🥊 The Official Boxing Thread!!! - Part 5

[InCali]

I hope he takes Ortiz as seriously as he needs to. Wilder should win, but he has quite a few holes in his game that someone is going to exploit sooner or later...

I'll give Wilder props for taking potentially dangerous fights. I used to LOVE heavyweight fights, but, frankly, when those interested me, there were some pretty good fighters in the division. I'm not saying there still aren't, but it seems to me that the overall level of competition has gone down. Contrast that with the lighter divisions (126, 135, 147, 160.....can you tell my bias against "super" and "junior" divisions??). Man, these are just better fights these days.

I'll be watching.....I want to see "great"....I just don't see it very often.

I'll give you all one guess at that guy I think has a chance to be on this list. Hint.....it isn't Mikey Garcia....

 

[InCali]

And while I'm at it, stripping Rigo of the belt is BS. If you're going to do it, do it because of inactivity and not because a guy is stepping up.

This kind of crap is exactly what's wrong with boxing. You have all these bungholes protecting "their" turf. I hope Rigo gets back at a weight comfortable to him and knocks the living $#!T out of someone put forward by the WBA. I hope he knocks the "Jesus" out of Gilberto Jesus Mendoza's name.

Let's have a governing body and add a little bit of integrity to the sport. And, for good measure, they can knock "Honest" Bob Arum back into the hole he should never have crawled out of.

 

[Docker2.0]

Boxing seems to be getting worse. I was hoping Hayman would have done something with PBC just to get some what control over it. Right now it's way to divided with so many promotions refusing to work with each other. Sorry but I see so many biases that are so obvious. Can't stress enough at how bias Dan Rafael is with Top Rank and bashes everyone else. It's so hard to read ESPN boxing articles because of it. Manny is rumored to be fighting Mike Alvarado or some other no name.......it's hard to like this crap what is going on.

 

[InCali]

Boxing seems to be getting worse. I was hoping Hayman would have done something with PBC just to get some what control over it. Right now it's way to divided with so many promotions refusing to work with each other. Sorry but I see so many biases that are so obvious. Can't stress enough at how bias Dan Rafael is with Top Rank and bashes everyone else. It's so hard to read ESPN boxing articles because of it. Manny is rumored to be fighting Mike Alvarado or some other no name.......it's hard to like this crap what is going on.

The whole system needs to be torn down and rebuilt brick by brick. Unfortunately, it will never, ever happen unless there is a scandal that completely rocks the entire establishment. I mean it would probably literally require multiple organizations hiring assassins to take out malcontents and reporting this as an expenses in order to reduce their corporate taxes. Even then....I'm not 100% sure.....

 

[Docker2.0]

Spence vs Peterson next weekend. I expect Spence to put on a clinic and stop Peterson, though I kind of feel he's Spence toughest defense being a slick fighter. I really don't think Crawford will fight Spence any time soon and not as high on him as people are. Sorry but Bud was touched by a guy 2 weight classes smaller than him and hasn't really faced a lot of slick fighters. Time will tell but I can see Porter, Thurman or Spence stopping Crawford.

 

[InCali]

Spence vs Peterson next weekend. I expect Spence to put on a clinic and stop Peterson, though I kind of feel he's Spence toughest defense being a slick fighter. I really don't think Crawford will fight Spence any time soon and not as high on him as people are. Sorry but Bud was touched by a guy 2 weight classes smaller than him and hasn't really faced a lot of slick fighters. Time will tell but I can see Porter, Thurman or Spence stopping Crawford.

This is a PPV. Right? I almost NEVER buy those. Does anyone know off the top of their heads how much they are charging in the states? I've sort of tried to figure out a way around paying, but, honestly, haven't tried too hard because it's probably fairer to wait until they air on HBO or Showtime or whatever. I rather expect Spence to win, but wouldn't be shocked if Peterson pulled a rabbit out of his hat. It seems rather unlikely though.

 

[Docker2.0]

Nah it's on free tv. I want to say Fox but not exactly sure. I'm not sure how PBC exactly works these days.

 

[InCali]

Nah it's on free tv. I want to say Fox but not exactly sure. I'm not sure how PBC exactly works these days.

Oh cool. I was poking around looking at the fight and saw something that said PPV so I assumed it was the fight. Glad I was wrong. It was probably some other upcoming event.

EDIT: Showtime.

 

[Docker2.0]

You're right. I just saw that it was coming on Showtime as well. Looking forward to it.

 

[Doc Samson]

Spence vs Peterson next weekend. I expect Spence to put on a clinic and stop Peterson, though I kind of feel he's Spence toughest defense being a slick fighter. I really don't think Crawford will fight Spence any time soon and not as high on him as people are. Sorry but Bud was touched by a guy 2 weight classes smaller than him and hasn't really faced a lot of slick fighters. Time will tell but I can see Porter, Thurman or Spence stopping Crawford.

Crawford's decent IMO, but I definitely need to see more. He can be touched, certainly, and in terms of him facing Spence, that would lead to a short night. Errol, I believe, will prove himself to be the class of the division by a pretty decent margin when it's all said and done...

 

[InCali]

Crawford's decent IMO, but I definitely need to see more. He can be touched, certainly, and in terms of him facing Spence, that would lead to a short night. Errol, I believe, will prove himself to be the class of the division by a pretty decent margin when it's all said and done...

When it comes to anything, I want to see spectacular. I think Spence has that potential and a fight between him and Crawford would answer a lot of questions. I don't, however, want to necessarily see him step up in weight class just to prove how great he is. I would advise anyone to stay at a comfortable weight. I feel the same way for Crawford, Spence, Lomachenko, Rigondeaux, etc.

 

[Doc Samson]

When it comes to anything, I want to see spectacular. I think Spence has that potential and a fight between him and Crawford would answer a lot of questions. I don't, however, want to necessarily see him step up in weight class just to prove how great he is. I would advise anyone to stay at a comfortable weight. I feel the same way for Crawford, Spence, Lomachenko, Rigondeaux, etc.

The weight thing I'm sort of 50/50 on, as you probably know by now. The level of competition (and money of course) has always dictated guys moving up or down, so eventually that becomes the path to take. Crawford's already angling to fight Jeff Horn I believe, so at this stage of his career, I feel it's necessary for him to face that next challenge...

 

[InCali]

The weight thing I'm sort of 50/50 on, as you probably know by now. The level of competition (and money of course) has always dictated guys moving up or down, so eventually that becomes the path to take. Crawford's already angling to fight Jeff Horn I believe, so at this stage of his career, I feel it's necessary for him to face that next challenge...

My step father used to love the horse races. So much so that I decided to try and take a crack at developing a multiple regression formula that would predict outcomes with some level of consistency (failed miserably, but the reason why was pretty funny). I don't follow this, but I remember that they used (still do?) just pile more and more weight on the better horses. I know it's not a perfect analogy, but there's something to it. Compete where you are at a comfortable weight. Sometimes, the prize is so lucrative, that you just have to take the chance and I'm okay with that, but be aware of what you're doing. IMO, Lightweight and Welterweight are rather glamorous classes. Lomo is moving up in weight (already has) and as long as he doesn't jump up too much and end up fighting much bigger guys, he's going to do just fine. I would caution any fighter about stepping up unless you're comfortable.

I wouldn't overly worry about Horn if I were Crawford.

 

[InCali]

Easter v Fortuna....good call by the ref in round 1 for holding and hitting. Terrible call on deducting a point from Fortuna in round 2. I don't know these guys, but they're close enough that stamina may determine the winner. Easter already looks just a little bit slower at the end of round 2.

 

[Fallen Angel]

Spence looked good last night but fancy Thurman to beat him when/if the fight happens.

 

[Docker2.0]

Nah man. I got Spence beating Thurman. Thurman clearly is avoiding that fight and when someone does that, they see something we don't. Or maybe they are just letting it marinate. I have Spence beating Crawford, dare I say easily. The only one I think that will give Spence problems maybe Porter because of his mauling style.

 

[Fallen Angel]

Thurman had shoulder surgery last year though. Still isn't in top fighting condition. it takes a while to recover and have a fully functioning shoulder/arm again after that kind of surgery.

 

[Docker2.0]

Thurman had shoulder surgery last year though. Still isn't in top fighting condition. it takes a while to recover and have a fully functioning shoulder/arm again after that kind of surgery.

Nah I get that he had an injury but even before that, he would stutter when someone mentioned Spence. I've never seen One-time do that before, and I'm a Thurman fan. I just think it's a bad match up for him.

 

[InCali]

Spence looked good last night but fancy Thurman to beat him when/if the fight happens.

He DID look good. Very strong, good power and accuracy from either side, and very polished. The thing that I noted is that he is somewhat predictable with his punches; both when he throws them and the angles he throws them from. At about round 4, I thought "this looks like it'll go about 8". He was clearly started to break Peterson down. Mikey Garcia better stay the hell away from him.

I bring up the predictability because, to everyone's shock, I'm going to bring up a fighter who is completely unpredictable and his name is Lomachenko. The thing that puts him in a different class is his footwork, punching angles, and motor. This guy just does not seem to get tired. Could he beat Spence? I very, very much doubt it. At that weight, NO one belongs in the ring with a guy whose normal weight is 17 pounds more than yours. I think back to the great Alexis Arguello when he got into the ring with Aaron Pryor. Even for Arguello, Pryor was just too big and strong (and an outstanding fighter in his own right).

This kid Easter better run, not walk away from a Lomachenko fight. I heard a lot of talk about his physical attributes and how good he was (mainly from him), but that guy will get his @$$ handed to him by more than one lightweight. He could easily have lost that fight last night. In fact, I thought he did.

So, fun night and an impressive performance by Spence. Really, really nice fighter and I could see him running the table in the welterweight division.

 

[Docker2.0]

I can actually see Mikey Garcia stopping Lomo. He really reminds me of Manny with his offense.

 

[InCali]

I can actually see Mikey Garcia stopping Lomo. He really reminds me of Manny with his offense.

There are no smiles to express how funny I find that.

This is what I heard....

Rigo is faster, a better boxer, and hits harder than Lomachenko. Lomo is bigger and may catch up to him after round 5 or 6.

I thought it "might" be somewhat competitive for the first 4 rounds, but wasn't the least bit surprised that the faster, better boxer, who puts his combinations together better just schooled Rigo.

Mikey's a very good fighter, but he's no Manny, would get the living crap knocked out of him by Spence and outclassed by Lomo. It's boxing and anything can happen, but Mikey stopping Lomo is on the outer edges of the Outer Limits.

I see no future for Mikey stepping up to welter. None.

 

[Docker2.0]

I meant Lomo reminds me of Manny. And I stick by what I said about Mikey stopping Lomo. We just agree to disagree on that one.

 

[InCali]

I meant Lomo reminds me of Manny. And I stick by what I said about Mikey stopping Lomo. We just agree to disagree on that one.

Yup. We disagree and that's cool. I misunderstood about who you were comparing to Manny. I would say that Lomo has that aggression, but is BY FAR a more skilled offensive and defensive fighter. From a talent perspective, I'd rank Manny in the same ballpark, but he never had Lomo's technique. Mikey is about the same size as Lomo and I'd LOVE to see that fight. With all of the changes in Mikey's schedule, it's a shame exploring a fight with Lomo didn't appear to be part of the agenda.

Do you think Mikey has a future as a welter? After watching Spence, I don't. That is a very tough division and always has been, but, right now, I give Spence a leg up on everyone else (EDIT: and I'm talking about people who are legit welters....Mikey will be cannon fodder if he steps up against a top flight welter). There are some very interesting fights on the horizon in that division, but Mikey doesn't have much of a chance in that mix.

 

[Docker2.0]

No!!! Mikey needs to stay at 140 max! All these guys going up in weight to go to 147 is not only crazy but dangerous. As far as Lomo, I think he reminds me of Manny offensively but he's slightly better defensively but that's because Manny's offense was his defense. And I'm just not sold on Lomo because one thing Arum knows how to do is build a star. He did it with Floyd, he did it with Manny, did it with Crawford and he's doing it with Lomo. Just careful planning.

 

[InCali]

No!!! Mikey needs to stay at 140 max! All these guys going up in weight to go to 147 is not only crazy but dangerous. As far as Lomo, I think he reminds me of Manny offensively but he's slightly better defensively but that's because Manny's offense was his defense. And I'm just not sold on Lomo because one thing Arum knows how to do is build a star. He did it with Floyd, he did it with Manny, did it with Crawford and he's doing it with Lomo. Just careful planning.

Agreed.

But, if he's going to be considered one of the greats he needs to step up and beat Spence....just joking, but my point all along.

I think a Garcia/Lomachenko fight would be great for the division. Linares? OK. Easter can be thrown in if they want to toss someone into the Lion's den. That guy couldn't hit Lomo unless he was asleep.

EDIT: Watch the fighter and don't pay attention to the sleazy promoters. Arum has nothing to do with how good or bad the fighter is. Trust your own eyes.