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By Jake Donovan - One night, four fights on two major networks, all ending inside the distance. One major title changes hands in a Fight of the Year candidate, two talents on the rise dominate, and a new player emerges in the lower ranks.
Now THAT is how you throw a welcome back party.
You know things are slow when a fight between an inactive, erratic bantamweight beltholder and obscure challenger has you waiting with breathless anticipation. So began our boxing weekend this past Saturday, which ended with the sport receiving a much-needed breath of fresh air.
Despite conflicting head-to-head telecasts on HBO and SHOWTIME, the stars seemed to be properly aligned last weekend. With a mere 15 minutes separating the start times between the two, SHOWTIME viewers were given just long enough to get a taste for the direction the co-feature battle between Luis Perez and Joseph Agbeko was heading.
Perez, whose stay near the top of the junior bantamweight and bantamweight divisions have been plagued by inactivity and controversy, was in desperate need of a strong televised showing. His last Showtime appearance came in May 2006, where he was on the winning end of one of the year's most controversial decisions, a split nod over Dimitri Kilirov.
If there was a single positive to come out of the bout, it was that it came opposite Oscar de la Hoya's return to the ring following a 20-month layoff. de la Hoya's six-round thrashing of Ricardo Mayorga dominated headlines, both in boxing and mainstream circles, enough to where any other bout that night became an afterthought. [details]
Now THAT is how you throw a welcome back party.
You know things are slow when a fight between an inactive, erratic bantamweight beltholder and obscure challenger has you waiting with breathless anticipation. So began our boxing weekend this past Saturday, which ended with the sport receiving a much-needed breath of fresh air.
Despite conflicting head-to-head telecasts on HBO and SHOWTIME, the stars seemed to be properly aligned last weekend. With a mere 15 minutes separating the start times between the two, SHOWTIME viewers were given just long enough to get a taste for the direction the co-feature battle between Luis Perez and Joseph Agbeko was heading.
Perez, whose stay near the top of the junior bantamweight and bantamweight divisions have been plagued by inactivity and controversy, was in desperate need of a strong televised showing. His last Showtime appearance came in May 2006, where he was on the winning end of one of the year's most controversial decisions, a split nod over Dimitri Kilirov.
If there was a single positive to come out of the bout, it was that it came opposite Oscar de la Hoya's return to the ring following a 20-month layoff. de la Hoya's six-round thrashing of Ricardo Mayorga dominated headlines, both in boxing and mainstream circles, enough to where any other bout that night became an afterthought. [details]
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