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Kelly Pavlik got a bad hand infection, which is hurting his repuatation almost as much as it's hurting his hand. He's been off since February, virtually invisible from public view save to get our hopes up for not 1, not 2, but 3 fight announcements which got cancelled within weeks. Now, his last Paul Williams fight cancellation, puts him without an opponent or a date yet again. If you ask me, the guy isn't scared, he's just real unlucky. He obviously wanted to fight, because he showed up to the press conference and dealt with all the media questions.
To people persisting to call Pavlik "scared" of P-Will:
A) Fight Promos cost money. Even a few weeks worth, which is how long the last fight promo lasted for before it was cancelled. Pavlik doesn't enjoy speaking to reporters. If he didn't want the fight, he woulda made his announcement prior to the Presser. If anything it shows how much he really did want the fight. And Top Rank woulda cancelled putting that money into the conference if it looked like Pavlik didn't wanna get in the ring or he had a problem like that. It's not like it was in a basement, it was at Giants Stadium.
B) Pavlik having substance abuse/alcohol probs. From all the idiots I hear talking about this, I still haven't seen any proof. All I've seen is a few morons from Youngstown "alleging" Pavlik hit them, and later backing off the statements.
C) Kelly Pavlik didn't get knocked out by B-Hop, so let's stop with the theories that Hopkins "destroyed" Kelly's career. He lost in a clinic, but it wasn't the kind of devastating loss that would make him get scared to throw a punch and take a punch. If anything it humbled him a little. Kelly came back and won by KO in his next fight, albeit to a scrub, but he still made it look easy enough. He did what he had to.
D) I've also heard he was having weight problems. He looked just as skinny as he always does when I saw the pics of the press conference. So that theories out the window.
I hope Pavlik takes as long as he needs to get that hand fully healed. It's been way too long since we've seen him fight. Despite all the hate he gets, it's hard to argue that the man's style and heart are good for boxing. The sport needs Kelly Pavlik at a time when it is competing, and losing, to the UFC, for fans, particularly mid-western white fans who are younger and just starting to like combat sports. Without that fan base, boxing becomes more and more isolated from the American sports conversation. Pavlik is one of the best chances boxing has to hold on to those who are less inclined these days to get some friends together and watch a fight. If you're not going to root for Kelly Pavlik's return for Pavlik's sake, at least root for his return for the sake of the sport you claim to love.
To people persisting to call Pavlik "scared" of P-Will:
A) Fight Promos cost money. Even a few weeks worth, which is how long the last fight promo lasted for before it was cancelled. Pavlik doesn't enjoy speaking to reporters. If he didn't want the fight, he woulda made his announcement prior to the Presser. If anything it shows how much he really did want the fight. And Top Rank woulda cancelled putting that money into the conference if it looked like Pavlik didn't wanna get in the ring or he had a problem like that. It's not like it was in a basement, it was at Giants Stadium.
B) Pavlik having substance abuse/alcohol probs. From all the idiots I hear talking about this, I still haven't seen any proof. All I've seen is a few morons from Youngstown "alleging" Pavlik hit them, and later backing off the statements.
C) Kelly Pavlik didn't get knocked out by B-Hop, so let's stop with the theories that Hopkins "destroyed" Kelly's career. He lost in a clinic, but it wasn't the kind of devastating loss that would make him get scared to throw a punch and take a punch. If anything it humbled him a little. Kelly came back and won by KO in his next fight, albeit to a scrub, but he still made it look easy enough. He did what he had to.
D) I've also heard he was having weight problems. He looked just as skinny as he always does when I saw the pics of the press conference. So that theories out the window.
I hope Pavlik takes as long as he needs to get that hand fully healed. It's been way too long since we've seen him fight. Despite all the hate he gets, it's hard to argue that the man's style and heart are good for boxing. The sport needs Kelly Pavlik at a time when it is competing, and losing, to the UFC, for fans, particularly mid-western white fans who are younger and just starting to like combat sports. Without that fan base, boxing becomes more and more isolated from the American sports conversation. Pavlik is one of the best chances boxing has to hold on to those who are less inclined these days to get some friends together and watch a fight. If you're not going to root for Kelly Pavlik's return for Pavlik's sake, at least root for his return for the sake of the sport you claim to love.