Your weekly random thoughts …
• First things first: I love the idea of the six-man super middleweight tournament being spearheaded by Showtime. I wish other divisions had similar plans. Imagine the kinds of fights we'd see if there was one at welterweight or junior welterweight?
If the Showtime round-robin at 168 pounds is finalized, I think it might be the biggest boxing story of the year.
For those who missed my July 4 blog (yeah, I've been known to work holidays) on the tournament, it's a nine-fight round-robin of pre-determined bouts followed by semifinals and a final. The tournament would commence in October and finish in May or June of 2011. Fighters will fight at least three times, with the top four advancing to the seeded semifinals on a points system.
The tournament includes six of the top names in the division: titleholders Mikkel Kessler and Carl Froch, former middleweight champ Jermain Taylor, rising contenders Andre Ward and Andre Dirrell and middleweight titlist Arthur Abraham, who would dump his belt at 160 pounds and move up in weight to participate. It has the potential to be very exciting for everyone involved, including boxing fans around the world.
Showtime is working hard to get it all wrapped up with the hope of staging a kickoff news conference Monday in New York. That's not a lot of advance warning, but hopefully everyone who needs to sign paperwork will in time. But when you're dealing with six fighters and five promoters spread across four countries, things can get complicated. It's no wonder Showtime boxing honcho Ken Hershman hasn't found time to respond to media inquiries, even with a "no comment."
From what I hear, there are a few issues holding up the announcement. One is the promotional status of Kessler. He has been in a legal battle with Danish promoter Mogens Palle, who has been working on a settlement that would see German promoter Sauerland Event, which also handles Abraham, take over Kessler's contract. But it's not done yet.
There are also more mundane issues, such as the travel. Besides a New York news conference, Showtime also wants media events in Europe next week and there has been some bickering over who will foot the bill for such expensive last-minute overseas travel. These big deals really do come down to the minutiae sometimes.
Talking to various sources and hearing how this thing is unfolding is sort of like watching sausage get made. At the end of the day, most people don't really care about that. They just want to eat it.
Boxing fans, I believe, just want to see the fights happen.
I've heard some criticisms here and there, however. Some have wondered why Taylor, who is 1-3 in his past four, including two knockout losses, was invited to participate. That's fair. Some have railed against the exclusion of titleholder Lucian Bute. Some have asked why isn't it an eight-man single elimination tournament?
Those are all legitimate questions, but nothing is perfect. Tournaments are hard to put together. This one is ambitious, and I will be thankful if it comes off even close to the way it is outlined in the master contract.
• For the record, Don Majeski, an agent for Bute and his promoter, InterBox, told me that Bute did not reject an invitation to the tournament as some have said. He said Bute was never invited. If that's true, it's a travesty.
• I always thought that Wladimir Klitschko would have knocked out David Haye had their June 20 fight come off. Haye, unfortunately, pulled out on short notice. Now it looks like Haye is going to fight for Vitali Klitschko's title Sept. 12 instead. Guess what? I think Vitali will smoke Haye even easier than I thought Wladimir would have.
• Now that Shane Mosley has returned to reality and plans to fight this fall (having finally realized he isn't going to get Manny Pacquiao), I have this funny feeling he will wind up facing Zab Judah. Just a feeling.
• Seems like Floyd "Money" Mayweather ought to change his nickname to "Needs Money." According to public records obtained by The Associated Press, Mayweather is millions in debt. Mayweather's tax issues have been an open secret, but seeing the specific numbers was still surprising. The AP's report paints a pretty harsh portrait of the fighter, who has been known to travel carrying tens of thousands of dollars in a paper bag (I've seen it), and who brags about his supposed wealth. But according to the report, he owes the IRS $6.17 million, not to mention $193,000 in back taxes to New Jersey, $9,400 to three homeowners' associations, $3,900 to a contractor who did work in his home and even $320.10 to his garbage collector. Come on, man, at least pay the trash man! Mayweather is a tremendous fighter, and maybe he legitimately misses the competition and the roar of the crowd. But anyone who believes that money isn't the driving reason for him coming out of retirement is crazy.
• Heavyweight contender Eddie Chambers was in tremendous condition for his impressive win last week against Alexander Dimitrenko. If only he had been in that kind of shape when he fought Alexander Povetkin, who handed him his only loss.
• Here are a few guys I'd like to see get some exposure (or even more exposure) on American television: Jorge Linares, Marcos Maidana, Fernando Guerrero and Jean Pascal.
• The clowns at the WBA are at it yet again. Once again, they'll have three so-called champions in the same division, which means triple the sanctioning fees. It must be a great gig when you can get into three different pockets and be paid three times for the same thing. The latest abomination is courtesy of the lightweight division, where Juan Manuel Marquez reigns as the "super champion" and Paulus Moses is the "regular champion." On July 25 the horrific hat trick will be completed when the winner of the Urbano Antillon-Miguel Acosta bout is declared "interim champion." It's an absolute disgrace and a farce. Why is it that anyone still takes this wretched organization seriously?
• So how are those big plans for Tavoris Cloud coming along?
• I am quite intrigued by the Aug. 15 heavyweight fight between American Kevin Johnson and Cuban Odlanier Solis, both of whom are undefeated and risking a lot. One question, though: Why is this fight on a Top Rank pay-per-view card, especially one featuring Filipinos? A fight like this belongs on HBO's "Boxing After Dark."
• So Johnny Tapia is back in jail. I'm just shocked.
• Welterweight Delvin Rodriguez has been a staple of ESPN2's "Friday Night Fights" for years. Isaac Hlatshwayo has also appeared on the network, including his upset of Nate Campbell. So it is particularly disappointing that their Aug. 1 fight for a vacant world title (and a rematch of last fall's exciting draw) won't be seen on ESPN2. The only American television for the bout will be regional cable. But if any fight ought to be on FNF, Rodriguez-Hlatshwayo II is it.
• I'm still totally bummed that Andreas Kotelnik's junior welterweight title defense against Amir Khan next week in England is not being televised, even on pay-per-view, in the United States.
• DVD pick of the week: There was a time when important fights were a staple of network television. I miss those days, but fortunately I have many of those old matches in my archives. So I went back to Sept. 3, 1988, in Atlantic City, N.J., for a fight that would absolutely be on HBO or Showtime if happened today. Back then it was an afternoon fight on ABC. It was Meldrick Taylor against Buddy McGirt. Taylor was a 21-year-old prodigy four years removed from winning an Olympic gold medal. McGirt was an experienced veteran riding a 10-fight winning streak and making his second junior welterweight title defense. Taylor, however, had the faster hands and harder punches. He outboxed McGirt and wore him down. Finally, Taylor notched the 12th-round TKO when McGirt trainer Al Certo jumped in the ring to save his man, who was cut, getting tagged with ease and clearly out of gas. Less than two years later, Taylor would lose the title in his unification match against Julio Cesar Chavez.
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