August 6, 2008
I'm not sure how I feel about this fight. Overall though, I think it's a bit of a bad idea. Money wise I bet it probably looks pretty good, and you do have to strike while the iron is hot, and all of that. I've always been a big Hopkins fan, and I've become somewhat of a Pavlik since his last couple of fights. I just think that Hopkins has sort of sleep walked though his last three or four fights, and this one will probably be no different. On the flip side, I can't see Pavlik really getting anything out of the fight but the payday. Don't get me wrong, I still love B-Hop, but I just think he's lost that fire that made him such a great fighter through the years. He fell into the trap a lot of fighters do, in that he got to the top of his game, and lost that hunger to prove himself.
Who knows, maybe it'll be a good fight to watch, but I think Pavlik could have gone after a lot better opponent. Which actually hurts me to say so. Here's the details:
Kelly “The Ghost” Pavlik faces Bernard “The Executioner” Hopkins in a light heavyweight battle at Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall on Saturday October 18 in a bout presented by Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions, in association with Caesars Atlantic City. The fight will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View, beginning at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.
Tickets, priced at $700, $500, $350, $200, $100 and $75, go on sale Friday, August 8 at 12 Noon ET and can be purchased at the Boardwalk Hall box office, by calling Ticketmaster (800) 736-1420 or online at www.Ticketmaster.com.
Posted by Ghostshark under Boxing | Comments (0)
July 30, 2008
From HBO (with a little editing by me):
For 11 rounds at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, Margarito stalked the WBA welterweight champion, taking all Cotto threw at him and matching it with a relentlessness that broke Cotto down. It was evident by midway in the fight that was close on the scorecards but not if you looked at Cotto's face. It was bloodied early and badly swollen late as Margarito kept beating him down until the champion Cotto took a knee twice in the 11th round until his uncle and trainer, Evangelista, leapt onto the ring apron and stopped the bout.
You can read more on the HBO site HERE, or over at East Side Boxing HERE and HERE. Sounds like it was one hell of a fight. Good enough that HBO is reshowing it this Saturday AUG. 2 at 9:30 p.m. on HBO.
Posted by Ghostshark under Boxing | Comments (0)
July 25, 2008
The fight will be held live tomorrow night, Saturday July 26th, at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT.
They're hyping this one up to be a good fight, and I think that's going to be the case. Both fighters aren't the type of boxer to sit back and let the other guy do all the work. I'm not sure what type of fight this is going to be, but I can see it turning into a slug-fest from time to time. be sure to catch it if you have the chance.
You can read more about the two boxers over at East Side Boxing with these articles:
Miguel Cotto vs. Antonio Margarito - I pick …….. to win! (HERE)
Sharkies Machine: Cotto Margarito Preview. (HERE)
Cotto-Margarito: Great Moments Of Triumph In The Face Of Adversity.(HERE)
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July 17, 2008
This might be a pretty good fight. I'll be out of town that weekend, but I might have to make it a point to hit someplace that's showing it.
Cotto (32-0, 26 KOs), from Caguas, Puerto Rico, a two-division world champion, won the WBO junior welterweight championship in September 2004, knocking out undefeated contender Kelson Pinto for the vacant title. He successfully defended the belt six times during his two-year reign, before vacating it to challenge undefeated contender Carlos Quintana. He stopped him in the fifth round to capture the WBA welterweight crown in December 2006. Cotto has successfully defended it four times, going the distance only once.
Margarito (36-5, 26 KOs), from Tijuana, Mexico, is a two-time welterweight champion. He knocked out Antonio Diaz in the 10th round to capture the vacant WBO title in March 2002. He successfully defended it seven times during his five-year reign before losing it to Paul Williams in July 2007 via a close 12-round decision. He captured the IBF title in his most recent fight on April 12, knocking out defending champion Kermit Cintron in the sixth round.
The Cotto vs. Margarito pay-per-view telecast, beginning at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT, has a suggested retail price of $49.95
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July 14, 2008
Wladimir Klitschko knocked out Tony Thompson at 1:22 of the eleventh round to retain the his IBF, WBO & IBO Heavyweight Titles Saturday night.
You can read a breakdown of the fight over at East Side Boxing HERE who described as one-sided and Klitschko's performance questionable, HERE with an overview of what happened in the fight, and HERE who said it was a good win for Klitschko.
There's also a nice photo gallery of the fight that you can look though HERE.
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July 8, 2008
The heavyweight division hasn't been all that exciting over the last several years, and I don't think this fight is going to help the situation much. You never know though, it might be a good one.
Wladimir Klitschko (50-3, 44 KOs), from Kiev, Ukraine, continues his pursuit to the top of the heavyweight division. He scored a unanimous decision victory over Sultan Ibragimov last February to unify two of the world titles in the heavyweight ranks, and now returns to the friendly confines of Germany to face mandatory challenger Tony Thompson.
Washington, D.C., native Thompson (31-1, 19 KOs) is a skilled southpaw who earned his top-rated challenger status with a 26-fight unbeaten streak, and now looks to score one of the biggest upsets in the division in years.
You can catch the fight on HBO on Saturday July 12th at 4:30 pm ET, and again at 10 pm, live from Hamburg, Germany.
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June 30, 2008
I didn't get the fight, but it sounds like three things happened:
– The undercards were pretty good.
– Pacquiao held a boxing clinic on Diaz
– Pacquiao has set himslef up as the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world.
James Slater over at East Side Boxing said this about the fight:
"Utterly dominating the game but out-classed David Diaz for almost every second of the nine rounds the fight lasted, "Pac-Man" put the finishing touches to his handiwork at just after the 2 minute mark of the 9th. A perfectly delivered short left hand to the head sent fellow southpaw Diaz face-first to the canvas and the fight was over. The official time was 2 minutes and 24 seconds of round nine."
You can read the rest of that article HERE. Pretty much everything I've read falls the same way, Pacquiao was just dominating, and Diaz just didn't have much of a chance. You can read another good article about the fight, with a little more on the undercards HERE.
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June 26, 2008
This has the possibility to be a really good fight, though Pacquiao is changing weight divisions, and that traditionally give fighters some trouble. Here's the official run down of the fight:
Newly-crowned World Boxing Council (WBC) super featherweight champion Manny Pacquiao and WBC lightweight champion David Diaz will battle in a 12-round rumble with Diaz's title at stake. Promoted by Top Rank, in association with MP Promotions, Pacquiao vs. Diaz will take place Saturday, June 28, at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View, beginning at 9 PM ET / 6 PM PT.
You can read about the last press conference over at East Side Boxing HERE.
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June 12, 2008
I totally forgot to post an update on the Kelly Pavlik fight last weekend, so I thought I would hit that and a few other boxing updates.
Pavlik vs. Lockett - Kelly “The Ghost” Pavlik improved his record to 34-0, with 30 KO’s after making easy work of Gary Lockett (30-2, 21 KO’s). Lockett's corner threw in the towel in the third round, after having to go to his knee twice in round two, and a third time in round three. You can read a little more about the fight, and the undercard, HERE and HERE.
There's now talk that Pavlik might fight Joe Calzaghe next, and there's a great article about it HERE.
Sergio Mora vs. Vernon Forrest - Mora, of Contender fame, shocked Vernon Forrest Saturday night, capturing Forrest's World Boxing Council super welterweight title with a majority decision. You cna catch a few details of the fight HERE. I've always liked Mora,so to me it's great to see him get a belt. Hopefully he'll catch some more high profile fights soon.
Winky Wright Calls Out Oscar De La Hoya - I'm not sure how I would feel about this fight. I'd sure as hell get the PPV, but I really think that Oscar would have to bring his A-game to really make it a fight. You can read about the details HERE.
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June 3, 2008
HBO Sports presents two championship fights on the Boardwalk when WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING: KELLY PAVLIK VS. GARY LOCKETT live SATURDAY, JUNE 7 (10:05 p.m. ET/7:05 p.m. PT) from The Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, on HBO.
Summer heat arrives early when undefeated rising star Kelly Pavlik (33-0, 29 KOs), from Youngstown, Ohio, returns to Atlantic City – where he captured his middleweight crown – for his first title defense against Gary Lockett (30-1, 21 KOs), from Cwmbran, Wales, in a scheduled 12-round contest. Pavlik is coming off back-to-back wins against former middleweight champ Jermain Taylor; their memorable showdown in September 2007 was named “Fight of The Year” by the Boxing Writers Association of America. Making his American debut, Lockett also hails from an industrial town, but in the south of Wales. He’s on a six-year, 14-fight undefeated streak, and hasn’t lost since 2002. In addition to his near-perfect professional career, Lockett compiled an impressive amateur record of 90-8.
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