27.04.06 – By Aaron King: Allan Green walked into the ring Wednesday night having knocked out each of his two previous opponents in the opening round. The over-under going around my buddy’s place before the fight was 90 seconds. But Donnie McCrary, a former sparring partner of Green’s, proved to be much more than a sacrificial lamb for the up-and-coming star..
As the opening round progressed, and the clock moved beyond 1:30, it appeared not to be a matter of if Green was going to catch the underdog McCrary, but when. But McCrary managed to stay away from Green for most of the first two rounds.
Late in the second, Green took advantage of McCrary holding his hands very high to avoid being caught with Green’s money punch, the left hook upstairs. He began landing blistering left hooks to the body. It was one of those left hooks that put McCrary down midway through the third round.
What happened next astonished everyone watching the fight.
Everyone except Michael Moorer, that is.
Moorer, sitting at ringside with Teddy Atlas and Joe Tessitore, said that he thought Green was underestimating McCrary, and that he shouldn’t forget to hold his hands up.
Perhaps what Green was actually doing was overestimating his own power. As Green stepped in to finish his man, McCrary, clearly not as hurt as Green thought, slipped Green’s jab and delivered a quick left hook right on the button.
Green’s hands dropped to his sides, and the previously obscure Donnie McCrary landed several punches cleanly to the face of the much taller Green. Had the fight been anywhere other than in his home state of Oklahoma, the Tulsa native’s night, and probably career, would have been waved off immediately.
The appearance of Green nearly unconscious on his feet made him look eerily similar to Jaidon Codrington when Green knocked him out in November 2005. There was no life in his body. His legs were holding him up only by instinct. He was in The fact that he was able to rise to his feet was a victory and a miracle in and of itself.
Green managed to survive the round. McCrary had clearly thrown every bit of energy he had left into the punches that put Green on the canvas and was unable to take advantage of his opponent’s condition.
Green managed to settle down, find his legs, and went back to basics. He kept his hands up, he popped the jab, he threw combinations. McCrary’s best rounds were behind him, and the momentum in the fight began to swing back toward Green.
As he had earlier in the bout, “Sweetness” threw the left hook to the body with force and precision. Now, with McCrary looking for the hook down low, Green was able to deliver the finishing shot, a jarring left hook to the chin of the tiring McCrary. He was unable to get up before the count of ten.
Afterwards, Green (20-0, 14 KOs) said he was glad that this happened and that he actually was anxious that it would. While it’s hard to believe what he said, it’s not hard to believe the message.
Green’s best victory was over Codrington, who himself was an untested prospect. His camp was mentioning fights with Joe Calzaghe and Jeff Lacy, which seemed foolish then and downright absurd now. But, perhaps this really was the best thing that could’ve happened to Green. He felt he was much farther along than he really was, and hopefully, he now realizes that he still has a lot of work to do.
Green entered the ring complacently. He was fighting a man in McCrary (17-4-2, 10 KOs) who he was very familiar with and really wasn’t in the same class as Green. He knew that. The problem was that he fought like it too. Had he fought Anthony Bonsante, who he was originally scheduled to fight, he may have come out more serious and this sort of thing might not have happened.
Green definitely has the talent to be in the upper echelon of the super middleweight division, but he isn’t there yet. McCrary showed him that. The orb of invincibility that Green thought surrounded him is no longer there, and he should come out better because of it.
He was fortunate that he was caught now by a fighter like Donnie McCrary. Had it been later, he would have been in the ring with a much more skilled opponent, and there is no way he would’ve made it out of that third round. He would’ve been lucky to be able to walk out of the ring.
It will be interesting to see how Allan Green comes out for his next bout. If he takes the lessons he learned against McCrary, his defense, head movement, and a more active jab should be more apparent. McCrary showed him exactly what he needed to work on so that he will have a chance against men like Calzaghe and Lacy.
Allan Green dodged a bullet Wednesday night. Now let’s see if he makes the most out of it.
Send all comments for the writer to aking1@ithaca.edu