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June 2, 2006: Chad Dawson W12 Eric Harding tonight. Boxing is what it is and tonight the cycle continued on as usual. Usually, but not always, an old lion will eventually be eaten by a young lion and this match was just another example of that. On the one hand it was obvious to me as early as the second round that this was not the Eric that defeated Tarver and gave Roy Jones such a tough fight back in 2000. His punches were much slower than they ever have been and his attitude, his usual "machismo" and confident demeanor he showed in his prime seemed to have been dulled with age. I am a very firm believer that you can tell a lot about a man, especially a professional fighter, from his demeanor and his attitude and the feelings and aura that he gives (or doesn't give) off and to me, as early as round two, I saw things in Eric (that are hard to explain in writing) that made me think that was not going to be his night. And it wasn't.
On the other hand, though, Chad proved himself tonight as a very legit contender if not a future world champion at 175 pounds. He was fluid, calm, confident and, when he let his hands go, he was very sharp and accurate. Chad has some Roy Jones-like qualities and other than Tarver, based on tonight, I don't know who beats him right now at light heavyweight. Tonight was actually the first time I really watched Chad fight as a pro other than the fights I trained him for and its a different view from when you are training a guy and looking at his fight with the intention of watching to see what to tell him after that round is over. Watching him now, just as an observer, it is very apparent that despite the point in Eric's career that Chad beat him (it was very obvious that Eric is not the guy that fought Tarver and Jones six years ago) he is a very serious and legitimate contender for the world light heavyweight title. His, confidence and punch output and the sharpness and precision of his punches at 175 pounds (the weight he should have been at for some time now) are good enough right now I believe to win a world title.
On the other hand, though, Chad proved himself tonight as a very legit contender if not a future world champion at 175 pounds. He was fluid, calm, confident and, when he let his hands go, he was very sharp and accurate. Chad has some Roy Jones-like qualities and other than Tarver, based on tonight, I don't know who beats him right now at light heavyweight. Tonight was actually the first time I really watched Chad fight as a pro other than the fights I trained him for and its a different view from when you are training a guy and looking at his fight with the intention of watching to see what to tell him after that round is over. Watching him now, just as an observer, it is very apparent that despite the point in Eric's career that Chad beat him (it was very obvious that Eric is not the guy that fought Tarver and Jones six years ago) he is a very serious and legitimate contender for the world light heavyweight title. His, confidence and punch output and the sharpness and precision of his punches at 175 pounds (the weight he should have been at for some time now) are good enough right now I believe to win a world title.
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