31.12.07 – By Michael Klimes: The Old Guard Gone: Boxing has experienced a strong year yet has also an enigmatic one as it has lost a few of the biggest names of the New Millennium. The Mexican trio of Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales and Fernando Vargas finally cut the gloves, thereby terminating their glorious careers. These three box office draws have fought in the most exhilarating fights since 2000. How can we ever forget Barrera’s and Morales’s magnificent trilogy? Alternatively, a memory just as impressive is a precocious Vargas having some of the biggest cojones since Roberto Duran by taking on the murderous Felix Trinidad when he was only twenty one and Trinidad was at his absolute peak!
Also, how about his explosive punch-up with Oscar de la Hoya in 2002? Similarly, the incredible Arturo Gatti has decided to stop driving in the fast lane and entered the hard shoulder for a well deserved stop. Hopefully he will stay there permanently and not feel the urge to comeback as he always had too much toughness for his own good. He has already sustained more than his fair share of damage in his brawls and never was built with a reverse gear.
Tragically the courageous Diego Corrales ended his life in a motorcycle accident last May, dying at the age of twenty nine. Perhaps it could not have ended any other way as Corrales was probably more Arturo Gatti than Arturo Gatti himself. No other boxers of his generation except Gatti and his friend Mickey Ward have embodied that bloody blue collar style of boxing. Corrales’s great adversary José Luis Castillo might also have felt the finish to his career through that searing body shot Ricky Hatton gave him in June in Las Vegas. Castillo aged thirty-four, former world champion and veteran of sixty five fights might be on his last legs as well. Former champion Oscar Larios is not coming back either after his defeat in the summer at featherweight, courtesy of the fists of Jorge Linares. Finally the acclaimed historian Hank Kaplan died; surely leaving a hole in our collective boxing knowledge and a reference point for those in the community. Kaplan was the Ray Arcel or Nat Fleischer of his time. No one else had watched the sport for so long and gained so much expertise as a result. Who is his closest replacement, Bert Sugar?
Although these casualties are sad, it makes this year even more fascinating as boxing has demonstrated its resilience and gained important ground despite these losses.
The New Guard:
We have witnessed the birth of some new superstars. The word ‘crossover appeal’ can now be attached to Miguel Cotto’s name as he confronted the best competition of anyone in the welterweight division in Zab Judah and Sugar Shane Mosley. Crucially he is also twenty seven and Puerto Rican, meaning he can and has tapped into the considerable numbers of Puerto Rican fight fans, particularly in New York. Madison Square is like a second home to him.
Kelly Pavlik has established himself as the dominant middleweight by blazing Edison Miranda and Jermain Taylor in exciting encounters. His humble character and cement like fists make him, aside from Cotto, the other big ticket seller in America. Juan Diaz has ascended to the lightweight throne and is a force to be reckoned with. The other title holder, Michael Kastidis is the heir of Arturo Gatti. He is Australian but of Greek heritage and it definitely shows. He could be a character out of The Illiad. Every time Kastidas fights he has a bigger black eye than the last caused by his indomitable spirit. A clash between him and Hatton, Diaz or Pacquiao would be enthralling and something like James Bond versus John McClane scenario but in real life.
David Haye is the most prominent new British champion with his victory over Jean-Manuel Mormeck. Haye’s charm, handsome features, skills and power could make him a bankable asset for anybody who promotes him at heavyweight. He has unfinished business though at two hundred pounds with the other mean dog in the yard, Enzo Maccanirelli. Their bout this March will be a highly public affair, at least in Europe and should make a dent in America if pitched to the market properly. It is a potential firework display. Maccanirelli can box much better than he used to and has a record of knocking people out. So does Haye. Both have had their fair share of trips to the canvas.
Mikkel Kessler did not become the premier super middleweight in the world but he fought magnificently in his unification bout with Joe Calzaghe in November and gave the Welshman plenty to overcome. More significantly, the fight was televised in the United States and should have given Kessler the recognition he deserves. At only twenty eight years of age, a former world champion and with thirty nine fights under his belt, he can regain what he has lost very quickly. If he added the ability to fight on the inside he would be even more potent. He just needs to infuse a bit more versatility into his style. Kessler is a considerable asset to this sport and could have future match ups with Kelly Pavlik, Jermain Taylor, Chad Dawson or Lucien Bute. Those names in the same ring are worth thinking about. Dawson is also the other young lion who has come on, he is one to watch as much as Kessler.
Jorge Linares is the new sensation for me in 2007. In a few years could be the best fighter in the world bar none. He has everything a boxer could want and is reminiscent of Alexis Arguëllo. He is extremely gifted and has a maturity beyond his years, which makes me worried about how terrifyingly excellent he could be in just four years and he will be only twenty five then.
The Old Guard who are going:
A number of fighters who have been around for a while could be retiring in 2008. Israel Vasquez and Rafael Marquez have carried on the legacy of Barrera and Morales in their brilliant two fights this year. Their third encounter could conclude a trilogy that future generations will look back on in awe. However, neither are spring chickens, Marquez is thirty two, has had forty fights and the last two have been brutal slugfests against a heavy handed opponent in Israel Vasquez. Vasquez is a bit younger at thirty but had forty six fights and been in wars with Marquez, Johnny Gonzalez and Oscar Larios. The fights they are having now are the sort that make a boxer old and can do so very rapidly.
Juan Manuel Marquez is thirty four and since his whole approach to boxing is that of a counter puncher, it is imperative he retains his cat like reflexes or he will start sustaining worrying damage. Marquez has also acquired an appetite for more aggressive exchanges and if he decides to lock horns with Manny Pacquiao in their rematch, he won’t get any younger for it.
Joe Calzaghe is intent on smashing Bernard Hopkins before he retires and has said the next fight could be the last one. He is determined to retire undefeated and if he does he will join a very exclusive minority of fighters who have done just that. It is wonderful that many finally acknowledged his undisputable greatness. Hopkins might follow suit as the extraordinary man is ‘only’ forty two years old.
Sugar Shane Mosley retains a remarkable degree of his capabilities despite his age and could go on for a few more years.
What to Wish for in 2008:
Many divisions clarified (through excellent championship fights) who the number one fighters are. Currently boxing is seeing a movement from the grassroots with the lighter weights sorting themselves out. We can only pray that the heavyweights do the same. Thankfully a number of significant fights are taking place early in the 2008: Matt Skelton, Ruslan Chagaev, Samuel Peter, Wladimir Klitischo, Sultan Ibrigamov and Oleg Maskaev are all involved in title fights which could inject some momentum into what has been a fairly stagnant beast since Lennox Lewis retired. It would be sensational if by the end of 2008, we had an undisputed heavyweight champion. Alexander Povetkin also continues to make progress by taking on Eddie Chambers. Haye’s arrival could make things very intriguing and if the heavyweight division is at least intriguing it will be a step in the right direction.
Ricky Hatton has some big domestic challenges staring him down in Junior Witter and Gavin Rees. He could get wind into his sails by taking on Gavin Rees, acquiring a belt and then look to unify the light welterweight division. Furthermore, the welterweight division could generate a lot of praise again in 2008. Paul Williams has the best contender at this particular moment in time with Carlos Quintana taking him on in February. It is fundamental the welterweight division keeps acting as one of the main attractions in boxing’s renaissance. Names like Mayweather, Mosley, Margarito, Cotto, Williams, Cintron, Clottey and Quintana all need to be followed. A meeting between Cotto and Mayweather, most likely toward the end of 2008 would be a tremendous event. Meanwhile Cotto could invest and increase the value of such a lucrative opportunity by getting a few more of the belts and making the right noises to get Mayweather out of his comfort zone. Prospects Victor Ortiz and Andre Berto could be the new lights in the division given a few more years and experience.
Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions must strengthen their alliance and ensure they do not fall out again. Both camps have done an outstanding job of thawing their Cold War and producing first class events. Also, Manny Pacquiao must leave his political ambitions and allegedly rock style life behind to demonstrate to us what we know he is truly capable of.
What not to Wish for:
Felix Trinidad taking on Roy Jones Junior is for me, like a bad New Year’s hangover. It is a symptom from the past we do not want to go back to. Trinidad and Jones are old and the damaged goods. Their fight will undoubtedly make two rich men even richer and Don King, being the shrewd business man he is has just resurrected this fight from the dead to cash in on the ticket of nostalgia. Boxing needs to develop and push forward new breeds not the ones which should be sitting in Dubai somewhere drinking martinis or whatever retired greats drink.
This leads me to my next wish; Oscar de la Hoya must not fight Miguel Cotto. De la Hoya is not an old man who likes to fight like Shane Mosley and he has done a sterling job of using his influence to promote the sport. Beneath his smile, millions of dollars and suit there is still a fighter there somewhere but de la Hoya is more the past than the present. Cotto, although he can become a multi-millionaire by going barely three rounds with de la Hoya (who would not give him a bad fight) needs to just remain focused on the smaller names. He needs to concentrate on himself and not all the glamour which goes with de la Hoya.
In conclusion, may 2008 be a better year than 2007 for our beloved sport.
Comments are welcome.