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It would be fair to say that Quigg (28-0-2 21KO’s) has had a strange year to say the least, since announcing himself on the world scene with a destructive performance when halting former world title challenger and everyone’s favourite bin man, Rendall Munroe, in 6. After which, Quigg was handed the WBA Super Bantamweight World Title, when 8st 10lbs ruler Guillermo Rigondeaux was announced ‘Super’ Champion.
Floyd Mayweather and Marcos Maidana will meet once again at the MGM Grand Garden Arena this Saturday night live on Showtime PPV. Will Chino’s melee create “Mayhem”, or will it be muscle memory for the money man?
Damn near everyone is convinced that Floyd Mayweather will do a number on Marcos Maidana in the rematch. Isn’t this the same sentiment most fans had prior to the first go round? Maidana was a huge underdog at the sports book, ranging from 12-1 all the way up to 15-1 on a few betting website.
Even though Marcos gave Floyd by far his toughest and roughest fight of his career, barley any one gives him a real chance to get the job done against the future Hall-of-famer.
They call Chinese heavyweight Taishan Dong “The Great Wall”, and it’s a nickname well deserved. At 6’11” and over 280 pounds of solid muscle, the 26 year old former kickboxer gives a whole new meaning to the term “super heavyweight”. It’s rare that a boxer with virtually no amateur experience fights on national television in their professional debut; but then again you don’t exactly see NBA center-sized Chinese heavyweights all too often either.
Taishan’s July 18th pro debut was a successful one, scoring a second round TKO over Alex Rozman (2-7 1KO) on a FOX Sports 1 card. Now manager George Gallegos and promoter Golden Boy Promotions are on the hunt for the next opponent. In the meantime, their fighter is soaking up all things boxing like a giant sponge. “He’s thinking about boxing 24 hours a day”, said Gallegos, “Whether it’s punching, footwork, or bag work, he’s going to go home and practice and you’ll see (the improvement) the next day”. The successful lawyer and longtime boxing fan met Taishan completely by random. “He walked into my office to ask a few legal questions”, said Gallegos, “when we were talking I asked him what he did and he said he was a fighter and he wanted to fight here but didn’t know how”. After that original meeting, Gallegos made some calls, got Taishan working in the gym and things took off from there.
The following excerpt from my book, The Sweet Sucker Punch, is taken from one of many inspirational stories of honor and character of my experiences with some of boxing’s elite. It is my intention that you will be entertained and inspired to purchase the book for my promotional campaign in honor of the 30th anniversary of the greatest Olympic boxing team in history. Some of the proceeds will be used to help bring tribute to those legendary 1984 Olympic boxing icons.
I remember at that time I was in peak shape and scheduled to meet Rocky Lockridge for more sparring at Georgie Benton’s gym. My conditioning and confidence made me eagerly anticipate the session. When that day finally arrived, I came to the gym earlier than usual and shadowboxed and danced around the ring to the funky music that was kicking from the high-powered boom box in the corner of the gym.
Last month’s Middleweight clash between Gabriel Rosado and Brian Vera may have been overlooked by the majority of fans, but its significance to the future of boxing should not be, as it heralded the arrival into the mainstream of BKB, Big Knockout Boxing. The bout took place not in a traditional boxing ring but in ‘The Pit’, a 17 foot diameter circular arena without any ropes or cage favored by other contact sports. With Championship fights taking place over seven, two minute rounds and under a new rules system designed to encourage more action and excitement, the main event did not disappoint. Rosado put on a magnificent display of controlled aggression eventually knocking out Vera with seconds to go at the end of the sixth round.
With the sport still in its infancy, Big Knockout Boxing will undoubtedly have many detractors quick to brand it as simplistic violence for uneducated boxing fans. Purists will decry it as a blasphemy against traditional boxing as it negates many of the defensive skills of their idols. But boxing fans should not overlook the interest BKB promises to bring to a sport that has seen better days. Whilst I understand the feelings many have about traditional notions of the ‘Sweet science’, fans have grown frustrated at being asked to pay top dollar to watch boring fights and have expressed a desire for change. Change that forces fighters to engage more and not simply run or hold. Change that encourages fighters to win decisively by knockout rather than relying on the judges’ scorecards. And change that will provide the excitement and drama necessary to attract new fans the sport. Casual fans and TV audiences simply do not want to watch two ‘Scientists’ run, hold or jab their way through twelve rounds of tedium refereed by a United Nations Peace keeper!
(Note: Countdown to Mayweather vs Maidana II is an EastSideBoxing exclusive by resident scribe Vivek “Vito” Wallace who will take provide a glimpse into the epic showdown each week on Sunday, with a final prediction/analysis piece to be published on the day of the fight).
In last weeks ‘Countdown to Mayweather vs Maidana II’, we took a look at Maidana’s fearless mission to unseat the best talent in the sport. As we get closer to this epic showdown, it would only be fitting to assess the opportunity for victory of the man across from him. Floyd Mayweather remains the most enigmatic force in the world of sports. Few unanswered questions in the present, no visible regrets of the past. Recent headlines surrounding him demonstrate nothing short of utter chaos, but if there’s ever been a place that serves as a sanctuary for the man they call ‘Money’, it can be found in the ring.
At age 37, facing the proverbial ‘west side’ of his career, Floyd Mayweather knows that the window of opportunity to secure his spot on the Mount Rushmore of boxing is quickly closing. Many legendary nights in the past helped him enter the discussion, but how well he finishes down the home stretch could very well tell the tale, as it relates to etching his name in that unprecedented stone.
Everyone has a plan, until they don’t. So many various angles have been tried, too many strategies and approached to mention, yet nothing seemed to phase Mayweather Jr.
In his last fight against Marcos Maidana, Mayweather Jr., despite emerging a winner yet again, looked tired and certainly beat up; at least more than we are used to seeing. Many claimed that Maidana should have been given the victory nod that night, while some agree that despite the fight being extremely close, Floyd did deserve the win.
Adrien Broner put his foot down in order to obtain home field advantage in the city of Cincinnati against the sturdy Emmanuel Taylor. Coming off a fight of the year win, Lucas Matthysse takes on Roberto Ortiz, who has never lost a fight as a professional. The Showtime tripleheader’s first bout will be between Andre Berto and Steve Upsher Chambers.
In his last fight Adrien Broner was unspectacular, ho-humming his way to a decision versus Carlos Molina. Many fans craved for Broner to face a top flight junior welterweight. Instead he will face Emmanuel Taylor, who is fresh off his best victory over Karim Mayfield.
As Broner’s star began to rise many media members and followers of the sweet science overrated him. His close points win against Ponce De Leon was chalked up as a learning experience.
With so much information floating around about this latest saga in the life and career of Floyd Mayweather, it’s only fitting that we should look at the core elements and separate the unimportant peripheral matters. The suit was filed by Shantel Jackson as a basis for “General”, “Compensatory” ($$$), and “Punitive” damages against Floyd Mayweather. Here’s a glimpse at her allegations and the counter-points they’ll have to withstand to win in court:
(Ms. Jackson Allegation #1): “He bent her arm, restrained her, and pointed a gun at her foot, asking ‘Which toe do you want me to shoot?’ “He then demanded her to remove her 17 carat diamond engagement ring at gunpoint”. This action was one of many reported in which Mr. Mayweather attacked her and imprisoned her, preventing her from leaving….a few times in which a gun was present.
On November 22nd the new kid on the block Chris Algieri (20-0, 8KO) faces Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao (56-5-2, 38KO) in Macau, China. For the past two weeks both fighters and their camps have travelled almost 25,000 miles on an epic worldwide media tour promoting the event. Today’s stop was in Los Angeles, as a sizeable crowd of press and fans gathered at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza on the Avenue of the Stars.
For Huntington New York native Chris Algieri, 2014 has truly been the year of his life. Back in February he faced the more experienced Emmanuel Taylor on ESPN Friday Night Fights and pulled the mild upset, which earned him a spot on HBO against the feared brawler Ruslan Provodnikov in June. After a disastrous opening round in which he was dropped twice and suffered a gruesome injury to his eye, Algieri bravely fought on and scored a major upset via split decision. In a matter of months the former kickboxer with a master’s degree in nutrition has punched his way from obscurity into the opportunity of a lifetime against Pacquiao. But can he keep the upsets coming?