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By Troy Ondrizek - Is middleweight contender Kelly Pavlik (31-0 28KOs) the savior of boxing? Many people might feel that question is a bit premature to ask about a guy who never won a title, appeared in a pound-for-pound list or beat an A-level fighter. The pundits who discredit the previous question would undoubtedly have a very credible argument against such. I pose this question feeling that in short time Pavlik will make me look like a genius and the fruition of the compliments I am bequeathing upon him will mature in a half dozen bouts.
For many of us who follow the sport a little closer, Pavlik is a name we have known for some time. I was turned onto him by some boxing friends of mine in the Ohio area when Pavlik decided to turn pro. I wasn’t overly impressed until he stopped Dorian Beaupierre.
Beaupierre is a fighter I was very familiar with since he trains and lives in my hometown of Orlando, Florida. I have never thought of Dorian being a world-beater, but more as a solid gatekeeper. It was after that moment I kept the lanky brawler from Youngstown on my boxing radar.
To be honest, all one has to do is look at Kelly’s roots and from there you can tell a solid foundation for a boxing career was laid. Pavlik hails from rugged Youngstown Ohio, a town that is still recovering from the steel companies’ exodus of a few decades ago and that has forged some respectable and notable fighters like Harry Arroyo and Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini. My family hails from nearby Pittsburgh and Altoona Pennsylvania and I’ve seen how opportunities to make it out of the region are limited. Boxing is one of the best avenues for young men to break the chains that bind them to the “Rust Belt.” Boxing is a much-respected pastime in the region. [details]
For many of us who follow the sport a little closer, Pavlik is a name we have known for some time. I was turned onto him by some boxing friends of mine in the Ohio area when Pavlik decided to turn pro. I wasn’t overly impressed until he stopped Dorian Beaupierre.
Beaupierre is a fighter I was very familiar with since he trains and lives in my hometown of Orlando, Florida. I have never thought of Dorian being a world-beater, but more as a solid gatekeeper. It was after that moment I kept the lanky brawler from Youngstown on my boxing radar.
To be honest, all one has to do is look at Kelly’s roots and from there you can tell a solid foundation for a boxing career was laid. Pavlik hails from rugged Youngstown Ohio, a town that is still recovering from the steel companies’ exodus of a few decades ago and that has forged some respectable and notable fighters like Harry Arroyo and Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini. My family hails from nearby Pittsburgh and Altoona Pennsylvania and I’ve seen how opportunities to make it out of the region are limited. Boxing is one of the best avenues for young men to break the chains that bind them to the “Rust Belt.” Boxing is a much-respected pastime in the region. [details]
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