BoxingScene.com's Television Picks of the Week
By Cliff Rold
For years the question has been asked: why are there not more fights online? Failure to exploit the internet to the fullest has been among boxing’s great recent shames. It also runs contrary to history.
Boxing has always been at the forefront of new technology. Whether it was using the expansion of national newspapers, radio, free television and cable after it, boxing was always there to provide programming and build fans.
For a long time, the argument was that stream quality just wasn’t good enough. That isn’t the case any more and boxing is catching up, at least at ESPN3.com. Other outlets, notably Maxboxing.com, have broadcast fights in the past but ESPN3 is beginning to become a regular outlet paying special attention to overseas action.
Given game consoles that can stream from the ‘net, and computers which can be hooked to T.V. screens, the world of boxing can finally get smaller. The new wave of action being seen is largely from overseas and, given the quality of international action, more can be hoped for. Whether the trends will continue or not, this week the best boxing requires an Internet connection.
These are the picks of the week.
Pick Heavy: #1 Vitali Klitschko vs. Shannon Briggs (Saturday, ESPN3, 5 PM EST/2 PM PST)
While this scribe finds his accomplishments, particularly in comparison to his younger brother, to be overstated, there is no doubting that Vitali Klitschko (40-2, 38 KO) has been a dominant force at Heavyweight. This weekend, he faces a man who was once billed as a coming force and never quite worked out. Maybe this one ends up more farce than fight, but it’s two very big men with very heavy hands. Shannon Briggs (51-5-1, 45 KO), by virtue of a pretty bad call on the cards versus George Foreman in 1997, is the former lineal World Heavyweight champion and also briefly held a WBO belt. This is his last chance and, off a three-fight win streak, he should know it. Briggs isn’t anywhere near anyone’s top ten Heavyweights these days and, at 38, is well past it. However, Klitschko at 39 is showing signs of slowing and could be touched up by Briggs early. Klitschko’s chin, and better conditioning, should win out and decisively but seeing him take a big shot, even once, would be better than his last couple outings. He might be over celebrated, but he’ll also be missed when he is gone. Klitschko packs in the fans and boxing needs more Heavyweights who can.
Pick The Excluded: #2 Lucian Bute vs. Jesse Brinkley (Friday, ESPN3, 9:30 PM EST/6:30 PM PST)
If Klitschko-Briggs is about a clash of old warhorses, this one is the week’s Rocky story. Bute (26-0, 21 KO), the IBF Super Middleweight titlist, could easily be rated tops in his class. He’s got speed, pop, and a mean streak. Brinkley (35-5, 22 KO) is traveling to Bute’s turf in Montreal and brings guts and a serious deficit in the skills comparison. A contestant on the first season of “The Contender,” he’s won nine straight to earn this shot against the man who should have been in the Super Six but wasn’t. We think. Can Brinkley shock the sport and prove otherwise? It’s doubtful but this will be spirited as long as it lasts.
Pick The Move: Antonio Tarver vs. Nagy Aguilera (Friday, Showtime, 11 PM EST/PST)
41 is a little old to begin chasing the Heavyweight crown, especially when the 41-year old is an Antonio Tarver (27-6, 19 KO) whose career high weight, so far, was 179 lbs. The former two-time Ring Magazine Light Heavyweight titlist lost his last two to Chad Dawson at Light Heavyweight and took some time off before deciding to test a decidedly shallow field. While Tarver beating a Klitschko seems far-fetched (to say the least), a win or two could always result in a showdown with a David Haye or Tomasz Adamek, both former Cruiserweight champions. To his credit, Tarver didn’t look bad in the second Dawson loss and doesn’t have a ton of wear. There is at least some money to be made and Tarver can always bring the personality. Recently developed into what might be the best ringside fighter analyst in the game today, he’ll be missed on the air Friday but shouldn’t have too much trouble with the mediocre Nagy Aguilera (16-4, 11 KO). It’s worth checking to see if he has enough trouble to make him think twice on the big boys though.
Back in seven.
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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