If this guy (Shannon "punch me harder" Briggs) can get a title shot against Vitali Klitschko, does that mean that Razor Ruddock will face Wladamir next? We can only hope.This month’s burning fistic questions, from the slow summer to the quick MMA death of James Toney:
Q: So what gives with the slow boxing schedule this summer? It seems there’s been a lack of big fights lately.
A: Welcome to boxing, which while it has no off-season, does tend to take a couple of months off from time to time. It’s true, since the beginning of May, there hasn’t been much except the Andre Ward-Allan Green Super Six fight, and that wasn’t much of a fight. I don’t think it’s anything intentional by promoters, really, it’s just scheduling, and all the big names are in the middle of their next big fight. Also, I wouldn’t be surprised if the soccer (oh, excuse me, football) World Cup has something to do with it, especially outside the U.S. With countries practically shutting down for days at a time while their country marches through the tournament, it’s not the best time to be promoting fights. It’s the same reason you don’t see a lot of U.S. boxing shows during the NCAA basketball tournament in March.
Q: What about the big names of Pacquiao and Mayweather? Is all the silence from both camps good or bad for the fight actually happening?
A: At this point, it’s a very good thing. One of the biggest issues during the last set of negotiations was all the carping about blood testing, lawsuits, event sites, you name it. When you’re putting together a megafight like this, with so many variables that each side has to agree on, doing it through the media is not the best way to go. All it did was tick both sides off at various times, so there was too much rancor built up when they actually had to head to the negotiating table privately. Frankly I’m amazed that Golden Boy and Top Rank can even keep it civil after the bad blood the last time around. Still, if everyone (including the fighters) can act like grown-ups here, this can get done and everyone can make a boatload of money.
Q: OK, on to some fights that actually happened this past weekend. Juan Manuel Lopez blew out Bernabe Concepcion in two rounds Saturday too keep his 126-pound belt. Does that mean that his near stumble against Rogers Mtagwa was just a bad night?
A: It was either a bad night or a bad stylistic matchup for Juanma, but if he keeps wiping out really good fighters like Concepcion, that Mtagwa fight gets farther and farther in the rear-view mirror. Much like Lopez’ countryman, Felix Trinidad, he sometimes gets lax and can be hit, which would explain how Concepcion was able to send Juanma to the canvas in the first round after he seemingly had the Filipino just about out on his feet. The flaws in Lopez’ game makes for some high drama, while the dynamite in his fists make for some outstanding finishes. It’s a great combination.
Q: So what happens when Juanma steps in the ring with Rafael Marquez in a few months?
A: You’ve got to like the Puerto Rican in this one. Although Marquez is one of my personally favorite fighters, I’m not sure the Mexican has enough left any more to overcome the offensive onslaught that Lopez is going to bring. If it was 2004, I think Rafa wins, but in 2010, Juanma has too much. I will say, however, that as long as this fight lasts, Marquez will get his licks in, and it won’t be an easy night for either guy.
Q: During the opening fight on Saturday, Showtime shockingly revealed that Nonito Donaire was using Victor Conte, former president of BALCO, as his nutritionist. Is that a smart move?
A: Only if you think that announcing Lindsay Lohan is your AA sponsor is smart. Seriously, there are no other nutritionists in the world better than a guy who plead guilty to conspiracy to distribute steroids? Not only did this Conte’s company nearly take down Sugar Shane Mosley, it’s been linked to some nefarious dealings with Barry Bonds as well as disgraced Olympic athletes Kelli White and Marion Jones. Now granted, Donaire is not as big a name as Mosley or any of those other athletes, but why take the risk? This guy has smeared more reputations than a Kitty Kelly tell-all biography, and he wasn’t even trying! It’s always good to have someone on retainer to help you achieve your best athletic performance possible, but there has to be a more hassle-free option out there than Conte.
Q: Let’s go back to Shobox on Friday night, where the possible rising star matchup of welterweights Mike Jones and Atwone Smith was nuked after Smith lost to Lanardo Tyner. Any chance Jones fights Tyner now? And what does this do to Smith’s career?
A: Well, if you believe Smith’s promoter, Lou Dibella, Smith was very sick leading up to the fight. From the eye test, it did look like Smith uncharacteristically ran out of gas around round six, so it’s probably likely that he wasn’t 100 percent. Tyner showed that he’s the kind of guy you’d better be at 100 percent to fight, because he’ll beat you if you’re not. Still, I don’t think that this will either ruin Smith’s career or get Tyner an automatic shot at Jones. Most likely what will happen is a rematch between the two, while Jones gets a shot at Andre Berto. Either way, we all win, because I’d certainly like to see both of those fights on the same card. Are you listening, Showtime?
Q: German promotional company Universum has decided to make their own YouTube page, posting the company’s recent fights as well as those from years back. Why aren’t more promoters doing this?
A: Honestly, I think it has more to do with how some promoters are organized than anything else. If you have ever seen Universum-Box work, they are very much like a true multinational corporation in how they are run, and they obviously have seen the benefit in giving fans around the world the ability to see their fighters (especially those who can’t get the German telecasts). They have fights with the Klitschkos, Jurgen Braehmer, Sebastian Zbik and Vitali Tajbert, just to name a few. Other promoters, by contrast, seem to think that once a show has aired, nothing more needs to be done with it. This is especially troublesome with large PPV events. With those, we normally get to see a replay of the main event on HBO or Showtime, but the undercard fights tend to disappear into the ether, never to be seen again. Before the Internet, fans rarely got to see those fights unless you knew someone who taped it. You can’t tell me that Top Rank, Golden Boy, and Goossen-Tutor couldn’t do the same thing Universum has done. It’s time for them to get it together. If I can upload my own videos to YouTube, it can’t be too much of a problem for them to do the same.
Q: In a blockbuster announcement on Friday Night Fights, Teddy Atlas said that Vitali Klitschko’s next opponent will likely be Shannon Briggs. Any interest in that?
A: Let’s put it this way – I’d rather walk out to my deck, pull up a chair, grab a soda and wait for the gray aliens to land on my lawn than see any fight with Shannon Briggs. It’s bad enough that the Klitschkos have no one to fight (see Albert Sosnowski), but what the hell has Briggs done since he fought George Foreman back in the 90’s? Grow longer dreadlocks? Even in this horrid collection of sad sacks that pass for heavyweight contenders these days, Briggs isn’t even high up on[I] that[/I] list. What a joke.
Q: So James Toney is going to try his hand at MMA, taking on legend Randy Couture next month. What’s the chance he survives the fight without serious bodily harm?
A: About the same chance that Toney has of passing a Dunkin’ Donuts without snacking on an apple fritter! Seriously, I’m not an MMA fan at all, and I know that Toney’s going to get killed inside of a minute. Bravado is all fine and good, and “Lights Out” has plenty of that, but does anyone seriously think Couture is not out to prove MMA’s dominance by ripping Toney’s head off? It would practically be a disgrace for a decorated MMA guy like Couture to lose to an out of shape rookie like Toney, whose best boxing days have been behind him for about five years now. The people making money on this fight are the two fighters and whatever hospital Toney ends up in afterwards. Humpty Dumpty has a better chance of getting reassembled before Toney does.
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