by Cliff Rold

A record 2.1 million pay-per-view buyers to see the bout doesn’t change what happened during Floyd Mayweather-Oscar De la Hoya.  If you loved boxing before last Saturday night, you still love it.  If you were a casual fan, you didn’t see anything that would stop you from watching again but also didn’t see anything that demanded an immediate return of your attentions.  That’s too bad because there are some imminent excellent fights that some may not see on the horizon.  In that sense, regardless of a single night box office success, the brain trust at HBO dropped the ball.

Big time.

After sitting through a four-hour plus broadcast with only three fights, I decided to go back and see how much down time there was between bouts.  Excluding walk-ins, decisions, and national anthems there was approximately 30 minutes of ‘down time’ in the broadcast Saturday night.  Used wisely, they could have been as great a benefit to the sport.  Unfortunately, only about three of them were. 

Those were the three minutes spent directing fan attention to boxing beyond the ‘superfight.’  They included two commercials for the Miguel Cotto-Zab Judah pay-per-view show next month; brief highlights of the press conference for Bernard Hopkins-Winky Wright in July; and some still shots of the upcoming boxing calendar.  On a night, and during a week, when the world was watching, that was all that was seen of the world beyond Oscar and Floyd. 

Maybe I’m wrong, but I would like to think that casual fans tuning in for their first big fight in quite some time could have been better served.  Not that there is anything wrong with some fifteen minutes of talking heads talking about a fight that was already a lock for the months cable bill.  After all, many probably had not tuned in for the beginning of the broadcast and might have missed the first round of pontification.

For the sake of argument though, let’s assume that HBO could have done better.

Of boxing’s many problems, one of the biggest is the perception that ‘the best don’t fight the best’ and it’s not true.  Reading off a calendar is one way to promote upcoming programming that proves it.  Throwing in the little mini-ads in the corner of the screen between rounds ain’t bad either.  However, those angles assume that most of the audience knows who the hell the people being advertised are.

In a house with near twenty people Saturday, I’m the only one who did.

With someone, anyone, thinking farther ahead than counting the locked-in box office there could have been time set aside, ten minutes at most, on a segment called “What you’ll miss if you don’t watch.”

For all of his problems as a ringside announcer, HBO had boxing’s best cheerleader at the host desk on Saturday night.  With some well done promo packaging, Max Kellerman could have acted as a hype man for just two or three upcoming (and free to subscriber) shows on HBO that are about nothing more than the future.

I know I’m reaching here.  This is clearly rocket science.  However, let’s imagine what this might have looked like…

Imagine a two minute reel with images of Undisputed World middleweight champion Jermain Taylor (26-0-1, 17 KO) holding his own against known commodities Hopkins and Wright; battering Kasim Ouma along the ropes; dropping Daniel Edouard to the canvas.  Next we see former undisputed World welterweight champion Cory Spinks (36-3, 11 KO) doing his chicken dance, splicing in the knockdown of Zab Judah and some dazzling combos against Ricardo Mayorga.  Throw in a couple still shots of his poppa, Leon Spinks, and Uncle Michael.  Then, just for kicks, show highlights of the recent knockout runs of both Kelly Pavlik (30-0, 27 KO, Ring Magazine #9 at 160 lbs.) and Edison Miranda (28-1, 24 KO, #3), the men on the undercard of Taylor-Spinks who will fight for the right to face the winner. 

Wrap it in a bow with Max telling the world why those highlights mattered, why the stakes are so high come May 19, only two weeks away, and maybe the audience for those bouts would gro… 

I know, I know.  Casual fans wouldn’t care about former U.S. Olympians who now wear the sports second most prestigious crown (Taylor) and they certainly wouldn’t care that a 6’3 white guy from Ohio who can punch like hell (Pavlik) might be his number one contender in two weeks.

Let’s imagine a different scenario then.  Cue some music and remind the world that the #1 contender at 140 lbs. is also the only man anyone thinks ever beat Floyd Mayweather.  Jose Luis Castillo (55-7-1, 47 KO) is seen circa 2002 battering Floyd along the ropes which segues into him blasting Joel Casamayor and brawling with the late-Diego Corrales.  The video skips to Ricky Hatton dropping Luis Collazo and ripping combinations to the head and body of the recognizable Kostya Tszyu.  Casual fans could then have been told by Max that the true World jr. welterweight king (Hatton) is facing his top threat, that it’s almost guaranteed to be street fight nirvana on June 23, just six weeks from now. 

 

What’s that?  These casual boxing observing, hardcore MMA watchers don’t want to watch brutal guaranteed violence between guys that small.  After all, it’s not like there aren’t literally thousands of YouTube hits alone for last years all-French commentary Fight of the Year (Monshipour-Sithchtchawal).  Nope, casual fans are much better served by making sure to get multiple interviews (without subtitles) from Floyd Mayweather Sr.

That doesn’t mean those casual observers don’t still love heavyweights though.  Certainly two or three minutes could have been set aside to drill in the fact that on July 7, exactly two months from now, the #1 contender to the three years vacant World heavyweight title, Wladimir Klitschko (48-3, 43 KO) will face the last man to defeat him, Lamon Brewster (33-3, 29 KO, #8).  For God’s sake, Klitschko was in the building; he could have sat in for a lengthy stay as guest commentator during the main event a la Ken Norton for Ali-Frazier III.  Then again, Klitschko is a ‘big draw’ right?  He doesn’t need any extra attention what with those dazzling, reportedly record low ratings for his last HBO-broadcast bout against Willie Standup. 

After four episodes of 24/7, round the clock coverage of the of the big fight on ESPNews, and the cover of Sports Illustrated the casual audience boxing needs back so bad got none of the above.  They got more analysis of a fight they already bought.  Unless they found the still shots and still calendar fascinating, they still don’t realize that there are great fighters under 30 getting ready to fight each other any day now.  Put another way, after all the silly hype about Oscar and Floyd saving boxing, no one imagined a better way to show the world that boxing not only doesn’t need saving but is as vibrant in the ring as ever.   

I’m hoping that some casual fans saw the names Mayweather and De la Hoya in the headline and gave this column a read today.  I can only imagine that if they’ve made it this far they might just be tuning in again in the next two, six or even eight weeks.

The Fight:  Of course, I’d be remiss not to mention the actual contest witnessed last Saturday (and replayed this Saturday on HBO).  I did my part as a fan (and I will always be a fan first).  I invited everyone I could think of to join me for some boxing.  I always do when I stay home for a fight.  This time people actually showed up. 

They left unenthused.  For the 2-300,000 hardcore fans which can always be exploited for the next pay-per-view show, Saturday was a solid, intriguing bout that went about as expected.  For those who wanted to see a fight, the world still awaits.  Over twelve rounds, there were less than three minutes of sustained fighting all night.  It almost seems some are afraid to say it so I will: action-wise, Mayweather-De la Hoya sucked. 

It was twelve rounds of what in the NFL is called prevent defense.  There was no drama, no blood.  It turned out exactly like most who know boxing knew it would.  As one casual observer noted to me, “Floyd Mayweather talked all that trash and that’s it?” 

To his credit, that’s Mayweather.  He is a winner and among the most accomplished pugilists of any era.  He is only the eighth man to win true, lineal world titles in three weight classes and the first ever to capture the crown at 130 and 147 lbs.

Unfortunately, as he has risen through the divisions, and particularly since leaving 140 lbs., Mayweather has become increasingly, well, dull.  He jabs, potshots, slips, but he doesn’t throw many combinations which means he doesn’t open up for the possibility of exchanges.

That’s likely the driving reason I saw Oscar winning the fight last weekend on first viewing (and had it a draw on repeat).  Some might take the faux-intellectual view and call Mayweather’s performance a ‘masterpiece’ but that was hardly the case.  People pay to see a prizefight and only one guy was fighting Saturday night.  I understand how other could have seen it different and that’s fine.    

I appreciate the nuances of the sweet science, but I was reminded of a line by James Caan in the movie “The Program.”  With his college football team facing suspensions, he reminds an assembled mass that his brand of non-intellectual pursuits pays the bills, stating “100,000 people never paid to see a chemistry experiment.”  1 million plus buyers on Saturday got the boxing equivalent of one. 

Still, the final result Saturday was a clean professional contest, a reasonable decision for Mayweather, and Tupac didn’t get shot.  Almost all fight nights, super or otherwise, fit that description.  If professionalism is the most lasting impression of the evening, that’s not a bad start in a return to better things.

No SSI Just Yet: Some may wonder why I haven’t mentioned the ‘retirement’ of Floyd Mayweather just yet.  The reason is simple: I don’t do fairy tales.  Off of a record dollar count, Floyd isn’t walking away.  Floyd has already made clear that ‘if the fans demand it,’ he’ll come back.  In my opinion, there is a humorous psychology at work here.

Floyd’s retirement is sort of like the girl who breaks up with her beau every time she wants a present.  His appearance on the Tonight Show on Monday was an indication; he asked the fans if they want to see him fight again to a round of applause.  His smile was telling.  Floyd doesn’t want to retire…he just wants another reason to encourage people to tell him he’s special.  Good for him; he’s earned his victory lap. 

When he’s done, there are two fights for him.  The obvious is Oscar in a rematch but that may wait for De la Hoya-Trinidad II.  In the meantime, Floyd versus Shane Mosley is by far the biggest money fight in boxing that doesn’t have Oscar in it.  If the bout can be made, Mayweather-Mosley easily clears 500,000 buys and perhaps approaches 1 million based on current cache.  Best of all, it would probably be a good fight.  Shane has always been a hair better than De la Hoya and is the only fighter with a winning chance, even at 35, who can come close to matching Mayweather’s speed.  The World may have waited for last weekend, but it needs Mayweather-Mosley. 

The Ten-Second Bell:  I saved the worst news of the week for last.  Sometime in the days ahead, services will be held for the type of fighter that is the heart and soul of this great sport.  Former World Lightweight champion Diego “Chico” Corrales is being laid to rest.  BoxingScene’s David Greisman had a stirring and fitting tribute to Chico on Tuesday, and there were numerous other eulogies in the media that said just about everything that could be said about one of the great action fighters of this or any generation.

I don’t know what more I can add outside of a story.  The night Corrales defeated Acelino Freitas, I was part of the press covering the event at Foxwoods.  It was only the second fight I’d ever covered live and I was still in awe of being so close to the action.  After the bout, which Corrales memorably won in ten, it was time for dinner.  I was meeting my old editor Pedro Fernandez and cameraman Favio Flores and we wound up lucky enough that night to join the Team Corrales dinner table.

That’s it.  Nothing special.  I got to have dinner and chat a little with a guy who had just won a war.  I felt lucky to be there that night after everything I’d seen Chico leave in the ring.  This story matters to me now more than it did then in retrospect.

That’s because, ultimately, it’s about what Corrales was doing, taking and giving all those punches.  He was putting food on his table.  Diego, only 29, left behind a pregnant wife and three children.  By all accounts, the purses he made aren’t enough to carry them in the years ahead.  His kids are sure to hear stories about their Dad.  They’ll hear that he was a warrior of the highest order.  They’ll hear that he was a champion.  They’ll hear and see that he rose from the deck twice in the final round to win the greatest World championship fight in the history of the lightweight division in his first bout with Jose Luis Castillo.

None of that will put food on their table. 

Diego gave more of himself in the ring that any fan ever had a right to ask for.  Maybe we can now give something back to Chico by making sure his kids are a little better taken care of.  Ernie Gabion of Maxboxing.com has graciously set up a fund for the Corrales’ family.  Contributions can be sent via Paypal to corralesfund@yahoo.com 

Rest in Peace champ and thanks for the memories.

Cliff Rold is a member of the Ring Magazine Ratings Advisory Panel and the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com