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The latest boxing top stories and breaking news

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

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

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

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

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Iceman John Scully: “I think Riddick Bowe potentially could have been one of the best heavyweight champions ever”

Iceman John Scully: “I think Riddick Bowe potentially could have been one of the best heavyweight champions ever”

Exclusive Interview by Geoffrey Ciani – I was recently afforded the opportunity to have a very nice discussion with ‘Iceman’ John Scully. As a professional boxer, Scully posted a record of 38-11 with 21 wins coming by way of knockout during a career that spanned from 1988-2001. Scully shared his views on many of his contemporaries, including some of the biggest names in boxing from his era, including: Roy Jones Junior, Mike Tyson, Riddick Bowe, Evander Holyfield, Pernell Whitaker, George Foreman, Julio Cesar Chavez, Hector Camacho, Oscar De La Hoya, Felix Trinidad, and more! Here is a complete transcript from that interview.

Audio:

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

JOHN SCULLY: Everything is spectacular. I’m very happy to be here with you.

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Who Has The Best (If Any) Chance In His Upcoming Fight With A Klitschko – Manuel Charr Or Mariusz Wach?

Who Has The Best (If Any) Chance In His Upcoming Fight With A Klitschko - Manuel Charr Or Mariusz Wach?by James Slater – The two reigning heavyweight kings the Klitschkos, Wladimir and Vitali, are so good and so all-conquering, it’s got to the point where both men are having to search incredibly hard for their next acceptable challenger.

In fact, if you ask some fans, some harsher critics, neither sibling has actually managed to find an acceptable challenger for his next outing. Wladimir, the Ring Magazine, WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO ruler will face unbeaten but largely untested Pole Mariusz Wach, while WBC king Vitali will face the even less tested but also unbeaten Manuel Charr of Beirut.

Let’s take a look and decide which of the two massive outsiders has the best shot, the best prayer, the best hope of being blessed with a miracle in the coming months.

27-year-old Charr, 21-0(11) gets his chance first, on September 8th in Moscow. Smaller than Vitali, possessing only a fraction of “Dr. Iron Fist’s” punching power and experience, Charr, known as “Diamond Boy,” looks to have only one chance in my opinion: that Vitali, all 41-years of him, either suddenly grows old in the ring or suffers an injury (okay, that’s two chances Charr has!)

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Nigel Benn: Great Britain’s Most Exciting Fighter Of The ‘80s and ‘90s!

Nigel BennBy James Slater – As those fans who were lucky enough to have seen him fight live, in the flesh (really lucky!) or from their armchair (must-see T.V!), Great Britain’s great middleweight/super-middleweight Nigel Benn rarely if ever disappointed in the action stakes.

Today, long after “The Dark Destroyer’s” final fight (a disappointing corner retirement loss to a Steve Collins who twice caught up with Benn at a time when he was way past his best) fans on both sides of The Atlantic remain interested in the whole Benn mystique. Far more than just a slugger (although Benn’s power was legendary), Nigel had heart, guts, skill and a far better chin than it was once thought (“this man ain’t chinny!” insisted former arch-rival Chris Eubank after the first of their two epic encounters had just come to it’s violent conclusion.)

There really was plenty to enjoy when Benn was in action:

Who can forget his amazing Oct. 1988 battle with Jamaican-born Anthony Logan? Defending his Commonwealth middleweight title for the first time, Benn almost came a cropper.

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The Klitschko Dream & The Klitschko Legacy

The Klitschko Dream & The Klitschko Legacy

by Geoffrey Ciani – The term Klitschko Dream typically refers to the goal of brothers Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko to simultaneously hold all of the major world titles in heavyweight boxing. Mission accomplished! Wladimir now holds belts from three of the four main sanctioning bodies, while Vitali carries the fourth. This is an amazing feat. In fact, for the better part of the last eight years either one or both of the brothers has reigned supreme. Despite this impressive display of dominance, however, the Klitschko brothers remain largely unappreciated as heavyweight commodities, particularly in the US. Why is this?

Many observers viewed the Klitschko Dream as nothing more than a pipe dream back at the time when the two brothers both turned professional in November 1996. After all, the heavyweight landscape during this period had a great deal of depth and talent. Initially Wladimir was viewed as the more promising of the two brothers, largely because he captured the Gold Medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. The overall early perception of the Klitschkos was a mixed bag. They were obviously big and strong, but often described as being robotic and uncoordinated. Plenty of question marks surrounded the two of them as they slowly worked their way up through the professional ranks.

Vitali would soon be seen as the better of the brothers following Wladimir’s shocking loss at the hands of Ross Purity in December 1998, which was just over two short years after the Klitschkos debuted. Wladimir’s loss to Purity had more to do with inexperience and poor pacing than anything else. Eager to put on an impressive performance while fighting for the first time in front of his hometown audience in Kiev, Wladimir simply punched himself out against a durable opponent, which allowed Purity to capitalize on Wlad’s physically and mentally exhausted state.

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Chauncy Welliver: “I know that I have to make a statement, and that’s how I’m going to do it—by knocking this guy cold”

Chauncy Welliver: "I know that I have to make a statement, and that’s how I’m going to do it—by knocking this guy cold"

Exclusive Interview by Geoffrey Ciani – Earlier this evening I was afforded the opportunity to have a nice chat with heavyweight contender Chauncy Welliver (53-6-5, 20 KOs), who will be squaring off against Kyotaro Fujimoto (4-0, 3 KOs) on September 19 in Tokyo, Japan. Fujimoto is new to professional boxing, but is making the transition from K-1 where he was a former heavyweight world champion. Welliver spoke about his upcoming match-up, and also discussed his majority decision loss his last time out against Sherman Williams, which was the first time Welliver had lost a bout in nearly three years ending his 18 fight winning streak. Here is a complete transcript from that interview.

Audio:

GEOFFREY CIANI: Hello everyone. This is Geoffrey Ciani from East Side Boxing and I am joined here today by heavyweight contender Chauncy Welliver. How’s everything going today, Chauncy?

CHAUNCY WELLIVER: Everything is going good. I’m still in the hunt. I’m still on my way to a world title and getting ready to fight in Tokyo, Japan.

CIANI: Speaking of Tokyo, Japan, Chauncy, you’re going over there. You’re fighting a guy named Kyotaro Fujimoto. He is 4-0 with 3 knockouts. How have your preparations been going for this fight, and what are you expecting going into this one?

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Arum Says Pac-Bradley Rematch Unlikely, Says It Will Be Cotto Or Marquez On Nov. 10th – And Then A Mayweather Showdown Next April?

By James Slater: According to Top Rank boss and promoter of superstar Manny Pacquiao, Tim Bradley is out of the running as far as Manny’s November 10th opponent goes. As quoted by The Manila Times, Arum said there is simply not enough fan interest in a Pacquiao-Bradley II, despite, or maybe because of, the controversial nature of the June 9th fight that Bradley somehow won via decision.

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All Time Historical Survey Series Recap – The Original 8 Weight Classes & P4P

All Time Historical Survey Series Recap – The Original 8 Weight Classes & P4P

by Geoffrey Ciani – Over the course of a sixteen month period beginning in June 2009, I conducted a series of surveys that all began with a very simple question: Who are the ten best heavyweights of all time? While contemplating my own list of top heavyweight pugilists, I decided gathering the input of others might help display a more accurate portrayal of what a ‘true’ top 10 list should look like. Now of course this is not an exact science by any means. In fact, quite the opposite, it is an extremely subjective topic that is often skewed by personal bias, differences of opinion, individual tastes and preferences, and most importantly the absence of a universally agreed upon criteria with which to judge past fighters. Even with these inherent obstacles playing their natural role, however, we can still establish some degree of consensus.

The guidelines were simple. I had every person who voluntarily participated in each survey provide me with a chronological list of who they considered to be the ten best (heavyweights, middleweights, etc) in boxing history. Ties were not permitted, just a straight-forward list from one to ten. I then used a weighted-points system to assign values to fighters based on where they appeared on each individual’s list. First place votes received 25 points. Second place votes were worth 15 points, third place votes were 12, and fourth and fifth place votes were worth 10 and 8 points respectively. After that, the point differential was constant, with sixth place votes getting 5 points, seventh place votes getting 4, eighth getting 3, ninth place 2, and tenth place 1.

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