16.03.04 – By Mike Bearenhof – This is probably a question that people have asked themselves since Joe Mesi blew out DaVaryll Williamson last Septmember. Since than, Mesi has survived two very close calls, and 4 knockdowns. It seems like the snobs of boxing may have been right all along; Mesi is and always will be nothing more than a B-level contender. They could be correct, but I am not totally convinced that Mesi is a lost cause.
It is hard to dismiss the first nine rounds against Jirov as nothing less than a beautiful display of boxing by Joe Mesi. Like expected, Jirov came out and tried to assert himself against Mesi. Although the first round went to Jirov, there were sure signs to Jirov that Mesi wasn’t about to be intimidated. From than until round ten, Mesi put his abilities on full display. There were points when it seemed unbelieveble that Mesi was doing this to Vassily Jirov, especially considering the fact that Mesi was throwing three times as many punches as Jirov, and it looked like there was no end in sight.
Going into round nine, Jirov’s hope of pulling off an upset looked dim. Once again, Mesi came out throwing punchs, Jirov could do little to stop him. Suddenly though, very late in the round, Jirov landed a solid punch to the back of Mesi’s head that threw Mesi off center and put him down. It was surprising that the usaully stict Jay Nady counted this as a knockdown, because there is a solid arguement that this could be a rabbit punch. At this point, it really didnt matter though, because Mesi was leading on all the scorecards in a landslide. To Joe though, it did matter. He was visibly angry about what he felt was an illegal shot, so with a few seconds left he threw a combination to the body and head of Jirov.
After the controversial ninth round, Mesi went to his corner. This was a key moment for his entire team, becuase Mesi had been extremely succecsfully in almost taking all the fight out of Vassily Jirov, but with this knockdown Jirov had found new hope for victory. When you are very far ahead on the scorecards and your oppenent’s only hope of victory is to get a knockout, it is universally accepted (especially in the Heavyweight Division) that you stay away from him at all cost. Instead of giving him that advice, Mesi was specifically told by his corner to try to get a knockout. It was almost hard to believe that anybody would give such foolish advice.
Mesi took their advice and went out swinging though, partly because he was told so and partly because of his own ego imflammed by the earlier knockdown and probably the Barrett fight. The end result was almost a total disaster for Mesi. After nine straight rounds of tremendous focus and discipline, Mesi fell apart. He was knocked down twice in the tenth round and barely survived it. For those who don’t know, the final scorecards all read 94-93, Mesi. Just like the fight with Barrett, Mesi had outboxed and outclassed his oppenent for the first half of the fight, and than barely survived to win a decision.
It is hard not to look at Joe Mesi and ask yourself, “What happened?”. He absolutely destroyed his early oppenents. It still seems like he has so much to offer us. His pure atheletic ability and his will to win are impossible to deny. Even while leading on all scorecards, he has always continued to go after his oppenents. Against Monte Barrett he was totally exhuasted and fought the tenth round in a disparate slugging match, even though he was still winning the fight. Most people love a fighter that would show that much heart. Along with heart and ability, Mesi actually does have a decent chin. After all, it has broughten him this far, and it isn’t like Mesi has ever gone down in first round or even the first half of a fight.
Even in the minds of dedicated fans, the thought must still linger, “What happened?. I have followed Joe Mesi alittle longer than most people probably have. I knew about him before he knocked out Williamson in the first round, or even before the knocked out Robert Davis in the first round on ESPN earlier that year. In all of his fights, it was as though he didn’t need help from anybody, because he just dominated his oppenents. In the back of my mind I have always had a fear though, and during his fight with Jirov, Jim Lampley expressed it when he asked, “Is Joe Mesi poorly trained?”.
At the time, the question seemed alittle absurb. “I don’t think so.” Emmanul Steward said back to Lampley. It is kind of common sense though. After all, how could a poorly trained fighter actually make it this far and still have an undefeated record? As hard as it is to believe, that may very well be Joe Mesi’s situation, whether he knows it or not. Take a look at any of Joe Mesi’s fights, I can’t recall his trainer Jaun DeLeon ever offer Joe any sound advice. After Joe had been knocked down and beaten up by Monte Barrett in round seven, all Jaun DeLeon could say to Joe is, “Come on Joe, your a better fighter than this”.
Although I was unhappy with Jaun’s attitude that night, the Jirov fight was a total disgrace. After being knocked down in the ninth, Jaun had nothing to say to Joe, but Joe’s father, Jack Mesi, did. He told Joe to (in not so many words) try for the knockout, of course the guys handling the water and spit buckets cheered on Jack’s idea. This has become a repeated pattern in Mesi’s fights, Jaun has stood silent while Joe’s father has offered questionable advice.
After the fight with Jirov, Joe gave the exact same excuse for his performance as he did when he fought Barrett, “I’m still learning”. This is nothing short of a call for help. You do not learn how to box by getting beaten up on national TV. You learn to box in the gym, and by your trainers. From the looks of things, Mesi’s trainers have totally neglected to teach him the advanced defencive skills needed to fight this level of competition.
It is interesting that when Joe Mesi was comming up though, his former promoter Sugar Ray Leonard offered to get Joe well known and respected trainers, but Joe’s father opted to get Jaun DeLeon who trained fighters at the local gym in Buffalo (Leonard quit promoting Mesi shortly after that). Why Jack made that decision is anybody’s guess, becuase it is a smart move that even prospects get themselves good trainers and good management. Just look at how well Dominick Guinn’s career is going ever since he hooked up with trainer Ronnie Shields and manager Shelly Finkel, Guinn has become a serious (and respected) force.
What could be happening to Joe Mesi is the oldest story in boxing, a real prospect has gotten the shaft by a team who’s only real concern is getting him that one big payday against a fighter he isn’t prepared for. It is a very real possibility that Mesi’s potential has surpassed his trainers abilities, and Mesi is going into the ring unprepared, using his natural gifts rather than the knowledge he should have been given along time ago.
The best advice Joe Mesi can take is to surround himself with new, better qualified, and more experienced people. At this point, what does he really have to lose?