By Vivek Wallace: In last week’s edition of “C.E.O. Friday’s”, we took a snapshot of Palm Springs native, jr. welterweight, Timothy Bradley. This week, as we prepare for the first major event of 2011 which now stands only 8 nights away, we take a deep look into the career of a man who most view to be his biggest obstacle yet, St. Louis native, Devon Alexander.
When you survey the jr. welterweight landscape, it’s very easy to identify growing global phenom, Amir Khan, as the cream of the crop who’ll one day rise to the top; but truth is, there’s another young man who some would argue has just as much claim to this fame. No, Alexander doesn’t bring the support of an entire country at his back, but hidden beneath the humble demeanor and Holyfield patented mustache is a talent that may very well gain him that support one day.
On the afternoon of January 4th, 2007, I can remember attending a media detail at the Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood, Florida, days prior to his fight, and listening to several refer to him as Devon Alexander “The Great”. Having limited knowledge of the young boxer, I remember thinking to myself “here’s another kid proclaiming greatness who may never quite see it”! Two days later and barely 2 rounds into his fight with Maximino Cuevas, I immediately realized that I was looking at something special.
Apparently I wasn’t the only one, as the audience remained so silent that the only noise in the arena at the time were the feet moving on the canvas, and the thrust of air Alexander dispensed in perfect unison with each punch thrown.
There were 3 key attributes that sold me on his talent immediately: Precision (punches), speed, and better than average defense in a performance very reminiscent of a green and non-stardom-tainted Floyd Mayweather jr. in his early days. The true caveat here was the fact that all this talent accompanied a patented Pacquiao southpaw stance! Power at a much lower scale, yet nothing short of astonishing in delivery!
Beyond that evening, Alexander has continued to build on that effort, chalking up victories against DeMarco “Chop Chop” Corley and what was arguably his best performance to date, an 8th round knockout of Colombian Juan Urango.
An interesting sidebar looming in the backdrop of this pending showdown comes in the fact that both Bradley and Alexander share one key common opponent in the U.K.’s Junior Witter. While Bradley proved how big his heart can be by digging deep and defying the odds across the pond, Alexander’s victory over Witter ironically came in Bradley’s very own backyard, (Aguas Caliente Casino); and it ended in emphatic fashion, as he stopped Witter for the first time in his pro career.
Now…..what does this mean in the grand scheme of things? Probably a whole lot of nothin’, as styles make fights! Witter is no Bradley or Alexander, but after watching how they’ve evolved since removing him from the equation, the stage is finally set to see how they match up against one another. Bradley has shown anyone who dare question him that his will to win has no boundaries. With most other obstacles cleared from his path, the time has come for him to take the great test from the Midwest! Stay tuned.
(Next Friday – Alexander/Bradley: “Keys to Victory”, “Four to Explore”, and “Official Prediction”)
(Vivek Wallace can be reached at vivexemail@yahoo.com, 954-292-7346, Youtube (VIVEK1251), Twitter (VIVEKWALLACE747), Skype (VITO-BOXING), and Facebook).