By Cliff Rold

Bernard Hopkins…Oscar De La Hoya…Shane Mosley…all remain active, significant parts of the Boxing landscape in 2008 for economic and competitive reasons.  That’s not a bad thing on face; it’s not necessarily a good one either.  When older stars can still compete with rising stars, Boxing can benefit.  When older stars dominate the headlines too strongly, it often can not. 

After all, athletic history says that aged success is an anomaly.  When it becomes the norm it can communicate to the public that there’s nothing much worth looking at on the way up.  That’s why this past weekend can’t be looked at an anything less than a success for Boxing.  In four major fights, two of which were highly anticipated by hardcore fight fans, and one of which turned out to be a shocker, the younger man won.  All four winners are a breath of fresh air for fistiana.  Why?

Let’s go the report cards.

Juan Manuel Lopez-Daniel Ponce De Leon

Going into the weekend, this may have been the most anticipated fight out there amongst hardcore fight fans.  It played out as the best kind of mis-match.  The 24-year old new WBO 122 lb. titlist Lopez (22-0, 20 KO) turned in a performance that could well be described as perfect.  Whether, punch for punch, he hits harder than the 27-year old De Leon (34-2, 30 KO) or not, one thing was sure: he hit De Leon harder than he got it.  That was all that mattered.  Against a flawed but tested veteran, Lopez was taking a leap up in competition and showed no butterflies.  He deliberately, patiently, waited for the first opening he could find and blew right through it. 

Those who have wondered aloud for a few years how long it would take for De Leon’s technical limitations to be fully exploited found out in just over 35 fights and 2-plus minutes.  His wide punches and disadvantages in speed and fundamental defense made him a sitting duck.  

Lopez’s timing could not be better.  Jr. Featherweight has been one of Boxing’s most consistent bright spots for some twelve years but its standard bearers are all 30 or older and the rising crop hadn’t shown the same flair for drama that made men like Marco Antonio Barrera and Israel Vasquez beloved.  With Vasquez reigning over the division currently, the link to established tradition remains.  Now we have a thrilling fighter for it to potentially be passed to.

Post-Fight Grades: Lopez A+; De Leon D+

Kelly Pavlik-Gary Lockett

The suddenness of Lopez-De Leon was as shocking as Pavlik-Lockett was not.  Look, no one thought Pavlik (34-0, 30 KO) was in any real danger here so there’s no reason to blow the win out of proportion.  The only edge the 31-year old Lockett (30-2, 21 KO) had going in was that he could get his hands off just a little quicker, but it didn’t matter because Pavlik blocked most of what came in and bludgeoned him with straight, hard shots for all the bouts less than nine minutes.  Pavlik has already proven himself in winning the World Middleweight championship; now he’s shown that he can defend it with gusto.

That it was a formality doesn’t mean it didn’t count for something.  Only 26, Pavlik realistically has at least five, probably more, prime years ahead of him.  Already garnering mainstream attention, and with the qualities of a killer in the ring, Pavlik is Boxing’s best current hope for a new American megastar.  Talk of a showdown with the 36-year Joe Calzaghe (45-0, 32 KO) would provide Pavlik a major boon in that direction.  He’d be facing a man still acknowledged as one of the best in the world at any weight and be facing, for the first time, a certain future Hall of Fame inductee.  That brings Boxing’s hopes for the future square in the crosshairs of its established past and present.

Post-Fight Grades: Pavlik A; Lockett C

Paul Williams-Carlos Quintana II

Flipping channels and fight cards, the 26-year old Williams (34-1, 25 KO) could have been expected to examine the tapes for what he did wrong in his February loss to the 31-year old Carlos Quintana (25-2, 19 KO).  It turns out he was watching Joe Louis-Max Schmeling II.  Williams ate a stream of left hands in the first fight over twelve rounds; it took only one to raise a fire in him for the rematch that saw the bout inside one.

Where wasn’t Williams superior on Saturday?  He was faster, and his punches harsher, than in any recent fight he’s had.  In a dramatic improvement, he held his hands higher and tighter than in the first fight or any other fight of his in recent memory.  Also important, it appeared that Williams understood the leverage he can create on his massive 6’1, 147 lb. frame and the evidence was the rolling eyes of Quintana in both of the knockdowns that brought about his end.  The win didn’t just allow Williams to regain his WBO Welterweight belt; it changed the face of the division.

With the in-writing retirement of Welterweight champ Floyd Mayweather creating a logical vacancy atop the Welterweight division, a Quintana win on Saturday would have created a strong case that Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito in July crown a new champion in Floyd stead.  After this weekend, it is clear that no one can call themselves the new champ until Williams has a say.

Post-Fight Grades: Williams A+; Quintana B-

Vernon Forrest-Sergio Mora

Finally it comes to the weekend’s shocker.  Very few (Doug Fischer excepted) thought the 27-year old Mora (21-0-1, 5 KO) would win the WBC Jr. Middleweight championship from the 37-year old former World Welterweight champ Vernon Forrest (40-3, 29 KO).  That he did may have been the best news of the weekend.  Forgotten in the mis-management of his career since winning the first season of the Contender reality show is the audience that knows Mora; some 14 million tuned in for the finale of that show, one of if not the largest live U.S. television audiences the sport has delivered this decade.

The way Mora won was worth noting.  Forrest looked slower than he ever has, and his body seemed looser than usual, but he still had his sturdy jab, still landed some harsh right hands.  Mora took those shots and subtly outworked Forrest inside all night long, doing excellent work to the body and showing slick defensive prowess to unsettle the veteran.  It wasn’t a thrilling affair, but it was a fight that screamed new blood and possibility.  The only downside of the show was that, whereas Mora’s contender run was nationally televised, his title win this weekend passed with many of those original Contender viewers likely not even knowing the arguably under promoted card was happening.  Word of mouth will spread the result, breathing new life into the Contender experiment and hopefully new interest from a chunk of that 14 million.

Post-Fight Grades: Mora B+; Forrest B-

All in all, a successful weekend for the sport, one that provides hope for a future that doesn’t rely so heavily on the past.  A few more weekends like this and the in-ring health of Boxing that began to grow in 2007 will be bursting at the seams.

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