Pacquiao vs. Marquez IV – “It has to happen…really?”

By Marc Livitz – Change is good…Complacency kills.

Neither of these well known socially accepted proverbs holds any weight if each of them is universally governed by the words of the great P.T. Barnum.

Oceans worth of fans still feel jilted from the fallout which resulted from the past three fights between a certain Emmanuel D. Pacquiao and a noteworthy Juan Manuel Marquez Mendez. To their credit, there is enough evidence however much it may be clouded by opinion and anger on each side to support their respective arguments.

Throughout the thirty six rounds contested between the two, we have been constantly reminded afterwards just how microscopic the differences have been in terms of how the scoring has played itself out. The knockdowns have made the difference, at least they have (or did) in the first and second contests, which took place in May 2005 and March 2008, respectively.

A show of hands, please. Who really wants to see a fourth meeting between the two?

Take into consideration for just a moment how age is certainly going to factor into the bout once the bell rings to commence round thirty seven on December 8 of this year. Manny Pacquiao will be closing in on his 34th birthday, while Marquez has already settled into the final year of his thirties.

Win?…pissed off at the result. Lose?…pissed off at the result. Draw?… pissed off at the result.

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All-Time Great Roy Jones Junior To Face Kevin Ferguson, AKA Kimbo Slice …..In An Exhibition Bout

By James Slater – Whether your opinion will be, “how the mighty have fallen,” or a more in-the-spirit of the event, “this will be a fun night,” chances are you WILL have an opinion when you read how faded legend and all-time great/future Hall of Famer Roy Jones Junior will face former street fighter/You Tube phenomenon-turned pro boxer Kevin Ferguson, AKA Kimbo Slice in December.

The bout, actually an exhibition, will go down in Montego Bay in beautiful Jamiaca in December, as confirmed by website Jamaica Observer, who reported on the bout being announced as official this past Thursday. The fight has been dubbed “The Beauty And The Beast.”

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Romero, Morales Triumphant on ShoBox

Romero, Morales Triumphant on ShoBoxUnbeaten world-ranked super bantamweight Jonathan Romero (22-0, 12 KOs), of Cali, Colombia, dominated Efrain Esquivias Jr. (16-2, 9 KOs), of Gardena, Calif., en route to a near-shutout 12-round decision in the main event Friday on ShoBox: The New Generation live on SHOWTIME®.

Romero, in command from the outset, was victorious in an elimination fight for the No. 2 ranking in the IBF by the scores of 120-107 and 119-108 twice. There were no knockdowns. Romero entered the ring ranked fifth in the IBF and WBO and ninth in the WBA.

In a collision of undefeated super bantamweights in the co-feature at Chumash Casino Resort, Roman Morales (13-0, 6 KOs), of San Ardo, Calif., registered a hard-fought eight-round unanimous decision over previously undefeated Jonathan Arellano (13-1-1, 3 KOs), of Ontario, Calif.

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Pacquiao Agrees to 55-45 Split to Fight Mayweather

By John G. Thompson: Filipino Congressman, eight division champion, and pound-for-pound great Manny “Pac Man” Pacquiao (54-4-2, 38 KO’s) appeared on ESPN2’s “First Take” this past Thursday and announced something which could help make the long anticipated fight between him and fellow pound-for-pound great and five division champion Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr. (43-0, 26 KO’s) actually materialize.

Pacquiao publicly announced that he is willing to cede the majority of revenue the fight would generate to Mayweather, who has been unwilling to fight under the normal 50-50 split. Though an even split is customary for two champions, Mayweather argued that his fights generate more revenue, and based on the numbers he is correct. Pacquiao stated that he would be willing to take a 55-45 split, possibly easing the barriers preventing a showdown between boxing’s two top stars.

Another point of contention from Mayweather has been Pacquiao’s refusal to accept random drug tests. Just to put this issue to rest as well, Pacquiao reiterated in the interview that he would be willing to submit himself for random drug testing. It seems that many fans are not up to date with this issue, so just for a little background: Mayweather and Pacquiao have attempted negotiations for this fight numerous times over the past few years. Mayweather accused Pacquiao of taking performance enhancing substances and demanded random drug testing from the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA).

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ESB Exclusive Interview with middleweight contender Peter ‘Kid Chocolate’ Quillin

ESB Exclusive Interview with middleweight contender Peter ‘Kid Chocolate’ Quillin

“A lot of guys get ready for me, and they get ready for the wrong ‘Kid Chocolate’ because I got many ways to my game that I can fight. I can bang, I can jab, I can use my speed, I can use my head, I can work with my defense—I can do it all!” – Peter Quillin

Exclusive Interview by Geoffrey Ciani – Last night I was afforded the opportunity to speak with middleweight contender Peter ‘Kid Chocolate’ Quillin (27-0, 20 KOs), who will be challenging WBO champion Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam (27-0, 17 KOs) on October 20 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Quillin spoke about his career, including his most recent victory against Winky Wright, his preparations for his first title shot, and what he feels he needs to do to be successful and capture his first world championship. He also provided his views on a variety of recent contests that have occurred in and around his weight class, including: Sergio Martinez’s victory over Julio Cesar Chavez Junior, Gennady Golovkin’s impressive knockout against Grzegorz Proksa, Daniel Geale’s upset win in his unification bout with Felix Sturm, and Andre Ward’s one-sided showcase against ‘Bad’ Chad Dawson. Here is a complete transcript of what Quillin had to say.

Audio:

GEOFFREY CIANI: Hello boxing fans. This is Geoffrey Ciani from East Side Boxing and I am joined by undefeated middleweight contender Peter ‘Kid Chocolate’ Quillin. How’s everything going today, Pete?

PETER QUILLIN: I am super blessed taking everything one day at a time. How are you doing?

CIANI: I’m doing very well. Thank you, Pete. You have a big fight coming up October 20 for the WBO middleweight title. You’ll be taking on Hassan N’Dam N’Jikam. How do you feel about your preparations and training for this fight?

QUILLIN: I’ve been here already two and a half months, almost three months now, so I’m feeling in shape. I feel good. Sparring has been bringing the best out of me. So this opportunity coming my way, I’m going to be more than ready to knock down that bridge, and to go ahead and let everybody know once I rebuild the bridge, that it’s going to be a better looking bridge. It’s going to be a better champion that owns this belt.

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Alexander Povetkin: Kostya Tszyu doesn’t want a new fighter!

Alexander Povetkin: Kostya Tszyu doesn’t want a new fighter!The fight for the WBA World Heavyweight Championship is getting closer. On September 29, defending champion Alexander Povetkin (24-0, 16 KOs) and mandatory challenger Hasim Rahman (50-7-2, 41 KOs) will battle it out at the Sporthalle Hamburg, Germany. Since his last bout against Marco Huck, a lot has changed for team Povetkin. With ring legend Kostya Tszyu he has someone in his corner, who will help him to exploit his full potential. In the following interview Povetkin talks about his new training and his next opponent Hasim Rahman.

Alexander Povetkin, your last fight against Marco Huck was seven months ago. A lot has been said since then. Now that you had time to reflect, what are your thoughts on that topic?

Alexander Povetkin: It was a hard and tough battle, and both of us had to go to the limits of our capacity. However, in the end I beat Marco as I landed the more precise punches than him.

What lessons did you learn from this extremely close fight?

Alexander Povetkin: Of course, I learned a lot from that fight. My team and I know what we have to do to prepare myself in order to be better than last time. For example, we have worked a lot on my stamina during my current preparations.

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Has Canelo Alvarez arrived?

Has Canelo Alvarez arrived?By Robert Jackson: With his dominating 5th round TKO win over Josesito Lopez, most would say that Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez has arrived. But has he?? His latest win over Lopez though credible comes against a smaller opponent that until 2 fights previous campaigned at 140lbs where he was a contender. Prior to Lopez, Canelo fought and beat a 40 year old Shane Mosley, who had lost 3 out of his last 5 fights; Mosley RETIRED shortly after that loss.

Brought along slowly Canelo has feasted on journeyman fighters including Lovemore N’Dou, Matthew Hatton, Jose Miguel Cotto, Carlos Baldomir and Alfonso Gomez along his path to becoming champion. MOST of the BIG name fighters today are brought along slowly so they can learn how to fight as professionals and remain undefeated, maximizing their earning power. Fighting SKILL however is developed by fighting different styles AND fighters that CHALLENGE a prospect on his way to contending. STIFF challenges NONE of the aforementioned fighters were for Canelo. Is he just THAT good?

IT is now ASSUMED that Canelo is seasoned and PREPARED for the ELITE fighters in the division, including Floyd Mayweather Jr, and Miguel Cotto or even Sergio Martinez. Canelo himself has said as much. Canelo fights with patience, a command of the ring and a disciplined style albeit against C and B level fighters. He’s very linear in his fight style and stands tall and rigid while fighting.

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Hasim Rahman Interview

Hasim Rahman InterviewHasim Rahman (50-7-2, 41 KOs) wants to do it again. The man who already took on big names such as Lennox Lewis will face current WBA Champion Alexander Povetkin (24-0, 16 KOs) at the Sporthalle Hamburg, Germany, on September 29. And the American is not planning on just showing up. At the age of 39, Rahman is aiming to become the champion of the world once more. Right before the big showdown, the heavyweight took some time out of his preparations for a one-on-one interview.

Hasim Rahman, you will be stepping back into the ring on September 29. Your last fight was in June 2011 which ended in a victory over Galen Brown. Now you have had quite a long break.

Hasim Rahman: The Galen Brown fight was over a year ago and really was a tune up. About the only thing I can say is, that I will be in a lot better condition for the Povetkin fight than I was for Galen.

What are your thoughts on your next opponent Alexander Povetkin? Where do you see his strengths and which weaknesses are you planning to exploit when you meet him inside the ring?

Hasim Rahman: Povetkin is a very good fighter. He has proven to be a winner at every level. He was an Olympic gold medallist and is the current WBA Champion. I have respect for him as a boxer. Regardless of his strengths or weaknesses, I know what I have to do and that is to knock him out. I know that when I’m at my best, no one can take my power and I will knock him or anyone else out, period!

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Salido vs. Garcia and Lara vs. Martirosyan: A match made in boxing heaven

Salido vs. Garcia and Lara vs. Martirosyan: A match made in boxing heavenBy Joseph Herron – Top Rank has generated yet another big double headliner, featuring two of the most long awaited and fan friendly match-ups in boxing.

Current WBO Featherweight Champion Orlando Salido (39-11-2, 27 KOs) will put his title on the line against undefeated challenger Mikey Garcia (29-0, 25 KOs) in the main event of the evening, and Vanes Martirosyan (32-0, 20 KOs) will square off against crafty southpaw Erislandy Lara (17-1-1, 11 KOs) to finally decide the WBC Junior Middleweight mandatory challenger position in the highly anticipated co-main event.

This amazing fight card is slated to be held at the Wynn Las Vegas on November 10th, and will be broadcast on HBO “Boxing After Dark”.

Fight scribes and boxing fans alike have clamored to see the two proposed match-ups for quite some time, and the action in the ring should answer many questions surrounding all four combatants.

While most fans of the sport have been waiting for the Oxnard, California resident to compete for a major world title, boxing pundits are wondering if Garcia is truly ready for a fight of this magnitude.

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