11-20 are in the books, and now we move on to the first half of the top ten for the year.

Part One (20-16)

Part Two (15-11)

10. Vicente Escobedo v. Carlos Hernandez
April 4, 2009 - Austin, Texas

As the second bout of the Golden Boy-produced Lightweight Lightning pay-per-view, former Olympian Vicente Escobedo and rugged veteran Carlos Hernandez locked horns, and little was really expected of this fight. Escobedo was best-known to many boxing fans as the guy you wondered about on "Fight Night Round 3." In particular, "Why was he there?" Hernandez, 38, had been a past opponent for Genaro Hernandez (1997), Floyd Mayweather Jr. (2001) and Erik Morales (2004), among others.

The show was designed to be an eight-man, single elimination lightweight tournament. Golden Boy never made good on that, though Escobedo and Michael Katsidis did later fight on the Mayweather-Marquez undercard, which I chose to recognize as the Lightweight Lightning tournament finals, as in my mind, Edwin Valero and Rolando Reyes simply dropped out of the tournament.

Escobedo turned pro in 2005 and had yet to really step up competition at all. Hernandez promised that if he didn't win, that would be it for him. He would retire. And both of them fought like they needed this one -- Escobedo to prove he was no joke prospect, and Hernandez to prove that he still had something left in the tank.

Hernandez went down in rounds one and two, but stayed in the fight for the full ten rounds, hammering back when he could against a bigger, younger, faster, stronger opponent. "El Famoso" was giving up a full eight inches and reach, and when Escobedo wanted to use it, it showed. But for the most part this one could've been fought in a phone booth. The two warriors hammered away on one another, embracing at the opening of the 10th and final round, and leaving every ounce of energy they had in the ring. Escobedo couldn't finish Hernandez, and the proud veteran went out on his shield. Thus far, Hernandez has been true to his word, not fighting since. It was one of the year's least talked-about great fights.

9. Jose Lopez v. Marvin Sonsona
September 4, 2009 - Rama, Ontario, Canada

At just 19 years of age, Filipino prospect Marvin Sonsona stepped into the ring with WBO junior bantamweight titlist Jose "Carita" Lopez on September 4 in Rama, Ontario. The 37-year-old Puerto Rican had come in on a 16-fight unbeaten streak (15-0-1) dating back to 2001, when he had lost a 12-round decision to Fernando Montiel.

The veteran was confident, but so was the kid. Lopez looked strong early, but a ripping left hand sent him to the mat in the fourth round, and afterward Lopez said he felt that blow for the rest of the fight. The middle rounds saw Lopez kick up the pressure, attempting to rattle the young challenger. But he just couldn't do it. In the end, Lopez handed his title over to the prospect, who now was a titlist. Sonsona won a unanimous decision over 12 exciting rounds. Lopez offered no excuses, and hoped only to land a rematch, which did not come his way. Lopez also praised Sonsona after the fight, showing his true class.

8. Andre Berto v. Luis Collazo
January 17, 2009 - Biloxi, Mississippi

HBO's boxing year got off to a great start with this criminally underrated fight from January, a fight that was forgotten quickly due to the shock of Shane Mosley dominating Antonio Margarito seven days later, and then the subsequent controversy surrounding that fight. But Berto-Collazo was without any question a vastly superior contest, far more competitive and with one of the most dramatic finishes of 2009.

The much-hyped Berto came in against the experienced, crafty Collazo holding the WBC welterweight title, which was for all intents and purposes given to him when Floyd Mayweather Jr. announced his make-believe retirement in 2008. Berto beat non-contender Miki Rodriguez to win the vacant title, and then defended against non-welterweight Steve Forbes before signing on to face Collazo.

Collazo wobbled an overconfident Berto early in the fight, and then Andre lost a point in the fourth round for excessive holding. With his back then slightly against the wall, he was forced to accept that he was in there with a fighter who could beat him.

But the fight was interesting in a lot of ways. When Berto stayed at distance, Collazo was absolutely no match for him. Berto's enormous speed advantage gave Collazo fits. But when they got close, Collazo put a whooping on Berto, who had never been in the ring with someone as resilient and smart as the Puerto Rican.

Going into the 12th and final round, I had the fight at 104-104, counting that fourth round deduction against Berto. From where I was sitting, he NEEDED to win the 12th round, to prove he was a true "champion," whatever diluted meaning that word still has in boxing.

And he did just that. With a ferocity heretofore unseen in either this fight or really his entire career, Andre Berto dug deep down and took the fight to Collazo, who seemed ill-prepared for that sort of onslaught. Unable to time Berto anymore, Collazo was forced into the role of survivor. When all was said and done, I scored the fight 114-113 for Berto, and so did two of the official judges (the other had it 116-111 for Berto, which was very wide).

It was with this fight that, in my opinion, Berto finally earned his status as a welterweight titleholder.

7. Joseph Agbeko v. Yonnhy Perez
October 31, 2009 - Las Vegas, Nevada

From this fight on, we're into the territory of what I consider the TRUE Fight of the Year contenders. Any one of these fights could be argued as the best of the year, I believe.

Seeing as how I'm not six years old, nor do I go to bars to do anything other than drink and kick ass at karaoke, Halloween holds zero appeal for me anymore. But the folks at Showtime put together what wound up being a thrilling main event, with Don King back in Las Vegas at the Treasure Island Casino to promote his man, Joseph Agbeko, against Colombian contender Yonnhy Perez.

While this fight had sleeper status, I don't think anyone expected it to be quite as great as it was. Reigning 118-pound titlist Agbeko had come off of a win over a white-hot Vic Darchinyan in July, and Perez had scored a big comeback stoppage of Silence Mabuza in May. (Mabuza-Perez I should have mentioned on the cut list post as well. I have not seen the full fight, so I couldn't rank it.)

I don't recall a single clinch in this fight. The workrate was astounding, with both men throwing a ton of punches, particularly the hyper-active Perez. Perez scored a controversial 10th round knockdown, which it appeared at first might have wound up being a deciding factor. But for as closely contested as this war was, the scores were fairly wide at 116-111, 116-111 and 117-110. I scored it 116-111 for Perez myself, feeling he clearly won the fight over the always-tough Agbeko, but those scores don't reflect what a great, great fight this was. This year's Halloween wound up pretty damn memorable for the boxing fans that stayed in to watch this one, a true treat for the hardcore audience.

6. Jamie Moore v. Ryan Rhodes
October 23, 2009 - Bolton, England

In my view, without question this was the British Fight of the Year. Dubbed the "War of the Roses," Salford's Moore put his European 154-pound title on the line against Sheffield's Rhodes, who was looking to complete a comeback story with what would be a stunning win over a top ten worldwide junior middleweight.

Moore started the fight very strong, making Rhodes look bad in the opening frame, but meeting a bit more resistance in the second round and beyond. Still, though the fight was constant action and zero clinching, thus quite exciting to watch, I had Moore up 4-0 at the end of four rounds.

But there was a moment in the fourth when the tide seemed to turn. Rhodes hurt him to the body after absorbing more offense, and it would be the fifth round that I finally got Rhodes on the board with a winning three minutes. It was also that fifth round when you could tell for sure that there was a special fight brewing in the air.

Rhodes took the first half of a wonderful sixth round, with Moore coming back strong. On what appeared to be weakening legs, Moore made a major rally and took the round. He may well have gassed himself out, as he already appeared to be tiring. The sixth round might have been a valiant, last-ditch attempt, and it nearly did work.

But in the seventh, Rhodes dropped Moore with a right hand, right as Moore was making another run at a big push. The titleholder got back to his feet to fight on. The two then went toe-to-toe, firing everything they had. Moore suddenly wobbled Rhodes, but just as quickly, Rhodes landed a big right hand that sent Moore stumbling. Rhodes pounced, and with Moore being hammered on the ropes, the referee called an end to the action, giving Ryan Rhodes the dramatic, epic comeback victory.

Round seven of this one was my Round of the Year. They lived up to the "War" in the fight's title for sure.

Photo Credits

Escobedo-Hernandez: The Daily Texan

Lopez-Sonsona: insidesports.ph

Berto-Collazo: Naoki Fukuda / notifight.com

Agbeko-Perez: Tom Casino / Showtime

Moore-Rhodes: Chris Royle / The Boxing Bulletin

Since we had such a massive slate of fights yesterday, let's just run them down recap style. This isn't what I normally do, but it's the best way to do it today.

Timothy Bradley UD-12 Kendall Holt

Bradley (24-0, 11 KO) unified his WBC 140-pound title with Holt's WBO strap, and put himself in position for a fight with a bigger star, though that may end up just being Nate Campbell and not the Hatton-Pacquiao winner or anything. For Holt (25-3, 13 KO) this was a heartbreaker, as he lost on scores of 115-111 (twice) and 114-112. Both guys were in good form, the fight was pretty crisp and moved quickly, and Bradley proved for certain he's no one-fight wonder, he's a world class guy at 140 pounds. Holt also acquitted himself pretty nicely against a good boxer. The two competitors exhibited great respect for the other man, which might explain why their forced trash talk was so awkward in the build-up for this fight. They like each other.

Librado Andrade UD-12 Vitali Tsypko

Speaking of class acts, IBF super middleweight titlist Lucian Bute was seated at ringside for this one. After Andrade (28-2, 21 KO) won a fairly dominant decision over Tsypko (22-3, 12 KO) to put himself back in position as Bute's mandatory, making a rematch likely, Bute cheered him enthusiastically, gave him the thumbs up, and shook his hand. I really think Bute's just in another class apart from Librado, but that's a rematch that people want and it's good to see the fighters understanding that. Andrade won this fight the way he always wins: Muscle and guts.

Continue reading this post »

We will be here tonight at 9pm for live, round-by-round coverage and scoring of all four fights on tonight's Lightweight Lightning PPV from Texas. Join us!

via www.indemand.com

In case anyone's wondering, yes we'll be here this Saturday night for Golden Boy's Lightweight Lightning PPV with live, round-by-round coverage, scoring and general BSing during the night. Still looks like a fun card to me.

Edwin Valero v. Antonio Pitalua (Lightweights, 12 Rounds - Vacant WBC title on the line)

Valero (24-0, 24 KO) and Pitalua (46-3, 40 KO) could put on a power-punching war for the ages if the stars align and everything comes together. I'm really serious -- this one has gruesome display of wicked punchmanship written all over it. Or someone might go down in the first round. You never know. But this one could be worth the price of admission alone.

Pitalua has been stopped before, but it came 14 years ago when he stepped way up in competition against Mexican Jesus Rodriguez, not an awful fighter or anything. He hasn't lost a fight since 2001, but he's also not faced the best competition since then. What sells him as a legit threat now is the sixth round knockout of Jose Armando Santa Cruz last September.

This is a big, big fight for both guys. It might not be a "big fight" by usual standards, but if Pitalua wins, he's the guy that took Valero's "0." Valero is getting a chance to show his game to a wide American audience for the first time. He's been a myth for most American fans, even the majority of the diehards. You can watch him on YouTube, but that's just not the same.

I do think that Valero will eventually run into someone he can't handle, and Manny Pacquiao will light him up like a Griswold Christmas tree if those two fight down the line. But I don't think Antonio Pitalua is the guy that's going to do it. This could be war. Valero KO-6

Michael Katsidis v. Jesus Chavez (Lightweights, 10 Rounds)

As much as I hate "keys to the game" or "keys to the fight" the way they're presented to us by the likes of Teddy Atlas ("Use jab!") or Tim McCarver ("Score runs!"), this one is pretty simple.

For Katsidis to win, he needs to take the fight to Chavez and test his heart and that surgically-repaired knee that gave out on him the last time he was in a major fight, against Julio Diaz in 2007. Chavez is 36 years old and Daniel Jimenez and Andres Ledesma aren't going to have him ready for this kind of step back up the ladder. Katsidis can be a pummeling sort when he's on his game. If he tries to box Chavez like he did Juan Diaz, he will lose. He is not fast enough, he doesn't have one-punch power, and he's not good enough defensively to win fights like that. Even an old, rusty Chavez can beat the Katsidis that fought Diaz, though not as easily as Diaz did.

Chavez? Pray. Pray the knee holds up, pray Katsidis doesn't ring his bell early, pray the fire is still deep down in there. I really hate saying it or bringing it up, but you can't ignore that Jesus hasn't won a big fight since Leavander Johnson, and that he's only been in one big fight since then, which lasted less than three rounds when his knee collapsed. He's not 100% in any way, and he never will be again. Katsidis TKO-8

Carlos Hernandez v. Vicente Escobedo (Lightweights, 10 Rounds)

Speaking of guys on big fight win droughts, here's 38-year old Carlos Hernandez, whose last really big win was against Stevie Forbes in 2003. He was supposed to be matched with Jorge Barrios, who spent the press conferences talking smack at Valero only to pull out of the event, and now he meets 27-year old Vicente Escobedo, a more natural lightweight. Escobedo turned pro in 2005, fought three low-key bouts last year, and is 19-1 (12 KO) for his career, with only a split decision loss to Daniel Jimenez marring his record. He was also on Fight Night Round 3, which was quite peculiar.

Even at 38 and with just one fight since a 2006 loss to Kevin Kelly, Hernandez might be the best fighter Escobedo has faced to date. "El Famoso," on the other hand, has been in the ring with the likes of Erik Morales, Floyd Mayweather Jr., and Genaro Hernandez, among others. Hernandez is a half-mystery going into this show, much like Chavez. I don't really have any idea how much he's got left in the tank. I've never been thoroughly impressed with Escobedo, but I'm glad he's taking the chance with this fight and trying to work his way up. If the timing's right, Escobedo will take the old man down. If he's not good enough, the old man will probably still struggle to win. That said, I have to favor the younger fighter. Escobedo UD-10

Julio Diaz v. Rolando Reyes (Lightweights, 10 Rounds)

Since his embarrassingly one-sided loss to Juan Diaz, Julio has beaten the crap out of David Torres and routed Fernando Trejo. Reyes, 30, is a fringe contender that didn't look too hot in a decision win over Ivan Valle last time out on ESPN2. Yeah he won the fight, and deserved to, but if anyone was expecting something more out of the guy that made Stevie Johnston quit in October 2007, I think we now know that spoke more to where Stevie Johnston is at these days. Reyes' biggest fight came when he lost a lopsided decision to Jose Luis Castillo in 2006. Diaz is the better fighter, and should win handily. Diaz TKO-7

And also on Saturday night, live on Showtime from Montreal...

Timothy Bradley v. Kendall Holt (Junior Welterweights, 12 Rounds - Bradley's WBC and Holt's WBO titles on the line)

Totally forgot about this fight on the original post, then Brickhaus brought it up in the comments. That sort of tells you what I think about this fight.

It's not a bad fight. In fact it's a good fight. It's admirable of both guys to take a matchup with the other. It just lacks any real sizzle. Perhaps the fact that I'm not a big fan of either guy handicaps my level of anticipation for this one.

I gotta go with Bradley, though. Better all-around fighter, probably just as good of a puncher as Holt, and hasn't been down 314 times in his career. But Bradley has been out of the ring since September, while Holt last fought in December, and that little bit of rustiness might make a difference. In truth this is a real pick'em. Who ya got? Bradley TKO-10

Lightweight Lightning is reset. The Ring reports that Rolando Reyes has been officially named as Joel Casamayor's replacement for the April PPV, meaning the card now looks like this:

Edwin Valero (24-0, 24 KO) v. Antonio Pitalua (46-3, 40 KO)

Michael Katsidis (24-2, 20 KO) v. Jesus Chavez (44-4, 30 KO)

Carlos Hernandez (43-7-1, 24 KO) v. Vicente Escobedo (19-1, 12 KO)

Julio Diaz (36-4, 26 KO) v. Rolando Reyes (30-4-2, 19 KO)

Good short-notice replacement for Casamayor, and still a pretty attractive card. No doubt it's taken real hits losing Jorge Barrios and Casa, but I'm still quite looking forward to the event.

From ESPN.com:

Former lightweight champ Joel Casamayor, suffering from a sprained lower back, withdrew Wednesday from his April 4 fight against former titlist Julio Diaz.

"He's not going to be able to fight," manager Luis DeCubas Jr. told ESPN.com. "He has a lumbar spine sprain."

It's the second injury to knock out one of the participants on Golden Boy Promotions' four-bout "Lightweight Lightning" pay-per-view card, which will take place at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas. Former junior lightweight titlist Jorge Barrios dropped out a few days ago because of a broken jaw.

DeCubas said Casamayor's back has been bothering him for more than a week.

"He's laid off sparring for a while. His back is real tight," DeCubas said. "He hasn't sparred for about a week and a half. Joel was right on track, but sometimes your body just says no."

DeCubas said Casamayor tried to rest but his back was still giving him problems and his doctor recommended that he lay off for about a month.

Vicente Escobedo has stepped in to replace Barrios against Carlos Hernandez, but now they need another short-notice guy. Casamayor-Diaz was also arguably the best fight on the show, or at least the fight between the two best fighters on the show. Hernandez-Escobedo is no Barrios-Hernandez (which was no great fight to begin with); Diaz-whomever won't be Casamayor-Diaz.

This show started off with great promise and some of the shine has come off, but I'm hoping they find a good replacement and the show is still worth the money.

Rick Reeno of BoxingScene.com reported earlier that Jorge Barrios has suffered an injury and training and is out of his fight with Carlos Hernandez on the April 4 Lightweight Lightning pay-per-view. No replacement has been announced at this time.

It's pretty short term to find a good replacement, but there are guys out there. It depends on who's in shape, not that the faded Hernandez is the most dangerous opponent in the world. Jose Armando Santa Cruz, even coming off a loss, could fit the bill. If David Diaz is close to ring shape he could work out. If Golden Boy could get an option or two on Breidis Prescott he might be worth throwing in there, as he just fought a couple weeks ago and is scheduled to fight on April 3 anyway. Ali Funeka springs to mind, too, but there's the question of whether or not he's ready after at tough fight with Campbell on 2/14 and the fact that he went back to South Africa and got a bunch of guff for not "clearing" his U.S. fight with the crooked boxing commission over there. (Most boxing commissions are crooked.)

Barrios' injury is to his eardrum, for the record, which would certainly not be wise to fight through.

Still a good-looking card though, with Valero-Pitalua, Katsidis-Chavez and Casamayor-Diaz.

UPDATE from Dan Rafael's Saturday night chat:

Dan Rafael: (12:31 AM ET ) This is not true. I spoke to Golden Boy today about that exact issue. Barrios does have an ear injury but he is supposed to see a doctor on Monday before a decision is made.

So when Barrios pulls out on Monday for sure, it'll be official.

Argentinian trash talker Jorge Barrios was up to his old tricks at the presser for Golden Boy's April 4th Lightweight Lightning pay-per-view.

His target was not his upcoming opponent (Carlos Hernandez) but rather Venezuelan puncher Edwin Valero:

"Valero is a long-haired prostitute and a communist. After I finish with 'Famoso,' I will beat the s*** out of Valero. Then I will cut his hair and make him into a man."

Tell us how you really feel, Jorge.

Barrios is a notorious trash talker and, like Ricardo Mayorga and many others of that ilk, always tries to make his press conferences into something as exciting as his fights usually are. Both are flawed fighters with tons of heart, and probably don't get enough credit for their warrior-ness inside the ring because they can be such clowns outside of it.

The official venue for the Lightweight Lightning PPV is the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, TX, by the way. The earliest reports had it in San Antonio.

Golden Boy Promotions has turned what appeared to be a four-man lightweight tournament into an eight-man affair, adding a first-round fight between former world champion Joel Casamayor and former titleholder Julio Diaz, according to Dan Rafael.

So the first round matchups for "Lightweight Lightning" are:

Joel Casamayor (36-4-1, 22 KO) v. Julio Diaz (36-4, 26 KO)

Michael Katsidis (24-2, 20 KO) v. Jesus Chavez (44-4, 30 KO)

Edwin Valero (24-0, 24 KO) v. Antonio Pitalua (46-3, 40 KO)

Jorge Barrios (47-4-1, 34 KO) v. Carlos Hernandez (43-7-1, 24 KO)

This is clearly not a seeded setup, as there's no way Barrios would be fighting Hernandez. Casamayor and Diaz are the two best fighters in the tournament.

I'm also wondering if past the first round, when they have to make semifinal matchups, if all the fighters are going to agree to what the promoters want. They could run into some quibbling along the way. I have my doubts, for instance, that Casamayor, cocky as he is, will really want another piece of Katsidis, who almost beat him. I have my doubts anyone is itching to fight Valero or Pitalua. Golden Boy better have some really iron-clad contracts set up for this stuff.

All that said, it should be a hell of a show.

Update to add this bit from Rafael's chat:

Joel (NY): Dan, great to see Casamayor added to the Lightweight Lightning, any idea how the brackets will break down after theres a winner from each fight?

 Dan Rafael: (12:38 PM ET ) Depends on who wins. If Valero wins, it's unlikely he will remain in the tournament.

Erik (Atlanta, Ga.): Can you elaborate more on why if Valero wins he won't stay in the tournament please.

 Dan Rafael: (12:42 PM ET ) Because he is with Top Rank, not Golden Boy like the rest of the fighters, and Top Rank may have other plans for him. He's only on this card because Golden Boy is involved with Pitalua and is working with Ricardo Maldonado, the Mexican promoter who won the rights to Valero-Pitalua at a purse bid. Valero might stay in though depending on the deal.

So...uh...OK.

Michael Katsidis, Jesus Chavez, Carlos Hernandez and Jorge Barrios will compete in a four-man lightweight tournament on pay-per-view on April 4th, and Golden Boy is looking to add a main event piece to the puzzle as well.

Recently signed Top Rank fighter Edwin Valero is also likely to battle 38-year old Colombian slugger Antonio Pitalua in the main event, for a vacant interim lightweight title.

The card will be produced by Golden Boy and distributed by HBO, like last September's Casamayor-Marquez show.

The idea for the tournament is for the winner of it to eventually face the winner of the February 28 fight between Juan Manuel Marquez and Juan Diaz (both Golden Boy fighters), or this Saturday's bout between Nate Campbell (who could be with Golden Boy by then) and Ali Funeka.

On the pay-per-view, Katsidis (24-2, 20 KO) will face the veteran Chavez (44-4, 30 KO). Chavez hasn't had a major fight since his surgically repaired knee gave out on him against Julio Diaz in 2007, but he has fought twice since then. Katsidis had a verbal deal to fight Julio Diaz on the April 10 edition of Friday Night Fights, but this fight was a better money deal for him.

Barrios (47-4-1, 34 KO) hasn't fought since his gruesome, Joker-like lip cut loss to Rocky Juarez on September 6. He will face 38-year old Hernandez (43-7-1, 24 KO), who has fought just once since losing to Kevin Kelley in 2006. Hernandez won a split decision over Hector Allatorre last August.

The tournament is a novel idea in theory, but this is promotional company ownership of a division at its worst, too. The fights sound good on paper, but none of the fighters really have any business being considered top challengers. Hernandez hasn't won a big fight since outpointing Steve Forbes in 2003. Barrios' best win ever is probably taking Mike Anchondo's "0" (he's lost to Juarez, Joan Guzman and Acelino Freitas in competitive battles) and he's never fought at 135 pounds. Katsidis still has no major wins on his record and was outclassed by Diaz and outgunned by an old Joel Casamayor. And Chavez has not won a big fight since 2005.

Honestly, none of them are even in the division's top ten.

As for the proposed main event, Valero (24-0, 24 KO) and Pitalua (46-3, 40 KO) are both serious bangers, nasty punchers, and have the type of meshing potential to put on a Fight of the Year candidate. Pitalua last fought in September, knocking out Jose Armando Santa Cruz in the sixth round.

The good news is that it could be a very nice night of fights. The bad news is that the tournament idea stinks when you let it simmer for a minute or two, and they'll also be going head-to-head with a 140-pound title unification bout between Timothy Bradley and Kendall Holt on Showtime. Chances are I'll order the PPV, mostly to provide a round-by-round for those of you smart enough to watch Bradley-Holt instead.