Did Kelly Pavlik Knock Lockett Into an Early Retirement?

After coming to America only to have his hopes of becoming a world champion completely shattered by a power punching specter, the  31 yr old Gary Lockett has had some time to re-evaluate things.

It looks like Lockett's life flashed before his eyes during his last three rounds of boxing. "I am considering my future," said Lockett in an interview with BBC Sports. "I still have my faculties and I want to spend time with my family."

We knew Kelly Pavlik packed a serious punch, but apparently he hits so hard that it makes some people rework there life's plans. Lockett must have seen the light during his fight with The Ghost and at some point decided that he doesn't want to go through anything like that again.

We can't blame him for hanging it up - near death experiences usually result in unalterably changing a person's view on life (plus he finally got a decent payday). 

Well, he wasn't really going to die, but he probably felt like it, enough to leave the sport that he has fought professionally in for twelve years. 

"Every time he threw punches, it felt like he was making me pay"

- Gary Lockett

Wednesday Night Fight Recap: Jeff Lacy vs. Epifanio Mendoza

In what started off as a pretty entertaining super middleweight slugfest then quickly became just two men trying to catch their breath, Jeff Lacy took a majority decision from Epifanio Mendoza.

By about the fifth round both fighters had unloaded some big shots on their opponent, but in the process they also unloaded any energy they had brought to the table. The remaining five rounds brought the viewers a sluggish, boring poor of boxing skill and stamina.  

There has been some talks suggesting that Jermain Taylor, the former undisputed middleweight champ of the world,  was going to turn down a shot at a vacant title against Carl Froch, to take a supposedly more lucrative fight with Lacy.  Anyone who had a vested interest in that fight may as well kiss it goodbye.  

Lacy looked horrible in this slight victory, lunging in at his opponent with his head down and not once employing a consistent jab or any real skill.  Jermain would pick Lacy apart.  

Carl Froch, the WBC #1 contender and undefeated prospect, has always been the better fight for Jermain (not to mention a chance to win a vacant belt). But, because money seems to be the end all be all as usual, and because the little-known Froch won't bring enough of it to the table, it most likely won't happen. 

Hopefully the lack luster display Lacy just put on tonight was enough to change Jermain's mind.

Calzaghe Injured: Roy Jones Jr Fight Postponed

According to the BBC, Joe Calzaghe has put the impending light heavyweight championship match up with Roy Jones Jr on hold.

During training camp Joe suffered an injury to his right hand.  Like many fighters he has battled of hand injuries for most of his career, but has managed to fight through the ailments.  

No date has been rescheduled as of yet, but as of now the Pay-Per-View event at Madison Square Garden that was supposed to have taken place on September 20th, is off until further notice.

Have We Been a Little Hard on the Heavyweight Champ of the World??

Wladimir Klitschko has been under relentless fire following his last few title defenses. He has heard it from not only the media and general public, but from fighters all over the division -most recently and notably, from David Haye (someone who only has one bout in the division). And Although much of the criticism is warranted, it is possible that many have gone too far.

As the recognized heavyweight champion of the world, Klitschko lives his professional and personal life in the hottest spotlight of the boxing industry. To any boxing outsider, the division where Wlad stakes his claim is all they know and/or care about, and at the moment he is the face of that division, one that is filled with middle class big men. 

Wlad, as many have so blatantly noted, is not what we as the American public want from our heavyweight champion of the world. 

He is a man who displays a set of traits that we would associate more with what we hope our kid will grow up to be like one day, or even the guy you want your daughter to marry - but in boxing, he is the anti-heavyweight champion of the world. We apparently like our champions of a whole different breed.

Where Wlad spends his time going to school and achieving a PhD, we want someone like Evander Holyfield, who despite making over 250 million dollars mis-manages his funds so poorly he drives himself to the point of bankruptcy. Where Wlad understands his weakness, and skillfully does his best to protect his well-being at all times in the ring, we want someone like Rocky Marciano, who is willing to get his face beat in just to put the hurt on his opponent. Where Wladimir rarely loses his calm inside the ring or out, says the right thing at the right times, and devotes his time to charitable causes, we prefer a psycho like Mike Tyson, who eats opponents for breakfast (literally) inside the ring, and rapes and pillages villages outside of it.

We admit that Waldimir Klitschko is not exciting to watch by any means. However, he rarely gets credit for the things that he does correctly. He is a very skilled and technical boxer, he has never once backed down from or ducked any fighter in the division, he has never been one to pull pre-madonna stunts, which cannot be said for so many champions (Floyd) and he consistently works to unify the heavyweight title, something that most fighters seem to have forgotten about.

The problem lies within the fact that he is too smart and just plain too regular for his own good. He doesn't take risks, he stays in shape, he plays by the book, his prison record is clean, he keeps his mouth shut and he really gives all of us nothing to talk about because of it. Anything unexpected rarely happens with Wlad, so we begin to nitpick every flaw.

We are not saying you need to love the guy.  We are not even saying you have to agree with us in slightest (because at times we don't even know if we agree with ourselves on this subject). But, we must not drop all of the blame on the best fighter of a horrible division. 

If he is so bad, then someone needs to step up and knock him out and give us something else. Until then we have to accept what is reality - a champion that is 51 and 3 and has Ko'd over 80 % of the opponents he has faced, and for the most part isn't as bad as we all make him out to be (boring, but not as bad..).

If anyone is sick of the heavyweight division, try watching some fights below 200 lbs, where some of the best fights in years are taking place. Don't tell us boxing has lost it's punch, David Krikorian (see article), when all you are referring to is one division. Anyone who follows the sports will disagree with that unfounded claim.

Pic of the Week: Preemptive Fight Poster Mayweather vs. De La Hoya

click to enlarge

We got our hands on a fight poster that was premptively (and mistakenly) created for the rematch between Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather.  The poster was already designed and illustrated before the Golden Boy even set foot in the ring with Steve Forbes. 

Hopefully this company learned their lesson from putting the ever-retiring Mayweather in one of their ads, and realized that maybe next time they should wait until after one of the fighters completes his prior engagements.

Yuriorkis Gamboa KO's Seeger

Yuriorkis Gamboa came through once again, and in the process, made us look good for speaking so highly of him. The fight was stopped within the first round when Gamboa connected with a right, sending Al Seeger to the floor as if he had been picked off by a sniper. 

See Video

Gamboa artwork to come...

Yuriorkis Gamboa: Cuban Phenom

Turn on your televisons.

In a few hours, super featherwight Yuriorkis Gamboa (10-0, 8 Ko's) will be showcasing his talents on ESPN Friday Night Fights. He will square off against last minute replacement, Al Seeger (27-3, 21 Ko's).

Gamboa is a 2004 olympic gold medalist for Cuba and has recently defected from his homeland to turn pro in America.  This speed demon walked threw his first 9 opponents, however in his tenth bout against a step up in class, Darling Jimenez, he showed some weakness.

Gamboa stilled dominated the fight and won every round, but his case is very interesting.  He may be too fast and too good for is own good (if that makes sense). 

Gamboa can throw punches like a machine, sometimes dropping combinations in excess of 15 punches. He is so well conditioned and so much faster than everyone he comes into contact with, that is seems he never really had to learn how to properly defend himself.  

He just ducks and dodges every punch, and for the most part his raw ability lets him get away with it. However it did catch up with him for a moment in has last fight, when in the fourthh round he walked into a flash knock down.

It will be interesting to see how he develops in the next year, because with out a doubt, he has greater natural ability than 99% of professional fighters. Tonight should be a chance for him to score a convincing win on a last minute replacement in front of national audience.  

Down the line, look for Gamboa to challenge for a world title.

More to come on Gamboa, as well as artwork...

Kelly Pavlik is Making the Move to Super MIddleweight to Fight Bernard Hopkins

Although it finally looks like we may see a Kelly Pavlik - Joe Calzaghe showdown in the future, in the mean time both fighters still have impending bouts to worry about before then. Calzaghe is signed and set to go against Jones, but Pavlik has been struggling to find an adequate opponent, that is until now.

We recently reported that the match-up with welterweight champ Paul Williams was close to being inked, and it was close, however as things often do in the sport of boxing, it fell through due to monitory issues.  The fight wouldn't generate enough of it. 

After going through a fairly diverse list of welterweights, junior middles, and middleweights, that included Sergio Mora, Marco Antonio Rubio, Paul Williams, Randy Griffin and Winky Wright, The Ghost's camp decided on a light heavyweight of all things, former Ring champ and "legend," Bernard Hopkins. 

Dan Rafael, from ESPN, broke the news this morning. "There's a deal, but there are a few details to be tied up," Arum said. "But the fight is happening."

Although this is definitely not Pavlik's first choice (or ours for that matter), this bout will be directly beneficial to Kelly in three ways.  (1) If he plans to take on Joe Calzaghe at super middleweight, this fight will be a perfect test at the higher weight (2) We will all be able to compare and contrast how Pavlik handles Hopkins as opposed to his counterpart Joe C. (3) If he defeats Hopkins, he scores a win over a legend of the sport, and although over-the-hill, he still shows up on many people's top ten pound-for-pound list. 

With all that said, this is not and easy fight by any means. Hopkins will give anyone a tough time in the ring and "Kelly isn't thrilled with the fight, but if he is going to fight Calzaghe, it gets him ready for that fight," said Jack Loew, Pavlik's trainer.

Who can blame him though? Most fighters wouldn't even think of taking a fight with a crafty vet like Hopkins, who has the ability to make anyone look horrible in the ring, especially when there is not a belt on the line. But, Pavlik is showing that he is a true champ and is willing to take on whoever is put in front of him, unlike many of the fighters out there (eh hmm... Floyd).

The fight will take place at the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, N.J. and will be broadcast on HBO Pay-Per-View live October 18th.

Joe Calzaghe Now Willing to Fight Kelly Pavlik?

It's working.  

The constant pressure from the fans and media seems to be slowly getting to the Welsh super middleweight and light heavyweight champ.  Just the past week, Joe Calzaghe made statements suggesting that he intended to hold on to his WBO super middlweight title (the belt that he defended 21 times for over ten years) and continue fighting after the Roy Jones Jr. bout (article).

The BBC reported earlier this morning that Calzaghe not only intends to defend his title, but could be planning to do it against the best middle weight in the world, Kelly Pavlik. "There is no way I am going to give up my WBO title.  If I beat Jones, I might move back down to super-middleweight to face Kelly Pavlik," said Joe C. 

Thank you Joe, we take back anything negative that we have ever sent in your direction. 

If Calzaghe's words hold up and these two actually step in the ring, win or lose, Calzaghe's credibility, likability and legacy will all take a turn for the better in the mind's of every American boxing fan. 

Now Calzaghe's is really fighting for something in his next bout with Jones.  He is fighting for the fans and for boxing, he is fighting for the chance to set up one of the biggest fights in the past ten years - a showdown between the top two undefeated  160 and 168 pounders in the world.

James Toney vs. Hasim Rahman Results: Another Disappointment

Yes they are. Don't know whatever possessed us think that this match-up wouldn't somehow end in raging disappointment.

After three rounds of fairly decent action, James Toney and Hasim Rahman's very large heads collided, opening a gash above Hasim's eye and leaving both a little disoriented (see video 1). Toney (who despite claiming he worked harder than ever in training, still looked like an alien pod was incubating in his stomach) quickly capatilized on the occasion, landing quite a few big right hands before the round ended. And then it got weird.

BDSSP Fight Night: Round 3 Highlights

In between rounds, the ringside physician came over to Rahman's corner to check the cut that was caused from the unintentional head-butt. Somewhere in the conversation, Hasim said that he was having trouble seeing out of his eye (the one that was affected by the butt). The ringside physician did exactly what he was supposed to do and stopped the bout when a fighter's vision is severely affected.

At the sound of the bell we saw James Toney fall to the floor in excitement for what he thought was a victory.  After some deliberation before the announcer let us in on the ruling, Toney's camp realized the decision was not cut and dry and decided to sit down to wait anxiously in their corner.  

Now what normally happens when an unintentional head-butt causes a cut that is bad enough to stop the fight within the first four rounds, the bout is ruled a no-contest.  However, after the fourth round the decision will go to the score cards. Pretty simple right? Not quite.

Since the doctor ruled that the cut was okay to contiue, the fight was stopped on Rahman's exclamation of blurred vision in his left eye. Although the head-butt may have aided in his ailment, it is possible that it was caused from punches as well. So Rahman was, by his own admission, not able continue and James Toney was awarded the NABO heavyweight title (see video).

BDSSP Fight Night: Final Decision

In his post interview, Toney mumbled something about how he is the best heavyweight in the division and slung some derogatory comments towards the number one heavyweight champion Wlad Klitschko (seems to be the "it" thing to do these days; see video above). And this is coming after a horrible and unconvincing technical victory.

Although Klitschko has not astounded us as of recently, there is no way James Toney should even get the chance to be mentioned in the same breath as Wlad. He is still out of condition and at age 40 has no chance of lasting 12 rounds with a man who is 7 inches taller, a ripped 241 lbs, and currently just a better fighter. 

Toney get in the long line of Wald contenders, your at the end buddy. 

Clazaghe Not Done After Jones?

According to Boxing News 24, Joe Calzaghe may be taking back his recent words of retirement.

Calaghe has informed the president of the WBO that he intends to defend his super middleweight title after the conclusion of the Roy Jones Jr. fight at Madison Square Garden, on September 20th.

Apparently the onslaught of media backlash (us included) that was directed his way after turning down a chance to fight middleweight champ, Kelly Pavlik, finally got to him.  There is no mention of who he would be fighting in his return to super middleweight, but it definitely leaves it open for a Calzaghe - Pavlik Showdown.

Weigh-in results: James Tony vs. Hasim Rahman

When we first heard that these two "veterans" (we're being nice) singed up for a heavyweight bout, we were very skeptical (see favorite article; Toney and Rahman Are Still Fighting?). And not to say that we have changed our minds, but after hearing some buzz about the training camps and seeing the weigh in results, the fight just became a little bit more interesting (a little bit...).

The last couple of times we saw James Toney (70-6 -3, 43 Ko's) in the ring he was looking (how do we put this lightly..) not healthy. He tipped the scales at over 250 lbs, was grossly out of shape and resembled Grimace, Ronald McDonald's obese purple buddy or the pleasantly plump alien Earl, from Sega's Toe Jam and Earl (the one eating the hotdog; whichever, he was a big boy). 

However, there have been rumors floating around that Toney has been taking this fight as seriously as he did back when he was the middleweight champion of the world (16 years and 100 lbs ago).  And it would seem that the rumors are true.

James Toney stepped up to the scale looking fit and ready, weighing in at 226 lbs.  His opponent Hasim Raham (45-6-2, Ko's 36), tipped in at 244 lbs. 

The fact that Toney looks like he is taking the fight more seriously is what makes it instantly more interesting.  Although the winner of this match-up doesn't deserve a title shot (as previously stated by the promoters), there is a very slight chance we could be in for a good fight.

We are still talking about two of the better fighters in the past 15 years. Toney has won a title in every division on his journey up from middlweight to heavyweight and was named 2003 "Fighter of Year". Standing across from him will be one of the few men who can say they took down the last outstanding heavyweight champ, Lennox Lewis.  And they both will be fighting as if it were their last fight (because it probably is).

If these guys are as serious as they claim, this fight has the chance to be a diamond in the rough in the heavyweight division.  In the same breath, it could be as boring as (if not worse) than the Klitschko fight. We have to keep in mind that we are still watching heavyweights, both past the age of 35 and both semi-washed up with one foot out the door (and into a Coldstone Creamery for Toney).

The fight will be broadcast live from Temecula, CA on FSN tomorrow night (wed.) at 11:00 pm EST