It's hard to look good against fighters who make that kind of approach, Barker's.
While I agree with this, Martinez should have started hitting him to body consistently once he realized that Barker wasn't going to come out of his shell. Martinez didn't show quite the adjustment that I would have liked to see from him. No disrespect to Barker-he put on a good performance-but Sergio should have taken him out earlier, and probably would have, if he had varied up his approach. I would love to see Sergio fight Andy Lee and/or Dmitry Pirog. Very interesting fights those. I think that after seeing this, Pirog gives Martinez a number of problems. I hope that fight gets made soon. I would also like to see him fight Bernard Hopkins. That would a very interesting match up.
Lee is boxing very well. Though he needs to keep Vera in the middle of the ring and not let him close the distance. He can't allow himself to get lured into a firefight. He's doing a good job so far.
If this is actually the case, I'm excited for Pacquiao's next bout. I would love to see a relatively new face (when considering Pacquiao's last string of opponents) get some serious media attention. Good for Bradley and a good fight for boxing fans. I'm not displeased with this at all.
the fact is bute is the next best challenger (regardless on his level of competition)
and ward will most likely duck him to face inferior competition
If Dirrell had won a few more fights, I would like Ward to face him next rather than Bute as I think that he is much more skilled and would give Ward more problems. But considering Dirrell's inactivity, Bute is certainly the next best thing for Ward barring a move up to LHW to fight a big-name opponent. I'm a little disappointed that he didn't announce his desire to fight Bute immediately, as I don't know who he is going to fight next. Though I'm still not quite sure why so many people are sold on Bute. He's got some skill, yes, but he really isn't that good. Ward beats him soundly.
Ok. What dó you Think hé referred to then?
"I can put my head on anybody’s chest in a boxing match. That’s part of boxing. But if we’re going to tag me with one fight and define my career by one instance that happened … that might not be the last time that I’m involved with head-butts. It happens. This is a physical battle. This is a fight. Do the same thing with him.”
If you read clearly he is not admitting to fighting unfairly, rather he is responding to Froch calling him dirty as a result of his fighting style. Note that he said that he can put his head on anyone's chest and that headbutts (did and) might occur. And that makes sense, as he comes in with his head to close distance and fight on the inside. There are bound to be headbutts, again, which he admitted. But that is not an admission to fighting dirty intentionally.
Froch says that Ward is a dirty fighter. Ward responds by saying that it was only one fight and not his career. I cannot interpret it anyway else and that is honourable of Ward to admit it.
Yes, it was only one fight of his in which his style resulted in his opponent getting serious cuts, that he admitted. That does not equate to being a "dirty" fighter. But, I guess you can you take it however you want it.
Ismayl Sillakh vs Chad Dawson
I'm not sure if there has already been a thread about this fight, but if there isn't I would like to bring it up. Does anyone feel as if this would be an intriguing bout a few more fights down the road for both fighters? Both are incredibly talented young men, though I give the nod towards Ismayl for being more talented and perhaps having the most potential for further growth. However, Bad Chad is very skilled, has quick hands and feet, good power, a long reach and much more experience against world class opposition. Chad's only real flaw is that he doesn't like to throw combinations (of late) and tends to fight as if he's uninspired. (Though he did look very intense against Bernard, but we'll see how that holds up.) Given this, I still do believe that Ismayl has the ability to completely dominate the light heavyweight division. He doesn't have a good jab, but a great one. He throws it hard and fast, both to the head and to the body. He has good feet, moves off angles, can fight backing up, throws combinations, has good power, and is very active. His defense is solid, he rolls punches, blocks them, and also moves his head. My only problem with Sillakh is that he hasn't fought very many elite fighters and that could be a HUGE factor when fighting someone as skilled as Bad Chad. But, in a few more fights, and against strong opposition, I can't see why Ismayl couldn't control the division.
Any thoughts?
Few more fights for both fighters? Chad is already established. he isn't some prospect you build up anymore. He's a former title holder with names under his belt and already at the top of teh division along with Hopkins, Pascal and Cloud. He's not some Shumenov, Cleverly, Despaign, Ismayl level fighter who "needs time" anymore.
With that being said. Sillakh is the future of the division. He is poetry in motion. Pure brilliance IMO, any enthusiast HAS to realize this kid has a bright future and man.. his damn footwork - It's like watching Ali all over again.
I don't doubt he beats everyone from this point on. I don't even need to see a major test infront of him. Despaigne was a good enough test and he passed it with flying colors. Shutting him out and beating him up in the process.
I said a few more fights down the road for both as it is unlikely that they'll meet this year, but perhaps next year or the year after. And while I would like to believe that Ismayl could take on the likes of Chad Dawson, I would like to see him face better opposition before doing so. There have been multiple prospects who have looked excellent against decent composition only to come up short against world-class opposition. I don't think that Ismayl will come up short. But a fight or two against more elite fighters would be telling about where he is at.
Turn his fighter, Side-step and box and use your jab to keep him off you.
Khan either covered up or ran.
I was literally about to write this. Khan either backed straight back or used lateral movement. That was it. He did not pivot or turn Peterson and he did not use his jab very effectively. He had the speed to tag Peterson all night, really. But he much preferred to throw flurries and back away than try and stay in the center of the ring and dictate the distance with his jab. Because Peterson has pretty good footwork and is good at cutting off the ring, just backing won't be enough to keep him off for the entire night.
I haven't read anything about Khan lacking talent, he does, however, lack certain skills. One of the things that Khan lacks is head movement. He does not move his head very well, in fact his upper body movement is very minimal. He does not roll punches either (which would have helped him greatly in his recent fight with Lamont after being pushed onto the ropes). He has great feet and good lateral movement but never pivots to keep the action in the center of the ring. For a fighter with good reach, Khan rarely utilizes his jab. The Klitchskos, for example, have no inside game yet manage to keep their opponents outside due to good footwork and piercing jabs. If Khan cannot learn to fight on the inside then he must learn to use his jab and to use it well. Otherwise, he will continually struggle with pressure fighters that like to fight up close. Khan will not make it to the elite level unless he can learn, and effectively implement, these skills. The punches are harder at 147 lbs and the fighters are bigger. Personally, I think that Khan has the potential to box Bero/Ortiz silly. But at his current level, he would probably get stopped by both.
I think that Martinez would be a great opponent for Floyd. He would get full credit from me. As for Sergio being too old--Floyd isn't getting any younger either. What's the difference between them in age--2, maybe 3, years?
There does seem to be an inordinate amount of hatred for MMA going around Boxingscene lately. Most of the posters in here don't seem to understand martial arts or the point of MMA. Boxing and MMA are two very different sports. We can, and do, have room for both. What happened with Silva was a rare occurrence that had more to do with his misfortune and poor timing than the kick itself. As to the entertainment aspect, the card was great fun last night. There were a lot of early KOs and boxing fans who like KOs should appreciate it. Sure, MMA fighters normally have terrible hands, but the quick finishes always have you on the edge of your seat. MMA fighters have a lot more tools and they can end you in a multitude of different ways. That is why I think it gets (and deserves) attention. Boxing and MMA are different but they also share some similarities. You really don't need to compare the two.
Mathebula is an awful fighter. He is sloppy, has terrible balance, and doesn't appear to have much power. But Donaire is disappointing. He should be boxing much more intelligently to get on the inside and he should also be working Mathebula's body. I think Donaire has fallen in love with his power and doesn't have much of a game plan when it doesn't work for him. Where is his jab? And his defense is very leaky. Mathebula is giving him more trouble than he should be.
Bradley definitely lost. It was 9-3 for Pacquiao quite easily in my eyes and I wanted to give rounds to Bradley. I am of the opinion that Bradley actually needs a new trainer. He has great skills, can move his head and upper body (saw him slip some awesome combinations) and good feet but he has absolutely no authority behind his punches. None. A good trainer would have tried to correct that by now. Look at the way he threw his punches, they lacked any power, he merely pawed at Pacquiao to no effect. What was worse, he didn't even turn his fists completely over, whether trying to fight on the inside or on the outside, and that's amateurish. Bradley swarms on the inside, throwing powerless, winging, shots to the body that have no power because he is not driving with his body weight behind them, and turning his fists over. Terrible technique. Had he been able to throw with more power, the fight may have gone differently for him. On top of all of that, he continually came in with his head down. Bradley, for his own sake, needs a master trainer who will help rid him of these awful mistakes.
Broner has got some serious defensive flaws (and a few offensive ones, namely his relative inactivity). He comes forward in straight lines and doesn't pick angles very well, lacks good head movement (doesn't roll punches really at all), his feet are completely flat and are therefore slow (I understand that he's trading speed for power, but he's going to have to vary this up a bit, the punchers at 147 hit much harder than Paulie), and he fights with his mouth open. Let me repeat that, he literally cannot close his mouth even during a fight. When he gets hit flush by a big puncher, it will hurt him big time. I think that Broner is caught somewhere in the limbo for fighting styles. He hasn't yet figured out quite how he needs to fight and what style he should rely on. Either way, I think that he needs to step down a weight class or two, because if he steps up in terms of competition at 147, he'll lose.
floyd, pacquiao, marquez would all still be welters.
That's true. But what about all the fighters at light welterweight? I think most of them would be fighting up at 154. At welterweight, fighters like Ortiz, Thurman, and Berto would probably be fighting at 160.
Lomachenko adjusts much quicker than Russell. I see this being very interesting going down the stretch. The way it's going, I have Loma winning the fight, especially in the later rounds when he really opens up. Russell needs to be more aggressive and vary his punches more. Loma's got all the advantages though, except for hand-speed.
If by finisher you mean that Pacquiao lacks one punch power, you would be correct. He does hit hard, but he doesn't have the ability to necessarily end a fight in one shot like a Victor Ortiz or Maidana. It is the accumulation of his punches that stops most fighters, that and the fact that he tends to walk through everything that they throw at him. So, in that light, Pacquiao is indeed a "finisher."
I can see this fight being very competitive in the early rounds, with Floyd being a little troubled from the Pacman's work rate in rounds one through three. However, one thing that I didn't see anyone point out that makes Floyd exceptional is his focus. I have seen a number of fighters and a great deal of fights, but I haven't seen a fighter with that kind of focus. You can not shake Floyd. Please recall, for a moment if you would, the second round in the Mosley fight. Yes, Mayweather was genuinely hurt, but he never panicked and neither did his corner. He follows a game plan to the T. And that is what makes him a dangerous fighter, in my opinion. A fighter who has complete control of himself will easily control his opposition. Now Pacquiao also has a good focus, however, he still makes a number of mistakes that are easily taken advantage of by Floyd. Some say that his work rate will bother Floyd. They are correct, but it won't shake him. Not at all. Thatis why he has never been beaten and, in my mind, probably won't be.
Khan will make these TOP JWW's look like bums the same way as the klits are making everyone on the HW look like bums
Well all the other fighters in the heavyweight division actually are bums. But I don't see Khan making Devon look like a bum, quite the opposite, really.
Pacquiao will have to be patient to win this fight. He will have to think a lot more than he is used to in the ring. The only way I can see him winning is if he establishes a rhythm early and this will be based primarily on the jab. Pacquiao, however, does not have a good jab. He will need to work on it consistently to set up his punches. Even with a good jab though, I can still see him getting hit far too often by Mayweather right hands and left hooks. I just don't think that he has the capability to stop them. His only advantage in this fight, besides a slight speed advantage, is that he throws so many punches from awkward angles. This will frustrate Floyd, but I also think that Floyd will cause too many problems for Manny. He will-I repeat-will create distance between them eventually, and when he does this it will give Manny fits. I expect to see Manny's punch output reduced some-not a lot, but just less than average-during this fight, he will begin to pick his shots more carefully. Manny has to upset Floyd's rhythm consistently to win this fight, and I don't see that happening.
:pat:That is a really brilliant observation. And neither is any other heavyweight present or past. So f*cking what? Was Mike Tyson perfect? -- didn't look like it against Buster Douglas. Was Lennox Lewis perfect? -- didn't look like it against Hasim Rahman. I guess you can say Marciano was perfect, but most people hit him with the same old saw of not fighting anyone but old men. You want to find flaws, you can find them no matter WHO it is -- but many here just want to find them with the Klitschkos.
I chose to dote on the Klitschkos because they have been leading in the heavyweight division for a number of years now, and I find it interesting that the fighters have obvious flaws but no one in this era seems capable of exploiting them. Why would I chose to point out the flaws in a less skilled, less dominant fighter? Think about it for a moment-I chose them because they are the heavyweights to beat. You, as well as several other posters, seem to get offended when anyone criticizes the Klitschkos rather than showering them with praise. This thread is no different than any of the other threads that point out a boxer's greatness but also point out some of his/her's flaws. Calm down.
Mostly agree with all of this.
The premise here is wrong. You're working under the assumption that HE has to fight on the inside. He doesn't. Inside fighting is for smaller fighters, with shorter arms. They're the ones who are supposed to work his body, not the other way around. Ali didn't hit the body too much, he didn't have to. Why should Wlad lower himself to his opponents level and fight on the inside, when he can be The Ring General 85% of the fight, and keep his smaller opponent on the outside, trying to reach in/get in.
It's not a flaw, it's by design. Wlad is One-Dimensional by design, but that one-dimension is far better than any other One-Dimension of any other fighter.
I do however agree with some of your points on what it would take to beat him, however that wouldn't be Mike Tyson, who you cited. I don't wanna break away from the topic at hand, and go about Mike's flaws.
We are talking about a mythical fighter here, with some of the tools a Iron Mike might have, along with great conditioning of another fighter.
Ah, I see your point. But I wasn't implying that he has to fight inside, but rather that he should have the ability to. If someone were to force him to the ropes and had good enough hand speed and footwork they could cause a lot of trouble for Wlad. What I am really trying to say, and this applies to both brothers, is that once you are inside of their reach, they don't respond very well at all. I personally don't believe that any one (currently active) is going to beat them from the outside-even a bigger opponent- they are both too fast and accurate for that to happen. Also, you and another poster brought up a good point. Stamina. Whosoever wants to beat either brother would need to be able to work at a high rate for an extended period of time. They would also have to work very well off of angles.