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Of course the whole thing came to nothing but the web sites and even the broadsheets went into a mini-frenzy, writing about the then 46-year-old and his chances of pulling off a George Foreman-like comeback. Now, just yesterday, the 48-year-old all-time great and last undisputed heavyweight king made more comeback talk.
Rarely do fight fans get a fight that we, the public want to see. Usually the promoters in their best interest and their fight stable, create fight cards and then OCNVINCE us it’s what we want to see. They hype enough and we buy into, because we are fight fans. Come Saturday though, I as a fight fan will be watching with intrigue the fight between Bradley and Marquez. Both of these fighters are true warriors and will fight to the finish. We have Bradley a come forward fighter, who though claims he will not be reckless as his previous fight, has something to prove to the world. That in his heart he did beat Pacquiao. Then you have Marquez a slick counter punching assassin, with a vicious body attack and precision that would make many surgeons jealous.
After the final press conference concluded, both Marquez and Bradley took the time to answer questions from the media and press. Fighters spoke about their mindsets going into this fight, explained what their goals are for winning and things to expect come Saturday night. Here are a few of many questions that were answered.
JUAN MANUEL MARQUEZ
Question: “How do you feel at 40 years of age?”
Marquez: “I feel like a young fighter. I like training. I like everything. Outside the ring, I take care of myself very well. This is the best time for me.”
Question: “What kind of fight do you expect Saturday night?”
Marquez: “I expect a great fight. A tough fight. I trained hard for a very tough fight. I’m ready for another great fight.”
Desert Storm VS. Dynamite.
Las Vegas, NV once again becomes the spotlight for fight fans. A welterweight showdown looms with Timothy Bradley against Mexico’s own Juan Manuel Marquez.
The Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas was host to the final press conference for Bradley against Marquez. Fighters, trainers and promoters took to podium to finalize the last words that each camp had to say. Nothing but respect came from both camps. Both fighters understand the challenge that lies in front of them.
At stake for Juan Manuel Marquez is the opportunity to become the first Mexican fighter to win five different world titles in five different weight classes. With a scintillating knockout victory over Philippine sensation Manny Pacquiao, Marquez comes to this fight oozing with confidence.
Russia’s Alexander Povetkin had a lot to deal with when he was in the ring challenging for Wladimir Klitschko’s collection of heavyweight titles. The Olympic gold medallist had to cope with Wladimir’s significant advantages in height, reach, weight and physical strength, and Povetkin also had to do his best to come to terms with “Dr. Steel Hammer’s” punching power. To add to these problems, Povetkin had to deal with the champ’s excessive holding, grappling and pushing – these three elements of Klitschko’s game prompting some people to feel the king should have been removed from his throne via disqualification.
But despite all this, Povetkin has called for a rematch with Klitschko. Speaking to The Moscow News today, Povetkin, 26-1(18) said he feels he can improve on last Saturday’s ultimately bruising and frustrating performance.
There has been a lot of speculation about who Moneys’ next opponent will be. The name of Danny Garcia has propped up along with Bradley, if he gets past Marquez. Sergio Martinez and even GGG has been mentioned. Danny will put up a game fight and so would Bradley, but they are no match for Money. Sergio would give Money fits in an entertaining fight but Money would most likely win this. GGG, I dont even see as an option, too strong, too big, too much.
There has however been one name that many would like to see but dare not to mention, sort of like cosa nostra, so no one goes there. Thats Broner aka The Problem. He is the mini me of Floyd and is lining himself up to take over the spot once Floyd leaves it, which by most accounts wont be too long. Either he steps aside or will be pushed aside. Its the law of the jungle. With the exception of Hagler, Lennox and Calzaghe, most champs dont step aside, they get beat aside. It’s the figher in them that doesn’t know when to quit, and that limelight, fans and ambiance is more addictive than any narcotic.
Jesus Q. (Brooklyn, NYC): Last Saturday night was a great night of action for Puerto Rico in the world of Boxing. How did you rate the performances of Miguel Cotto and Felix Verdejo?
Vivek W. (ESB): I watched Cotto’s domination with a very strong enthusiasm for what I felt was a solid performance. I thought he showed aggression on a level some didn’t know still existed, and I thought his dedication to the double jab and body work were a thing of beauty. That being said, I’d quickly caution anyone out there who even thinks for a second that this was even a remote indication of what we can expect from him on a higher level. If you want to rate his opponent with any accuracy, ask yourself how many “benchmark” fights take place on the elite level with men who enter the ring with more than 3 career losses? It happens, but very rarely at the elite level, and practically none in fighters under the age of 33.
IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (61-3, 51 KO’s) showed very little interest in mixing it up with WBA heavyweight champion Alexander Povetkin (26-1, 18 KO’s) in beating him by a 12 round unanimous decision last Saturday night by the scores 119-104, 119-104 and 119-104 in Moscow, Russia.
For those who thought they were going to see an actual fight it must have been disappointing to the extreme because Wladimir immediately started clinching after every punch in the 1st round of the fight. I lost track of how many times Wladimir opted to clinch Povetkin, but I counted close to 30 after 3 rounds and it was shocking that he been allowed to get away with it by the referee Luis Pabon.
The fight reminded me of the 1976 match between Muhammad Ali and wrestler Antonio Inoki in Tokyo, Japan. It was billed as a boxer vs. wrestler match, but it turned out to be something of a joke with Inoki lying on the canvas kicking at Ali’s legs for 14 long rounds. There wasn’t any wrestling due to the rules and Ali threw only 6 punches in the entire fight. The Klitschko-Povetkin fight reminded me a lot of that bout because there had been a great deal of hype about it, and it was thought that the two fighters would get into some good exchanges.
Puerto Rican legend and future Hall of Famer Miguel Cotto put two successive points losses behind him last night in blitzing a usually sturdy Delvin Rodriguez, in the process setting himself up for further massive fights. Cotto, now working with the great Freddie Roach, looked like a beast last night: strong, fast, powerful and full of energy, Cotto absolutely ruined a good fighter.
Okay, some critics have commented how Rodriguez is and never has been on Cotto’s level and that Cotto’s win was expected. But that is doing both fighters a disservice. Cotto showed he still has the stuff to intimidate and overwhelm a fighter who has hung tough in a number of wars in the past and not too many experts were predicting as quick a victory as the one Cotto emerged with.
Miguel Cotto (38-4, 31 KO’s) unveiled his old left hook and used it to destroy Delvin Rodriguez (28-7-3, 16 KO’s) by an impressive 3rd round knockout on Saturday night in a fight televised by HBO at the Amway Center, in Orlando, Florida.
Cotto badly hurt Rodriguez with a huge left hooks to the head in the last seconds of the 2nd round that had him out on his feet against the ropes. Immediately at the start of the 3rd round, Cotto pounced on Rodriguez and chopped him down with a hard right to the body followed by a tremendous left hook to the head that sent him down.