Ronnie Nathanielsz reports that the International Boxing Federation will review tape of the Ali Funeka-Joan Guzman draw from last Saturday in Quebec City. The decision left many stunned, as it appeared clear to all that Funeka had won the fight.

Funeka (30-2-3, 25 KO) bloodied and battered Guzman (29-0-1, 17 KO) for the majority of the bout, and nearly stopped the Dominican in the eighth round. But when the scores were read, two of them came back as 114-114 draws, something that seemed highly unlikely even if you felt it was closer than, say, Harold Lederman's 117-111 card on the HBO broadcast.

Some are counting it as one of boxing's many "black eyes," but I've seen worse decisions for sure. Hell, I've seen fights that I thought were just as one-sided (if not more so) end up with the wrong guy actually winning. And just earlier this year, Kermit Cintron was gifted a draw in Florida against Sergio Martinez, which I thought was a worse decision than this one.

But it was a crap decision. The IBF is highly unlikely to simply award Funeka the lightweight belt he earned, but rather will almost surely order a rematch that I don't think anyone really wants to see, and one I don't think Guzman would be too anxious to take. It was clear that Funeka's height gave him some real difficulty, and that while he's still a good fighter, it's a terrible matchup for Joan.

Lou DiBella -- who has zero stake in either fighter -- offered this take when speaking with BoxingScene.com's Rick Reeno recently:

"There should be a full investigation and background checks on those two judges. It was clearly a one-sided ass-whipping. If this is the best judging that boxing has to offer, then were are in real trouble. HBO should not buy the rematch. I don't want to see that fight again. Guzman got his ass kicked. Bring back Funeka like he's the winner."

I'm pretty much on board with that.

Statistics have shown us over the years that almost without fail, the winner of a rematch in boxing is the same as the guy who won the first fight. Lucian Bute left Montreal last October with a hotly debated decision win over Librado Andrade, and most figured he'd win the rematch.

But a fourth round knockout? Who had that pick?

Bute (25-0, 20 KO) won the first three rounds much as he won most rounds last year against Andrade (28-3, 21 KO), by outboxing him, making him chase, and keeping him from establishing anything on the offensive side. Andrade did get a few right hands in, but it was Bute landing the harder, more noticeable shots, including a series of wicked left hands in the third.

But Andrade is famous for his iron chin, and he barely flinched at Bute's power. The next round, Bute caught Andrade with a short left hand that Andrade never saw coming, and Andrade came back up and fought on. He kept moving forward, showing no real ill effects.

And then boom -- body shot. Down went Andrade, and Andrade didn't get up. A perfectly placed, vicious punch to the ribcage put Andrade down for the count.

Like you'd expect of Andrade, it looked like he was trying with all his will to get up.

Bute established himself, in my view, as the best 168-pound fighter in the world, but that's not meant to downgrade the guys in the Super Six, namely Andre Ward and Arthur Abraham. What it should tell you instead is that this is maybe the most complete, competitive, and stacked division in the sport today. Welterweight is exceptional at the top, but there are contenders at super middleweight much deeper.

Watching Andrade get knocked out is something I won't soon forget. I'm a huge fan of his -- watching him fight is thrilling. Hats off to Lucian Bute for knocking out the indestructible Andrade, and for making as strong a case as possible that the best fighter at 168 pounds isn't in the Super Six.

In what appeared to most to be a sure win for Ali Funeka, the South African came out with a majority draw against Joan Guzman in the HBO opener tonight in Quebec City.

Funeka (30-2-3, 25 KO) turned the tide of the fight for good with a huge shot in the 8th round that hurt Guzman, but he failed to put him away. And with Guzman (29-0-1, 17 KO) seemingly still on bad legs the next round, Funeka still didn't put on any major pressure.

Bad Left Hook scored it 115-113 for Funeka. Official scores were 116-112 Funeka, and two 114-114 cards.

Guzman, 33, looked a bit rusty, and suffered from a busted nose and a pretty nasty cut over his right eye. For the latter portion of the fight, he seemed mostly to be in survival mode. It surely was his worst pro performance.

Funeka and promoter Gary Shaw cried robbery after the fight, and most of the crowd seemed to agree that Funeka won. HBO's Harold Lederman scored it for Funeka, as did everyone in our live thread. Scores ranged from 115-113 all the way up to 118-110.

In my view, it's a bad decision, but not a robbery. A 114-114 card isn't a terrible card, I don't believe. But two of them? It seems distressingly unlikely. I guess it has to be chalked up to more bad luck for Funeka, whose first two fights out of South Africa have been tough on him.

What he's proven, though, is that he's legitimately a contender. There's no doubt about that. As for Guzman, we'll see if he fights again before next Christmas season before we really make any leaps on how much he has left in the tank.

At the end of the day -- as much as it sucks for Funeka, and as much as I think he deserved the W -- Funeka should not have left it up to the judges. Guzman was finished in there late in the 8th and what seemed like all of the 9th round. Funeka should have finished. He never got close.

It was a good fight, better than expected, and I'd expect there will be a rematch. The IBF title remains vacant, and both will stay at the top of the rankings.

Our live coverage will continue with the Bute-Andrade rematch one post down from this one. Join us for the main event!

Tonight looks like it could be an outstanding Boxing After Dark card on HBO, starting at 10pm ET from the Pepsi Coliseum (Colisee Pepsi) in Quebec City. In the main event, Lucian Bute puts his IBF title on the line in a rematch against Librado Andrade, and in the co-feature, Joan Guzman returns to American TV for the first time in two years to face Ali Funeka for the vacant IBF lightweight title.

LUCIAN BUTE		LIBRADO ANDRADE
	Main Event

JOAN GUZMAN		ALI FUNEKA
	Co- Feature

On October 24, 2008, Showtime had a boxing main event that pit super middleweight titlist Lucian Bute against noted tough guy Librado Andrade in Montreal. For the vast majority of the fight, it was all Bute, as he outboxed, outmaneuvered, and battered Andrade en route to a clear decision victory. And then the final minute came around.

I think the word "robbery" is thrown around far too often, and I don't feel as though Andrade was properly robbed. The rules dictate only that Bute must get up -- he did, and however you feel about the count, he was up by eight by any reasonable count.

What isn't at all in dispute is the fact that referee Marlon B. Wright lost his composure for whatever reason, and thus lost control of the fight. A referee simply can't do that. You can also easily argue that Bute, being held up by the ropes on more than one occasion before going down, should have been given an eight count before the knockdown.

Home cooking? Maybe a little. But Bute stole nothing, and Andrade wasn't mugged.

Fact is, the rematch talk has been brewing since the moment the fight ended. Bute defended against Fulgencio Zuniga, and Andrade stormed through Vitali Tsypko. Bute was ringside for Andrade's win over Tsypko, too -- he was cheering his rival heartily, giving the thumbs up.

Both of them know this fight is good for them. The rematch moves to HBO, Bute is working on a six-day streak of being considered by many to be the world's No. 1 fighter at 168 pounds, and it's maybe the hottest division in boxing. Even with the Super Six taking up so many names, there is a lot of talent floating around at super middleweight. Bute (No. 1 in the BLH rankings) and Andrade (No. 8) are two of the most noteworthy "outside" stars.

I've said repeatedly that I feel Bute will win a rather lopsided decision, and I haven't changed my mind on that, so I wouldn't give you a great big analysis. If you saw the first fight, you probably get why I'd think that will be the outcome. Before he gassed out, he dominated. Andrade was too plodding, too slow with his hands, and all he had for most of that fight was his chin.

But playing devil's advocate against myself, I think Andrade has a decent shot at the upset. His power is legitimate. He's a tank, absorbing punishment better than anyone in boxing today. Bute has to know he can't knock this guy out -- I don't think anyone can knock this guy out. He looked like he wanted the stoppage when the first fought. It cost him. It nearly cost him his title and his undefeated record.

Andrade can win if he gives Bute the bum rush and tries to muscle him. Bute is plenty strong, but it doesn't matter with Andrade. Bute will want to stay mobile, box and move constantly. Stay out of Andrade's wheelhouse, and keep some gas in the tank, and Bute should be fine. But if Andrade can get his workrate up and catch Bute with some clean shots, really anything can happen with this fight. If it turns into a shootout at any point, Andrade will win that war.

It's also worth noting that for as much as can be made of the reach differential (72" to 67") in the Guzman-Funeka undercard bout, the main event has an even bigger gap. Andrade's 78" reach is very, very long for the weight, and Bute's is at just 70", which is quite short for the division.

I'm sticking with my pick: Bute by wide decision. But an Andrade upset won't shock me in the least. (OK, maybe a little bit.)

Somewhat lost in the hoopla around boxing lately and the excitement about tomorrow night's Lucian Bute-Librado Andrade rematch has been a lightweight title fight that is very, very interesting on paper.

Preceding Bute-Andrade II on HBO, the IBF lightweight title vacancy will be filled in a fight between Joan Guzman and Ali Funeka, two top-ranked fighters with vastly different skill sets and a whole lot to both gain and lose.

Fair warning: This could be a hideous fight to watch. Guzman (29-0, 17 KO) rarely makes for entertaining affairs, and I get the gut feeling he's not going to be too excited to mix it up with Funeka (30-2-2, 25 KO), a raw, powerful South African whose 6'1" height and 72" reach make him enormous for the 135-pound division.

Let's start with Funeka. The South African burst into the news in July 2008 when he knocked out former contender and ex-Olympian Zahir Raheem in the fourth round of their fight in South Africa. Raheem hasn't fought since and has given no indication that he ever plans to. For all intents and purposes, it looks like Funeka retired Raheem.

With that fight having been set up as an IBF eliminator, Funeka was now in line for a shot at titlist Nate Campbell. Campbell, coincidentally, was scheduled to face Joan Guzman in September 2008, but Guzman failed to make weight. Campbell struggled out of the ring with his finances thanks to the cancellation, and eventually got a fight scheduled with Funeka for February of this year. The fight was to be on the undercard of an HBO triple-header headlined by Ricardo Mayorga and Alfredo Angulo, but Mayorga did his usual gimmick and wound up pulling out of the show.

Campbell-Funeka was bumped to headliner status, but then the snakebitten card took another shot when Campbell failed to make weight. An emotional Campbell beat an emotional Funeka in a gritty, exciting main event, winning by majority decision on what seemed mostly to be savvy and experience. After the fight, I recall just about everyone hoping that Funeka -- who burst into tears after the decision was announced -- would get another title shot. He'd earned it.

And here we are.

The Dominican Guzman was once nicknamed "The Little Tyson" because he and Iron Mike look a bit similar in the face. That nickname has fallen by the wayside. Though his KO rate (59%) isn't bad, he's not a big puncher. His last stoppage victory came in 2004, when he got Agapito Sanchez out in seven.

Of course, he's also largely dominated. Though he's fought just twice in three years and has rarely faced truly top-level competition, his sheet is clean for a reason. He's a fantastic boxer when he's on his game, a spoiler sort who can frustrated and demoralize his opponents. The last time we saw him in against a top fighter now seems like ages ago, but Guzman routed Humberto Soto at 130 pounds in November 2007. The only fighter to really ever give him a major test was Jorge Barrios, back in 2006.

It's hard to say what this fight will really look like, but expecting a thriller would probably be too much, and if we get one, it means Guzman has almost surely slipped pretty hard. But inactivity and the fact that he's 33 and headed toward his downside could bring that result out for him.

Joanie (as he's been called by rival fighters) will be giving up six inches of height and five inches of reach, and while I really want to pick Funeka to win and will flat-out say I'm hoping he does, I just can't go against Guzman in this matchup. He's too slick, too polished, and unless his skills have rotted away, too good. Guzman by decision.

Here is HBO's artsy promo for tomorrow night's Lucian Bute-Librado Andrade rematch. If you had never seen this fight, I'm wondering if you'd really "get" it, or care to figure out what's happening by going on the interwebs and looking up the first fight. Because in sequence of this promo we have:

1. Blue trunks beating up on Back trunks
2. Blue beating up on Black
3. Blue wins!
4. Black knocks down Blue? Did he sucker punch him after the fight?
5. Referee points at something
6. Blue is dazed
7. Black is excited
8. Black gets his mouthpiece, so does Blue
9. Blue batters Black some more

There's a hell of a story to tell and promote with Bute-Andrade II, and HBO seems to have tried to tell that story, but rather boldly failed.

Look, I get it. I know HBO likes to be very "cool" with their boxing stuff, and for the most part I love that. I appreciate that they don't cover boxing the way FOX covers sports by spelling everything out for me. But Bute-Andrade II is a fight almost entirely for the diehards, really, though it's one easy to sell with the drama of the first fight, especially if you exaggerate the whole thing the way it's been passed down through the tales of the fight online. This promo running on HBO doesn't make me want to see the rematch if I never saw the first fight, I don't think. But even a quick explanation of the first fight's controversy and drama might.

I watch this and I'm reminded of Jason Segel in Forgetting Sarah Marshall: "It's not really music. It's just tones. Dark, ominous tones."

T.K. Stewart reports that Saturday's rematch between Lucian Bute and Librado Andrade at the Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City is sold out. Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer said that means about 16,000 in attendance.

"The tickets sold out in less than one hour of going on sale," said Golden Boy CEO, Richard Schaefer on Tuesday afternoon.

When asked what a sell-out meant and how many people the Pepsi Colisee holds for boxing, "16,000" was Schaefer’s one word answer.

It’s a shocking number considering that more tickets have been sold for this fight than were sold for recent pay-per-view events that featured Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Manny Pacquiao.

The number of tickets purchased by Bute’s loyal fans speaks to his amazing popularity in the province of Quebec. While boxing has nearly drowned in the mainstream in the United States – it is alive and thriving in other parts of the globe. It proves, even in a far outpost such as Quebec City, which is located on the often frozen shores of the St. Lawrence River, that if a fighter is developed into a regional attraction before being taken nationwide or worldwide it can result in a lucrative payback.

Bute is a solid as ice superstar in Quebec. His first fight with Andrade also sold in the vicinity of 16,000 tickets and he has filled Montreal's Bell Centre on other occasions.

"It shows you how big Lucian Bute is in Canada," said Schaefer. "It shows you he is one of those fighters that can pack a house."

To be honest, it's really not a shocking number at all. Shane Mosley and Antonio Margarito put just under 21,000 into the Staples Center in January, and Bute has proven to be a reliable big house draw in Quebec many times now.

I also have to disagree that boxing has "nearly drowned in the mainstream in the United States" -- this may have been true a couple years ago, but it's the furthest thing from the truth right now. Yes, boxing thrives in other parts of the world, and sells major houses all over the world. But the United States is no longer the big exception. The media coverage for Cotto-Pacquiao was huge, the last two major boxing PPVs have sold over a million units each, and Mayweather-Pacquiao is among the hottest topics in American sports.

But all that aside, the Bute-Andrade house is really impressive, and goes to show just how big of a star Bute is up there, and how respected Andrade is in the same area.

The CompuBox editors take a look at Saturday night's rematch between Lucian Bute and Librado Andrade. HBO will televise the fight from Quebec City.

* * * * * * * * * *

Controversy creates cash. Nothing stirs interest more than conflict beyond normal bounds and Saturday's rematch between Lucian Bute and Librado Andrade is proof. The final moments of their initial encounter ignited fervent interest in re-staging a fight that Bute dominated for long stretches. Will the rematch be a repeat or a re-write? Here's what the number say:

Act One: Bute landed more (200-175) despite throwing less (617-673). In the nine rounds Bute prevailed numerically he had 6.7 more connects per round and he posted double-digit edges in rounds two (20-4), seven (23-12) and 10 (26-14). As expected Bute dominated in jabs (62 of 297 to 15 of 139) but held his own in power shots (138 of 320 to 160 of 534). By emphasizing his strengths and neutralizing Andrade's for a long enough period, he piled up enough points to keep his crown once the final bell rang.

Pump up the Volume: Super middleweights typically throw 55 punches per round and each man occupies different ends of the spectrum. Bute averaged 37 per round against Berrio, 49 against Bika 48 against Zuniga and 51 against Andrade. Meanwhile Andrade averaged 77 against Kessler, 72 against Grant, 75 against Stieglitz and 68 against Tsypko but just 56 against Bute.

Whenever Andrade moved his hands, he scored big. In the rounds where Andrade trailed in connects he was out-thrown 54-52 per round but in rounds where Andrade connected more he averaged 67 to Bute's 42. Andrade's greatest success was achieved when the volume differences were widest as in rounds five and 12 he out-threw Bute by 32 and 54 respectively. Therefore, Andrade must push the pace so Bute focuses more on defense while Bute must slow the tempo so he can control Andrade while marshaling his energy.

Recent Form: Each has fought once since Bute-Andrade I. Bute stopped Zuniga in four, out-landing him 68-41 overall and 53-25 in power shots. Andrade earned the rematch by decisioning Tsypko decisively, both on the cards and in the numbers - 291-162 in total connects and 264-110 in power connects. Both carried out principles that will benefit them Saturday; Bute was more flat-footed yet still controlled the distance while Andrade beat Tsypko - who like Bute is a southpaw - by maintaining a high work rate and pounding the body. Speaking of which...

Rib Tenderizers: Bute's body should be a target for Andrade. Fifty-two of Andrade's 160 power connects against Bute were body shots and against Tsypko he landed 94. Also, whatever limited success Zuniga enjoyed was to Bute's body as 22 of his 25 power connects - 88 percent - were targeted there.

Bute, in turn, doesn't ignore the body as 47 of his 119 power connects against Bika were body shots. A rippling left to the stomach floored Zuniga early in the fourth and several more hastened his demise.

Prediction: Bute has the tools to dominate, especially when both are fresh. All Bute needs to do is shore up his stamina. Add home field advantage to the equation and it adds up to a decisive decision victory.

For fight stats from Bute-Andrade I, take the jump.

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T.K. Stewart reports that brothers Librado Andrade and Enrique Ornelas will train together in preparation for big fights in November and December, hoping to prepare one another for what would be the biggest wins of their careers.

Andrade (28-2, 21 KO) gets a second crack at IBF super middleweight titlist Lucian Bute (24-0, 19 KO) in Quebec on November 28. HBO will televise on Boxing After Dark. Ornelas (29-5, 19 KO) has been chosen as the tune-up opponent for Bernard Hopkins (49-5-1, 32 KO) on December 2 in Philadelphia. Hopkins is taking the fight to shake off the rust as he looks forward to an agreed-upon but not finalized 2010 rematch with Roy Jones Jr., who fights Danny Green in Australia on December 2.

Andrade over Bute would be a pretty big upset, but we've seen Andrade come close to knocking Bute out before. Ornelas beating Hopkins would be absolutely massive, and would ruin a lot of big-money plans, a shot that Danny Green also has that same day. Ornelas is a natural middleweight, but really so is Hopkins, and the size difference is mostly in Bernard's three-inch reach advantage.

Ornelas is also probably a bit better than his record, which isn't a bad record at all. Four of his five losses have been majority or split decisions, and I felt he deserved a close win over Marco Antonio Rubio on the Pavlik-Hopkins undercard, but it was certainly a debatable fight and not really a controversy by any stretch.

I know I should forget about it, too, but fact is Bernard turns 45 in January and hasn't fought since last October. Ornelas will likely look to make it a dogfight, and it's not impossible to imagine him just outworking a guy who's approaching AARP membership. Hopkins is a major favorite and deserves to be, and chances are he just outboxes Ornelas and wins a wide 10-round decision, but crazier things have happened than an old fighter looking really old against a guy he'd manhandle were he in his prime. It's a suitably dangerous fight for Hopkins, one he should win, but not a totally foregone conclusion.

Bute-Andrade II probably excites a lot of people more than it does me, but honestly the more I think about it, I just see Bute outclassing him the way he did for 11 rounds last time. Past Andrade's courageous, awesome 12th round charge, that fight was not close, but then again all you need is that one moment sometimes, and he's proven he can hurt Bute. I figure the closer it gets, the more excited I'll wind up being to see them lock horns again.