1. All hail the new lightweight king!

By knocking out Casamayor, Juan Manuel Marquez accomplished several things at once. First off, he became the first man to ever stop Casamayor, and it's not like Joel hasn't ever been in there with guys that could finish a fight.

Secondly, he showed again that at 35, his manner of "has slowed down some" isn't exactly bothersome. He is still a world-class fighter in every respect and one of the three best, pound-for-pound, in the sport today.

Third, and most important, he took Casamayor's legitimate, lineal, Ring Magazine lightweight championship. Marquez is the man at 135 -- not Pacquiao, not Campbell, not anyone else. It's Juan Manuel Marquez. To be THE lightweight champion, you have to beat Marquez.

I am one of the few that actually likes Casamayor. I've always liked watching him fight, I like his genuine mean streak, I like his style in the ring. I'm just a fan of his. And I thought he fought as well as he could last night, but that Marquez was just the better man. I had the fight scored close (96-95 for Marquez at the time of stoppage), but I also noted during the bout that the only rounds that were clearly in one man's favor all belonged to Marquez. Casamayor never dominated a round, though I thought he won his share.

The fight stats tell you that Marquez was clearly winning, though they were padded a bit by those rounds where he smoked Joel. Joel did win rounds, and it was a very competitive fight. The spectacular finish secured this as a memorable bout.

But while I like Casamayor, I did hate having to always almost cattle prod my way into noting time and again that he was THE lightweight champion. He won a great fight against Michael Katsidis in March, and his performance was highly respectable last night, too. But neither erases the nasty stink of his gift decision win over Jose Armando Santa Cruz last November, and that wasn't going to go away. With Marquez, there's no controversy, there's no debate. He's the lightweight champion. Fact. Plain and simple.

2. So what's next?

I'd bet good money that we'll see Marquez make a defense against Juan Diaz in early 2009, as both fighters are Golden Boy-controlled and the fight is very attractive on paper. That'd be a good one, but then again I think just about any fight those two have should be a good one, so that's kind of a no-brainer. After beating Katsidis on September 6, Diaz was rumored to be in line for the winner of last night's fight. It seems like an easy situation to manage, and should probably go forward. Hopefully they don't think it's a 45-dollar pay-per-view next time.

As for Casamayor...? I do think he can still fight at a very high level, and I'd keep him at the back end of the division's top five after last night. (I'm going to update the lightweight rankings later, so there's a spoiler.)

That said, he should strongly consider retirement so long as he's financially secure. It seems like it takes a big fight to motivate him, and right now there just might not be any of those out there, unless he wants to try to make something happen with Nate Campbell, which might not be so easy to do now that Casamayor doesn't bring a whole lot to the table other than a revenge story for Nate. Casamayor should go to the Hall of Fame, or he's borderline at the least. But he's also 37, has no title, and has never been a draw. He doesn't have that many fans, frankly.

The older he gets, the closer he comes to fully losing what he's great at, which is counter-punching out of being exceptionally elusive. He had SOME of that last night, but he also got tagged with a lot of punches that the younger Casamayor avoids. An in-prime Casamayor could have fairly easily beaten the Juan Manuel Marquez of last night, I think. Marquez was straightforward, threw good combinations, but also left himself open enough that a peak years "El Cepillo" would've smacked him around more than the 37-year version did. That's not to discount Marquez's greatness or question him in any way; it's merely saying that Joel, good as he still can be, has definitely slipped. Walking away from the sport a proud loser against a great fighter would be no shame.

3. Speaking of shame, Joan Guzman ought to have plenty of it today

Last night was supposed to be a banner night for the lightweight division. Casamayor and Marquez held up their end of the bargain in Las Vegas, and Biloxi, Miss., was to play host to a three-title bout between WBA/WBO/IBF titlist Nate Campbell and rival Joan Guzman, who like Marquez was stepping up from 130 pounds.

It might not seem like the biggest deal ever, but the unprofessionalism shown by Joan Guzman is absolutely deplorable for a number of reasons. There is literally no reason he shouldn't have been able to make 135 pounds. He's had weight issues in the past, but come on -- at what division does it stop, you know? We don't need another Jose Luis Castillo. Coming in three and a half pounds over the limit, Campbell would've been absolutely justified in saying, "No deal. Fight's off." That's the exact weight differential in the exact class that allowed Castillo to beat the crap out of Diego Corrales in their second fight. It IS a big deal.

But Campbell was willing to go out there in a non-title matchup, which would at least have given the Biloxi fans an event that they'd paid to see. Instead, with the fight cancelled because of doctors advising Guzman not to risk it, everyone is ripped off. Showtime is ripped off, the promoters are ripped off, Campbell is ripped off, the fans of Biloxi are ripped off, and the general boxing public that largely planned to watch that fight instead of a $45 pay-per-view are ripped off, too.

When I say Campbell was ripped off, I don't mean monetarily. He will get his purse. This isn't his fault. But Campbell took time away from his family to work his ass off to prepare for this fight, and it was for nothing. Nate could've fight any number of other guys, but he chose a fight with Guzman because Guzman's a good fighter, a legitimate challenger, and it's a fight people wanted to see.

Joan Guzman did the sport of boxing a disservice yesterday. You've got a few thousand more fans in Mississippi that now will be going, "Jeez, boxing sucks, this guy didn't even show up." Last-minute cancellations are disastrous. Guzman has cost a lot of people a lot of money with this. He and his team gave no prior warning that their man was having trouble making weight, as Jorge Barrios and his team did the week before when their guy was struggling to get down to 130 against Rocky Juarez. That was the right way to handle it. This was exactly the wrong way.

As talented as he is, Guzman all but blackballed himself. He's going to be fined and suspended in Mississippi, and that suspension will be effective all over the United States. He's not a name fighter to begin with -- we know him, but we know a lot of fighters that most people have never heard of. He's inactive, he's got only a couple of big wins, and he's no box office draw at all. The major networks are not going to rush to commit to this guy again considering how little he brings to the table business-wise. It's a shame, because he can really fight. But he did this to himself.

4. No MORA that, huh?

Sergio Mora suffered his first career defeat, an unquestionable manhandling loss to Vernon Forrest in their "anticipated" rematch. Forrest won by wide scores of 119-108, 118-109 and 117-110. Mora was never really in the fight. Vernon had his number, was obviously in shape this time, and clearly studied video. The best thing might be that we won't get any of those play on words Mora headlines any time soon, for which I'm thankful. Thanks, Vernon!

This should end Mora's time as a big money fighter, pretty much as soon as it starts. He's not untalented, but if a guy is able to find a home for some offense against his herky-jerky defense, his lack of ANY power just neuters him, more or less.

The loss will probably see Mora go back up to 160 pounds, since he had trouble making 154 this time. The story of his career, I expect, will be that he had one good night against someone else's bad night. Clearly, when Forrest was on-point, Mora was no match for him. It was a man fighting a boy.

5. Let's talk retirement again

21-year old Julio Garcia lost to journeyman Danny Perez, who had fought just one, six-round bout in the last three years. But that's not the real story. Things like this happen, as Garcia proved before when he lost to Troy Browning, a guy who had fought just twice after EIGHT years out of the ring.

Maybe Garcia simply can't beat aged fighters that take long breaks. More likely, though, there's something deeper about Garcia that everyone involved with his career needs to look at. He never looked like he wanted to be in the ring last night. He has major power, but never displayed it, and was very content to eat punch after punch from Perez, whose sloppy, pop-less attacks would have probably gotten him wasted against a fighter that gave a damn about fighting.

Garcia should really think about whether or not he wants to fight, because if he doesn't, a dangerous fighter could hurt him.

6. That's peculiar advice

After the first round, trainer Nacho Beristain told Juan Manuel Marquez something to the effect of, "Give him the first couple of rounds, then you can take over." Marquez didn't roll over for Casamayor or anything, but I did score the first for Joel and the second a 10-10 draw. And Marquez did take over. Maybe Nacho is a mad genius.

7. Really, Golden Boy? REALLY?

Highlighting the pay-per-view festivities last night was a special celebrity host. You think, "Hey, whatever. Boxing? Vegas? Who's gonna host this? Let's find the right guy!"

A.C. Slater, Golden Boy? REALLY?

This is a gross miscalculation of the type of celebrities that boxing fans might want to see. The super dolled-up, fake-smiling Mario Lopez does not fall into that group. While talking to Paulie Malignaggi between fights, he called Malignaggi's May rematch with Lovemore N'dou a great fight, something even Paulie didn't agree with.

There's hype and salesmanship, and then there's just being dumb and terribly phony. Mario Lopez might consider himself a big boxing fan, but he's not the level of boxing fan that needs to be on TV talking about it, if last night is any evidence.

Maybe this is the machismo of the boxing fan talking, but I just don't want to see pretty boy Mario Lopez from Dancing with the Stars on my boxing broadcasts. He was atrocious.

8. More on the pay-per-view

I enjoyed the main event, but the pay-per-view was terrible, and not worth anywhere near $44.99. For anyone that ever wants to slam HBO or Showtime broadcasts in the future, I once again implore you to give a Top Rank or Golden Boy-produced event a try. The difference is night and day, like going from ESPN to your regional Fox Sports Net.

The camera men had awkward angles, which made the building look very strange. Again, Mario Lopez was there. The video blipped out on two occasions. They had several audio problems, particularly early on. The commentary was fine, though they did seem biased for Marquez in the main event and there just aren't many guys that can call a big fight like Jim Lampley or Steve Albert.

For nearly 50 dollars, boxing fans should be rewarded with a little bit more than a non-fight (Garcia-Perez), a gross mismatch (Ortiz-Arrieta) and an uneventful rematch no one wanted to see in the first place. When you've got the production values of HBO, you can get away with lackluster undercards and good main events. But when you don't, you need to deliver more action than Golden Boy did last night, because there's no shine being put on the turds.

9. Where does Tim Bradley go now?

Timothy Bradley won a dominant unanimous decision in what wound up being Showtime's main event and only fight of the night, retaining the WBC junior welterweight title against Edner Cherry.

So what next for Bradley? Hatton and Malignaggi are busy. Andreas Kotelnik will fight Dmitriy Salita next, it appears. At 25 years old and with a 23-0 record, Bradley could perhaps try to unify with fellow American and WBO titlist Kendall Holt, though Holt may face Ricardo Torres for a third time. Victor Ortiz is out there and knocking on the door of contention, too. Veteran puncher Randall Bailey is always around. Junior Witter would undoubtedly love a rematch.

Bradley's in a position sort of similar to that of Andre Berto. He's young and good, but matching him up isn't going to be easy. Despite the world title, he's still at that stage where the promoters are still going to want to protect him a little bit. Lucky for Bradley, there's no one at 140 that would overwhelm him. Let's not forget that Witter was the undisputed No. 2 in the division.

10. Nate Campbell: Quality Dude

Let's give Nate Campbell even more credit. Not only was he willing to fight Guzman despite the weight issue, but when the fight was called off, he still made himself available to the fight fans in Biloxi, offering to hang out in the lobby and chat, sign autographs, whatever. In an age where boxers don't much interact with the public, this three-body lightweight titlist is a man of the people. Good on ya, Nate. Hope you get a good fight soon, because we're all looking forward to seeing you in the ring again.

Rick Reeno and Keith Terceira of BoxingScene.com are reporting that the Showtime clash between Nate Campbell and Joan Guzman may be called off, as Guzman may have reported to a local hospital in Biloxi, Miss., last night to rehydrate after coming in three and a half pounds overweight at the official weigh-in. If he had tried to dehydrate down, there's a very good chance something could have gone medically wrong.

At this point, this fight seems pretty well snake-bitten to me. Boxing Scene is expecting an official decision to reach them within 2-3 hours, so stay tuned over there. As soon as we hear anything, we'll keep you updated here, too.

A reminder: we'll be here tonight at 9pm with live, round-by-round coverage of the Casamayor-Marquez pay-per-view from Las Vegas. If Comcast goes screwy (you may notice this is a constant concern of mine for pay-per-views), then we'll cover Campbell-Guzman and Bradley-Cherry instead. Either way, we'll be here talking boxing tonight.

How about some fight day quotes and final picks? Yeah, why not!

"Joel Casamayor is one of the best 135-pounders. I'm going to prove it to the people and I'm going to prove it to myself that I can do better things in higher divisions. And, obviously, if I get the victory in this fight I'm going to prove it. I'm going to keep proving that I'm good in any division." -- Juan Manuel Marquez (ESPN)

"Manny Pacquiao fought David Diaz. He was a champion, yes, but not a top fighter in the 135-pound division. But I'm going to prove it. I'm going to prove it to myself. I'm going to prove it to the people that I'm the best 135-pounder out there." -- Marquez

"I'm looking at as if I have no next opponent. I only got one and that's Marquez, because I know if we don't get [past] Marquez, there is no next fight. So, there's only Juan Manuel Marquez on my mind. I'm focused for him. After that, we can see. I leave it up to my promoters at Golden Boy and I keep letting them move me however they want to. But I'll tell you one thing, I'd like the chance at Pacquiao." -- Joel Casamayor

"It's going to be a great fight because Juan is a great fighter and everyone knows I'm a great fighter. And not only is Juan a fighter but he's also smart in the ring just like me. It's going to be a challenge, its going to be a great challenge." -- Casamayor (ESPN)

Time for picks. Who you got?

Casamayor v. Marquez: I've already gone on record as saying that I'm picking Casamayor via tight decision. One thing I didn't mention is the X-factor in Casamayor's game, which is that he's always willing to get dirty if he feels he has to. Marquez is a fiery fighter and might not respond to some of Casa's potential tactics very well. Still, I've given it more thought and I'm still favoring Casamayor to surprise a lot of people and push on to another big, probably hotly-debated points victory. Casamayor

Mora v. Forrest II: The news that Sergio Mora needed to weigh in twice to drop two pounds and make the 154-pound limit worries me, as I initially was picking him but now have to strongly consider what role his conditioning will play. If Mora loses this fight because he doesn't have enough gas to stay busy and neutralize Forrest's more well-rounded game (even at 37, Forrest has more tools and weapons than Sergio will ever have), it'll be yet another blunder in his career that will take money out of his pocket. I'm hoping this isn't a close Forrest decision, because then these two will probably hook up for a rubber match. But that's now exactly what I'm fearing the most. Forrest

Garcia v. Perez and Ortiz v. Arrieta: Both of these fights should be one-sided affairs, poorly suited for a card that costs the boxing consumer 45 bucks. Give me both of the favorites by knockout, but I won't be shocked if Danny Perez beats Julio Garcia, who slipped badly against Troy Browning. Garcia and Ortiz

Campbell v. Guzman: If you missed it, this is now a non-title fight, as Guzman has failed to make weight by three-and-a-half pounds. I don't think this will hurt Guzman since he didn't attempt to cut down to 135; rather, it just makes him stronger. I already favored him to outbox Campbell down the stretch, and now I just think it's more likely. Guzman

Bradley v. Cherry: The last time we saw Edner Cherry take on a top-ranked 140-pounder, he was shut out by Paulie Malignaggi. The last time we saw Timothy Bradley, he stunned Junior Witter on the ex-titleholder's turf. Bradley is now the defending WBC junior welterweight titlist, and this is his first defense. Cherry is a very game fighter and his record is a bit misleading, as he's better than his W-L tally. But he's also a natural 135-pounder who's taking this fight because it's a great opportunity for his career. I like Cherry, but Bradley should rout him. Bradley

Joan Guzman failed to make weight for tonight's fight against Nate Campbell, meaning that the bout will not be for any of Campbell's three lightweight titles. Guzman was a full 3 1/2 pounds over the 135-pound limit. It's surprising given how much he's talked about his conditioning during training camp, and also considering that this is his first time jumping up to 135.

It also takes a lot of zeal out of the fight, and Campbell should be given credit for going forward at a disadvantage. It's the exact weight differential that got Diego Corrales blown up by Jose Luis Castillo in their second fight, when Castillo failed to make weight and Corrales fought him anyway.

The other Saturday night card had its own issues, with WBC junior middleweight titlist Sergio Mora initially failing to make weight, tipping the scales at 156 pounds, two over the division's limit. A second try got him down to 154, though, and the rematch with Vernon Forrest will go on for the title as scheduled. It'll be interesting to see if this time, Mora is the one who struggles with fatigue, as Forrest did in their first fight.

No worries about the Golden Boy main event, though. Both Joel Casamayor and Juan Manuel Marquez (pictured above) weighed in at 135 pounds. They also got into a shouting match, started by the always-outspoken Casamayor.

Unless you've been living under a rock, you're aware of one certainty going into Saturday night's three-belt lightweight title fight between WBA/WBO/IBF 135-pound ruler Nate Campbell and undefeated challenger Joan Guzman.

That certainty? They don't like each other.

Campbell and Guzman spent a couple months worth of time throwing insults back and forth, writing open letters filled with jive talkin' that lit up the press release pages around the internet. If they were trying to get people hyped up to see them fight, they succeeded.

But even if they didn't talk so much at the expense of the other man's pride, this is a dynamic, interesting, and potentially explosive fight. Guzman (28-0, 17 KO) is moving up to lightweight after finding nobody willing to fight him at 130. He thought he had a fight with Alex Arthur, but several issues came up and that one was called off. Guzman chose to abandon his strap, which was given to Arthur in the boardroom, and head up to 135, joining fellow super featherweight departees like Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez. The three best (in most minds) in the division were making the leap.

Like Marquez, Guzman's first 135-pound test comes Saturday, against the 36-year old Campbell (32-25-1, 25 KO), who is riding high off of a March upset win against Juan Diaz in Mexico. Despite that huge victory, the biggest of Campbell's hard-working career, "The Galaxxxy Warrior" remains the underdog against Guzman.

He doesn't care, though.

"What is there about this little man that makes anybody even think he can beat me?" Campbell recently asked. Campbell's manager, Terry Trekas, claims he tried to put $100,000 on his fighter in Vegas against the nearly 2-1 odds by which Guzman is favored, but his bet was rejected because there isn't enough money going the other way.

Or at least, that's the story he'll tell.

But there are very good reasons folks are favoring Guzman. The 32-year old Dominican has fought off the odds his whole life, rising out of extreme poverty to become a world-class athlete. He's also a fighter that has rare natural skills; his speed can be overwhelming, and though he's no one-punch slugger, he has enough pop that it has to be taken seriously.

As Showtime analyst and color commentator Al Bernstein says, "He's an interesting fighter because he does so many things wrong, but he's able to overcome them because he's so fast and he's such a good athlete."

Guzman's wide punching isn't textbook or even pretty. But he's got the type of God-given ability that he is nevertheless among the sport's best, pound-for-pound. That's his reputation, anyway.

Campbell, though, questions Guzman's record, noting that the best fighter he's faced has been Humberto Soto, who Guzman widely outpointed last fall. He has had a career marred by inactivity and a trouble with finding willing top-flight opponents to go toe-to-toe with him. Not that that is really his fault, but you have to realize that his 28 professional fights have come in 11 years worth of professional time, missing all of 1998 and fighting two times every year from 2002-05, and just once in 2007. He will also fight only once this year, unless something very surprising comes along.

Campbell's career began, believe it or not, three years after Guzman turned pro. When Nate Campbell entered his first pro ring on February 5, 2000, he knocked out journeyman Scoey Fields. The Tampa-based fighter would start his career with 23 straight victories before meeting up with Joel Casamayor in 2003.

The former Gold Medalist from Cuba had just one loss on his record, a tight decision against Acelino Freitas, and he outpointed Campbell over 10 tough rounds. Following his first pro loss, Campbell went to a draw with Edelmiro Martinez, and then beat Daniel Attah in an eliminator to an eliminator, knocking Attah down three times along the way.

In an official eliminator fight, Campbell met up with Robbie Peden.

In one of the stupidest moments you'll ever see, Nate dropped his hands completely and dared Peden to load up and hit him. Well, Robbie did just that, socking Campbell in the jaw with a vicious left hook against no resistance, knocking Campbell out.

Two fights later, he lost again, in a split decision against Francisco Lorenzo. The 23-0 start had led into a 3-4-1 stretch that seemed as though it would eliminate Campbell from serious contention in the division. He went from promising threat to tough guy a notch below the best in a flash.

Since then, though, he's gone 6-1, losing only to Isaac Hlatswayo, and laying serious beatings on the likes of Almazbek "Kid Diamond" Raiymkulov, Matt Zegan, and Ricky Quiles. When the time came for him to get another shot at the serious big time, he took advantage of a bad cut and a young, rattled fighter, scoring the win over Diaz.

Now, here we are. Nate Campbell is headlining on Showtime in a world title fight. He's a great story, and a solid, genuine guy in a sport filled with phonies and actors.

I'd love to say that I think Campbell, a hard puncher, will be able to beat Joan Guzman, who has a habit of making his fights stinkers by avoiding confrontation, as he did in the second half of the bout with Soto. 

So I'm sad to say that I honestly don't see it. I don't think Nate Campbell is overrated, and I don't think Juan Diaz became overrated when he lost to Campbell. I think Nate Campbell is a fantastic fighter and a legitimate threat against anyone at 135 pounds. I can't see him finding a way to beat Guzman, though. While he calls Guzman a "little man," the fact is they're roughly the same size, with Campbell holding a reach advantage that he'll need to put to full use.

He's going to have to find a way to stop Guzman from springing in and out, using his lightning hands to score on combinations. He'll have to hurt Guzman to the body. But Guzman is nothing if not a very intelligent fighter, and he's trained by one of the best in Floyd Mayweather, Sr.

I'm not going to lie and act like I'm one of these boxing writers that doesn't root. I'm rooting for Nate, because I like him. But I'm picking Guzman to win because I think he's the better fighter.

Saturday's Showtime card at the Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi, Miss., headlined by the Nate Campbell-Joan Guzman bout, is having a lot of trouble pertaning to the WBC and the Mississippi State Athletic Commission being at odds over judges in two fights.

The fights in question are the TV undercard matchup (Timothy Bradley-Edner Cherry for Bradley's 140-pound title) and an off-TV featherweight eliminator (Elio Rojas-Hector Velazquez).

The WBC has been adamant about appointing their own judges to the two fights, but the MSAC responded without backing down a hair:

"In the state of Mississippi, anyone that attempts or acts as a boxing judge without a commission licensing permit will be committing a felony. We strongly advise that no one should sit on the front row and act as a boxing judge. In the state of Mississippi we have and will always have neutral judging. We will pursue this through criminal channels if this were to happen. We have two international, well-known credible officials and two in-state credible officials working this bout. We feel it is biased for a sanctioning organization to pick and choose who they want judging world championship fights."

Well, how do you like that? An athletic commission that appears to take the most logical, unbiased, and neutral route, against a sanctioning body that is as questionable as they all are.

Of course, it doesn't just end right there, and the MSAC isn't getting its way that easily. Keith Terceira of BoxingScene.com reports that Mississippi boxing commissioner Jon Lewis is standing firm, though. While WBC boss Jose Sulaiman says that he will have people in the stands judging the fights, Lewis is threatening legal action:

"I have made myself very clear on the issue of judging fights from the stands, and how that is a felony in our state punishable by up to one year in state prison. I will turn over to our state attorney that matter for prosecution should that happen."

While I'd seriously doubt that anything major will happen on that front, the issue between the MSAC and WBC is serious, and Terceira speculates that if this isn't settled (and there isn't much time left to settle it), there could be a legal battle involving the WBC, the MSAC, Showtime, and promoters Don King and Gary Shaw. It certainly appears as though it could turn that way. Showtime, King and Shaw will be very likely to side with the WBC, even if they don't necessarily agree with them. After all, they do a lot more business with Sulaiman and his organization than they ever will the Beau Rivage Casino.

Gotta love that Pacino-McConaughey team, huh? Alright, alright, alright. Hoo-ah! Not a great movie. Don't go out of your way. Shocking, I know.

All lines are taken from Bodog, and this is not meant to encourage gambling. That's my disclaimer, because I don't want to hear about it if you lose your Tercel.

Joel Casamayor (Ring Lightweight Champion) v. Juan Manuel Marquez -- HBO PPV

Marquez -325, Casamayor +250

This is one of those fights I would not touch with a ten-foot pole. The 37-year old Casamayor is inconsistent but undeniably skilled, and the 35-year old Marquez is moving up to 135 pounds for the first time. I'm having a hell of a time even picking a winner without putting money on it -- I wouldn't bet on this fight with your money. (OK, yes I would.)

Betting 325 bones on Juan Manuel to win back 100 seems silly to me, because even if he maintains his power, stamina, and skill in another division's jump, Casamayor is a hell of a great fighter on his best nights. He fought off the determined, powerful, younger Michael Katsidis in March in an epic brawl, and Marquez hasn't been seen since that same month, when he lost a hotly-disputed decision to pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao.

Now, pound-for-pound, I'll take Marquez over Casamayor any day. But Joel is a guy some started counting out five years ago. He's not only hung on, but here he is main eventing a pay-per-view event at the MGM Grand. Both fighters are due to hit the wall sometime, I think, and the chance that it could come for either man this weekend is a really big risk.

Sergio Mora (WBC Junior Middleweight Titleholder) v. Vernon Forrest [Rematch] -- HBO PPV

Mora -105, Forrest -125

A fight where the Bodog book refuses to put up an underdog. Mora upset Forrest in June to capture his title, and now "The Viper" is looking for revenge, this time sans the threats of Mora leaving on a stretcher. Good idea.

The 27-year old Mora has 10 years of youth on his side against Forrest, who came out flat, fatigued fairly easily, and looked like he didn't have any breath left by the 10th round of their first encounter. This time, Vernon is saying he's had a better camp, but it's not like he'd be spreading word that he isn't.

Mora has technical ability, but his lack of KO power is always going to be a concern. Is he good enough to beat a more well-rounded, but older, fighter once again? Is Vernon really capable of going 12 rounds with a guy as shifty and elusive and awkard as Sergio? That's the bet, man.

Nate Campbell (WBA/IBF/WBO Lightweight Titleholder) v. Joan Guzman -- Showtime

Guzman -215, Campbell +175

And another one that's too tough for me to mess with. Hey, maybe I'm gutless, or maybe I'm stingy, or maybe I'm poor, or maybe these fights are all just tough to call. Guzman's natural abilities are awesome, but Campbell's toughness, resiliency and power can't be overlooked.

Guzman hasn't fought in ten months, since he dominated (crowd-pleasing or not) Humberto Soto over 12 rounds. This is Guzman's step up to lightweight, as he found no one at 130 willing to fight. Guzman and Campbell have had a rather nasty back-and-forth leading up to this fight, and given Campbell's rugged, aggressive nature, he might come out for blood. Guzman, no matter what he says, probably isn't wired that way.

This is a marvelous option for those uninterested in paying $44.99 for the pay-per-view card this weekend, and another toss-up money fight.

Got any favorites? Betting on anything this weekend?

The September 13 head-to-head between Showtime Championship Boxing and HBO pay-per-view is a pretty legitimate question. You have to ask yourself, "Do I want to pay 40-50 bucks to see Joel Casamayor and Juan Manuel Marquez, or does Nate Campbell-Joan Guzman stack up just as well?"

The HBO undercard is offering a rematch between 154-pound titleholder Sergio Mora and Vernon Forrest, while Showtime is offering a 140-pound title bout between Timothy Bradley and Edner Cherry.

The Showtime card also has finally landed a home, at the Beau Rivage Casino in Biloxi, Miss.

What pains me is that I think I'll wind up paying the money for the Casamayor-Marquez card, because I think that main event could be fantastic, and I have the gut feeling that Guzman is going to box circles around Campbell, who put in a career-best performance and was aided by a horrible opposing cutman when he beat Juan Diaz in March. The difference between Diaz and Guzman is huge; Campbell was able to stand and trade with the volume-punching Diaz, but Guzman won't let him do that. As far as pure boxers go, Joan is among the best in the business.

Mora-Forrest II is a rematch of a bad fight, while Bradley-Cherry is just not that interesting. I like Edner Cherry, but I don't think Bradley will have a whole lot of trouble with him. Cherry's a tough guy and a good fighter, but Bradley's got natural ability that just dwarfs Edner's. The Malignaggi-Cherry fight is still too fresh in my mind.

Casa-JMM seems like the type of fight that I'll be sorry if I miss, a fight that could easily be a war, easily be a great showcase of two tremendous pure boxers, and almost certainly won't be bad. Marquez's aggressive nature the last few years will press Casamayor into action. Plus, Joel is fighting for more paydays now. If he beats Marquez, there's an outside shot he could land a fight with Pacquiao down the line, or step up and fight Hatton or something of that nature. A loss really hurts his marketability.

The best 135-pound fight on the docket, though, is the Juan Diaz-Michael Katsidis scrap planned for September 6 on Boxing After Dark.

Each one of Katsidis' last three fights (Earl, Amonsot, Casamayor) have been Fight of the Year contenders. In fact, I'd put Casamayor-Katsidis over the Cotto-Margarito fight in my race (right now the top four are Vazquez-Marquez III, Marquez-Pacquiao II, Casamayor-Katsidis and Cotto-Margarito).

This fight was rumored last year, was rumored for February/March of this year, and now after both men have suffered their first career losses, they'll tangle in Diaz's hometown of Houston. I don't think the home field advantage will help Juan much because I don't think Katsidis is the type of fighter to care where he's at. He could fight Diaz in Juan's parents' basement and I think it'd all look pretty much the same as it would anywhere else on the planet. Katsidis is going to come forward and try to knock Diaz out.

And Diaz, lest we forget, is a tremendous pressure fighter that will fire back in spades. That fight will be a war. It's one of those bouts where there's just no way it's going to be bad. I think the Fight of the Year race will get a new horse on September 6.

Manny Pacquiao and team want a bigger set of fines for an pound over the 147-pound limit being discussed for their potential fight with Oscar de la Hoya, which may be another snag in the ongoing and increasingly wacky search to land Oscar an opponent for December 6.

It's being said that the Filipino superstar and his handlers want Oscar fined $1 million per pound over 147 should he come in overweight for the fight. This is because, simply, the Pacquiao force is concerned that de la Hoya cannot make 147 pounds anymore. I wonder myself, but it doesn't much concern me. He looked fit at 150 against Forbes, and while three pounds are bigger than they sound in boxing, I don't think it'd be a major hassle for him.

The other real concern for Pacquiao is that Freddie Roach has stated they would probably try to weigh in in the low-140s for the fight -- plus, if Oscar came in overweight, they'd be fools to go on with the fight, no matter how much money was on the line. So in essence, they're counting themselves in for a payday if Oscar should come up short (well, wide), because there are a lot of fights Manny could make for November or December.

Business, man.

And yes, I used a photo of Oscar at his fattest on purpose.

There has been no news on the return of Marco Antonio Barrera, but I was thinking about it earlier today, and I just can't decide what to feel about it.

He's not old and he hasn't shown that he's TOO badly beaten up. He was still in outstanding form last year against Marquez, though he turtled and didn't do a whole lot against Pacquiao, seemingly content to survive 12 rounds and leave it at that.

There was a rumor a while back, you probably recall, that he would return to face Mzonke Fana, who at the time was the IBF's 130-pound titleholder. He lost his strap to Cassius Baloyi in April via majority decision. Barrera has already beaten Fana, knocking him out in the second round back in 2005.

I've seen some fans suggest that he match up with old rival Erik Morales for a fourth time, but to me, that seems pretty sadistic, like you're essentially saying, "You know what I'd like to see? Erik Morales get hurt." Unlike Barrera, Morales has shown definite signs of wear and tear on his body, and reported after his final bout against David Diaz that he heard a ringing in his ears when he was hit in the head. Promoter Bob Arum is often full of crap, but when he says that if Morales tries to fight again he'll have nothing to do with it, I think you can feel sincerity and genuine concern.

The other talked-about fighter has been 122-pound champion Israel Vazquez, with the two Mexican fighters perhaps splitting the difference and squaring off at featherweight. I'm sure one of the major sanctioning bodies would find it in their hearts to strip a titleholder or declare an interim strap up for grabs in a Barrera-Vazquez bout.

Dan Rafael says Vazquez is taking the rest of 2009 off to fully recover, which is a smart move.

One thing is certain: should Barrera return as he apparently seriously intends to do, he will not be fighting under Golden Boy's banner, and that seems just wrong in some ways. He was one of their flagship fighters, along with Oscar, Mosley and Hopkins, and he had the distinction of being the one of their "Big Four" that wasn't really associated with de la Hoya as a star.

Personally, if Barrera is up for it, I'd still love to see a rematch with Juan Manuel Marquez, but that would involve working with Golden Boy, so count it out. Most likely Barrera will return against a mid-level or worse opponent, and try to move his way back up the ladder.

We'll see.

I read somewhere that I now can't find that Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr., would be rematching Matt Vanda sometime this final quarter. Vanda put a hell of a scare into JC Junior in a damn good fight down in Mexico, nearly knocking the young, overheralded name out. You'd think first, perhaps, that a rematch would go toward the younger, fresher Chavez, like maybe Vanda made a final last great stand in the first fight. But I think it's legitimately very dangerous for Chavez, who I felt was exposed by the tough Vanda, whose name means nothing. The fact of the matter is that at some point, Arum and Top Rank are going to hit a wall with Chavez. He's just not that good, even with the strides he's made the last couple of years.

I'm pretty anxious to see what PPV numbers Casamayor-Marquez, Pavlik-Hopkins and Calzaghe-Jones pull in, because I don't expect great stuff in any of the fights, particularly Casamayor-Marquez. I understand pay-per-view and accept it as being what it is, but it's hard to lure in fans when you make being one an exclusive club, isn't it?

Sultan Ibragimov says he'll be back. Boy, I can't wait.

So far, so good for Vitali Klitschko not being injured. I still refuse to put that fight with Sam Peter on our schedule until the official weigh-in comes and goes with no shenanigans.

You may have heard that outspoken nitwit Anthony Mundine won a fight on July 30 against Crazy Kim. Latest word is he thinks that will give him a chance to chase Kelly Pavlik or Winky Wright at middleweight. Mundine gave up a super middleweight title so he could not get manhandled by Mikkel Kessler again, and now he thinks that he should get a fight with Pavlik or Wright. I guess I can't really see what Winky's doing that's any better, but Pavlik? That's some feverish dream world stuff, "Choc."

Has any fighter in recent memory done less with a star-making, highly-publicized win than Sakio Bika? Maybe he could fight Allan Green, if Bika's handlers could come up with the latest and greatest ridiculous figure that Green wants in order to take to the ring again.

With Vazquez taking the rest of the year off, I can't help but wonder what's up with Rafael Marquez. I'm hoping he decides to join his rival on the sidelines for the remainder of '08. Then maybe we can see them clash again in the first quarter of 2009. There's just no bigger or better fight for either man.

David Haye still has no opponent for his November 15 heavyweight "debut," though names are constantly being thrown around. Haye will be joined in the heavyweight ranks by faded ex-cruiser champion O'Neil Bell, who similarly claims that the division is a mess and needs a savior. Compared to the in-prime Haye, Bell's claims are akin to generic brand Doritos when the real thing is right in front of you for the taking.

Speaking of heavyweights, money is the big issue in the long-rumored showdown between sluggers Chris Arreola and David Tua. I kind of wish everyone would just move on. This fight is not going to happen. A win would push the exciting, 35-year old Tua right back into title contention, but he's been fighting journeymen since drawing Hasim Rahman in 2003 and taking two years off. Knocking out Cerrone Fox and Saul Montana is one thing; fighting a credible young slugger is another. He and promoter Cedric Kushner both know that, and want every cent they can squeeze. I can't blame then, and frankly I hope they're successful. For as long as it lasts, it could be a hell of a fight.

Frank Warren is all over the news. First up, he's speaking his mind on the Hatton family-Billy Graham rift that finally exploded, saying this was a long time coming, essentially. Also, Frank is suing Joe Calzaghe for £1 million, which has so "disgusted and saddened" the Welsh fighter that he's counter-suing. Oh, those Brits! (And Welshmen!)