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I believe I was one of the first US writers to really flip for this fight. Here's my take the Monday after the fight, while I was still at RT:
03/20/2006 - http://ringtalk.com/index.php?action...ments=1&id=440
FIGHT OF THE YEAR VOTING MAY BE CLOSED!
There comes a moment during a great fight when you realize no other is likely to top it in the present calendar year. It was round five of the bout between Iranian WBA 122 lb. titlist Mahyar Monshipour (28-3-2, 19 KO’S) and Somsak Sithchatchawal (46-1-1, 37 KO’S) when that revelation hit me. 2006 may have more than eight months remaining, but if any fight tops what these two men put forth in Paris, France on Saturday, I’ll be shocked. Much as it was in brutal wars like Jose Luis Castillo-Diego Corrales or Arturo Gatti-Mickey Ward, this fight took the air out of the viewer and left a feeling of genuine awe. A stoppage in the tenth round saw the Thai Sithchatchawal’s hand raised in victory and added a new ‘must-have’ fight to every tape collection in the world.
KNOCKDOWNS HERALD NUCLEAR RESPONSE FROM IRANIAN!
The first ninety seconds of the first round saw Monshipour pulling himself off the canvas twice only to drive his challenger into the ropes and hold him there for the next ninety in an eruption of championship heart. In the second, the Thai would again have the champion hurt only to see a complete tide turn in the third as Monshipour looked nearly on the verge of a stoppage in his favor. He continued to punish his foe in the fourth, and then came a fifth round for the ages. Sithchatchawal staggered the reigning titlist and pressed the attack only to find himself again on the defensive as the Iranian let loose with every punch he had. Each man took the measure of the other, driving each other around the ring and against the ropes, unleashing the most personal hell on one another that fighters can inflict.
PACE SLOWS BEFORE FINAL STORM!
The sixth, seventh, and eighth saw some of the steam come off both fighters punches even as they continued to wing them by the dozens. The thought crossed my mind that perhaps the two had left their best effort behind them. I was so wrong. The ninth round saw the champion stunned again and seemingly on the verge of losing, only for him to spend the final minute of the round pouring every ounce of his soul into each shot, forcing the challenger’s back to the ropes and hurting him. The tide would continue in his favor for the first two minutes of the tenth until a stinging left hand drove him backwards. Seeing his man hurt, the challenger threw his left again and again, some straight, some uppercutting, hacking away ten times, if not twenty, at the champion like one would a tree. Barely able to block what was coming, the champion was pinned to the ropes and referee John Coyle stepped in to stop a classic.
LITTLE MEN CONTINUE TO EXCEED EXPECTATION!
While Monshipour announced his retirement, the anticipation of seeing the new titlist again in a category of ‘the sooner the better’ is built-in. Sitchatchawal’s only loss was a decision in 1998 to former titlist Ratanachai Sor Vorapin, and he looked every bit the type to keep his eighth year streak going. With the decision by Oscar Larios to pursue a bout at 130 lbs. with Manny Pacquiao instead of a fourth fight with World 122 lb. Champion Israel Vasquez, we can only cross our fingers and hope that Vasquez turn his attention to Thailand and what could be yet another Fight of the Year contender.
Here was my official 'vote' for FOTY:
12/24/2006: http://ringtalk.com/index.php?action...ents=1&id=1036
SITHCHATCHAWAL-MONSHIPOUR: RUNAWAY FIGHT OF THE YEAR!
24 December, 2006 by Cliff Rold
NO OTHER FIGHT EVEN CAME CLOSE!
Alexandria, VA-This year's runaway "Fight of the Year" wasn't seen on U.S. TV. It was fought in France of all places and has become a litmus test for boxing coverage in 2006. The sport is more of a global affair than it ever has been with technology available for the first time that eliminates the old excuses of not being able to see foreign fights. Know this: anyone who writes about or covers boxing who doesn't say this was the best fight of 2006 (or at least make it a strong runner-up) didn't do their job. Period. The fight? Readers of this column throughout the year know I am speaking of none other than Somsak Sithchatchawal-Mahyar Monshipour, fought March 18 for the WBA 122 lb. title.
SOME STRONG RUNNER-UP BOUTS!
That doesn't mean there were not other fantastic fights. There were and they were fought in varied corners around the globe. Again, some of these fights are a litmus test. Who's doing their homework? I'd like to think I am. Honorable mention bouts that hover just outside my top five include:
Jamie Moore-Matthew Macklin: British light middleweight title war with the best highlight reel knockout of the year. Moore could be a factor at 154 lbs. in 2007.
John Duddy-"Yory Boy" Campas: Duddy survives his first gut check against an old war horse who still had one left.
Jermain Taylor-Winky Wright: Technical delight ended with a draw that begs for a rematch in the coming year.
O'Neill Bell-Jean Marc Mormeck: Bell captured vacant World cruiserweight title in 2006's first big fight.
Jose Hernandez-Antonio Escalante: A brutal war fought on Telefutura early in 2006, this bout could easily have been a solid candidate for top honors most years.
Tomasz Adamek-Paul Briggs II: Not quite as thrilling as their first bout but still a solid nasty trench war. Both men deserve some high-profile action in 2007.
Artur Abraham-Edison Miranda: From a referee controversy to intentional fouls to a fighter show huge balls and gutting out a win with a severely broken jaw, this fight was another example of how good 160 lbs. is right now.
NOW THE TOP FIVE!
All of the above were awesome bouts, and yet the bouts that beat them out were even better. That says a lot for the quality of Boxing in the last 12 months. So what is my top five of the year?
#5 Manny Pacquiao-Erik Morales II: Forget their third fight in November. The atmosphere may have been great, but the bout was a bloodletting. No, it was this one that told the real story. It was a fight in two parts with Morales spending his remaining bullets in the first half and Pacquiao talking over in the sixth round with a body flurry from the pits of hell. It would end in the tenth by KO but it was only the beginning of what will be remembered as the critical year in Manny's career.
#4-Israel Vasquez-Jhonny Gonzalez: In Vasquez' first World title defense at 122 lbs. he got off the deck (twice) and came from way behind to put Gonzalez on the floor before forcing a corner stoppage after the tenth round. A brutal affair.
#3-Eagle Kyowa-Rodel Mayol: I tracked this one down in the last month because I knew my year wasn't complete without it. It was as good as advertised. Fought for the WBC belt at 105 lbs., this Japan vs. Philippines war in May stands as the second best fight in the history of the division behind Ricardo Lopez-Rosendo Alvarez II (and I may be wrong about that). It's a twelve round frenzy between two mini-mites with all the blood and fury we demand at 'Fight of the Year' time.
#2-Sergei Lyakhovich-Lamon Brewster: Fought for the WBO belt in April, all I can say is that men this big shouldn't fight like these two did. Just an epic heavyweight bout in a division that doesn't get the credit for the number of top-ten matchups it's been putting on recently even as the World heavyweight title heads into the third year of "Vacant's" reign. Lyakhovich got off the floor; Brewster suffered a torn retina; both men staged multiple breathtaking comebacks...I just can't say enough about it. This bout deserves its place along the great non-World championship bouts ever at heavyweight alongside George Foreman-Ron Lyle and Michael Moorer-Bert Cooper.
TRULY THE FIGHT OF THE YEAR!
I've written about this bout in some form or another at least ten times this year. I love everything about this fight to the point where I sent copies to other writers before it even had the buzz it has now. It was two guys fighting for a vague belt in front of a small rabid crowd and making like World War III from start to finish. If this fight had been fought on U.S. shores, Larry Merchant may have broken down in tears of appreciation at its exemplification of everything fight fans turn their eyes towards the ring to see.
A CLASSIC IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD!
Oh yeah folks, it was that good. If you've been with us all year at "Ring Talk" and haven't seen it yet, it's still at You Tube. Ironically, without You Tube this fight would have had next to no shot at picking up the acclaim it has. You owe it a look and it belongs in your fight library. The world has gotten smaller for fight fans and we are all the luckier for it if it means access to gems like these. Sithchatchwal-Monshipour. Fight of the Year 2006. Period.Comment
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