Happy Birthday Mike Tyson

Happy Birthday Mike Tyson. Today is Mike Tyson's 42nd birthday. Mike is still the youngest Heavyweight Champion ever. One of the most recognizable fighters of all time. Through all the ups and downs, he was still one of the baddest men to ever put on a pair of gloves. So Happy Birthday to you Mike, many more, and may God bless you.

Pacquiao's Lethal Combinations KO Diaz

I am still pretty pumped from the performance Manny Pacquiao put on last night. To have watched him grow from the one handed fighter that beat Barrera to the fighter I saw last night is just unbelievable. For a long time all he was able to do was use his left hand and occassionally a right hand would go out. Then last night it was like everything he ever worked on came together. His combinations were beautiful, his balance was great, his speed was on point, his punches were accurate. He looked like a totally better fighter than the one who barely beat Juan Manuel Marquez in March. Many people will say Diaz was not that good of a fighter. Whatever! Diaz was a good fighter, but however you cut it Manny Pacquiao is a great fighter. His legacy was certainly cemented last night. Pacquiao came out and dominated the fight from the opening bell. He did not get hit much and executed his game plan to perfection. I have never seen him fight better than I did last night. If he wanted to retire (I hope he doesn't yet) then he is a first ballot Hall of Famer without a doubt. He has won belts in 4 different divisions and although in his first fight against Barrera there was not belt, he was the Champion at 126. Therefore he has been Champion in five different divisions. Pacquiao looked like a complete fighter last night. I give Pacquiao a lot of credit as well as Freddie Roach. Pacquiao is Roach's prized possession. He believed in Pacquiao when not many people knew who he was. Roach may not have gotten James Toney, Mike Tyson, or Oscar De La Hoya to get on point like he wanted, but he has gotten Manny Pacquiao to do it. They are both comfortable with each other and you can see it. If you want to talk about molding a one dimensional fighter into a complete fighter then you start with Freddie Roach working with Manny Pacquiao. What Pacquiao did last night was simply a wonderful piece of boxing. When Floyd Mayweather Jr. would fight, I expected him to be masterful. I had seen him develop so I knew he had the skills. However Pacquiao looked like he would be good but not have the great piece in his collection. Well he has the great piece in his collection now and we all saw it last night in his masterful performance. Manny Pacquiao is now the #1 Pound 4 Pound fighter in the world and thus far he is the fighter of the year for 2008. I am about to go watch the fight again.

Tye Fields Was Always A Phony

Bob Arum has been promoting Tye Fields for awhile now but would never let him fight a real fighter. Arum would put Fields on as the main events on some of the cards they had on the Versus network. When you watched him you knew immediately he was never going to be a good fighter. He fought guys who were losers and/or way out of shape. Fields had been KOd before so you knew it could happen again. Standing at 6'8, Fields used to use his height for basketball. However he started boxing at 24. He always looked akward and no good everytime I saw him. So last night Monte Barrett, who was supposed to be Fields coming out party for a real fight, KOd him in 57 seconds. Yes 57 seconds. Barrett is not the best heavyweight but definitely a step up for Fields. Barrett caught Fields with a counter right that stunned him then he hit him with another fight, clocked him with a left and crushed him down with a right. Fields had a hard time getting up and Kenny Bayless stopped the fight. Oh how I am glad Bob Arum has so many great fighters because if he was depending on Tye Fields he would be standing at the Grand Canyon about to jump. Tye Fields is a bum when it comes to boxing and I was so glad he got exposed last night. Arum had been saying dumb shit like Fields could be a real star. Arum is a good promoter because a few people bought into that. I guess when you lie, if you can do it with a straight face people may believe you.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/29/08

1. John Duddy, who defeated Charles Howe last night, is planning on moving down to Junior Middleweight(154lbs). Duddy has campaigned at Middleweight but now is trying to go down to Junior Middleweight and challenge IBF Junior Middleweight Champion Verno Phillips. If this sounds familiar it is, because Sergio Mora moved down to Junior Middleweight to fight Vernon Forrest for the WBC Junior Middleweight title. Mora was successful, but will Duddy be? Who knows?

2. Monte Barrett, who just exposed Tye Fields for the phony he is, may possibly be fighting David Haye October 18 at the O2 Arena in London. Haye said he wanted to fight a good Heavyweight this fall and Barrett would be a good test for him.

3. The WBC will not recognize Humberto Soto's DQ loss from last night. Soto was DQd for hitting Francisco Lorenzo while he was down. The WBC did not want Lorenzo winning the interim and possibly WBC Junior Lightweight title by DQ. Soto was dominating Lorenzo the whole fight and had Lorenzo extremely bloody. It was obvious who the winner was, but controversy got in the way. The WBC is going to view the fight as a draw and order an immediate rematch.

Pacquiao Destroys Diaz In 9!!!! Proves He Is #1Pound4Pound

After watching Manny Pacquiao destroy David Diaz, I am so sorry I declared Joe Calzaghe #1Pound4Pound . Nothing against Calzaghe but Manny Pacquiao is the best fighter in the world that is active. From the first moment of the fight Pacquiao beat up on David Diaz. It was no contest. Diaz was the bigger man, but he was not the faster or better skilled fighter. Pacquiao put together wonderful combinations. His balance was great tonight and he simply just destroyed Diaz. It was no contest. I have to admit I thought Diaz was going to make it a very tough fight for Pacquiao. It just did not go that way. Diaz was cut over his right eye, had a cut behind his ear and a cut on his nose. His left eye had a huge bruise and swelling over it at the end of the fight. Pacquiao looked like he just went for a jog. Pacquiao was beating Diaz to the punch and hitting him with consistent rights and lefts thoughout the fight. It started becoming a blood bath from Diaz's face by the 5th round and the fight could have really been stopped anytime between the 6 until it was stopped. Diaz was taking far too much punishment with very little in return. Finally in the 9th round Pacquiao landed a hard quick left to the chin of Diaz. Diaz fell face first like he had absolutely nothing left in his body. The ref, Vic Drakulich stopped the fight without a count. Diaz had long been a beaten fighter. The fight could have been stopped well before the 9th round because Diaz was just getting beaten. Much respect to David Diaz for his courage to continue to fight and never say die. He is a nice guy, but the better fighter clearly was/is Manny Pacquiao. For Pacquiao, the sky is the limit and maybe beyond that for him. He looked absolutely wonderful as a Lightweight. He picked up the WBC Lightweight Belt with ease. He clearly can handle being at 135 which means he will probably attempt to go to 140 to fight Ricky Hatton in the future. You never know. Whatever he does in the boxing ring, best believe everyone will watch. He is the best fighter in boxing and a legend. Only one who can beat him at this moment is himself.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/27/08

1. Just as I suspected, John Ruiz and his lawyers are pressing for a rematch between him and Nikolai Valuev. Yesterday it came out that Ruslan Chagaev tore his Achilles Tendon and had to pull out of his July rematch with Valuev. Ruiz wants Chagaev stripped of the WBA Heavyweight Title so he and Valuev can fight for it. I doubt if that happens, I can see Ruiz and Valuev fighting for an interim title. Then when Chagaev returns he has to fight the winner of the Ruiz-Valuev interim fight. No matter who wins, it will be a rematch for Chagaev as he defeated Ruiz in an eliminator and then Valuev to win the title.

2. It is official, Joel Casamayor will fight Juan Manuel Marquez on September 13 at the MGM in Las Vegas on HBO PPV. If Roy Jones Jr-Joe Calzaghe comes off September 20 on HBO PPV, don't be surprised if either the Casamayor-Marquez fight is taken off of PPV or if it does horrible. No one wants to buy two PPVs on back to back weekends.

3. Also made official today is the Sugar Shane Mosley-Ricardo Mayorga fight for October 11. The fight will be taking place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles at the Junior Middleweight limit of 154lbs on HBO PPV. The purse is going to be split 55-45 with Mosley getting the bigger portion. This fight seems pointless but could turn out to be a surprise.

4. Since it appears Joe Calzaghe will be fighting Roy Jones Jr. this fall, the WBC is going to strip him of the WBC Super Middleweight title he holds. The vacant title will be fought for between Jermain Taylor and Carl Froch possibly in November on HBO. I doubt this fight will be on HBO PPV but you never know. HBO seems to be a little selfish with the funds to put good fights on regular HBO instead of PPV. I guess they are still mad that they spent all that money on Oscar De La Hoya-Steve Forbes in hopes of promoting Mayweather Jr.-De La Hoya only to have Mayweather retire without a rematch. Oops, did I say that?

Lethal Combination Weigh-In

Manny Pacquiao: 134.5lbs
David Diaz: 135lbs
WBC Lightweight Championship
David Diaz was clearly the bigger man at the weigh-in. However, they both are in great shape. This fight appears to be a war in the making. Should be real interesting to see who wins.

Check out Fernando Vargas in the background looking like he weighs as much as Diaz and Pacquiao put together. Vargas is a friend of Diaz's as well as one of his biggest fans for this fight.

Cotto Close To Making Weight

Miguel Cotto weighed in yesterday at 157 for his 30 day prefight weigh-in. He has 30 days to get to 147 which should not be too hard. Training must be going well for the WBA Welterweight Champion. Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito fight July 26 on HBOPPV

Mike Tyson-Michael Spinks: June 27, 1988

Today is the 20 year Anniversary of the Mike Tyson vs Michael Spinks Heavyweight Championship unification fight. Tyson, who was on top of the world, showed Spinks no respect as he tore him down in 90 seconds. Spinks, who was 31-0, finished his career at 31-1. What that means people is after he was KOd by Tyson he never fought again. Spinks was no tune-up chump or anything, he was an actual real 2 division champion. This goes to show you how lethal Mike Tyson was back in the day. Spinks had never been down, and within a moment he was KOd for good. Damn I miss the good ol days when we had a Heavyweight Champion that actually KOd his opponents. I miss the day when Tyson was really the Baddest Man On The Planet. As I look at the Heavyweight picture, that is what we are missing. When this fight happened, there was no doubt who the Champion was. There was no 4 different titlists. It was Mike Tyson and then the rest were somewhere behind. Well for those who yearn for the days of a real badass champion like I do, please enjoy the video. We may not have one like this for a long time.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/26/08

1. According to an interview on Boxingtalk.com, Roy Jones Jr. says the fight with him and Joe Calzaghe is a done deal. The announcement is coming real soon. They are trying to figure out if they are going to fight September 20 or November 15. Septemeber 20 appears to be the date that the fight is going to happen. Also Jones broke ties with Don King in order to get this deal completed. He went on to say he would be willing to fight Samuel Peter after he beats Joe Calzaghe.

2. It is official, Nonito Donaire, has signed with Top Rank. Donaire will be fighting Jose Navarro on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito fight. With this move, Donaire has set himself to get a chance to fight in big money fights against Fernando Montiel and Jorce Arce, both of whom are also signed with Top Rank.

3. Once again it is OFF!!!! The already rescheduled WBA Heavyweight Championship fight between Ruslan Chagaev and Nikolai Valuev is off again after Chagaev completely tore his Achilles Tendon in his left ankle. The injury happened when Chagaev was sparring. Since this fight has been delayed again, look for the WBA to hold an interim title fight for Valuev and an opponent to be named, possibly John Ruiz.

Letter To Manny Pacquiao and David Diaz From Nate Campbell

To David and Manny, Good luck to both of you this Saturday. I know alot of folks are predicting Manny to win this with ease, but I also know it ain't gonna happen that easily. But that's neither here nor there. I'm writing this letter because I want the winner of your fight to really consider the history that could be made by fighting the winner of my September 13th fight with Joan Guzman, which of course I am confident will be me :-) Anyways, the winner of your fight in meeting the winner of my fight has the chance to do something that has only been done once in the history of boxing. A complete unification of the IBF,WBO, WBC, and WBA world titles. The only other person in history to accomplish that feat was Bernard Hopkins. Roy never did it. Oscar never did it. Floyd never did it. Nobody except Bernard ever did it.

And that's not to say we would be better than those guys, or anything like that, but we do have the opportunity to do something that they never did. So lets truly make the effort, for the sake of history, to make a fight between us a reality, before mandatories, or other economic realities prevent the titles from staying together. We all know there is plenty of money to go around, and let's face it, all of us are financially ok already anyways, so for once, let's NOT make it about the money, and lets do whats right for boxing. We have a chance to make a complete unification happen. Lets not let money, or our promoters, or anything else get in the way of that.

As much as I love Don and Terry, I have no problem telling both of them that after the Guzman fight, they don't need to bother sending me any bout agreements that don't have either David or Manny's name on it (whoever wins). And both of you could tell Bob the same thing. Don't forget that these guys are supposed to work for US, not the other way around. And specifically to David, I know a fight with Manny would mean alot more $$ than a fight with you would, but if you win on Saturday, everything I have said here still stands.

This chance to make history and unify all four world titles is bigger than you and me. Alot bigger. And even though it might not be for a ton of money, we still would need to fight, and not let this opportunity get away. It's about history. It's about being the second man in the history of boxing to do this. And so to whichever of you guys wins on Saturday, don't forget what this sport has given you, and understand that sometimes something needs to be given back. Relax a while, enjoy your victory, spend time with your family, and then tell Bob that the only fight you are interested in is the Campbell-Guzman winner. We can always make money, but it's not too often that we get the chance to make history.

Nate CampbellIBF / WBO / WBA Lightweight Champion

Lethal Combination: Pacquiao-Diaz Preview

This Saturday is the WBC Lightweight fight between David Diaz and Manny Pacquiao. Despite how all this has played out in the media, David Diaz is the WBC Champion and Manny Pacquiao is the challenger. Yes Pacquiao is the star of the two and Diaz is the underdog. I have read many articles that portray this fight as an easy night for Pacquiao. Well I am not so sure about that. Do I think Pacquiao will win yes, but I would not be totally surprised if he lost. Pacquiao is moving up in weight from 130 to 135. Diaz has been at 135 for awhile. Diaz has fought the bigger guys thoughout his career. Naturally Diaz is the bigger and stronger guy in the ring. Pacquiao is the quicker of the two and probably will tag Diaz quite a bit. Not one to hide or avoid punches, Diaz will be in front of Pacquiao all night long. However, who has the power advantage is the question. Freddie Roach, Pacquiao's trainer, says Pacquiao has more power at the higher weight, but will it be enough to stop the bigger Diaz? Will Diaz have the harder punches, possibly enough to stop Pacquiao? Lets be honest, Pacquiao gets hit quite a bit himself which is one of the reasons we love to watch him fight. He frequently is off balance and appears to be on the verge of being knocked down only to knock the other fighter down. This fight has a lot of underlining drama. You keep hearing about all the possible fights Pacquiao will have once he wins. Fights such as a third fight with Juan Manuel Marquez, another move up in weight to 140 to fight Ricky Hatton, and then possibly Joel Casamayor, Juan Diaz, or Nate Campbell. With the topic of future fights all in the media, David Diaz is passed over. Diaz is no punk by any means. He only has one loss and that was 3 years ago. Diaz has never been the star and that could be his motivation. When Juan Diaz and Julio Diaz each had titles at the same time as David, David was referred to as the other Diaz because no one was familiar with him. However now he is the only Diaz with a title. Now with a career high payday in front of him and the biggest name in boxing today, David Diaz is ready to shine. I feel this fight will be a slug em out war. I think it will go the distance with Pacquiao probably edging Diaz out with a decision. However, I can see Diaz, who is said to be slow, stunning Pacquiao a few times. If Diaz has learned any defensive tactics, he could give Pacquiao some problems. It is widely believed Pacquiao will be using Diaz as a punching bag. Nothing would throw Pacquiao's plan away like a few extra head movements or hands that don't drop. Diaz will need to cut the ring off on Pacquiao. Get Pacquiao in the corner and throw his weight on him. Diaz is the bigger man naturally, so he needs to use his strength to his advantage. Pacquiao is going to use his speed because that is probably his biggest advantage. Diaz is not very quick, so he will get hit frequently. Despite the oddsmakers, this fight is closer to a toss-up than the blowout it is being perceived to be. I am a huge Pacquiao fan, but for some reason the underdog, Diaz, seems to be weighing on my mind. I would not call Diaz winning an upset since he is the WBC Champion. However it would shock many. If Pacquiao wins, it will be another feather in his hat. Not exactly sure how this fight will go, so I will be watching this Saturday at 7:30pm CST on HBOPPV to find out how the fight goes down. Hope you catch it too.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/25/08

1. Joe Calzaghe vs Roy Jones Jr. could end up being September 20 in Las Vegas on HBO PPV. The date was offered to Calzaghe after the Mayweather-De La Hoya II fight was cancelled. Calzaghe dumped his promoter Frank Warren and said he wanted to fight Roy Jones Jr. It appears it could become a reality. The only bad thing is if this fight does happen, it could mean back to back HBO PPVs with Casamayor-Marquez being on PPV September 13. Casamayor-Marquez needs to not be on PPV anyway.

2. Despite what had been reported, Chris John will not be fighting Rocky Juarez on the undercard of Joel Casamayor-Juan Manuel Marquez. John's camp said Juarez took too long to respond and his camp agreed for him to fight in another fight.

3. Bob Arum is working hard to get a Kelly Pavlik-Sergio Mora fight for this fall. If the fight happens it will take place either September 27 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City or October 18 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. Mora will more than likely move back to 160 and vacate the WBC Junior Middleweight title he just won. However this fight is still contigent on Vernon Forrest not enforcing his immediate rematch against Mora.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/24/08

1. Joe Calzaghe has broken ties with Frank Warren and is going to manage and promote himself. He is targeting a fight with Roy Jones Jr despite reports of him possibly fighting Kelly Pavlik. It has been reported Warren still owes Calzaghe money from his fight with Bernard Hopkins and is trying to use that money as leverage to re-sign Calzaghe.

2. In other Frank Warren news, he is very close to re-signing Amir Khan.

3. Cory Spinks maybe fighting Deandre Latimore in a IBF Junior Middleweight eliminator. Spinks is from St. Louis and Latimore is originally from St. Louis. Latimore recently TKOd soon to be former IBF #1 Junior Middleweight Sechew Powell. It is expected Latimore will get ranked #2 by the IBF in the new rankings. Cory Spinks who lost the IBF Junior Middleweight belt to Verno Phillips in March, is currently ranked #3.

4. Vic Drakulich will be the third man in the ring for the Manny Pacquiao-David Diaz fight. The judges will be CJ Ross, Gary Merrit, and Paul Smith.

5. The Juan Diaz-Michael Katsidis fight is a done deal for September 6 at the Toyota Center in Houston, TX. HBO will televise.

Kelly Pavlik-Arthur Abraham, NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Boxings fans, we know what we want. We want Kelly Pavlik and Arthur Abraham to fight NOW!!!!. Do not fight anyone else first, no tune-ups, no mandatories, nothing. They need to fight now. Pavlik has shown he is a star now and Abraham came to the US and showed he wants to be a star over here too. It would be the battle of the two best Middleweights in the World. It would be the battle of the two men that made Edison Miranda shut up while falling on his ass. It would be the battle of two great power punchers. It would be the battle of two undefeated fighters in their primes. It would be this and it could be that, but it should be happening NOW!!!! It would be the biggest Middleweight unification bout in years if not ever and a great fight period. Both men have displayed lots of power and some drama in their fights. Enough drama to earn the respect of most. Pavlik earned a lot of respect after being damn near TKOd against Jermain Taylor and then coming back to KO Taylor. Abraham earned a lot of respect after having his jaw severely broken in his first fight against Motor Mouth Miranda and never going down while winning the fight. The drama is there. The belts are there with Pavlik holding the WBC and WBO belts and Abraham holding the IBF belt. The demand for the fight is there. Kelly Pavlik has no obligations to fight anyone right now. Abraham is supposed to fight his mandatory against Raul Marquez, but that can wait. What we need in the boxing world is Pavlik-Abraham. We do not need to pass go or collect $200. We need to have this fight NOW!!!! Abraham does not need to fight anyone else and Pavlik does not need to fight anyone else either. After watching Abraham destroy Motor Mouth Miranda this weekend and Pavlik walking through Lock Knee Gary Lockett a few weeks ago, it became certain what we need. And what we need is Pavlik-Abraham.

Let The Trash Fight And The Winner Take The Cash!!!!

Ricardo Mayorga and Edison Miranda have a lot in common when it comes to trash talking. They both run their mouths saying some of the most ridiculous things then get their asses beat. The difference is Mayorga has been a World Champion and Miranda has not. Mayorga did TKO Vernon Forrest and then beat Forrest again by MD. He also beat an overweight, out of shape, shot fighter in Fernando Vargas. So even though he has spoken a lot of trash, he has backed it up a few times. Now Edison Miranda is a different story. He has not been a World Champion but he talks lots of trash. The two times he has spoken the most trash, that ass has been on the canvas 5 times (two against Kelly Pavlik and three against Arthur Abraham). People, do not misunderstand me, trash talking makes for interesting scenarios in fights. The issue is fools like Mayorga and Miranda who go too far with it and then end up getting KOd. Mayorga talked lots of trash against Felix Trinidad and was KOd in 8. He talked lots of trash against Oscar De La Hoya and was KOd in 6. He talked some serious trash to Cory Spinks including he wanted to put Spinks with his mother who is deceased. Spinks did not have the power to KO Mayorga, but he did defeat him on points. Mayorga is just still living off his victory over Vernon Forrest, which was no easy feat. However every real big meaningful fight since, he has gotten KOd. The Vargas fight was not big, no one truly cared except Vargas fans. Yes I watched it but it was not a good display of boxing. It was like watching Jerry Springer now instead of 10 years ago when the fighting was real good. Now Miranda for two different fights has talked trash about fighters he was not even facing then got his ass kicked by the guy he was fighting. When he was fighting Kelly Pavlik, he kept talking about all he was going to do to Jermain Taylor. Then when Pavlik KOd him, he got quiet. This past weekend he was fighting a rematch with Arthur Abraham, a guy he couldn't even knockdown with a severely broken jaw in their first fight. Abraham was bleeding nonstop from his mouth in their first fight and Miranda still never got him on the canvas. Abraham never took a knee or anything. Yes there was some bullshit in the fight, but still Abraham withstood it all. So now in the rematch, Miranda started saying after he KOd Abraham he was going to jump out the ring and fight Pavlik. Boy did Miranda look like a total dumbass when first Pavlik did not even show up and second Miranda got KOd. So my suggestion is that Ricardo Mayorga and Edison Miranda fight each other on some network boxing show, Versus, ESPN, HBO, or Showtime. It really does not matter as long it is not PPV. The fight will draw a lot of attention because trash talk does that. I figure they could fight at a catchweight of 164, since Mayorga did it against Vargas and Miranda just fought at 165. Let these two fools talk as much shit as they possibly can. They should plan the fight for like 6 months out so it can really brew up. They can talk about each others mothers, killing each other, making each other prison bitches whatever. I know that seems a little explicit but it is not beyond the scope of either fighter's mouth. Imagine a 24/7 of these two fools, ratings could be great. It would be nothing but a profanity laced promotion. Since they both say they are going to KO each other, I suggest they fight until there is a KO. 15 rounds should be set for the fight. If in 15 rounds there is no KO they have to fight until there is. Not only that, only the winner gets paid not the loser. Since they talk all this trash, they need to back it up to get paid. So they should put what they feel they will do in a contract and the guy who does what he says in the contract wins the fight and gets paid. The other fighter will get just enough money to cover the basics of training and making it to the fight. The title of the fight should be Finally Walking The Talk!!!! Don King is the promoter of Ricardo Mayorga, so you know this fight could happen and be huge. Only In America!!!!

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/23/08

1. Robert Guerrero has vacated his IBF Featherweight Title. Guerrero, 25, is moving up to the Super Featherweight/Junior Lightweight division of 130lbs. After struggling to make the 126lb limit in his last two fights, Guerrero thought this was the right move for himself. Guerrero is looking to fight all of the big names such as Juan Manuel Marquez and Manny Pacquiao. Good luck to Robert Guerrero in his move in weight.

2. Nate Campbell vs Joan Guzman may take place September 13 on Showtime. It would go head to head with the Joel Casamayor-Juan Manuel Marquez fight on HBO PPV. Nothing has been signed but many things point to the Campbell-Guzman fight taking place on that date.

3. It appears Nonito Donaire, who just broke ties with Gary Shaw, will end up with Top Rank. Although nothing is official, it appears Donaire will end up either fighting on the undercard of the Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito fight July 26 or the Joshua Clottey-Zab Judah fight August 2. Both cards are Top Rank cards which also lead to the point that Donaire may soon sign with Top Rank.

4. Zahir Raheem will be facing Ali Funeka in an IBF Lightweight eliminator on July 5 in East London.

5. Lou DiBella has stated he is going to protest the result of the Chris Arreola-Chazz Witherspoon fight. Witherspoon was DQd when he corner approached the apron Saturday night. Although most (including myself) believe Witherspoon was going to lose anyway, he still had the right to continue to fight and not be DQd on a referee's mistake.

Berto Is The New WBC Welterweight Champion; Arreola Wins By DQ

Andre Berto came to be Champion tonight and he fought like one. Berto fought a very well controlled and disciplined fight against a very game Miki Rodriguez. Rodriguez took some very hard punches from Berto and continued to throw back, however Berto was always in control. Compubox numbers showed Berto landing 52% of his total punches which is great. Berto moved his had a lot more and blocked more punches than usual. So he is developing into a better fighter in each fight. Berto finally got his point across to Rodriguez in the seventh round when he connected with an overhand right and followed up with a right uppercut that knocked Rodriguez on his behind. I was extremely surprised Rodriguez got up from that uppercut because it was that hard. After Rodriguez got up, Berto patiently attacked him again. Landing a good combination that put Rodriguez down again. Berto jumped on Rodriguez again forcing the ref to stop the fight at 2:13 of the 7th round making Andre Berto the new WBC Welterweight Champion.

As I had said in my preview, Chazz Witherspoon just does not seem to be aggressive enough to be a great fighter. Witherspoon is not a brawler by any means and I always thought his chin was suspect. Well tonight he went in with Chris Arreola who is a hard aggressive brawler. As long as Witherspoon was jabbing and moving, he was doing okay. However it was those times he slowed down that Arreola was hurting Witherspoon. In round one, Witherspoon was moving and Arreola was not landing. But when Witherspoon slowed down a little, Arreola attacked and caught Witherspoon flush multiple times. Witherspoon appeared slightly dazed and on unsteady feet but did not go down. In round two, Witherspoon moved more and jabbed and probably won the round. In round 3, Witherspoon got into a brawl with a brawler and did not win. Arreola put Witherspoon down early in the round. Witherspoon got up and tried to box and keep moving, but got into another exchange and caught a right to put him down at the bell. As he rose to his feet, his legs were unsteady. Since the bell had rang, Witherspoon's corner got on the ring apron to help their fighter. However the ref did not hear the bell the first time and made them rind the bell again. The ref, who was confused, went and spoke to someone and then stopped the fight. He ruled it a DQ win for Arreola because Witherspoon's corner was on the apron before the end of the round. Witherspoon and his corner were in disbelief because it was a delay before the fight was stopped. With the loss, Witherspoon needs to go back and figure out if he wants to continue. He does not have the aggression in my view he needs. He is a great young man with high intelligence, but boxing may not be his ultimate niche. Arreola may get a fight with David Tua later this year in a fight that could be a barnburner. If not, he will be in demand because of his brawling style.

Abraham KOs Miranda; Marquez Defeats Lorenzo.

Edison Miranda loves to talk trash, but his problem is backing it up. Before the fight Miranda said after he KOd Arthur Abraham he was going to leap out the ring and fight Kelly Pavlik. Well that did not happen for two reasons, one Pavlik did not come to the fight and two Miranda needed help to his own feet first. Miranda who seems to fight more out of emotion than discipline threw lots and lots of punches at Arthur Abraham. The funny thing about it is Abraham held his hand very high and blocked most of those punches with his arm. I kept thinking, wow Miranda is wasting a lot of energy punching someone who is not even open to get hit. Finally in the third round, Abraham started throwing some punches here and there and stunned Miranda twice in the third round. In the fourth round, Miranda kept throwing punches but Abraham was ready to engage a little more. Abraham connected with a straight right hand right on the chin and then a left hook on top of Miranda's head for a knockdown. Miranda looked stunned and uneasy. Abraham came right at Miranda throwing a right and a left hook that missed but then connected with a hard left hook that floored Miranda for the second time. When Miranda got up, Abraham went right back at him and floored him for the third time with another left hook. The referee stopped the fight on the third knockdown. Arthur Abraham remained undefeated and gave a great fight in his first fight in America. A fight between Pavlik and Abraham would be great. It would be the two best Middleweights in the world as well as the two fighters who shut Edison Miranda up on his ass. Miranda made no excuses after the fights just stating he does not know what went wrong. He felt 100%. He also stated that Abraham was a great champion. Edison Miranda is turning out to be the new Ricardo Mayorga. He talks a lot of trash then gets beat down against the top competition. Where he goes from here is unknown.


Raul Marquez at 36 showed he still has the warriors heart as he defeated previously unbeaten Giovanni Lorenzo. Lorenzo started strong but was outworked by the veteran Marquez. Lorenzo got frustrated with Marquez and began using dirty tactics. Many times in clinches, Lorenzo would rub his head against Marquez but it was not seen by the ref. However in round 10, after Marquez had a cut opened up, the ref caught Lorenzo purposely headbutting Marquez and took a point away. The blood affected Marquez somewhat, but he never stopped coming forward. Lorenzo tried to box from the outside, but Marquez did very well on the inside. He landed some nice body shots as well as some decent head blows. With the win, Marquez now becomes the IBF Middleweight mandatory for Arthur Abraham. Marquez proved that with his experience he is still a force in the sport. Lorenzo, will have to go back to the drawing board. He is a little dirty fighter when things don't go his way and we all saw it.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/21/08

1. Kelly Pavlik will not be at the Edison Miranda-Arthur Abraham fight as was announced a few days ago. Miranda said he was going to KO Abraham and then try to fight Pavlik outside the ring. Pavlik, who KOd Miranda last year, had another engagement come up in his hometown.

2. James Kirkland and Nonito Donaire have both dumped promoter Gary Shaw due to inactivity in their careers. Of course both fighters broke ties with Shaw seperately, but they both did it for the same reasons. Cameron Dunkin, who manages both fighters, has said Top Rank is interested in signing both fighters. Shaw of course claims it is not his fault for some of the mishaps in getting each of the two fighters fights. However it goes, both Kirkland and Donaire are dumping Shaw to continue their careers in different directions.

3. Floyd Mayweather Jr. is having a 3 day retirement party in his hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan on July 4, 5, & 6. The party will have a variety of entertaining events such as musical concert and a 70's Throwback Skating party.

4. Sechew Powell, who lost last Wednesday by TKO to Deandre Latimore, has tested positive for marijuana. Powell has been placed on suspension for 60 days. Powell is further damaging his career with his bad choices of lack of training and now using marijuana. It may be a long road back for him because his promoter, Warriors Boxing is extremely upset.

5. Erik Morales is planning to make a comeback by August 2009. Morales plans to begin training in August of this year and condition himself properly to fight again in August 2009. Morales wants to get the WBC Lightweight Title which would be his fourth World Title in his fourth weight class. Currently Morales is on a 4 fight losing streak losing to Zahir Raheem, Manny Pacquiao (twice) and David Diaz.

Berto-Rodriguez; Witherspoon-Arreola

Miki Rodriguez weighed in at 145lbs and Andre Berto weighed in at 146lbs. These two fighters face off for the vacant WBC Welterweight Title vacated by Floyd Mayweather Jr. Berto many have seen rise through the rankings quite nicely. He is expected to win this fight. Rodriguez, not many have seen fight but word is he has great punching power just lacking speed. In fights like this when I know very little about a fighter, I tend to root for the one I know about (Berto) but keep my eye on the one I don't know about (Rodriguez). Over the past few fights I have seen Berto get stronger and move his head more. He is not a complete fighter yet, but he is working hard at getting there. If Berto wins tonight he will claim the WBC Title and earn his right to face bigger name opponents. He will no longer be considered a contender or prospect, but a champion. We will see if he passes the test tonight on HBO at 10pm EST.
Chazz Witherspoon weighed in at 220 and Chris Arreola weighed in at 239. Both of these gentleman are undefeated at 23-0 but someones 0 has got to go. Arreola is a strong powerhouse who loves the KO as seen in his 21KOs. Witherspoon is a fighter who is really trying to develop the craft of boxing. In the past he has came across to me as lacking something in the ring. I am not sure if it is just his personality of being laid back that does not work in my opinion. However Witherspoon is a big guy with a decent jab that gets attention. The question is will Witherspoon be able to hold off the very aggressive Arreola? Arreola is not laid back in his boxing form and loves to come forward and slug it out. Witherspoon takes his time in the ring. Who will impose their fight style on whom? This fight has a chance to be very exciting and possibly end in a KO. Tonight we will find out who gets the KO.

Abraham-Miranda II

Yesterday Arthur Abraham weighed 166lbs and Edison Miranda weighed 165. The rematch is today people. It is going to be fireworks as was their first fight. I have watched the highly controversial Abraham-Miranda I fight and there is so much you see. You see that referee Randy Neumann needed a coach because he was way off in this fight. You see that Arthur Abraham is one of the toughest fighters you will ever see. You see that Edison Miranda has some heat in his fists. However that fight was about 2 years ago and the rematch is today. Abraham has remained undefeated and has shown some real power in his wins. Miranda has lost again, by KO to Kelly Pavlik, but has bounced back against journeyman opponents at Super Middleweight. The rematch tonight is at a catchweight of 166. Will this benefit Miranda who has claimed he has struggled to make the 160 weight limit in the past? Abraham looks to be in great shape but will the weight gain affect him? Because of the controversy of the first fight many questions remain tonight. The trash talking has never stopped since before the first fight. That has truly helped the buildup to this rematch. However when in the ring, trash talk does not matter. Who is the better fighter? Can Miranda throw straighter punches instead of those wide punches he threw in the first fight? Will Abraham guard his jaw more to avoid it getting broken again? Will Abraham perform well in the United States? Will Miranda bring it like he talks it? Oh this fight has so many questions that only the fighters can answer this evening. No excuses, because we have heard all the talking. Personally I think Arthur Abraham may be able to pull out the victory. His punches seems to be straighter and very powerful. However I cannot deny the shocking power Edison Miranda has. Really I just can't wait to see these guys fight. Don't miss it on Showtime tonight at 9pm EST.

Sergio Mora Gives Respect To Oscar De La Hoya

In a very classy manner, Sergio Mora went to the book signing Oscar De La Hoya was having to promote his new book American Son. Mora, WBC Super Welterweight Champion, grew up in East Los Angeles like Oscar De La Hoya did. De La Hoya was the fighter Mora looked up to growing up and in his career as a boxer. "As a Mexican American growing up in East L.A. Oscar was a personal inspiration for me," said Mora. "He proved that if you worked hard enough, no matter how large the obstacle, you could achieve your dream. That was in the back of my mind as I was training for my victory in "The Contender" as it was when I was training for my world title victory over Vernon Forrest. I had to tell that to Oscar in-person. And what better way to pay tribute than by getting a personally autographed copy of his life story?" It is always a great thing to see boxers showing each other respect outside of the ring.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/16/08

1. Vernon Forrest said Sergio Mora was not going to fight Shane Mosley next and he meant it. So now Mosley's camp is in talks with Don King about a fight with Ricardo Mayorga. Mayorga's name is come up a lot more than he has as of recently. He has been mentioned for a fight with Pavlik and Mosley. However the fight with Mosley seems to be the one most likely to happen in possibly October or November.

2. Talks have already began for Oscar De La Hoya and Miguel Cotto. Of course the talks will become serious after Cotto-Margarito assuming Cotto wins. If Cotto loses, the fight with De La Hoya will probably not happen.

3. Also Golden Boy is trying to get a possible Bernard Hopkins-Kelly Pavlik fight going. Not sure why because Hopkins does not need to fight a young guy like Pavlik at this stage of his career. Plus Bob Arum has stated guys like Hopkins, Roy Jones Jr, and Felix Trinidad need to go ahead and retire for good. So not sure if a Hopkins-Pavlik fight will really happen, but you just never know in boxing.

4. Mikkel Kessler said if Joe Calzaghe does not want to fight Kelly Pavlik, he will. Kessler, who has a fight for the vacant WBA Super Middleweight Belt this weekend, says he would like to fight Pavlik for his first defense of the title this fall. Kessler is assuming he wins the the belt this weekend.

5. Bob Arum has said that Richard Schaefer of Golden Boy has contacted him about possibly having Manny Pacquiao fight Ricky Hatton in November. Pacquiao has stated repeatedly the past few weeks he wanted to fight Hatton. Pacquiao however has a fight against David Diaz for the WBC Lightweight Title on June 28. If he wins and looks good then he would want to possibly move up to 140 to fight Ricky Hatton. Hatton has a November fight scheduled with Paulie Malignaggi. Arum said step aside money would be offered to Malignaggi if the fight happens between Hatton-Pacquiao. However I am not so sure that Malignaggi will go for that. It is my understanding that the Hatton-Malignaggi fight is already signed and just waiting on finalized date and location. This could be very interesting.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/14/08

1. One of my favorite fighters, Nonito Donaire, is now a free agent. Donaire's manager, Cameron Dunkin, negotiated and got a release for Donaire from Gary Shaw. Donaire had been upset about his inactivity and was not happy about being offered at best an undercard fight on Vic Darchinyan's next fight. The reason why he was not happy is because he beat Darchinyan last July, so he should not have to be under him. Donaire, respectful as always, said he is willing to move up to 118 to get a big fight. I wish Nonito Donaire the best of luck.

2. Kelly Pavlik-Ricardo Mayorga??? It is possible. Since Joe Calzaghe said at this time he did not want to fight Pavlik, Pavlik's calendar is open. At first it was supposed to be Marco Antonio Rubio but now Mayorga's name is being mentioned. Mayorga is still a big name and draws a nice audience, unlike Rubio who most have never heard of. Nothing has been confirmed, but Don King is trying to push Bob Arum to get going on making Pavlik-Mayorga this fall.

3. Ricky Hatton says he would be willing to fight Oscar De La Hoya in summer 2009. Hatton was offered the fight with De La Hoya after Floyd Mayweather Jr. retired. However Hatton declined saying there was not enough time for preparation. De La Hoya has now pushed his next and final fight of his career until December 6. If De La Hoya stays true to this being his last fight, then Hatton and many others will not get the chance to fight him.

4. Hasim Rahman says he will knock out and destroy James Toney in their fight next month. I have my doubts because Rahman had trouble with Zuri Lawrence, a guy who has no knockouts in his career. Yes I am serious Zuri Lawrence has no knockouts in his career. Rahman also could not destroy Taurus Sykes who is one of the poster children for lazy heavyweights. Granted Toney has not come into fights in the best shape, but he still was better than both of those guys.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/13/08

1. Talks are going on between Jeff Wald and Golden Boy to possibly stage a fight between Sergio Mora and Sugar Shane Mosley on October 11 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. This should be very interesting because Vernon Forrest has exercised his immediate rematch clause. So this one could get ugly because Forrest says he refuses to take any step aside money or anything else. Forrest says the Mosley-Mora fight won't happen. Then Lou DiBella is on the radar ready to sue because his fighter Sergio Martinez is the mandatory for the WBC Junior Middleweight Title Mora holds. The WBC wants negotiations between Mora and Martinez to take place asap. DiBella says he will move towards getting Mora stripped of the title if Mora does not fight Martinez next. This could get very ugly.

2. James Toney has vowed to be in shape when he faces Hasim Rahman July 16. Rahman says he is going to be the first to KO Toney and then retire him. This fight has lost a lot of luster since both have been losing and Toney has been suspended. However for those who watch the fight, it may be pretty good.

3. Tentatively here are the fights Golden Boy has lined up for th fall. Juan Diaz-Michael Katsidis on September 6 in Houston at the Toyota Center on HBO with possibly Rocky Juarez challenging WBA Junior Lightweight Champion Edwin Valero. Joel Casamayor-Juan Manuel Marquez in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand September 13 on HBOPPV. Hatton-Malignaggi will take place either on November 15 in Las Vegas or New York or November 22 in Las Vegas. Either way the fight will be on HBO. David Haye vs TBA in London November 29.

4. Big props to Showtime. In the buildup to the Arthur Abraham-Edison Miranda II fight, Showtime has acquired the rights to their first fight. The first fight has never been seen on US television. We always heard about all the controversy and maybe saw bits and pieces on youtube. Well no more, because on June 16, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Showtime 2, again on Thursday, June 19, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Showtime 2 and on Saturday, June 21, at 6 p.m. ET/PT on Showtime. Showtime announcers, Al Bernstein and Steve Albert revoiced the fight.

5. Samuel Peter will not fight a tune-up before his fight against Vitali Klitschko. Peter, who is visiting family in Nigeria, will begin training July 1. The date, location, and network for the fight should be finalized by the end of June according to Dino Duva.

6. Joe Calzaghe says it would not be of his best interests to fight Kelly Pavlik. He said he prefers the fight with Roy Jones Jr instead.

7. It appears Jeff Lacy will be fighting Epifanio Mendoza on the July 23 version of ESPN2's Wednesday Night Fights. Mendoza was last seen being stopped by WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Chad Dawson last fall. If Lacy wins, there is a strong possibility he will face Jermain Taylor later this year.

The Oscar De La Hoya Lottery!!!!

All boxers get your tickets ready, because the Oscar De La Hoya Lottery is up and running once again. In regards to news yesterday of Floyd Mayweather Jr retiring, there is now two chances to fight Oscar instead of just one. We have a date open in September and then one in December. Now many are wondering, who is in the lottery. Glad you ask. Lets take a look at the qualified fighters. As you know Oscar loves the big show so he is looking for great competition with ticket selling power. Update: Oscar De La Hoya is now only fighting one more time with the date being December 6 on HBO PPV. This will be Oscar De La Hoya's career finale and expect it to be huge. The opponent is still unknown, but is most likely going to be the winner of the Cotto-Margarito fight from July 26. If Cotto wins, you can pretty much be certain he will be the one to fight De La Hoya. Now fighters anything can happen in boxing, so wait till the fight happens before totally dismissing the chance. Remember Floyd just up and retired and changed everything, so anything can happen.

• The most qualified fighter is Miguel Cotto. He is an undefeated two division champion and the current WBA Welterweight Champion. He is considered by many to be the best Welterweight in the world. However he has a July 26 fight with Antonio Margarito. If Cotto wins, he could be considered for the September Lottery fight but more likely the December Lottery fight.

• Antonio Margarito is the next qualified fighter in the lottery. However as stated, he is busy with a July 26 fight against Miguel Cotto. If he wins, he could stretch to fight in September but probably be best for the December lottery fight. Margarito is a strong Welterweight and is considered to be right under Cotto as the best Welterweight in the world. Margarito's weakness is ticket selling power. Yeah that could hurt his chances.

• Vernon Forrest is another qualified fighter that could be ready to fight in September depending on the results of his fight this evening against Sergio Mora. Forrest is the WBC Super Welterweight Champion and he could be available for either the September or December lottery fight. More than likely De La Hoya would want to meet him at a catchweight. However Forrest's weakness is his ticket selling power. That could hurt him too. No Longer in the Lottery after losing his WBC Super Welterweight Title on June 7, 2008 to Sergio Mora.

• Winky Wright is probably the most available fighter we have right now. He has no current fight scheduled and has been asking to fight De La Hoya for a long time. He is a former Junior Middleweight Champion and Middleweight Championship Challenger. He is still regarded as one of the best Pound 4 Pound fighters in the world. Winky's weaknesses in the draft is weight because De La Hoya may consider Winky, who has not fought under 160 since 2005, too big. Winky's last fight was at 170 against Bernard Hopkins in July 2007. Winky does not have strong ticket selling power. Winky also has an akward fighting style which makes most fighters avoid fighting him.

• Felix Trinidad is still a possible candidate in the lottery. The two fighters have history, after the controversial Majority Decision win Trinidad has over De La Hoya from 1999. The rematch has been something De La Hoya has wanted ever since that day but has never been able to land. Trinidad has no fight scheduled but wants to fight. The interest in the fight is still there. The only issue comes down to weight. De La Hoya does not really want to fight above 154lbs and Trinidad does not want to come under a catchweight of 165lbs. However money talks very loud and Trinidad could be a possible pick for most likely the December Lottery fight if any however both September and December are available. I say December is more likely because of the difference in weight, both would need the extra time to reach whatever weight is agreed upon if a fight is to take place.

Long Shots in the Lottery Fight:

1. Zab Judah: August fight scheduled already, if he wins he could be possible for December.


2. Joshua Clottey: Fight against Judah scheduled, but no name recognition


3. Ricky Hatton: Very small fighter who sucks above 140 and is promoted by Golden Boy Apparently Hatton was offered the September date and has declined due to need of preparation and the fact he remembers what a good ass whooping feels like from a bigger man. Refer to his fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. Since Oscar is bigger than Floyd, Ricky declined.
4. Manny Pacquiao: Small fighter at 135lbs in June, but has the potential to create a huge mega fight.

When it comes to availabilty, Winky Wright is the man. If it comes to marketability, Miguel Cotto is the winner for one of the lottery fights. However there are two lottery fights on the line, September and December. Who will it be? Will it be your favorite fighter? Will it be you if you are one of the fighters listed? It is said that sometime this coming week we will see who wins the September Lottery fight. Stay Tuned to find out the results, and good luck to all the fighters.

*****************************UPDATE*************************

Now that Vernon Forrest lost tonight, he is no longer a candidate for the Oscar De La Hoya Lottery.

• Paul Williams, who won very impressively tonight against Carlos Quintana to reclaim his belt, is now a candidate for the Oscar De La Hoya Lottery. Williams is a tall southpaw and the WBO Welterweight Champion. He presents a huge challenge for Oscar but could possibly considered for either the September or December Lottery Fight. His weakness at this point is ticket selling power.
• Sergio Mora, who upset Vernon Forrest to claim the WBC Super Welterweight Title De La Hoya used to have, is now a candidate for the Oscar De La Hoya Lottery Fight for either September or December. Mora has great boxing skills and is from and still resides in East Los Angeles. Since both De La Hoya and Mora are both from East Los Angeles, you get the hometown vibe. Mora has great name and fan recognition from being the winner of the first season of The Contender.

As stated, Vernon Forrest is no longer a candidate for the Oscar De La Hoya Lottery after losing his title this evening. One of the must requirements for all fighters to be involved in the lottery is you must keep winning. By losing Vernon Forrest forfeited his ticket. Good luck to the new candidates in their bid to win one of two Lottery fights with Oscar De La Hoya.

Ricky Hatton was apparently offered to step in and fight in the September date but has declined. Ricky's father Ray said it would not be enough time for Ricky to prepare. He says Ricky is focused on his November fight with Paulie Malignaggi.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/12/08

1. Ex-stripper Milana Dravnel has dropped her $25 million lawsuit against Oscar De La Hoya. Experts finally concluded that the images of Oscar in drag and stipper clothes were doctored.

2. In other Oscar De La Hoya news, Oscar has stated he is fighting only one more time. Since Floyd Mayweather Jr. retired, it left De La Hoya searching for a new opponent for his September fight. Since it is believed De La Hoya wants to fight the winner of the Cotto-Margarito taken place on July 26, De La Hoya is going to push his fight back to probably November.

3. Vernon Forrest said he is going to fight a rematch with Sergio Mora in September. Mora who upset Forrest this past Saturday, was looking to try and land a fight with Oscar De La Hoya. Forrest was kind of enough to point out to Mora that they have to fight a rematch first. In the fight contract, it states (very loosely translated by me) that if Forrest loses and exercises his right to an immediate rematch, Mora cannot fight anyone else first. So whether Mora has the title or not, he has to fight Vernon Forrest next. Forrest says the reason for his horrible performance was due to weight drain. He says he was having difficulty making the 154lb weight.

4. Andy Lee, coming off his KO loss to Brian Vera, is going to fight Willie Gibbs in Limerick Ireland on July 19. Gibbs says Lee's handlers are making a mistake because he is going to give Lee his second loss in a row.

5. Freddie Roach, the trainer of Manny Pacquiao and former one time trainer of Oscar De La Hoya, says he believes Pacquiao could beat De La Hoya if they fought. Pacquiao who is going to fight at 135lbs on June 28 says he could make the Welterweight limit of 147lbs to fight De La Hoya. Pacquiao walked into the ring in his last fight at 146lbs. Many believe that although Pacquiao is fast, he will not have the power to hurt De La Hoya. It is also speculated that De La Hoya has enough power to possibly seriously hurt Pacquiao. Interesting to see if this fight happens. Money talks.

6. The WBC has ranked David Haye #5 in their Heavyweight divisional rankings. Haye has relinquished all his Cruiserweight titles in order to pursue Heavyweight glory.

7. It is official that the June 21 fight between Andre Berto and Miki Rodriguez will be for the newly vacant WBC Welterweight title. The title was just vacated by newly retired Welterweight Champion Floyd Mayweather Jr.

8. It appears that Joel Casamayor-Juan Manuel Marquez will be fighting on HBOPPV September 13.

9. Alexander Povetkin is going to fight Taurus Sykes in a tuneup fight on July 19 in Russia. Povetkin is the IBF mandatory for Wladimir Klitschko.

Pacquiao and Diaz Are Relaxed

It appears both Manny Pacquiao and David Diaz are relaxed and just ready for their June 28 fight.

Manny Pacquiao Is The New Pound4Pound King

Ring Magazine has elevated Filipino sensation Manny Pacquiao as boxings number one pound for pound fighter. Ring Magazine has officially received Floyd Mayweather Jr's letter stating he is relinquishing the Ring Magazine Welterweight Title. By doing so makes his retirement official and he is now removed from the number one spot as pound for pound best and Welterweight Champion. Congratulations to Pacquiao. Also Ring Magazine honored the request of Top Rank to wait until after the Pacquiao-Diaz fight to see if Pacquiao wants to relinquish his Super Featherweight Title.

Clarity or Confusion??? Possible Lightweight Fights

The Lightweight Division needs some clarity, but we may get some more confusion instead. Sources are saying that Joel Casamayor will fight Juan Manuel Marquez October 11 on PPV. If Marquez wins and Manny Pacquiao wins later this month against David Diaz (WBC Lightweight Champion), the chances of Pacquiao-Marquez III increases in a positive way. If this fight should occur, Casamayor will give up his interim WBO Lightweight Title. Joan Guzman who is moving up to Lightweight will most likely receive the number one ranking from the WBO and then fight as a mandatory challenger against Nate Campbell probably August 9. Juan Diaz is supposed to fight either Michael Katsidis or Jesus Chavez on September 13. More than likely Diaz will fight Katsidis. If the Diaz-Katsidis fight happens then Jesus Chavez will probably face Carlos Hernandez who just signed with Golden Boy. The Hernandez-Chavez fight, which would be a rematch with Chavez having won the first fight by SD in 2005, would end up on the PPV undercard of Casamayor-Marquez October 11. The Staples Center is said to be the frontrunner for the PPV fight, but don't be surprised if it happens in Las Vegas. Keep in mind all of the above fighters belong to Golden Boy except Nate Campbell and Joan Guzman. Casamayor (pictured above with the Ring Magazine Belt) is the Ring Magazine/Lineal Lightweight Champion, but is refusing to fight the man who hold 3 of the major Lightweight Titles (WBA/WBO/IBF) in Nate Campbell. If Campbell wins his fight therefore retaining all three belts and Casamayor wins then we still have two guys claiming to be the real champ of the division. Now if Marquez beats Casamayor, Marquez will be looked upon as the Lineal Lightweight Champion. This will further confuse the division. If Marquez and Pacquiao both win and then fight, it would be for the Lineal Lightweight Championship. What this means is once again Nate Campbell, assuming he wins his fight, will still be left out in the cold and considered the number one fighter instead of Lightweight Champion. Now I know Nate Campbell feels he is the true Lightweight Champion despite who has the Ring Magazine belt. Now once again, keep in mind all of this is happening inside of Golden Boy Promotions meaning no matter what, they will keep the Lineal Lightweight Champion. So you tell me, are these fight scenarios going to provide clarity or confusion in the Lightweight division. I will say it loud and clear, it will provide CONFUSION!!!!

Gerald McClellan: Not Forgotten

So often we watch boxing and just get so excited. We see guys come and go through the sport and never think about what happens to them afterwards. Most times if a guy gets KOd he gets up a few seconds later and all is well. Then there are those rare occassions when we see a fighter get hurt and get taken out on a stretcher. It does not happen often, but it does happen. Well it happen to Gerald McClellan on February 25, 1995 in a fight against Nigel Benn. McClellan was taken to the hospital to have a emergency surgery to have a blood clot removed from his brain. After staying in a coma for several days, Gerald regained consciousness. It was at that time Gerald was found to have extensive brain damage. He lost his eyesight, the ability to walk, and about 80% of his hearing. Now Gerald is taken care of by his sister Linda and they rely on donations to help pay for his expenses. The insurance money as well as Gerald's fight earnings have long been spent to cover his medical expenses. According to his website, http://www.geraldmcclellan.com/trust.html it takes about $70,000+ a year to take care of Gerald. As a huge boxing fan and a blogger I feel it is my duty to post his site as a link on my page. We as boxing fans need to do what we can to assist those who were former fighters and have been injured permanently. Whether it is financially or just keeping them in our prayers we need to do our part. So I have placed Gerald McClellan's website on the right side of my site and I hope everyone can take a look and hopefully help in some way. I am going to do my part as well. Thank you.

Knockout Rewind!!!

Calvin Brock KOs Zuri Lawrence

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/10/08

1. The James Toney-Hasim Rahman fight scheduled for July 16 will be televised live on FoxSportsNet's Best Damn Sports Show Period. The fight is billed Last Chance as both fighters need to win in order continue their careers against top level competition.

2. Floyd Mayweather Sr. does not believe his son Floyd Mayweather Jr. will stay retired. He believes his son will probably retire 3 or 4 more times. He also stated that no one takes his son serious because he tells lies. Mayweather Sr. believes it is inevitable that Miguel Cotto and Oscar De La Hoya fight.

3. If you have not read my post about the Oscar De La Hoya Lottery, then you probably missed that Ricky Hatton has turned down an offer to fight De La Hoya. Essentially Hatton's father, Ray, said it was bad timing because Ricky had just fought two weeks ago and needed more time to prepare.

4. HBO has sent it crews to the Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito camps to begin filming the Countdown to their July 26 fight. At first HBO was going to be dumb enough not to film a Countdown their fight. Not sure what was on their mind since Cotto-Margaritio could very well be the best fight of the year. Oh well it does not matter since they seemed to have gotten their senses back.

5. New WBO Super Bantamweight Champion Juan Manuel Lopez says he wants to fight Israel Vasquez. Vasquez is the WBC Super Bantamweight Champion and king of the division after winning 2 out of 3 fights with Rafael Marquez. Where this fight appears to be excitement in the making, Vasquez may still fight Marquez a fourth time since he can make more money.

Remember When Floyd Mayweather Jr. Was Ducking Ricky Hatton???

You know I keep listening to all these so-called boxing analysts discuss why Floyd Mayweather Jr. decided to retire. I hear that he was ducking Miguel Cotto. The funny thing is, no one is mentioning the night of June 25, 2005. For those of you who may have forgotten that day, I will bring you up to speed. June 25, 2005 was the day Floyd Mayweather Jr. headlined his first PPV card against Arturo Gatti. What many fail to mention about that night is both Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto sat ringside of that fight. As we all know Mayweather totally embarrassed Gatti in six rounds. At the end of that fight neither Cotto nor Hatton had anything to say about fighting Mayweather. The funny thing was, they both came over there to size Mayweather up to fight him later that year. However neither one wanted a piece of him. So a couple years later they say he is scared of Ricky Hatton. Hatton finally gets Mayweather in the ring and we will see below what happened to him. Now critics are saying he is afraid of Miguel Cotto. Please!!!! I am a huge Cotto fan. I think he is one of the best fighters in the world today. However, I believe Floyd Mayweather Jr. would pick him apart. Sorry to all of those people who want to say Mayweather is ducking Cotto, but that is what you said about Hatton. But if you want to see who was really ducking who, pull out the HBO PPV recording of Mayweather-Gatti. Look at the two other Junior Welterweight Champions, Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto. See their expressions as Mayweather dismantled Gatti in Gatti's backyard. Then listen carefully as you hear them call Mayweather out. I am still listening and I hear nothing. So how about you critics do that and consider thanking Floyd Mayweather Jr. for not destroying yet another one of the stars of boxing like he did Ricky Hatton. Because if he comes back and destroys Cotto, I do not want to hear the excuses. You know the excuses of the other fighter being old, less experienced, too many ring wars, etc. So what I want you critics to do is watch the video below of one of the fighters you said Mayweather was ducking at 140 and tell me what you see. Then think of what could happen to Miguel Cotto if Mayweather decides to answer the knock at the door to fight him. You know what they say, be careful of what you ask for because an ass whooping could be what you get. Isn't that right Ricky? Oh I forgot it was Joe Cortez's fault why you got hit all those times and the ring post moved in the way. Oops did I spoil the outcome of the video???

Top Ten Pound4Pound Fighters

Well since Floyd Mayweather Jr. retired on Friday as well as some recent fights, I had to do some reorganizing on the Pound4Pound list. Since most believe Mayweather will return, I am giving him the Pound4Pound Champion Emeritus ranking. Although I am not a huge Joe Calzaghe fan, he is the best fighter out there now based on boxing ability and skill. Yes I believe his punches come off more as slaps, but he gets the job done. Kelly Pavlik moved up in my ranking because of his performance this past weekend. Yes it was not against top competition, but I saw some improvements in defense that made me see him as a better fighter. Miguel Cotto moved up because of the same thing in his last performance. Depending on how he does against Antonio Margarito and how Manny Pacquiao does against David Diaz we could have another switch. Paul Williams entered into my list after his great performance this past weekend. Ricky Hatton is no longer in the top ten after his lackluster performance. Winky Wright is down to number 10 due to his inactivity. If anyone has any issues with my list, make a comment but other than that this is how it is.

Pound4Pound Champion Emeritus: Floyd Mayweather Jr.

1. Joe Calzaghe
2. Manny Pacquiao
3. Miguel Cotto
4. Kelly Pavlik
5. Bernard Hopkins
6. Israel Vasquez
7. Juan Manuel Marquez
8. Rafael Marquez
9. Paul Williams
10. Winky Wright

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/9/08

1. Vernon Forrest wants to exercise his immediate rematch clause against the new WBC Super Welterweight Champion, Sergio Mora. Mora took the title just two days ago from Forrest in a fight that saw Forrest look old. Vernon Forrest spit a lot of negative venom towards Mora and The Contender promoter, Jeff Wald. Then Forrest lost the fight in a clear cut fashion. Should be interesting to see what happens because when Mora won he immediately inherited a mandatory fight against Sergio Martinez. Not to mention, Mora does not really want to fight at 154 because the division is not really that good at this time.

2. Carlos Quintana, who was KOd in the first round of his rematch against Paul Williams, wants another fight. Quintana said he is a warrior and would like another chance. He says he will return whether it is against Williams or not, but wants the third fight with Williams. Honestly speaking, he is dreaming if he thinks that fight will happen. Williams was a favorite in both fights and destroyed Quintana in the rematch. There is no demand to see that fight again.

3. Congratulations to Kermit Cintron and his wife who had their first son Clemente a few days ago. Clemente came out healthy and happy at 7 pounds 12 ounces.

Congratulations Larry Holmes

Congratulations to "The Easton Assasin" Larry Holmes on being inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame yesterday. Larry, in my view, never got his just due respect because of the timing of his career. They said he was just a fake copy of Muhammad Ali. Well Holmes was no copy and he proved it by amassing a record of 69(44)-6, a Heavyweight Champion reign of 7 years, 20 defenses of his title, and 48 straight wins. Holmes was no copy by no means because he had his own style. He was known for his accurate fast left jab and hard right hand. Holmes is definitely one of the best Heavyweights ever and he is finally in the Hall of Fame.

Boxing Rumors (Maybe Hidden Truths) 6/8/08

1. Joe Calzaghe-Kelly Pavlik October 18??? Bob Arum is working hard to get his fighter Kelly Pavlik a showdown with Joe Calzaghe with a target date of October 18. If the fight can't be made, he wants Pavlik to fight in September and in December. More than likely Pavlik will face Marco Antonio Rubio as he was penciled in to fight before he was considered to fight Calzaghe.

2. Lou Dibella says they are beyond the talking stages for a Jermain Taylor-Jeff Lacy fight. Dibella said if they can finalize a deal, then November is the target date for the fight. Rumors have been circulating that Jermain Taylor has gotten to over 200lbs, so he may want to start training now to avoid weight issues in the near future.

3. It could be just a little over a week until the final decision comes from the Calzaghe camp as to what is going to happen with the Super Middleweight Title. The WBC expects to hear if Calzaghe is going to vacate his title or not. I guess a lot depends on if he fights Kelly Pavlik or Roy Jones Jr. If he fights Pavlik he may fight at 168, but if he fights Jones he probably will vacate and stay at 175. Time will tell.

4. Sergio Mora will probably have to fight his mandatory Sergio Martinez in his next fight. Martinez is the WBC Super Welterweight mandatory. Mora, who upset Vernon Forrest last night, will have to accept the mandatory in order to keep his title.