Barrera: "They Should Have Stopped it in The First"

[e=m(c*c)]

It wasn't an impressive win. Anybody can say about Khan's victory, but I think if MAB hadn't been cut he would crush Khan face. Hahaha...

[lest26]

Khan had a 3 fight ppv contract thats over now.

[dumber79]

Khan had a 3 fight ppv contract thats over now.

why's that????????

[BetterCallSaul]

Khan had a 3 fight ppv contract thats over now.

Khan has a 15 fight ppv contract.

[Cuauhtémoc1520]

Thats the worst thing that could have happened in a fight, a cut like that so early.

I picked Kahn to win but I think that this made the fight 10x easier for Kahn.

It's a shame that happened because it really didn't reveal anything about either fighter.

[Dave Rado]

Agree with this post.

There's an interesting article in The Ring Online, by former boxing judge Chuck Giampa, saying that the cut man did a terrible juob and also saying there was a case for saying that it should have been a NC. I emailed Giampa, blaming King for the quality of the cut man, and saying I thought Khan should offer Barrera a rematch, and he sent me a really nice reply, as follows:

Dave: Thank you for your email. However, as an aside, the manager and fighter hire the trainers, cut men and sparring partners not the promoter. So I really don't believe that Don King had anything to do with this. There are a couple of great cut men like Miguel Diaz and Stitch Duran. If either one of them would have been in Barrera's corner, I think they would have done a much better job of containing the cut.

At this stage in Barrera's career, I don't know if a rematch with Khan would be in his best interest. I think his next fight should be for a big pay day due to his age and credentials as a great fighter. I had the privilege of judging a few of Barrera's fights, including his fight with Hamad. The Barrera we saw last night was obviously not the same Barrera of old.

Remember, Barrera was promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Barrera left Golden Boy to be promoted by King. I don't think that Golden Boy Promotions would have agreed for Barrera to fight Khan.

The Ring does, indeed, bring together great matches....the matches that the fans want to see, not the ones that the sanctioning bodies force their ranked fighters to do.

You have good insight in analyzing the fight. Boxing needs good fans like you.

regards,

chuck

[Cuauhtémoc1520]

There's an interesting article in The Ring Online, by former boxing judge Chuck Giampa, saying that the cut man did a terrible juob and also saying there was a case for saying that it should have been a NC. I emailed Giampa, blaming King for the quality of the cut man, and saying I thought Khan should offer Barrera a rematch, and he sent me a really nice reply, as follows:

Dave: Thank you for your email. However, as an aside, the manager and fighter hire the trainers, cut men and sparring partners not the promoter. So I really don't believe that Don King had anything to do with this. There are a couple of great cut men like Miguel Diaz and Stitch Duran. If either one of them would have been in Barrera's corner, I think they would have done a much better job of containing the cut.

At this stage in Barrera's career, I don't know if a rematch with Khan would be in his best interest. I think his next fight should be for a big pay day due to his age and credentials as a great fighter. I had the privilege of judging a few of Barrera's fights, including his fight with Hamad. The Barrera we saw last night was obviously not the same Barrera of old.

Remember, Barrera was promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Barrera left Golden Boy to be promoted by King. I don't think that Golden Boy Promotions would have agreed for Barrera to fight Khan.

The Ring does, indeed, bring together great matches....the matches that the fans want to see, not the ones that the sanctioning bodies force their ranked fighters to do.

You have good insight in analyzing the fight. Boxing needs good fans like you.

regards,

chuck

I'm not a cut man, even though I do work the corner now and then for my gym. I have never seen a cut that bad personally, especially on the hairline, which usually isn't that bad. I don't know if the cut man could have done a better job because it looked like a gash, not a cut.

There was nowhere for him to try and close the skin, it was so far apart and split open.

It's a shame because I thought it would have been a decent fight.

[Pullcounter]

Thats the worst thing that could have happened in a fight, a cut like that so early.

I picked Kahn to win but I think that this made the fight 10x easier for Kahn.

It's a shame that happened because it really didn't reveal anything about either fighter.

i agree. because of the cut, khan's chin was never tested and mab didn't grow old overnight.

[Dave Rado]

i agree. because of the cut, khan's chin was never tested and mab didn't grow old overnight.

MAB didn't get old overnight, but he looked slower than he has before (the cut didn't make him slower, although it probably affected his accuracy); and I agree with Chuck Giampa that at this stage in his career, it is not really in Barrera's interests to be matched against a very fast fighter like Khan. He should face a slower fighter just outside the elite, such as David Diaz or Katsides, both of whom he could probably still beat.

And it's a great exaggeration to say we learnt nothing about Khan. We learnt much less than we would have if the cut hadn't happened, but we still learnt a great deal.

Khan was hit with several hard punches, and many posters said before the fight that he only had to be caught with one decent punch and it would be all over. Yet he was never really hurt; and whenever he was hit with a hard punch he immediately clinched effectively, preventing any follow-up - something he has never done before. Just that one factor means his defence is a lot better than it used to be.

Also, whenever he fired off a combination, his hands came straight back up to protect his chin, which has also never happened before. And he kept his chin tucked in for almost the entire fight, which he never used to do.

The fact that Khan's offence used to be wild, leaving him extremely open to counters, and is now far more disciplined, itself counts as a big improvement in his defence. And his foot movement and positioning have also improved significantly. These are all very basic flaws that he has addressed, but the fact that they have been addressed makes a big difference. Even the current Barrera, even with that cut, would have beaten the pre-Roach Khan.

We shouldn't lose perspective; Khan is still nowhere near ready to face the elite of the division. But anyone who couldn't see the improvements he has made is either blind or hasn't watched his earlier fights.

[pcr405]

Khan dominated in attack and defence. I think cut or no cut khan would have won, he was just too quick for barrera. Thats that.