Antonio Margarito, Floyd Mayweather's greatest threat??? Why?

WBO Welterweight Champion Antonio Margarito has made some rather frivolous claims in the recent weeks that he is "the most feared man in boxing." He claims that nobody will take a fight with him. Based on what? What makes him the most feared man in boxing??? Better yet, what legitimate prize fighter or threat has Margarito defeated to place himself on such a lofty pedestal???

He knocked out Andrew "Sixheads" Lewis, Kermit Cintron, and Manuel Gomez. Okay. But none of those names are up at the level of top-notch championship competition that surrounds Margarito in the 147-154lb neighborhood. Mayweather. Baldomir. Hatton. Collazo. Spinks. Rivera. Let's not forget that Margarito also lost a fight to then-WBO Jr Middleweight Champion Daniel Santos in September of 2004, who later went on to relinquish his title to some unknown challenger by the name of Sergiy Dzinziruk in Germany last December.

Other than that, what has Margarito done to be considered the biggest threat to "Pretty Boy" Floyd Mayweather's Pound For Pound throne???? Mayweather has a November 4 HBO PPV date open for a fight. The opponent who will be in the opposing corner from Mayweather has yet to be determined. Margarito keeps making these claims about being "the most feared man in boxing."

Ishe Smith, who is coming back down to 147lbs, wants to face Margarito. Winky Wright, who would come down to 154lbs strictly for the occasion, has also expressed an interest in facing Margarito. Kassim Ouma would love to get the chance to fight Margarito. Perhaps somebody should shut Margarito up and convince him that he is not the most feared man in boxing. With a proposed September 9 fight upcoming for Margarito against Cosme Rivera (Zab Judah's three round leftovers), it is difficult to forecast when exactly we will see Margarito in the ring with a top notch champion or competitor.

Since Shane Mosley has declined to face Floyd Mayweather in November of this year, in what could be the biggest payday of Mosley's career to this point, perhaps Margarito can enlighten the boxing public, do away with facing somebody who Judah made mince meat of last year, and step up to face the Pound for Pound King on November 4. If Mayweather finds another opponent, maybe Mosley and Margarito can lock horns, to prove who is the most worthy challenger for Mayweather. Back to back knockouts of Fernando Vargas and then a knock out of Margarito, at the hands of Mosley, could make a Mayweather vs Mosley fight bigger than ever, should it eventually happen in 2007.

At this time, Mayweather vs Mosley is the fight I want to see at 147lbs. At 147lbs, I believe Mosley is Mayweather's greatest threat. Before Hatton struggled against Luis Collazo, and looked out of his element at 147lbs, I felt as though Hatton might be Mayweather's greatest test. Maybe not. After seeing Mosley dominate a physically bigger Vargas, and look better than he has looked in the ring in many years, I believe Mosley could be Mayweather's stiffest test. Maybe the stiffest test of Mayweather has yet to face up until this point of his flawless career.

Mosley still has exceptional handspeed for a fighter in the 147-154lb neighborhood and he's capable of switching to southpaw. He is a tremendous switch hitter. Judah's handspeed and southpaw stance troubled Mayweather in the early rounds of their fight last April. Mosley possibly has equal speed to Judah, can also fight effectively as a southpaw, and will not crack under pressure the way Judah has on several occasions in the late rounds of his most difficult fights (Pineda, Baldomir, Mayweather, etc).

Shane should step up, accept the greatest payday of his career, and challenge Floyd Mayweather. It may in fact be Mosley's last opportunity to accomplish something spectacular in the sport; something that could potentially once again catapult him to the top of the boxing world and boxing's Pound for Pound lists. Sugar Shane, opportunity is knocking at your door.

Antonio Margarito, on the other hand, should face AND defeat a legitimate threat before he proclaims himself as the most feared man in boxing. Less talking and more fighting. There are plenty of worthy and capable challenges out there for the so-called most feared man in boxing, and the so-called greatest threat to Mayweather. Greatest threat to Mayweather??? Based on WHAT?????

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Baldomir stops Gatti in nine... hopefully he sent him into retirement!

Last weekend at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, NJ, World Welterweight Champion Carlos Balomdir stopped Arturo Gatti in nine rounds.

After a rather successful opening round for Gatti, a slow feeling out round in which Gatti was able to move around and box with Baldomir, Baldomir's natural welterweight strength and accurate right hand managed to tell the tale for the rest of the evening. As the rounds progressed, Baldomir's right hand appeared to find its target with increasing frequency.

In the fifth round, Gatti seemed to hurt his hand, which added to the jeopardy that Baldomir was placing him in round by round. As Larry Merchant eluded to at ringside, the silence of the pro-Gatti cult-like crowd, packed tight inside Boardwalk Hall, was not unlike that of a funeral. In the ninth round, Baldomir trapped Gatti on the ropes, unleashing a series of sledgehammer shots and knocking Gatti down with a monster left hook.

Gatti got up at the count of six, but Baldomir jumped on him, attacked him, and knocked him down once again. Referee Wayne Hedgepath had seen enough and mercifully called a halt to the bout. Hopefully, this was the final appearance of Arturo Gatti entering a ring for a prize fight. Arturo has clearly seen better days, and should retire while he is still healthy, perhaps even taking Fernando Vargas along with him.

After all is said and done, Baldomir is still the recognized Welterweight Champion of the world. With this big victory over Gatti, Baldomir has successfully made his first title defense. Gatti is the 2nd opponent whom Baldomir went to his hometown and achieved victory, the first being his well-deserved title winning victory over Zab Judah last January.

Baldomir is a tremendously strong welterweight who can punch and take a punch. He is not the fastest guy in the world, but he is quite solid in his attack and his durability. Santa Fay, Argentina, Baldomir's home country, also produced Carlos Monzon, one of the greatest middleweight champions of all time. In this day and age, Santa Fay says hello to their biggest star champion fighting at the present time, Welterweight Champion Carlos Baldomir.

Would anybody be interested in seeing Baldomir, the hometown striker, defend his Welterweight Championship against Pound 4 Pound Picasso Floyd Mayweather in Las Vegas, NV or Grand Rapids Michigan???

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Mosley stops Vargas!

Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Sugar Shane Mosley once again managed to stop Fernando Vargas, but with considerably less controversy.

Speed kills, and it was the speed of Mosley that befuddled a listless Vargas, who this time around, did not look like he belonged in the same ring with his vastly superior opponent. Vargas, both of hands of feet, looked exceptionally slow. He just could not pull the trigger or even manage to put Mosley in any type of jeopardy. Mosley's right hand seemed to fight its target rather easily, but it may have been the left hand that did most of the damage this time around. After five one sided rounds won by Mosley, Mosley managed to cut Vargas right eye with a left hook, and dropped him later in the round. Vargas barely beat the count, was seriously hurt. Referee Kenny Bayless let the fight continue, but Mosley immediately reigned a series of a devastating combination punches on his battered opponent, prompting Bayless to stop the carnage just seconds later.

Where do both fighters go from here? Hopefully last night's one-sided loss signals retirement from the square ring for El Feroz. The man appears to have seen better days. This was a case of a young kid, years ago, spending himself way to early by fighting dangerous and more experienced opponents too soon in his career. Spending himself before he even reached his prime, Vargas fought all of the top notch champions and skilled boxers one after the other. From Winky Wright, to Ike Quartey, to Felix Trinidad, and on to Oscar De la hoya, he has provided fans with memorable wars that were crowdpleasing affairs, but he also sustained a great deal of accumulated punishment over the years. Best of luck to Fernando Vargas, a fellow who I have always had a great deal of admiration for. Great heart, but I would tell him to retire while he still has his wits about him.

As for Sugar Shane Mosley, he may have performed better in this fight, than he did in his previous engagement with Vargas. This fight, too, was fought at 154lbs, which was out of Mosley's natural element. Back down to 147lbs? Could well be. After seeing what Mosley did last night at 154lbs, I would love to see him move back down to 147lbs for a showdown with Pound for King King Floyd Mayweather Jr. Taking note of Zab Judah's success in the first five rounds against Mayweather, it would be interesting to see what type of challenge Mosley puts forth against the sweet science's modern day picasso.

Mosley, unlike Judah, is not a natural southpaw, but he's been known to fight from the southpaw stance rather effectively [you may recall that he changed the tide of his first fight against Oscar De la hoya by switching to southpaw]. Mosley is a switch hitter, with perhaps greater speed than Judah.

Yes, Mayweather vs Mosley is an intriguing matchup at 147lbs. Let's see it happen, hopefully early in 2007.

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Mosley,Vargas meet again tonight in rematch!

After having fought each other at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, NV approximately five months ago, former world champions Sugar Shane Mosley and Fernando Vargas return for a second engagement, once again in Las Vegas, but this time at the MGM Grand Garden. In their previous bout, the fight had shifting tides of fortune, but was stopped due to severe swelling around Vargas' left eye.

Swelling, the product of Mosley's repeated right hands landed in the first few rounds, influenced the ring side doctor to stop the fight. After Mosley experienced success in the first three rounds, Vargas did come back to win rounds four through seven with affective aggressiveness. When the eye became too much of a handicap, Mosley began to regain command and win rounds eight and nine, enroute to the stoppage in the tenth round. Tonight is the eagerly anticipated rematch, which is probably happening at just the right time.

Too many rematches over the years have happened years too late. Sugar Ray Leonard and Tommy Hearns fought their legendary welterweight battle in 1981, in which Leonard stopped Hearns in the fourth round. They did not have a rematch until eight years later, in June of 1989. Julio Cesar Chavez and Meldrick Taylor fought in what many considered to be the fight of that decade [and perhaps the most controversial]. They did not rematch until four years later, 1994.

How refreshing it is to see two fighters, two former champions, who had staged one hell of a fight for boxing fans, having their rematch within a reasonable time frame. Let us hope it is every bit as thrilling as their original encounter.

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Klitschko stops Byrd!

Repeat, rather than revenge, was the name of the game last Saturday night in Mannheim, Germany, as Wladimir Klitschko won his second world heavyweight title, the IBF version, by way of a dominant seventh round knockout over defending champion Chris Byrd.

The IBF (International Boxing Federation), you may recall, is the New Jersey based organization that chose not to vacate their welterweight title after defending undisputed champion Zab Judah lost to Carlos Baldomir, but to let their belt remain around Judah's waste due to the fact that Baldomir did not pay a sanctioning fee to the organization prior to the bout.

Yes, that IBF...

This was the second fight between the two pugilists, with the first taking place October 14, 2000, also in Germany. At that time, Klitschko won a convincing unanimous decision over Byrd to win the WBO title. On Saturday night, however, Klitschko would twice drop Byrd and end matters in the seventh round.

Byrd's best round seemed to be the opening round, when he was able to land some clean straight left hands to Klitschko's mid section. Klitschko, using the round as a feeling out round, basically pawed with his jab. In round two, Klitschko began firing more right hands. He could not miss Byrd with his right hand leads.

By the third round, Byrd, whose right eye was already beginning to swell, appeared to be frustrated at his inability to get to Klitschko. As the fight progressed into round four, Klitschko's confidence was continuously rising and the round produced more of the same as rounds two and three. Klitschko kept landing his right hand at will. In round five, Klitschko dropped Byrd really hard with a one two combination. Byrd, with a bloodied nose, rose to his feet, but took brutal punishment to survive the round.

After the sixth round, which was a slow, yet another ones-sided round won by Klitschko, Byrd would visit the canvas for the second and last time in the fight. Referee Wayne Kelly, noticing that a bloodied and battered Byrd could not continue with such a lacerated face, called a halt to the bout.

When asked by Larry Merchant what his future plans are, Klitschko responded, "Defend my title. Even better, I plan on getting another one. Have two. Let's go for another belt!"

Good answer. Such an accomplishment would be grand for the division, the sport, and the fans. I am glad to see he has such a commendable goal. The other champions in the division need to acquire the same enthusiasm. If he can maintain the mental and physical poise that he has brought into the ring with him in his last three fights, Klitschko may just be on his way to accomplishing his plans. He is certainly talented enough to do so.

Perhaps Byrd has seen better days, while Klitschko progresses further towards the top of the division with his trainer, heavyweight architect Emmanuel Stewart.

Klitschko's last defeat happened on April 10, 2004, when Lamon Brewster stopped a fatigued Klitschko in five rounds to win the vacant WBO Heavyweight Championship. With newly crowned WBO Heavyweight Champion Sergei Liakovich's recent upset victory over Brewster earlier this month, will Klitschko attempt to unify the titles against the man, who defeated a man who knocked him out a couple years ago???

Klitschko's biggest challenge could come against Liakovich. The biggest fight in the heavyweight division right now could be between Klitschko and WBC Champion Hassim Rahman. Rahman must feel that if he couldn't get Vitali, he may as well go after his reemerging younger brother who has just won another one of the alphabet soup title belts. First, Rahman must get by Oleg Maskaev in a rematch that they are planning for this summer.

Bring me not sanctioning bodies. Bring me not bowling ball shaped heavyweights with greater appetites for food rather than pugilistic success. Bring me not more title belts and titlists.

Bring me unification and one Heavyweight Champion!

Stay tuned.

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Mayweather defeats Judah!

How about Mayweather vs Hatton?


This past Saturday night at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, NV, "Pretty Boy" Floyd Mayweather kept his undefeated record in tact, and picked up the rather insignificant IBF Welterweight Title belt with a unanimous decision victory over Brooklyn native Zab "Super" Judah.

In the opening rounds, Judah fared rather well with his speed and southpaw stance. He seemed to be getting off his punches faster and crisper than was the case for Mayweather. By the fifth round, however, Mayweather began to adapt to Judah's timing and landed some telling body shots. As the rounds progressed, Mayweather kept targeting Judah's body, which would ultimately place Judah in retreat mode. By the 10th round, Judah was worn down, but a low blow by Judah may have prevented Mayweather from stopping Judah.

The low blow ensighted a near riot, as Mayweather's trainer and uncle Roger Mayweather entered the ring and spouted off some choice words to Judah. The team members of both parties immediately entered the ring and this caused further commotion. The scene in the ring was reminiscent of the fan man incident that caused approximately a twenty minute halt to Bowe vs Holyfield II in November of 1993.

After about a ten minute delay, security managed to calm everyone down, end the confrontation, and fortunately the commission was about to resume the fight. Mayweather's trainer, however, was removed from Floyd's corner. Floyd went on to win a unanimous decision in a competitive fight that was good, but not great.

Judges favored Mayweather by scores of 117-111, 116-112, and 119-109. My scorecard showed Mayweather winning by a closer margin of 115-113, but he got the job done nonetheless.

In my estimation, Mayweather's greatest challenge at this point could come against Ricky Hatton, who is equally undefeated and will be challenging Luis Collazo for the WBA Welterweight Title on May 13 in his American debut at Foxwoods.

Mayweather vs Hatton would be a classic matchup between a boxer and pressure fighter. This fight would present Floyd with a true challenge due to the fact that Hatton is an exceptional pressure fighter and pressure fighters give Mayweather the most trouble.

Castillo, as you may remember, was able to befuddle the pound for pound picasso with resilience, pressure, and a consistent body attack over the course of 12 rounds in the first of their two fights in April of 2002. Castillo, however, had more mileage at that time than Hatton currently has.

Mayweather and Hatton are two undefeated fighters in the welterweight division who appear to be headed on a collision course. First thing is first - Hatton must defeat Collazo.

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Results

Results from the Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT:

Kevin Johnson UD8 Robert Hawkins
Scores 79-73, 80-72 (twice)

Kevin Johnson primarily used his jab to dominate a listless and overweight Robert Hawkins over the course of eight rounds. Johnson has a nice stiff jab, as well as a confident demeanor and sufficient physical appearance. Unfortunately, he carries his guard way to low and is limited to a jab. Johnson also appears to lack real heavyweight punching power. He needs to expand his arsenal, get a little more aggressive, and develop as a professional. He's still young. Plenty of room for improvement.

ESPN2.

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The Weekend Weigh-In!

Friday

Weights from the Activities Center, Maywood, Calif:
Anthony Thompson 157 vs Darnell Boone 157
Victor Ortiz 137.5 vs Freddy Barrera 138.5
SHOWTIME 11PM ET/PT

Weights from the Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT:
Montell Griffin 175 vs Norman Jones 174
Robert Hawkins 260.25 vs Kevin Johnson 237.5
Matt Remilard 127.5 vs Edward Valdez 128
Wesley Hobbs 151.75 vs Ron Lewis 152.25*
William Gill 176.25 vs Elvin Ayala 168.75

*Gill will have to lose weight.
ESPN2 9PM ET/PT

Saturday

Weights from Wolstein Center, Cleveland, OH
Lamon Brewster 232 vs Sergei Liakhovich 238.5
WBO heavyweight championship
Ray Austin 255 vs Jeremy Bates (Weighs in Friday)
Kevin Mcbride 286 vs Byron Polley 244Larry Donald 245.5 vs Stacy Frazier 261.5

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Brewster, Lyakhovich to collide in Cleveland tomorrow night!

on a SHOWTIME FREE PREVIEW WEEKEND!


Tomorrow night, in Cleveland, OH, WBO Heavyweight Champion Lamon Brewster (33-2, 29 KOs) will defend his title against Sergei Lyakovich (22-1, 14 KOs). Brewster won the title on April 10, 2004 with a stunning upset KO win of Wladimir Klitschko. Since then, he has made three title defenses against the likes of Kali Meehan, Andrew Golota, and Luan Krasniqi.

Brewster, the dark horse of the champions and title contenders, will try solidify his claim as the top dog at heavyweight tomorrow night against Lyakovich. After Hasim Rahman and James Toney fought to a disputed draw two weeks ago, there appears to be more questions than answers as to the state of boxing's biggest weight class.

Unification must take place in order to have legitimate clarification as to who the real heavyweight champion is in boxing. In order for Brewster to maintain his race for heavyweight supremacy amongst the rest of his fellow titleholders, he must focus carefully on the task at hand tomorro night.

This spectator has not seen much of Lyakovich, outside of his unanimous decision win over Friday Ahunanya, on the undercard of Rahman/Lewis II, in November 2001. He went on to lose via 9th round KO at the hands of the Maurice Harris in a non televised bout in June of 2002 on the undercard of Holyfield/Rahman in Atlantic City. Lyakovich also fought to a draw with fringe heavyweight contender Dominick Guinn.

Brewster possesses better than average handspeed, as well as volatile punching power, for a heavyweight boxer. He annihilated Andrew Golota in less than a round in May of last year in Chicago, something only Lennox Lewis was previously able to accomplish. IBF Champion Chris Byrd struggled to a controversial draw with Golota in April of 2004 and then-WBA Champion John Ruiz squeaked out a narrow and unconvincing unanimous decision over Golota in November of 2004.

My prediction: Brewster via mid to late round KO.

The bout, promoted by Don King Productions will be televised live on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING on Saturday, April 1. The telecast will begin at 11pm ET. This is a free preview weekend for SHOWTIME, so the telecast is available to all viewers.

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Cotto/Malignaggi set for June 10!

Boxing's two Magic Men fighting in separate fights, as well as on separate PPVs, on the same evening!

On the same evening that Light Heavyweight Champion Antonio "The Magic Man" Tarver and Bernard Hopkins are squaring off in Atlantic City, WBO Jr Welterweight Titlest Miguel Cotto and boxing's other "Magic Man" Paul Malignaggi will also face each other at Madison Square Garden in NY. Most fans and media question the reasoning behind two pay per view cards in one night.

While the Tarver vs Hopkins fight clearly features two of the better known, yet veteran fighters in the sport, the other bout between two youthful and undefeated jr welterweights, a Puerto Rico superstar and an Italian American rising star from Bensonhurst Brooklyn, could provide fireworks for fight fans, as well as some clarity to a division that is losing top fighters and champions.

Ricky Hatton, the current world champion at 140lbs, is moving seven pounds North to face WBA Welterweight titlest Luis Collazo later this spring. Furthermore, fighters such as pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather, Sharmba Mitchell, and Arturo Gatti have also vacated the premises and made their jumps to the welterweight division. Therefore, the Jr Welterweight division appears to be wide open at this time.

On June 10, you can view Cotto vs Maglignaggi live on Pay Per View for a suggested retail price of $39.95. Which of these two young contenders will rise to the top of their division. Tune in and find out for yourself!

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