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NEXT FEATURED CARD

February 13
(PPV)

Nonito Donaire
(22-1, 14 KO)
v.
Gerson Guerrero
(34-8, 26 KO)

* * * * * * * * * *

Fernando Montiel
(39-2, 29 KO)
v.
Ciso Morales
(14-0, 8 KO)

Gerry Penalosa (54-7-2, 36 KO) v. Eric Morel (41-2, 21 KO)

Bernabe Concepcion (27-3-1, 15 KO) v. Mario Santiago (21-1-1, 14 KO)

Five Most Recent

FEBRUARY 6
Valero-DeMarco
Abregu-Gutierrez

FEBRUARY 6
Adamek-Estrada

FEBRUARY 5
Johnson-Mack
Paredes-Hernandez
Hernandez-Corley
Rigondeaux-Landeros
Contreras-Castaneda Jr.

JANUARY 30
Arce-Angkota
Hernandez-Escobedo

JANUARY 30
Sylvester-Lyell

Ring Magazine Champions

Accept nothing less! These are boxing's true CHAMPIONS -- anyone not listed here that claims to be a champion of a division is a titleholder.

Heavyweight
Wladimir Klitschko

Cruiserweight (200)
Tomasz Adamek

Light Heavyweight (175)
Vacant

Super Middleweight (168)
Vacant

Middleweight (160)
Kelly Pavlik

Junior Middleweight (154)
Vacant

Welterweight (147)
Vacant

Junior Welterweight (140)
Manny Pacquiao

Lightweight (135)
Juan Manuel Marquez

Junior Lightweight (130)
Vacant

Featherweight (126)
Vacant

Junior Featherweight (122)
Vacant

Bantamweight (118)
Vacant

Junior Bantamweight (115)
Vacant

Flyweight (112)
Vacant

Junior Flyweight (108)
Ivan Calderon

Strawweight (105)
Vacant

As was the fear when Robert Guerrero pulled out of his March 27 fight with Michael Katsidis, ESPN.com's Dan Rafael reports that Guerrero's wife, Casey, is indeed battling leukemia again.

Casey recently underwent a bone marrow transplant:

"They won't really know if the bone marrow is going to take, so we're hoping that it does," [co-manager Bob] Santos said. "Robert wanted to fight. He thought he could spend half the day with her and train the other half the day, but she started to take a turn for the worse. I told him point blank there is no way I would allow him to fight. Me and Shelly had to talk him out of it. This is a tough sport and if he's going to fight somebody like Katsidis you have to be 100 percent focused. With this situation, how could he be?"

We at Bad Left Hook send our best wishes and prayers out to Casey and Robert Guerrero.

about 2 hours ago SC 2 comments 0 recs

Nate Campbell-Victor Ortiz agreed to for May 15

by SC on Feb 9, 2010 4:49 PM EST in News Analysis Comment 4 comments

Nate Campbell will face Victor Ortiz on May 15, should Ortiz win on February 25. (Photo by Doug Benc / Getty Images)

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The rumored fight between junior welterweights Nate Campbell and Victor Ortiz has been agreed to and will be televised on May 15, with the main event of that show hopefully being Amir Khan-Juan Manuel Marquez. Rick Reeno reported the deal's agreement earlier today.

Ortiz does have an upcoming fight on February 25, but his opponent Hector Alatorre is as soft a touch as could possibly be considered even remotely acceptable. Alatorre has lost eight of his last 10 fights. The bout is nothing but a TV showcase for Ortiz on Golden Boy's "Fight Night Club" series.

Campbell (33-5-1, 25 KO) has had a rough go of it since upsetting Juan Diaz in 2008. He had a defense of his lightweight titles later that year canceled when Joan Guzman couldn't make weight, which led to Campbell filing for bankruptcy. By the time he got back into the ring against Ali Funeka in February 2009, nearly a year had passed. He got out of that tough fight with a close victory, and then was getting beaten up by Timothy Bradley in August of last year before the fight had to be stopped after three rounds when Campbell suffered a bad eye injury due to an accidental headbutt.

Campbell, 37, has a lot of resolve and toughness left, but my instinct is 140 isn't the best weight for him at this stage of his career. At the same time, Ortiz has a lot of questions left to answer after his loss to Marcos Maidana last year, which was followed by a tentative December performance against veteran Antonio Diaz.

It's a big-time crossroads fight for both. Both guys have a ton to gain with the win and just as much to lose with the loss. A loss would put Ortiz in a serious hole and possibly cast him as something of another Joel Julio, while a loss for Campbell could spell the end of his days as a legitimate contender.

And it's a good fight, too. A win for either possibly puts them right into line for a title shot by the end of 2010.

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1972: A Hell of a Year

by Bad Left Hook on Feb 9, 2010 11:24 AM EST in Classic Events and History Comment 5 comments

Roberto Duran became lightweight world champion when he stopped Ken Buchanan in 1972. (Photo via Daily Mail)

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Jim Amato remembers the year 1972, a boxing year highlighted by the superstar emergence of Roberto Duran, strong champions, the fallout of Ali-Frazier I and fighters like Bob Foster and Carlos Monzon.

* * * * *

For me the year 1972 marked some very important milestones. Especially the magic month of June. In the first three weeks of that month I became a candidate for the draft by turning eighteen. I graduated from High School and I took on my first bride. To be honest with you the most exciting day of the month was the 26th. On that date in Madison Square Garden, Roberto Duran captured the lightweight championship of the world by stopping the vastly talented Ken Buchanan. At that moment a star was born.

Later in the year on October 18th my first son was born. A month later Duran suffered the first loss of his career dropping a decision to the great but widely overlooked Esteban DeJesus. Roberto would not lose another fight until the night he said "No Mas" in 1980. That included two subsequent knockout victories over DeJesus. To me Duran was without a doubt the greatest boxer of the 70's.

In retrospect 1972 stands out in regards to boxing for a variety of reasons. The quietest division was the heavyweights. There was a let down after the frenzy created from the March 8, 1971 classic between Joe Frazier and Muhammad Ali in which Joe emerged victorious. That was a gruelling affair and Frazier and his manager Yank Durham decided to take it easy and not just jump right back into the ring with Ali. Joe took on a couple of lower ranked white contenders. First he blasted out the totally overmatched Terry Daniels. Then he cut up and halted the dead game Ron Stander. Joe would lose his title in early 1973 courtesy of the thumping fists of George Foreman. Two months later Ali would suffer a fractured jaw in losing an upset decision to Ken Norton. The stage was now set for "The Rumble in the Jungle" and "The Thrilla in Manila" that would later entertain us in the mid 70's.

The light heavyweights were ruled by one of the greatest of all time, Bob Foster. Bob probably hit his peak in 72. First he unified the title with a two round massacre of W.B.A.pretender Vincente Rondon. Then he landed one of the most brutal punches in boxing history when he nearly decapitated Mike Quarry. Next he wore down and halted the very brave Chris Finnegan. Bobby ended 1972 with an ill advised foray back into the heavyweight division and was halted by the now former champion, Muhammad Ali.

Carlos Monzon was the king of the middleweight division. 1972 was the year that proved his greatness. Carlos opened by halting veteran contender Denny Moyer. Next he turned back the challenge of the very formidable Jean Claude Bouttier. Then he pummeled Denmark's Tom Bogs. Carlos closed the year outscoring the feared "Bad" Bennie Briscoe.

He was one of the greatest welterweights of all time. Jose Napoles was coming of a very big year in 1971 when he regained the title from Billy Backus. He also turned back the challenge of top contender Hedgemon Lewis. He took it a little easy in 1972 fighting off the challenges of Ralph Charles and Adolph Pruitt. He closed the year with a non-title KO of Edmundo Leite.

It was in 1972 that the great Antonio Cervantes won the junior welterweight title. He had failed to dethrone the slick Nicolino Loche in 1971. Loche then lost his title to Alfonso Frazier and Cervantes got a second shot and defeated Frazier. Antonio would go on to have a legendary career.

The featherweight division was in a transition period. The great little southpaw Vincente Saldivar had retired champion in 1967. He returned in 1969 and reclaimed his crown in 1970 by beating Johnny Famechon. He would lose the title in his next fight to Kuniaki Shibata. In 1972 Clemente Sanchez blasted the crown from Shibata's head. Soon after Sanchez would lose his title to the scales. Jose Legra also halted him and no one was quite sure who the champ was as the year ended.

The bantamweight division was also in a state of transition. As 1972 was ushered in, the power punching Ruben Olivares was holding the crown. Rafael Herrera came along to upset him. Then Rafael was upset by the smooth boxing Enrique Pinder. The new champion would outscore former titleholder ChuChu Castillo in a non-title bout to close out the year.

The flyweight class was in a state of chaos in 1972. Erbito Salvarria was the rightful claimant based on his 1970 KO of the outstanding Chartchai Chionoi. In 1971 he would struggle but still remain champion. In five 1971 encounters he went 3-1-1. He lost a non-title go on points to Halimi Gutierrez. He also drew with Betulio Gonzalez thus keeping his crown. In 1972 the W.B.C. withdrew its recognition of Salvarria as champion and matched Venice Borkorsor with Gonzalez for the vacant title. Borkorsor would win by a tenth round stoppage. Borkorsor and Salvarria would meet in 1973 to unify the title with Borkorsor winning a decision.

It was a simple time then. There were a lot less weight divisions and fewer split titles. It was a time when in most cases the champions ruled their respective divisions with an iron fist. Some of the most feared and respected boxers of all time reigned supreme. Foster, Monzon, Napoles, Cervantes, Olivares and Duran.

The class of 1972. What a wonderful year!

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WLKY did an interview with Lonnie Ali, the wife of the great Muhammad Ali. There's a text story at the link, and video in five parts inside the article, too.

about 9 hours ago SC 0 comments 0 recs

Robert Guerrero out of Katsidis fight; Bradley-Valero possible

by SC on Feb 8, 2010 10:48 PM EST in News Analysis Comment 20 comments

Robert Guerrero won't fight Michael Katsidis on March 27. (Photo by Ethan Miller / Getty Images)

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Citing family concerns, Robert Guerrero has pulled out of his agreed-to March 27 HBO fight with Michael Katsidis, reports Rick Reeno.

Guerrero, who holds a title at 130 and was going to move up to 135, has a wife who has battled leukemia. Of course everyone hopes that isn't the reason, as Casey Guerrero had been reported to be in remission during Robert's recent fights.

Golden Boy will look for a replacement for Guerrero. Reeno says that one possibility is Top Rank's Brandon Rios, who fought and knocked out Jorge Teron on Top Rank Live this past Saturday night. Given the lack of star power at 135 (or coming up from 130), it's going to be tough to get Katsidis much of a name replacement. I'd guess there's a real chance that Marcos Maidana-Victor Cayo moves to the main event slot.

In other news, Rick Reeno also says that there's a chance for Timothy Bradley to defend his 140-pound title against Edwin Valero in June, and promoter Gary Shaw says he's so confident, he'll do the fight in Mexico. It's one of those promoter statements that are meant to make you say, "Ooh, that's confidence!" but then you realize Valero isn't Mexican and that the only state in the country Valero is licensed to fight in is Texas and that Valero now has visa issues. So it doesn't mean a whole lot. Supposedly Bob Arum is willing to take the fight for Valero, but something makes me doubt that. I like Valero a lot, but Bradley is a different animal than anyone he's faced, and he could make Valero look like he's stuck in concrete.

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Lucian Bute and the Super Six - HBO Trying to Crash Showtime's Party?

by Brickhaus on Feb 7, 2010 10:56 PM EST in News Analysis Comment 21 comments

Bute's team is trying to make lemons out of lemonade - getting snubbed from the Super Six could mean involvement in a bigger fight down the road. (Photo via www.lucianbute.com)

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As previously reported, on April 17, HBO is planning on airing a split-site doubleheader, with the undercard being Lucian Bute against Edison Miranda in Montreal, and Kelly Pavlik facing Sergio Martinez in the main event. Pavlik's fight hasn't been officially worked out yet, but either way, Pavlik will be getting that spot. Just one issue - on April 17, Showtime is also airing its own split site doubleheader, with Andre Ward facing Allan Green and Mikkel Kessler facing Carl Froch.

That's right folks - HBO is squaring its own super middleweight directly head to head with Showtime's lauded super middleweight tournament.

This is a case of pure gamesmanship by HBO. Showtime put in the effort and is putting in the money to make the Super Six tournament happen. While it's still an exciting event and Showtime should be lauded for their efforts, it did not invite either Pavlik or Bute to participate in the tournament. If you believe Showtime, it's because they would have been too expensive, and if you believe the conspiracy theorists, it's because Kalle Sauerland was trying to set up a tournament where his fighters - Abraham and Kessler - would be in the finals. Ironically, Pavlik in his last fight probably made a fraction of what Kessler or Abraham are making on a per fight basis to participate in the tournament.

Because Pavlik and Bute were not invited, HBO is using the opportunity to build up its own super middleweight, the HBO way. Rather than having an egalitarian tournament to determine the winner of the spoils, HBO knows that Bute and Pavlik are the two biggest threats to the winner of the Super Six. HBO also knows that if Bute and Pavlik fight each other down the line, the winner of that fight would likely be in the top 2 in the weight class, and thus the winner of the Super Six won't be a true champion.

By setting this split-site card, and by pitting it directly against the Super Six, they are putting Showtime on notice: they will build up a Pavlik-Bute fight to make it big; they will pit the two against each other around the same time as the finals for the Super Six; and after the Super Six is over, they will outbid Showtime to get the most significant fight of them all, the Pavlik-Bute winner against the Super Six winner, after Showtime has already invested its money to turn the Super Six winner into a star.

What HBO is doing is nothing short of brilliant or evil, depending on how you look at it. But while Showtime is forcing HBO to raise its game, HBO just has too much money compared to Showtime to let them win. On one hand, this probably means that we'll get a megafight that creates a true champion a couple years down the road. But on the other hand, they're marginalizing the Super Six, turning it into an eliminator for the right to face Pavlik or Bute.

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Tomato Cans: Random Thoughts for February 7

by SC on Feb 7, 2010 9:35 AM EST in Features Comment 36 comments

Could Kermit Cintron be poised to upset Paul Williams if the two fight in May? (Photo by Al Bello / Getty Images)

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I've got a lot of boxing on the brain, but have become so sleep-deprived over the last couple of weeks that I can't really put together much by way of coherent thoughts, so here's a bunch of nonsense.

Foreman-Cotto

Dan Rafael noted in his "R.A.D." chat last night that the June 12 fight between Yuri Foreman and Miguel Cotto could head to pay-per-view, as even though HBO offered to carry the fight on World Championship Boxing, Bob Arum might not make enough off of that deal to pay the fighters.

This terrifies me. I keep saying I'm scared to death that boxing's promoters have again become so damn greedy that they're going to back to putting way, way, way too many fights on PPV, and this would be a prime example. I get the smaller PPVs, the Latin Fury shows and what have you, because HBO/Showtime aren't buying those fights and ESPN/Versus/whatever can't afford them. It's nice to have the option to see them in that case.

But Foreman-Cotto belongs on regular HBO. That's the bottom line. It's not a PPV fight, no matter what you put on the card, and trust me -- Top Rank won't put anything truly useful on the undercard. The success of boxing's three major PPVs last year (Hatton-Pacquiao, Mayweather-Marquez, Cotto-Pacquiao) leads me to worry that these guys are getting filled with a lot of hot air. "See?! We can do more PPV!"

Those shows did well because every fight was a major event and they were the only three large-scale PPVs of 2009. Foreman-Cotto would/will bomb, and it would stink hardcore for Top Rank if that happened and Foreman won. The less eyes seeing him beat Cotto (which he has a very good chance at doing), the worse it gets for the company.

Wladimir-Eddie

After seeing the photos of Wladimir Klitschko and Eddie Chambers together, I got the same feeling a lot of people did: Eddie Chambers, good as he is, does not have a hope in hell. He looks like a teenager with a goatee next to Wladimir. The only worry Wladimir should really have is possible ring rust from the shoulder surgery-induced layoff he's had. But I don't think Eddie has the pop to back Wlad off at any point, nor the ability to get inside that jab. I rank Eddie as the No. 1 non-Klitschko heavyweight in the world, too, and I'll crap thunder if he wins this fight. In that regard, it's no wonder the only heavyweight stuff anyone seems to want to talk about is possible fights with the Haye-Arreola-Adamek trio.

Morales and Barrera

Is anyone else scared to death that if Erik Morales beats Jose Alfaro on March 27 (another low-budget PPV, by the way), Morales and his hated rival Marco Antonio Barrera will lock horns for a fourth time? I'm even more curious: does anyone really want to see that? Vazquez-Marquez IV is one thing, but Barrera-Morales IV would be about as relevant as 2008's third fight between Azumah Nelson and Jeff Fenech. Did you forget about that?

Edwin Valero and Antonio DeMarco

Without going in-depth about it, let me say that I was more impressed with Edwin Valero last night than I've ever been. He's still not very fast, but he throws in combination a lot more than he used to, and he's still not great technically, but he's better than he used to be. He's improved a lot and become a very formidable fighter instead of just a monster puncher.

I would also say that I was less impressed with Antonio DeMarco last night than I've ever been. He'd been making so many strides, and at 24 he's still quite young, and yes he lost to a very good fighter. There's still clearly a ton of work to do, and he's going to have to learn to use his height (5'10" at 135) to keep pressure guys back.

Similarly, Carlos Abregu may never be all that great, but he sure as hell is fun to watch. That guy punches with serious purpose all the time.

Paul Williams and Kermit Cintron

With the rumor moving that Williams and Cintron will meet on May 8, a fight that would take place at 154 pounds, I might surprise a few of you here. I can smell upset a mile away in that fight. Williams is hittable, and as much as I like him, we've seen him hurt now against Sergio Martinez and Antonio Margarito, two tremendously different fighters. It's not a particular style that's an issue for him, it's the fact that his defense can get really sloppy, and if guys are willing to take his long, wide shots, they can get good counters in there. Cintron is at least a good puncher, and the straight right is the southpaw killer. Anyone else feeling that one?

Thailand Pro Debuts

Is it just me, or do you have almost no desire to see Alfredo Angulo wear out Joel Julio in April?

I don't know what it is exactly, but the Super Six has lost some steam for me. I think it's a few things. First off, none of the second stage matchups really excite me. Then there's the fact that one of the six pulled out after one fight, and the argument is quite valid if you say he never should have been there to begin with. And now they're bickering over what city in Denmark that Carl Froch-Mikkel Kessler will be held. I get the horrible gut feeling that this thing is going to face some serious problems in the third stage.

OK, so I've gotten excited for Vazquez-Marquez IV. It was inevitable, which some of the more long-time posters here might have guessed given my man crush on Vazquez and my love of their three fights.

Did you know ESPN2 is running a Deandre Latimore-Sechew Powell rematch on March 19?

You know what I think I'd like to see on Friday Night Fights? Peter Manfredo Jr.-John Duddy. I think that could be fun.

Also in his chat last night, Dan Rafael said, "The Klitschko folks are talking to HBO [about Vitali-Valuev in May]. I'd be disappointed if HBO didn't do the fight." I'll offer a differing thought: I'll be disappointed if HBO spends a dime on that piece of crap fight that they could have spent on something useful or interesting.

I'm still waiting for Henry Bruseles to pull out of his March 27 fight with Mike Jones. It would be Bruseles' first relevant fight (and it only sort of qualifies) since his 2005 loss to Mayweather.

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Gus Johnson isn't working

by SC on Feb 7, 2010 8:20 AM EST in Features Comment 65 comments

Gus Johnson's run as Showtime Championship Boxing's play-by-play commentator has been a failure.

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In January 2009, Showtime announced that Steve Albert would be stepping back from his duties as Showtime Championship Boxing's play-by-play man, handing the reins to CBS Sports commentator Gus Johnson, the love him or hate him, screaming lunatic we all knew from March Madness.

When that move was made, this is what I said:

Gus Johnson is a good play-by-play man and I look forward to hearing him call some fights for Showtime. If he stinks, hey, Steve Albert's always available.

Chances are, Gus won't stink, either, and he's got a familiar voice that lends further "big sport" credibility to the product, at least ideally. If he meshes well with Al Bernstein, it could be a phenomenal team that rivals any combination of HBO's commentators. As much as I like Steve Albert, I always felt his biggest flaw was not quite being able to make a fight seem even bigger than it is. I maintain that Jim Lampley does this brilliantly. Maybe Gus will be able to turn a great fight into something even more exciting.

I think after about a year of Gus Johnson being the key man in the booth on major Showtime broadcasts, I can now say that this just isn't working out.

Now, let me say this: just like I suck at boxing, I'm 100% certain I would suck at calling a fight. It takes a lot of talent, presence, dedication and work to be as good as Gus Johnson is at broadcasting sports. Even the worst major broadcasters are pretty good at their jobs, except maybe Thom Brennaman, who gives me gas every time he calls a game I watch.

But I haven't enjoyed Johnson as a boxing commentator, and last night's two-fight card put me over the edge as a viewer. No more "well he's still learning." Gus isn't fit for boxing.

I enjoy Gus during March Madness. His over-the-top enthusiasm is something I look forward to every year, even if at this point it sometimes feels dreadfully forced, as if he tries to make sure he gets at least one good scream and jump on the table moment in every year, even if one doesn't really come to him.

And when Gus calls MMA, I feel he does a competent enough job, though bigger MMA fans than myself might well disagree. I don't know for sure.

Boxing sounds like a side job for him, and despite my hopes, he has not made one fight he's called better because he was the one calling it. His best moment came during the 12th round of Carl Froch-Jermain Taylor last April, but even that could have been better and less -- again -- forced. It felt like Gus was screaming not because what was happening was so great (which it was), but because Gus is the guy who screams. It was fun enough, but I never shook the feeling that it didn't feel quite right.

Last night, he played homer for Shobox graduates Carlos Abregu and Antonio DeMarco. Most of his calls were "ooh!" He must have said "right hook" about 278 times. It took him forever to give proper credit to a dominant Edwin Valero, almost as if someone finally said in his earpiece, "Hey, this guy's clearly winning."

I'm not going to start an online petition about it or anything, but I think I can speak for more than myself when I say that Gus Johnson isn't the man to serve as Showtime's lead boxing commentator. He leaves broadcast teammate Al Bernstein gasping for air at times, as Bernstein heroically carries the load on these broadcasts. Johnson and Bernstein aren't poor together; actually, they've developed a decent rapport, especially when you consider Johnson's weaknesses.

All I'm saying is a lot of these fights deserve better than "ooh!" out of the play-by-play man.

There are some worthy candidates out there, but sadly not a ton. With boxing broadcasts so limited and the sport such a niche nowadays, there probably aren't as many qualified guys who really know boxing as you might hope.

Bernstein himself is a better play-by-play guy, and the Bernstein/Steve Farhood team I've seen a few times has been terrific. Shobox's Nick Charles is better than Johnson by a fair bit. If Steve Albert wanted to come back (there were doubts he was really as willing to step down as he made it out), that'd be an easy decision if I were in charge.

What do you think? Am I way off base here? Have you enjoyed Gus calling boxing?

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