

Last round and it seriously could go either way. Dawson still has spring in his step early on. He's trying to keep it outside but Johnson pushes forward. Now Johnson finds the body and head. Big right and left by Glen. Dawson lands a mean uppercut in response. Johnson definitely showing no quit. Johnson with chopping rights in close as we hit 30 seconds to go. The crowd boos because Chad is backing away. Johnson paws to try to land a few more shots; Dawson seems content to play out the string. That was a great fight.

Franchise scores it: 10-9 Johnson

Franchise scores it 115-113 for Dawson. The judges score it 116-112, 116-112 and 116-112, all for the winner and still WBC light heavyweight champion, "Bad" Chad Dawson.

That's an unpopular decision but not a robbery by any means. Dawson fought a very smart fight and got great advice from his corner. Johnson did what everyone thought he would do, and in retrospect he probably needed that knockdown in the 10th round.

Johnson thinks he got ripped off and isn't happy because he says Dawson has the whole future ahead of him and he is nearing the end of his road. He says he'll definitely take a rematch but he thinks he should be getting it as the winner, not the loser. Dawson seems kind of amused by his foe's outburst.

Dawson says he'll stay at light heavyweight and doesn't seem as thrilled about a rematch as Johnson. He gives credit to Glen but he really seems to think he did enough to win.

Live Round By Round Updates Tonight: Cintron-Margarito, Woods-Tarver, Cotto-Gomez and Dawson-Johnson

If you can't make it to a TV - or even better, two TV's - tonight, you're definitely going to want to bookmark us here at BoxingWatchers.com. We're doing double duty once again, with Spartan117 doing live round by round updates of the HBO card, featuring the highly anticipated rematch between Kermit Cintron and Antonio Margarito and Miguel Cotto stepping in against Alfonso Gomez.

Meanwhile, I'll be doing round by round duties on the Showtime card, which shouldn't be overlooked thanks to two intriguing scraps in the light heavyweight division. Antonio Tarver takes on Clinton Woods while Chad Dawson goes up against Glen Johnson.

Make this your place for updates and reload often tonight to get the scoop on all four fights.

HBO Predictions: Cintron-Margarito and Cotto-Gomez

The Franchise says...

I'm actually a little jealous that Spartan is covering these fights because the Kermit Cintron-Antonio Margarito scrap should be a good one. Of course, I thought that the first time they fought back in 2005, and Margarito had very little trouble disposing of Cintron in five rounds.

Kermit has rebounded nicely since then, posting five knockout victories in a row. The Killer lived up to his nickname for sure in 2007, blasting out Walter Matthysse and delivering all kinds of punishment to Jesse Feliciano. It's kind of cliché to say he's a different boxer than the first time they met, but in this case that certainly looks to be the case.

But Margarito can also claim a bit of a rebirth after his late rally against Paul Williams fell short last July. Tony annihilated Golden Johnson in one round in November, something that had to be good for his psyche.

I'm loathe to pick against Margarito because I respect his talent and this seems like it might be a case where one boxer just doesn't have the answer for the other's style. Even so, I must be drinking the Killer Kool-Aid (or just being a homer since he represents nearby Reading, PA) because I'm going with Cintron to avenge the defeat by a hard-fought decision.

There isn't as much need to do in-depth analysis of the co-feature between Miguel Cotto and Alfonso Gomez. Cotto is simply one of the best boxers in any weight class right now, combining power, toughness and underrated skill into one great package.

He's also fought and defeated some big time fighters, a category that doesn't include Gomez. Alfonso may have some good early rounds, but Cotto is too good and too strong. Even if Cotto is looking past Gomez, I don't think there's any reason not to pick Cotto by mid-round KO.

Uatu says...
That there's nothing to say.
Cotto by KO. Eh... Round 8.

Update: After seeing the weigh-in, Gomez is a bit bigger than Cotto. Not heavier, but taller. Something to keep in mind. Just in case. . .

Since the first Margarito fight, Cintron has kicked the butt of a lot of guys he should have kicked the butt of. Those fighters are not Margarito. Margarito is serious business. But, what Cintron did show in a great action fight against Estrada is that he can take and dish now. So, Margarito is not going to KO Kermit this time. Since Uatu sees Cintron making it to the end this time, this means Cintron will have a greater opportunity to work his offense as well. Margarito though will come out aggressive again too because of the Williams decision going against him. This has all the makings of a great fight to watch.

Margarito UD 12.
lots of fun, lots of action, tense moments both ways, both men give it their all and make fans all over the world.

Showtime Predictions: Woods-Tarver and Dawson-Johnson

The Franchise says...

Though The Ring magazine rankings respectfully disagree with Showtime's claim that Saturday's card features the four best light heavyweights in the world, it will go a long way toward sorting things out in that division. Of the combatants I probably know the least about Clinton Woods, but I guess he must be taken at least somewhat seriously at this point. Aside from getting knocked out by Roy Jones Jr. in his first trip to the U.S. in 2002, his most notable fights have been against Glen Johnson, and he went 1-1-1 in those three bouts - and the win was a split decision. Not terribly inspiring.

Then again, who knows what to make of Antonio Tarver, a personal favorite? He bounced back with two wins last year after getting badly exposed by Bernard Hopkins in 2006, but The Executioner has been known to make plenty of people look bad. If he has his head on straight I think he is still capable of performing at a high level, but that's a huge "if."

Neither man is young, so age shouldn't be much of a factor. Tarver has fought the better competition, and if he's in shape and throwing a lot of punches, he can be a handful in the early rounds. I wouldn't be shocked if Woods weathers the storm and knocks Tarver out late, but I don't think that's the most likely outcome. I'm seeing Tarver hanging on to win a close decision, though not impressive enough to make anyone think he's headed back for bigger things.

Speaking of handful, that description is very apt for Glen Johnson. He's not afraid to take a punch to land one, and his opponents always have to be ready for a long night. He has wins over Woods, Tarver and Jones to his credit, which isn't too shabby.

Chad Dawson can't say the same, but he did earn comfortable decisions over Eric Harding and Tomasz Adamek, two guys who aren't scrubs. He was even tested early in the Harding fight, coming back from a knockdown in the first round.

I've got no doubt that Johnson will be very game and won't prove to be an easy out. But I just can't pick against Bad Chad's youth and speed. Father Time will catch up with Johnson as Dawson wins by late stoppage.

UATU says...
It's interesting, over the last five years, Tarver has three big wins. Two over Roy Jones and one over Glen Johnson. The second win against Roy wasn't great, as Roy looked really to be just trying to survive and not get knocked out again. The first win over Roy came in such sudden fashion, there's nothing to even evaluate. Even though that was a tremendous win, a win that made Tarver's career and shattered Jones, nothing much can really be analyzed about it, other then the fact that that was the most memorable single left hand of this millennium. The whole fight was five minutes long. And that left was thrown four years ago. There isn't anything from those fights over Jones that can really be pointed to to base a prediction on the current Tarver.

Tarver's loss to Johnson was a somewhat listless performance, although the fight could have gone his way as it was a split decision. His win over Johnson was a better showing, although that was three years ago.

So those fights have to be somewhat discounted when looking at tomorrow's fight. If Tarver does win, it's going to be a close decision in a life and death effort. Woods is likely to throw more punches and press the action to a point that Tarver isn't going to be able to keep up with. Tarver's defense will be better, and perhaps his power. He'd better hope his power keeps Woods honest or knocks him down. Don't want to do it. Hate to say it. Woods by close decision, perhaps split decision.

Dawson over "Gentlemen" Glen Johnson ud 12. Hopefully Johnson keeps the pressure up and makes it interesting. Unlike the other fight, where the aggressor Woods has the younger legs, in this fight the younger legs go to Dawson. That will make the difference when combined with his speed.

Bernard Hopkins on Philly Radio Thursday

For B-hop fans, Bernard 'the Executioner' Hopkins will be on the Howard Eskin radio show out of Philadelphia Thursday sometime between 3-7pm. Uatu will be unavailable to give you a live recap, but if you have the chance it will be on wip610. Bernard usually makes appearances on this show prior to his fights and to promote most of the big upcoming Golden Boy Promotion fights. Not surprisingly, he is an excellent guest.

Floyd Mayweather vs. Rocky Balboa

Here's a link to a "Tale of the Tape" between Floyd and Rocky on cnnsi.com. Honestly it's pretty lame and not very funny. Whatever, it's still boxing exposure on a major outlet. Plus you get to see Floyd's awesome fur outfit again.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/extramustard/04/03/mayweather.balboa.tale/index.html

Jim Rome Takes Bernard Hopkins to Task

Yesterday on the "Jim Rome is Burning" show on ESPN, Jim Rome had some remarks for Bernard's comments regarding not being beaten by a "white boy" - of course, Joe Calzaghe. Rome described Bernard as one of the great trash talkers, but thought that he may have made a mistake in insulting Calzaghe in this fashion.

Rome recounted one of Bernard's more famous episodes, where he stomped on the Puerto Rican flag before his showdown with Felix "Tito" Trinidad, and recalled some of his put-downs to Tito's fans.

Rome thinks Bernard's remarks are classless, but beyond that, since Joe is younger and may be stronger and faster, that Bernard may be eating those words in two weeks, and he's going to look extra dumb for saying such things.