by David P. Greisman
Every so often, the broadcasters at HBO put together an on-air roundtable discussion of the heavyweight division, seeking clarity in a weight class where having such is a rarity.
Hopes are raised momentarily, but promptly the mood switches to antipathetic hopelessness, or the in-between apathetic ho-hum.
It happened again last night, the pugilistic pondering between Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant, scribe Dan Rafael and former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis, debating whom from the current crop of big men could be harvested as a hero.
Either out of desperateness or generosity, the names of Wladimir Klitschko, Chris Byrd, Lamon Brewster, Nicolay Valuev and Calvin Brock were brought to the forefront, joining the winner of that night’s Hasim Rahman-James Toney title bout.
But alas, by the time the night ended, the realization came that it was too early in the year to harvest. Rather, it is time for spring-cleaning, quite necessary with the considerable mess.
For when the scorecards were read, they reflected a lack of a mandate, of someone rising to the top and asserting dominance and control. Instead, Rahman and Toney fought a draw, and the draw won.
Perhaps it should have been expected based on the way the styles played out. Instead of Rahman’s power advantage leading to a knockout or Toney’s wizardry producing a counterpunching clinic, viewers saw boxing, albeit spirited, designed to create as many hard-to-score rounds as possible.
Rahman quickly gave up his advantages in height and power, lowering himself by nearly half a foot to get more in line with the shorter, stockier Toney. And after initially working at a distance, Rahman tired of missing his target while Toney rolled and weaved. He moved in close, thus minimizing any chances that Rahman would shoot out the same kind of straight right that knocked out Lennox Lewis, leaving Toney rocked and bloated.
And as much as Toney said the weight didn’t matter, evidence argued otherwise. He looked slow, much slower than he had been just two and four pounds south, respectively, against Dominick Guinn and John Ruiz. His countering ability was still there, but the thudding sound of his gloves pounding flesh belied the fact that Toney did not have the power or speed to keep Rahman off, nor the energy to work at the pace required to gain momentum.
While Toney had been able to do so in a similar style of fight against Vassiliy Jirov in 2003, the difference this time around was that he and his opponent were bigger men.
As for Rahman, his right-hand man Thell Torrence turned him into a left hand man, telling “The Rock” to be “The Stick” and jab all night, and to not end a combination on a right for Toney to counter over. Just like veteran boxing writer Michael Katz pointed out in the week prior to Rahman-Toney, it was the same strategy that Torrence had used to guide Mike McCallum and Montell Griffin in their bouts with “Lights Out.”
And thanks to the maneuvering last year that got Rahman the heavyweight title after Vitali Klitschko retired, “The Stick” will be sticking around, while the round Toney may need to slim down before his name gets brought back up. Rahman retained the belt, and Toney showed flashes of his Hall-of-Fame career, but for all of Toney’s talk, the results showed him, on this one occasion, as more of a flash in the pan.
That’s not to say that Toney isn’t a legitimate heavyweight contender, especially in today’s landscape. But for Toney to rid the division of the “garbage” and “bums” like he promised, he, too, will have to change for the better.
Every so often – actually, way too often – fans, writers and boxing personalities discuss the state of the heavyweight division, exclusive attention based around the premise that the heavyweights are the marquee division, and as their weight class goes, so, too, goes boxing.
And after this weekend, and, it seems, for at least a little while longer, the heavyweights, in conclusion, are inconclusive.
The 10 Count
1. One thing is certain: aside from Chris Byrd’s defense against Wladimir Klitschko in April, none of the above names are set to face each other yet. Lamon Brewster meets Sergei Liakhovich in April, and after Nicolay Valuev recovers from an injury, he will face Owen Beck. As for Calvin Brock, he has been in a keep-busy mode for nearly a year, something that won’t change as long as the other big names are otherwise occupied. For all the talk about unification, the reality is title defenses designed to extend reigns, as opposed to beltholders meeting each other to winnow their ranks.
2. As for Rahman, he is in the strange position of making two straight mandatory defenses, and his next opponent is a blast from the past, Oleg Maskaev. In 1999, Maskaev knocked Rahman out of the ring and nearly into Jim Lampley’s lap. Since then, only two of Maskaev’s 17 appearances have gone the distance, so when the rematch occurs, another firefight could be expected, and it would likely be appreciated.
3. Ricky Hatton has a date, but he has no date for his date. But “The Hitman” cannot go stag on May 13, even if injuries, various difficulties and disagreements over choice of opponent with HBO mean that he’s still training to face the dangerous journeyman TBA. All the while, as is the norm these days, press releases are being sent out like crazy, adding to the mess. Despite all of this, of Juan Lazcano, Naoufel Ben Rabah, Ricardo Torres, Kendall Holt, Lovemore N’dou, Luis Collazo, Vivian Harris and DeMarcus Corley, only one (and possibly none) will get the invite. Lazcano is injured, so he’s out. In the past, Hatton’s former promoter had been criticized for protecting him with lesser opposition, but at least back then Hatton had someone to face.
4. And at least Marco Antonio Barrera has finally found an opponent to replace the injured Jesus Chavez, although Barrera now won’t be fighting until May 20, when he meets Rocky Juarez. Both men need the win, and following that math, neither man can use the loss. Juarez’ recent big appearances were a controversial decision over Zahir Raheem and a loss to late replacement Humberto Soto, so he does not need another setback, no matter the learning experience. As for Barrera, after headlining two less-than-stellar pay-per-views last year, he is searching for a megafight, especially a rematch with Manny Pacquiao, a bout that won’t come unless Barrera wins and brings money to the table.
5. My NCAA tournament bracket looks terrible. It’s a good thing I don’t have a college basketball column.
6. Poor Jim Lampley is probably taking a beating from some after being Dan Rafael corrected him during the heavyweight roundtable when Lampley referred to Nicolay Valuev as “Sergei.” Despite the criticism, Lampley was likely just thinking of Lamon Brewster’s next opponent, Sergei Liakhovich. It wasn’t that bad of an error, nowhere near the level of when Ricardo Torres was such an unknown late replacement for Miguel Cotto last September that Lampley referred to Torres for a few rounds as “Eduardo.”
7. Fight I’m most looking forward to on HBO’s schedule for the next couple of months: Acelino Freitas vs. Zahir Raheem for the lightweight belt stripped from Diego Corrales. Good for Raheem, earning a title shot, and an interesting match-up between a puncher and a boxer.
8. Loser Goes Home: In what must amount to boxing’s version of professional wrestling’s “Loser Leaves Town” matches, chronic heavyweight underachievers Audley Harrison and Dominick Guinn will try to resurrect their careers and images by attempting to show that their supposed talent matches the former hype. Considering how disappointing these two have been, this is another match where a draw is wholly undesirable.
9. With Daniel Snyder going all George Steinbrenner with his money, the Washington Redskins better at least make it to the Super Bowl next season.
10. I don’t know if anybody recognized the record that was set on ESPN2’s Friday Night Fights, but during the studio portion where host Brian Kenny mock-sparred against John Ruiz, Ruiz was able to get through the whole segment without a single clinch.
