Amir Khan: Has The King Lost His Crown?

09/14/201609/05/2012 ESB

Amir Khan: Has The King Lost His Crown? By Mark Klimaszewski – Olympic-silver medallist. Former two-time world champion. Former unified world champion. Arguably a top 15 / top 20 pound-for-pounder (depending on who you ask, of course).

Several “fight-of-the-year” type battles (and some solid names) on his resume. A consistent desire to fight the best. A warrior’s heart. A glaring vulnerability (the much derided ‘punch resistance’, or lack of, that arm chair critics are always so quick to point to) which makes him exciting to watch. Seldom in a dull fight.

On paper, Amir “King” Khan sounds like the type of fighter who should receive unprecedented adulation from fight fans. Yet he attracts more hate than almost any other active fighter today. It is a surprising fact; but a true one. Many people who I speak with about the sweet science all share a desire to see Khan get knocked out again. Many fans on internet message boards and what have you, wish nothing more than to see Amir taste bitter defeat once again and leave the sport for good!

Khan combing NY looking for a new trainer; rules out Joan Guzman as opponent for December 15th

09/14/201609/04/2012 ESB

By Michael Collins: Former IBF/WBA light welterweight champion Amir Khan says he’s going to be checking New York to try and find a trainer and possibly a mentor to get his sagging career back on track following consecutive losses to Lamont Peterson and Danny Garcia. Khan wants a trainer that can fix his defensive flaws to try and turn things around for him before he gets whipped again.

Khan said to the Manchester Evening News “I’ll be going to New York to speak to a few coaches.”

Khan then oddly compared himself to Manny Pacquiao, saying “If we had the defense we should have had we would be the best fighter in the world. That’s the downfall of me and Manny Pacquiao. We’re both offensively the best fighters in the world, but defensively we’re not the best.”

That’s a bit too much coming from Khan. The best in the world? I think Khan is dreaming here. I think he would be a lot better fighter if his defense was tighter, but that wouldn’t save him from getting knocked out by the likes of Danny Garcia and Breidis Prescott. The shots that Khan got hit with in those fights were punches that even the best defensive fighter would get hit with.

Iceman John Scully: “I think maybe Chad’s style more than the ring rust might create some apprehension for Ward in the beginning”

09/15/201609/04/2012 Geoffrey Ciani

Exclusive Interview by Geoffrey Ciani – I was recently afforded the chance to talk with boxing trainer ‘Iceman’ John Scully, who is training light heavyweight champion ‘Bad’ Chad Dawson (31-1, 17 KOs) for his upcoming big match this Saturday night against super middleweight champion Andre Ward (25-0, 13 KOs). Scully talked about training and preparation, and also shared his views on the fact this fight will be contested at the 168 pound limit, a weight Dawson last made for a professional fight more than six and a half years ago. Iceman also provided his opinions on Ward as a fighter, the fact the fight will be in Oakland, and the upcoming match-up itself when these two elite talents square off. Here is what Scully had to say.

Audio:

GEOFFREY CIANI: Hello everyone. This is Geoffrey Ciani from East Side Boxing, and I am joined by boxing trainer ‘Iceman’ John Scully. How’s everything going, John?

JOHN SCULLY: Spectacular! I’m very glad to be here.

CIANI: Good. Good to hear. Now you have the big fight coming up this weekend. Chad Dawson is going down to 168 pounds to face Andre Ward. How do you feel about Chad’s training and preparations for this fight?

SCULLY: I’m pretty excited about, and as I always say, when I’m training a boxer, especially at this level, I really go off the fighter. You know I see their mood, and how they look, and what their conditioning looks like. A lot of guys will say they feel good, but I’m looking at them and I’m saying well I don’t necessarily think you’re looking as good as you say you do. But Chad is so sharp and he just feels good. He’s really upbeat. You know most fighters when they get close to a fight they start to get moody and everything. He hasn’t even reached that stage yet, which is kind of surprising for a fight of this magnitude. I was expecting him to be a little bit more on edge and that type of thing, but he’s been really good and he’s very confident. So that makes me even more confident.

Khan will make a mistake if he dumps Freddie; Danny Garcia’s strategy wrong for Morales rematch too

09/14/201609/02/2012 ESB

By Paul Strauss: Amir Khan apparently is looking for another trainer, because he doesn’t want to continue sharing Freddie Roach’s time with Manny Pacquiao. On the surface that seems reasonable; although, it presents obvious problems finding a suitable replacement. It’s a safe bet he’s going to find similar circumstances exist with all of the big name trainers.

Some boxing fans, not necessarily Khan’s, claim Freddie can’t teach the defensive skills Amir needs to protect what some fans believe to be his suspect chin. There’s some truth to that, but it isn’t because Freddie doesn’t have the know-how. Rather, it’s because Freddie’s fighters are generally aggressive fighters, and everyone knows a fighter is most vulnerable when he’s punching.

Of course there’s the old adage that a good offense is a good defense. In football, it can simply mean out scoring your opponent, but it can also mean keeping the ball out of the hands of the opposition. They can’t score without the ball. For it to work, the team better have a good line and a punishing running back, or maybe a good short passing game, because if they just throw it down field, hoping to score fast and big, it’s not likely they will keep the ball long enough to accomplish what they want. In fact, the reverse might be true.

Golovkin says he’s ready for anyone from Mayweather to Ward?

09/14/201609/02/2012 ESB

By Paul Strauss: Gennady G.G.G. Golovkin did a pretty good job Saturday night at the Turning Stone Resort and Casino in Verona, N.Y. trying to establish his worthiness for all comers. Quite often when a fighter boasts he’s ready for the best (in several divisions), his words are dismissed as just so much talk. Fans realize that often a fighter is trying hard to convince himself as much as anyone else.

In Golovkin’s case, Fans might dismiss the apparent bragging as a problem in translation. Maybe English translated to his native Kazakh (or possibly Russian) language back to English got mixed up with the effort. One thing for sure, Golovkin did a number on the previously once defeated Polish southpaw fighter named Grzegorz “Super G” Proksa, who sported twenty-one knockouts of his own to surpass Golovkin’s twenty. Going into Saturday night’s bout, he was viewed as no slouch, but despite that fact, Golovkin managed to knock him stiff.

Just cruising along in the first round, Golovkin still managed to drop Proksa. There was thought by some he might have slipped or stumbled over Golovkin’s feet. Doubt diminished In the second round, when G.G.G. fired off several particularly nice left hooks to the body, which changed the expression on the Polish fighter’s face to something resembling a silent scream.

Geale won’t last long against Golovkin

09/14/201609/01/2012 ESB

By Michael Collins: I hope IBF/WBA middleweight champion Daniel Geale savors his victory tonight over WBA Super World middleweight champion Felix Sturm because he’s not likely going to hold onto his title for very long once he ends up facing WBA World middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin. Let’s be real about this. You might as well register that as a knockout loss for Geale unless he ducks Golovkin entirely. I wouldn’t be surprised nor would I blame Geale for dodging a fight against the hard hitting Golovkin, because he doesn’t have a prayer or winning that fight.

Once that fight is scheduled, Geale might as well see it as an appointment to get knocked out.

I give Geale plenty of credit for beating Sturm tonight. He did an excellent job of coming on in the second hafl of the fight to get the better of Sturm with his pressure and high work rate. Sturm played the usual possum game and tried to steal rounds like he usually does by fighting in spurts, but Geale was having none of it. He knew what he had to do to beat the German fighter by keeping him under constant pressure.

Foreman Vs. Tyson: The Heavyweight Explosion Of Heavyweight Explosions!

09/14/201609/01/2012 ESB

By James Slater:

“Boxing is the theatre of the unexpected,” Larry Merchant

“Fighting Tyson Would be Like Bird hunting for me; a bird’s nest on the ground,” George Foreman

I don’t know about you, but I’ve never heard Mike Tyson talk about potential 1990’s rival and fellow former heavyweight king George Foreman. Never once. Maybe, just maybe, this is because at no time did “Iron Mike” want anything to do with the old warrior he is famously alleged to have referred to as “that animal” when telling Don King what he could do with his lucrative idea of fighting Foreman. Maybe not.

Still, to me, and millions of other fight fans, Foreman-Tyson, Tyson-Foreman is the ultimate Dream Fight; one that was tantalizingly close in 1990. The two greats fought on the same bill in June of 1990 – Foreman taking out Adilson Rodrigues in quick time, Tyson rubbing out Henry Tillman ever faster – and the idea being floated around then was for the two to engage in another double-header that September (Tyson Vs. Alex Stewart, Foreman Vs. Francesco Damiani) and then meet in a blockbuster in December.

The History of Boxing with Emanuel Steward Part IV: Amateur Boxing

08/12/201808/30/2012 Geoffrey Ciani

“A lot of guys try to emulate him, but there will never be another Pernell Whitaker”—Emanuel Steward

Exclusive Interview by Geoffrey Ciani – With his vast wealth of knowledge, experience, and an amazing track record of success, Emanuel Steward is undoubtedly one of the greatest trainers the sport of boxing has ever seen. In fact Steward has trained and/or managed 41 World Champions, including the reigning heavyweight king Wladimir Klitschko. This is Part Four of an ongoing series with Emanuel that will explore past champions, historical fights, mythical match-ups, great rivalries, memorable fighters, and Steward’s own personal experiences as a world class trainer. This edition focuses on theme of amateur boxing. Steward (*pictured to the right, standing over Eddie Gonzalez during the semi-finals for the National Golden Gloves Championship, in Chicago, on March 6, 1963) spoke about his own experiences as an amateur National Champion. He also provided opinions on the American amateur boxing scene, the Cuban program, and various amateur boxers he has both seen and worked with over the years, including: Sugar Ray Leonard, Mark Breland, Floyd Mayweather Junior, Tommy Hearns, George Foreman, Pernell Whitaker, Howard Davis, Ronnie Shields, Roy Jones Junior, and more! Here is what the Hall of Fame trainer had to say:

The Stages of an Amateur Boxer:

Well the stages of a person’s amateur career I think are very important, and it’s something that I refer to in life often now. When you first go into the gym as a kid you start learning how to hold your feet and hands properly, or at least you did then. They don’t even do that nowadays, hardly. Everybody wants to just jump right on the pads now and go pop-pop-pop-pop-pop! But at the time when I came up, you learned how to do everything basically and fundamentally sound. Then you get to where you feel very comfortable doing that. It’s like a game where you can hit a bag or do whatever you’re supposed to do, and block a punch, and punch back. Then when you’re comfortable doing that, all of a sudden the actual boxing starts.

Mike Tyson Vs. Evander Holyfield: Which Fighter Has The Greater Legacy?

09/14/201608/28/2012 ESB

by James Slater: Somewhat as it is with Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier, the names Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson are destined to be forever linked. Though they only fought twice, with Holyfield winning on both occasions, Tyson and Holyfield had a long running rivalry, with a genuine grudge element added. The two were talked of as natural rivals as far back as 1987, when “The Real Deal” was a cruiserweight, but we had to wait – for one reason or another (jail, injury, etc) – until 1996 before the two mesmerizing heavyweights clashed in ring centre.

Today, quite amazingly considering the infamous “bite fight” of 1997, the rematch, the two have become pretty good friends (with Evander today releasing a Twitter pic of himself wearing a T-short mocking the bizarre DQ win he engaged in with “Iron” Mike. But who was the overall greater fighter, who has the greater legacy – Tyson or Holyfield?

Though many would ordinarily jump right on an article that prompts a debate about who was the better man between two fighters when one of them has beaten the other twice, I have a feeling this will not be the case here. Sure, Holyfield twice defeated Tyson, but this is “Iron Mike” we are talking about after all – a fighter with one of the most rabid and vocal groups of supportive and idolising fans in modern day boxing history.

Pacquiao update: Still no opponent picked out and no date chosen for next fight

09/14/201608/28/2012 ESB

By Rob Smith: Manny Pacquiao and his promoter Bob Arum still haven’t selected an opponent for a date for Pacquiao’s next fight. All that is known now is that the fight will take place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada on either November 10th or December 1st. We know that Pacquiao will chose amongst three fighters – Miguel Cotto, Tim Bradley or Juan Manuel Marquez – picked out for him to choose from by Arum but there’s still no word who that guy will be. Michael Koncz, the personal adviser for Pacquiao, had said that the name of the opponent could possibly be revealed this week, so hopefully they can finally say who the guy will be.

Cotto’s name is mentioned but the chances of him getting the fight are so slim that it’s not even funny. Cotto has already booked Madison Square Garden in New York for December 1st, and Pacquiao and Arum won’t likely agree to fighting in New York because of the State taxes that would be taken out if the fight took place there. Nevada doesn’t have state taxes, which is why the fight can only take place there and that’s not going to happen with Cotto having already booked Madison Square Garden.

The only choices for Pacquiao’s next opponent are Bradley or Marquez. It’s pretty clear that Arum seems to favor the soon to be 39-year-old Marquez because he helped bring in 1.4 million pay per view buys for Pacquiao’s last fight with him last November. That number was double the 700,000 PPV buys that Pacquiao-Bradley brought in last June. Just doing the math it suggests that Marquez is overwhelmingly the favorite to get the fight with Pacquiao.