By Jake Donovan (photo by Chris Cozzone/FightWireImages)
If there’s anything better than taking in a great fight, it’s watching one on the heels of another memorable moment, while looking forward to yet another great weekend of boxing.
Last weekend was not only no exception, but the standard to which all weekends will now be held.
HBO delivered its best doubleheader in years. Showtime’s Shobox series delivered a pair of highlight reel knockouts. ESPN2 helped right a terrible six-year wrong and even Azteca America joined in on the act, delivering its best card (or at least fight) since the Solo Boxeo series changed networks.
That each show had something positive to offer the sport was almost a bonus. The one common theme throughout the weekend is that each event took place where the local fans could relate to at least one of the main stars.
Friday night saw Glen Johnson and Tomasz Adamek post wins mere miles from their adopted hometowns. Johnson settled an old score with Daniel Judah in Hollywood, FL, less than 30 minutes from Miami, where he is now based out of. Adamek came through in far more emphatic fashion, icing Johnathon Banks in eight rounds in his second straight headliner at the Prudential Center in Newark, just outside of his new hometown of Jersey City.
The following night wasn’t as kind to the crowd favorites, but producing memories in their own right.
Of the four shows that aired stateside this weekend, the one show that managed to fly under the radar turned out to be a hidden gem, producing a legitimate contender in the junior bantamweight division. That contender was not Francisco Arce, much to the dismay of the packed house in his Los Mochis, Mexico hometown, which houses the latest installment of Azteca America’s Solo Boxeo series.
By night’s end, it was Simphiwe Nonqgayi who came all the way from South Africa to steal the spotlight and earn a unanimous decision and the right to next challenge Vic Darchinyan. Though their guy didn’t come out on top, the crowd still applauded the efforts of both fighters well before the decision was announced, appreciative of the 12 rounds of fast-paced entertainment that was offered.
The only downside to the show had nothing to do with what was produced during the broadcast, but what it went up against. For whatever reason, the network made the decision to air the card in the same time slot as HBO’s big doubleheader, by far the best card of the weekend, if not all of 2009.
It was a given going in that something special was bound to come out of the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The fans certainly sensed it, with a sold out arena of more than 14,500 making for the largest boxing gate in the state’s history. And by night’s end, it mattered little that their guys – Juan Diaz and Rocky Juarez – went a combined 0-1-1 on the evening; there wasn’t a soul in the arena that didn’t get their money’s worth - and that could’ve been said even if they left after the co-feature.
An hour before Juan Manuel Marquez and Juan Diaz would deliver 2009’s leading candidate for Fight of the Year, featherweight titlist Chris John and hometown challenger Rocky Juarez did a hell of a job in keeping the crowd entertained. Far too often is the case when promoters use the co-feature slot to showcase one of their fighters in an undesirable mismatch, often in front of a still half-empty arena.
There was no such animal on this show. The house was already packed by the time Juarez stepped in the ring for what would be his fifth shot at a major title of sorts, this coming against a long-reigning champion fighting in the United States for the first time in his career.
To this day, and perhaps for months to come while they try to work out plans for a rematch, the final outcome remains in dispute. Twelve spirited rounds of action failed to produce a winner, though the irony is that the public remains split on who they believed won the fight while the judges offered a rare 12-round unanimous draw. Given the debates that still exist, it’s fair to say that the tie score was the right call. But the final score takes a back seat to both fighters exceeding expectations from an action standpoint.
As great as was the main event, people are still talking about the co-feature. Ask boxing fans who fought right before Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo threw down in their epic first battle, and even most hardcore boxing fans will struggle to recall. In that regard, Chris John and Rocky Juarez pulled off a double play – properly priming the crowd, and doing enough to earn a future premium date.
For the record, Juan Manuel Marquez represents one half of the answer to the previous question of which fight preceded Corrales-Castillo I. Had the night only featured his one-sided 12-round win over Victor Polo, it’d have gone into the books as of many brilliant performances by the Mexican. Instead, it had the misfortune of getting lost in the shuffle the moment Corrales and Castillo came out of their corners to begin round one.
But that was then; this is now. Nobody is forgetting anything Marquez does in the ring these days. With each performance, he adds to his Hall-of-Fame credentials and further strengthens his stance as one of the very best in the sport and of his era.
Adding to his impressive list of credentials is a performance that perhaps rates as his finest hour. For much of his fight with Juan Diaz, the perception was that Marquez was forced to fight at his much younger opponent’s pace, which was to say he was out of his element.
By night’s end, it was clear that Marquez was never without a plan. A tightly contested war throughout and without a single lull, Marquez held his own during a high octane first half, before taking over for good in the eighth and brilliantly closing the show in the ninth.
The night began with a sold out arena on hand in hopes of Diaz reclaiming old glory in the lightweight division, a year removed from the first loss of his career. The end saw Diaz flat on his back with his handlers peeling him off of the canvas, while Marquez was being celebrated by the capacity crowd in his opponent’s hometown.
There’s no greater sign of respect to a prizefighter than to go on the road and win over what began as a partisan crowd. There’s no greater sign of respect to a crowd than to bear witness to fight cards to which they can actually relate – and one in which they don’t want their night to end, only to reluctantly leave while thirsting for the next hometown event.
Last weekend offered such treats in Houston, Newark, Hollywood (FL) and Los Mochis, Mexico. It followed a weekend where passionate crowds turned out in Youngstown (OH) and New York City.
Two weeks before that, it was middleweight newcomer Fernando Guerrero packing the house in Wicomico, Maryland for an ESPN2 Friday Night Fights show.
Thirteen days prior to that, an attendance record was set at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA, even if only to watch their guy Antonio Margarito get dismantled by a reborn Shane Mosley.
The trend of bringing boxing back to the people continues this weekend. HBO’s Boxing After Dark series presents its second consecutive tripleheader, this one taking place in San Jose, CA. Joel Julio and James Kirkland throw down in a highly anticipated junior middleweight clash, while rising junior welterweight Victor Ortiz steps up in competition when he faces Mike Arnaoutis.
Oddly enough, it’s the bout that represents the biggest mismatch on paper that has the Bay Area fans the most excited. That’s because it features former featherweight titlist and current junior lightweight contender Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero, of nearby Gilroy, CA. The rail-thin puncher has long been a cult favorite and a considerable regional draw.
This weekend, he gets the full hometown treatment from promoter Golden Boy Promotions, much in the same way they went all out to give Juan Diaz a homecoming for his first headliner under their promotional banner last September.
Guerrero’s opponent is Daud Yordan, an undefeated but untested 21-year old from Indonesia. Yordan’s credentials matter little to those who will file into The Tank in San Jose this weekend. The fans are there for the same reason they’ve turned out in Los Angeles, New York, Houston and Newark.
It’s the same reason they’ll turn out this Saturday in Denver for Mike Alvarado’s next fight, as well as York, Pennsylvania, where undefeated prospect Carney Bowman once again performs for his hometown crowd. And the Friday after that, when Lucian Bute defends his super middleweight title against Fulgencio Zuniga before what will be a capacity crowd at the Montreal (Canada) Casino.
It’s not just because fans are anxious to take in a night of boxing, though that’s certainly part of it. After years of watching the business model grow stale, fighters and their promoters are rediscovering that there’s no better way of gaining instant notoriety than going where everybody knows your name.
Please feel free to submit any comments or questions to Jake at JakeNDaBox@gmail.com.
