By Pedro Fernandez
THE ABUSE & DESTRUCTION OF PAY PER VIEW BOXING
Back in the 80’s & early 1990’s, the advent of Pay Per View had boxing fans licking their chops when they would get four or five significant fights on a bill. And while there were some elongated cards that smacked of overkill, the bottom line was that you felt you were getting enough bang for the PPV buck you were throwing down. But like a Cocaine dealer who sells his fare at a reduced price in order to get you hooked, some Promoters alike have employed the same marketing approach with PPV boxing.
FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE “BLACK BUTTERBEAN!”
The main event on Saturday night was a battle for the WBC heavyweight throne that was being defended for the initial time by Vitali Klitschko. The opponent, and I mean that in more than one way, Danny Williams was awarded this fight on the merits that he KO’d Mike Tyson in July. We all knew that Williams had little or no chance, and well, little was out of town. Simply put, and in the vernacular of the fight game, this was a “Work” (See easy!) fight for Klitschko.
WITH LEAKY BOAT, ONE MUST CHART ROUTES!
With the pugilistic limitations that Vitali has, I’m willing to accept that in this instance. But what I can’t swallow is that there wasn’t one single competitive fight on this card! Former 130 lb. belt bearer Carlos Hernandez (41-4-1), who hadn’t fought since losing in July, and in need of a “Easy” fight. And yet he was booed in a Split Decision win over (36-4) Juan Carlos Hernandez. Ex-amateur standout Carlos Navarro (26-3-1) halted what used to be Agapito Sanchez (36-9) in 11. And just as predictable as the sun coming up tomorrow, oh and your Cable bill being in the mail this month, the now 22-0 Miguel Cotto gutted 28-5 Randall Bailey in six stanzas.
OK, SO WE GET FOUR “WORK” FIGHTS FOR $50!
What you need to know, in case you haven’t figured it out already, is that Klitschko, Hernandez, & Navarro are promoted by K-2 Promotions (The Klitschko Bros). Cotto, the phenom that he is…well Top Rank handles him. In other words, the two promotional entities burned the TV distributor Home Box Office in that they didn’t deliver a single winner! Let me break it down for you, we paid $50 clams to watch four guys connected to the promoters “Showcased” in an unthreatening manner. OK, well in case you were unaware, boxing fans can witness this scenario almost every Friday night on ESPN without having to commit any extra coinage.
KING TRIED HEAVY “NUMBERS” IN NOVEMBER AT MSG!
Promoter Don King came at us with four heavyweight fights last month. The albatross attached to this card was the fact that Johnny “Louise” Ruiz was the headliner! The bill had Andrew Golota facing Louise, Chris Byrd-Jameel McCline, Hasim Rahman,-Keli Meehan, and Larry Donald-Evander Holyfield. Some people were dissatisfied with that approach, as they thought “Quantity” and some “Quality” wasn’t worth it. Compared to Saturday, that card was of Hagler-Hearns vintage.
BARRERA-MORALES SAVED A DISMAL CARD
Two weeks ago, Top Rank matched a pair of Jockeys who couldn’t punch a lick in Ivan Calderon & Carlos Fajardo, and they put people to sleep for 47 minutes! The same can be said for the yawner that was Oscar Larios-Nedal Hussien. And IBF bantam guy Rafael Marquez, he again routed Mauricio Pastrana. Only the main event of Marco Antonio Barrera-Erik Morales kept people from demanding a refund that night.
PEOPLE SAY THE TALENT POOL IS SO SHALLOW!
And while there are some that will say we have less good fighters from a percentage point of view today than say some 35 years ago, that may be true. But it hasn’t changed that significantly since the mid 1990’s when fans were treated to Pay Per View smorgasbords. The only difference I see in the past decade is that there is little or no quality control at the Networks and that this has given way to additional promoter profit and shortchanged fans. Like that Coke dealer who got you hooked with the good stuff, the somewhat addicted boxing fan and PPV customer is now forced to pay more for a product far less potent than in days gone by!
NEVADA’S ALAMO JR. STILL “EMPEROR” OF ARROGANCE!
In all of my years, I have never, and I truly mean never have I encountered a man more arrogant that Las Vegas MD and Nevada Athletic Commission member Tony Alamo Jr. They say he wants to run for Governor of Nevada in the next few years. If that is the case, and even if it turns out that Alamo Jr. is running against say Charles Manson, or even my ex-wife, I intend to back the opposition with my pocketbook and vocal chords!
“LITTLE RAY” ON HIS BEING TAGGED A “CENSOR!”
Over the years I’ve gotten a ton of email regarding the Spanish to English translation of HBO’s Ray Torres. Last week in particular, I got two after Barrera-Morales. So when I saw Ray at the HBO post fight party Saturday night, I brought it in up casually and Ray almost went nutty! “If you can do a better job, you apply,” was his unwarranted response. What fans are saying in various message groups and the like is that “Torres censors the corner chatter.” Fans complain that what is being said in the corner is sometimes so sanitized in translation by Torres, that it differs greatly in translation.
MERCHANT POLLED ON CORNER CHATTER
When I asked HBO Godfather Larry Merchant a while back about that fact that guys had been dropping the “F-Bomb” in the corner and on air a bit more frequently than in the past, he said. “Our job is not to censor or bleep out what they’re saying. The whole idea with HBO boxing is to keep it as real as possible.” I guess somebody may have not told the never previously touchy Ray Torres!
MY VIEW FROM RINGSIDE SATURDAY NIGHT!
As for the champ, and I use that term with some reluctance, even the common fan has to realize Vitali Klitschko is more like Lurch from The Adams Family then he is a good fighter. Size and mass are the sole reason Vitali is where he is. And if Bernard Hopkins, Oscar De La Hoya, Felix Trinidad, Marco Antonio Barrera, Winky Wright, and Kostya Tszyu were heavyweights, they’d lay Frankenstein Klitschko out in a pugilistic pine box.
TOMORROW WE GO FROM NEW MEXICO TO MEXICO & MORE!
Having devoted most of this mornings work to the Saturday night card, I’ll get to a lot of other issues, including and not limited to: I got a hold of some Operation Matchbox, FBI/Justice Dept. memos on #1 snitch and all around turd Robert Mittleman. The “G” it seems maybe trying to tie Top Rank President Toad Du beof together with WBC honcho. From the transcripts, and as these U.S. Justice Dept. documents are being read to me, Robert implies that the two together co-Managed fighters.
WHAT THAT “TURD” SAID ABOUT PEDRO FERNANDEZ
Wishing I could beat on Mittleman like Eddie’s Murphy’s brother Charlie Murphy did to the late singer Rick James, you know just punch on his legs for a while to the point where he couldn’t walk for a day. Why would I want to do so…Tune in tomorrow right here at www.RingTalk.com as Robert told the “G” some fictitious/hellacious spit about Pedro that made it on the record!
“VIDEO” RECORD MADE ON SHANE MOSLEY & STEROIDS!
Most of you have read the series of stories that I penned last week that showed ex-champion Shane Mosley’s involvement with Victor Conte and BALCO Labs. I lay it all out, and then some in a “Ring Talk Television” special entitled, “Pedro Clears The Air on Steroids & Shane Mosley.” Hit this link to see that and the list of our most recent TV segments. And enjoy what some people are calling, “The best Video quality (On both sides of the camera) outside of HBO.” Hit this link and I’m think you too will be amazed http://www.ringtalk.com/video.asp
WEEKEND COLUMN LEFT SOME TEETH MARKS!
My weekend column has got some bite. So if you’re looking for “Yo-Yo-Yo” Journalism, or just somebody writing information based on Press Releases and the like, then you might want to change your approach because here at www.RingTalk.com we tell it like it is! I know that sounds like a clique, but it’s not. We know you have a choice on the Net, we just feel you should get the truth, the whole truth, and fight fans, nothing but the truth and that’s what we do best! Tell your friends about the hard-hitting features that are a daily occurrence at www.RingTalk.com
FRESH STUFF “EVERY DAY” THIS WEEK AT WWW.RINGTALK.COM
This is Monday morning. These articles were penned for Monday morning December 13. Check back here at www.RingTalk.com every day this week for boxing News on the cutting edge!
Pedro Fernandez
Note: Mr. Fernandez is not your average boxing writer. A four-time Golden Gloves champion who spent eight honorable years with the San Francisco Police Dept., Pedro Fernandez is a schooled Journalist who has had a byline for better than three decades! He can be reached with your comments at Pedro@RingTalk.com