By Geno McGahee, Ringside Report
Wladimir Klitschko Set for September 11th
RSR got word from a reliable source that WBO/IBO/IBF Heavyweight Champion, Wladimir Klitschko, 54-3, 48 KO’s, after failing to make a bout with WBA Champion, David Haye, will take on mandatory challenger, the Teddy Atlas trained Alexander Povetkin, 19-0, 14 KO’s, in Germany, on September 11th. This has been reported as a done deal. Stay tuned to RSR for further developments regarding this title fight.
Floyd Mayweather Retiring
There have been the persistent rumors that pound for pound king, Floyd Mayweather, JR., is hanging up the gloves again. Most point to a ploy by Team Mayweather to force the hand of Manny Pacquiao into agreeing to their stipulations and with good reason. With the biggest fight in the history of boxing, money-wise, on the line, I doubt that Floyd “Money” Mayweather would walk away from it.
It’s a great fight for Floyd too. Pacquiao is one of the most dangerous and talented fighters in the game, but it’s hard to imagine him penetrating through the Mayweather defense to do enough damage to stop him. Floyd’s easy win over Shane Mosley proved that he can be the aggressor and still maintain his defense. Some point to the second round when he was rocked as evidence that Pacquiao would stop him, but what it showed was a positive for Floyd. He came right back in the third round and took complete control of the fight.
Pacquiao can be controlled, if you have a fighter talented enough and focused enough to do it. Juan Manuel Marquez showed what a good boxer with focus could do, and Mayweather is ten times the fighter that Marquez is. Erik Morales in his first fight with Manny used his boxing ability to steer clear of trouble and take the decision win. Mayweather is the most focused fighter in the game, doesn’t get hit often, and has underrated power. With Manny’s entrance into Filipino politics, he may not be as focused as he would need to be for the fight of his career.
Pacquiao losing is not a certainty by any means. I believe that he is the long shot to win, but Mayweather had issues with DeMarcus Corley and Zab Judah, two quick southpaws. Judah actually dropped him (uncredited), which should give Manny fans hope for the upset win.
I think you can throw these rumors about his retirement into the trash. There is no way that a boxer so fixated on lining his pockets would walk away from the biggest payday in boxing history. The thought may be to make the public wait even longer, build the demand, and then announce. This announcement also keeps the fight alive in the news, and I, along with many other journalists, are now talking about it, building this fight even more.
There won’t be a stadium big enough to fit all the people for Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather, JR.
The Return of Miguel Cotto
Yankee Stadium was an outstanding location for a fight. I would love to see this happen more often. Even if the fight is mediocre, the stadium, the feel, the look of the place can make it enjoyable. This was the case of Miguel Cotto’s return to the title picture with his stoppage of now former WBA Junior Middleweight Champion, Yuri Foreman.
At one time, Cotto was the big thing in boxing, the number one challenger for the pound for pound title held by Floyd Mayweather, JR. That all changed when he stepped into the ring with the “Hands of Plaster” Antonio Margarito, and took a vicious beating, leading to a late round stoppage. It came out later that Margarito was throwing literal bricks against his opponents and the Cotto psyche never seemed to recover.
Cotto eked by Joshua Clottey, leading to an opportunity against the current big thing, Manny Pacquiao. It was another devastating TKO loss, but to Cotto’s credit, he regrouped and found the right guy to face in Yuri Foreman.
The problem that Foreman faced going in was his lack of punching power. The way to beat Cotto is to survive and come on in the middle rounds because he is not a 12 round fighter. He crumbles late in fights and Foreman had zero chance to stop Cotto. It was creative matchmaking. Foreman was undefeated, 28-0, 8 KO’s at the time, and came off an impressive win over Daniel Santos, but his inability to punch with the authority to keep Cotto in line cost him dearly. Alfonso Gomez had the same issue with Cotto. You cannot beat him if you don’t pack a big punch, unless you are of the skill of Pernell Whitaker or Floyd Mayweather, JR.
There are options for Cotto at 154. Paul Williams and Kermit Cintron would probably jump at the chance. Perhaps a rematch with Margarito, this time without the plaster of Paris in his hand wraps. He is still a marketable opponent and might be an option for Mayweather, JR., if Pacquiao doesn’t materialize. Cotto, even at this stage of his career, is better than 90% of the active fighters, but he just cannot handle the upper echelon.
Source: ringsidereport.com
No comments:
Post a Comment