16.03.04 – By Matthew Hurley – Well, I almost got it right this time. If Vassily Jirov had just one more round, were I a betting man, I’d have made a fortune. Looking back the Jirov versus Joe Mesi heavyweight fight was really a toss up. What do you side with, strength or experience? I went with the more experienced Jirov. I just felt his amateur background and the championship rounds he’s logged in during his career would offset anything Mesi could possibly throw at him. And yet, when Jirov decked the “Baby” in the ninth round I couldn’t help but hope that Joe would somehow find a way to finish the fight. He did, barely. Joe Mesi will never be heavyweight champion, he’s just not good enough, but you know what? The kid has a fighter’s heart. He’s been slammed for his deficiencies by more than slightly pompous writers, this one included, but he showed in his battle with Jirov that he has a warrior’s mentality. It won’t be good enough to stave off the elite fighters in the division, but it is good enough to get a nod of respect from this corner.
As for Jirov he proved, yet again, what toughness is all about. Despite his pedigree Vassily never really looks impressive in the ring. He always appears awkward, cumbersome, but his relentlessness just wears opponents out. The feeling here is that he should drop back down in weight because he would most probably steam roll over just about every light heavyweight or cruiserweight out there. But at the heavyweight level he’s just too small, and too tough for his own good. His face-forward style would get him killed against a truly talented heavyweight. Not because he’s not good enough to compete but simply because he’s not big enough. Can you imagine if one of the Klitschko’s hit him as often as Mesi did. Jirov is a terrific fighter, but he’s not a heavyweight and the fact that an ordinary heavyweight in Joe Mesi beat him, and in terms of points Mesi did indeed beat him, should send Jirov back where he belongs and where he can be successful – a lower weight class.
Which brings us to the Shane Mosley versus Winky Wright unification match. This one went exactly as I expected it would. Stylistically Winky Wright is not only all wrong for Shane Mosely but he’s all wrong for just about every fighter out there. All credit to the HBO broadcast team and in particular Jim Lampley who noticed something I’ve harped on before. The minute Mosley finds himself in a difficult situation he becomes the worst poker player at the table. Every “tell” registers immediately on his face. He can’t hide anything. After the second round I looked over at my buddy who couldn’t believe how easily Wright was dictating the fight and I said, “it’s all over… I told you.” Mosley never gave up, it’s not in his nature to stop fighting, but you could just tell that even he knew that Wright was his master on this night. And even though I was rooting for Shane it was great to see such a long under appreciated fighter in Wright finally get what he deserved. Make no mistake, his style may be a nightmare, but Winky Wright is a great fighter. He’s not particularly exciting, but can you think of any fighter out there who would really want to get in the ring with him? I would pick him to beat anyone, with the possible exception of Bernard Hopkins and I would make even that apparently monumental task a toss up. In fact, if I had to put my money down, I’d take Winky. Don’t bet against this guy, he’s that good.
It was a great night at the fights. We had an exciting, brutal struggle against two tough guys and a tactical fight against two great fighters ultimately dominated by a guy who finally got the chance to bask in the glow of the limelight. It doesn’t get much better than that.