Boxing: 7-30 to 8-2

[H2O Man]

WEDNESDAY - at El Cajon, California (ESPN2) - 10 rounds, welterweights: Jose Luis Castillo (56-8-1, 48 KOs) vs. Lanardo Tyner (19-1, 11 KOs).

FRIDAY - at Montreal (ESPN2) - 12 rounds, middleweights: Sebastien Demers (25-1, 9 KOs) vs. Fulgencio Zuniga (20-2-1, 17 KOs); 10 rounds, super middleweights: Adonis Stevenson (11-0, 8 KOs) vs. Anthony Bonsante (31-9-3, 18 KOs).

FRIDAY - at Brooklyn, New York (Showtime) - 10 rounds, light middleweights: Pawel Wolak (21-0, 14 KOs) vs. Ishe Smith (19-3, 9 KOs).

SATURDAY - at Tacoma, Washington (Showtime) - 12 rounds, IBF junior bantamweight title: Dimitri Kirilov (29-3-1, 9 KOs) vs. Vic Darchinyan 29-1-1, 23 KOs); 10 rounds, super middleweights: Andre Dirrell (15-0, 10 KOs) vs. Mike Paschall (17-0-1, 4 KOs).

SATURDAY - at Las Vegas (HBO) - 12 rounds, vacant IBF welterweight title: Joshua Clottey (34-2, 20 KOs) vs. Zab Judah (36-5, 25 KOs); 8 rounds, flyweights: Brian Viloria (22-2, 13 KOs) vs. Antonio Maria Cochero Diaz (9-9, 6 KOs).


You can’t beat the sport of boxing this summer. After last week – including a true "super fight" – fans are in for another outstanding week. There are, of course, many other interesting fights taking place this week, but I thought I’d concentrate on these five cards. The five are on ESPN, HBO, and Showtime.

Wednesday features former two-time WBC lightweight champion Jose Luis Castillo. As he approaches his 35th birthday, he is "older" than even his age indicates. Let’s take a look at his last six fights, to appreciate why.

In May, ’05, he fought a "super fight" against Diego Corrales; as everyone remembers, he had decked Corrales, but was TKOed in a shocking 10th round. That fight took as much out of both warriors as the Manilla battle between Ali and Frazier did those two. Five months later, he KOed Diego in 4, in a bout where he didn’t make weight. Since then, he has had problems making weight, and it isn’t simply because he is getting older (though that plays a significant role). But it is also because his body isn’t able to do what it once did.

In 2006, he decisioned Rolando Reyes, then was awarded a split decision over Herman Ngoudjo. Most fans thought Castillo was out-worked by the younger, faster Ngoudjo. Then, in ’97, Ricky Hatton easily KOed Castillo with a body shot in the 4th round. Since then, he only fought once, six months later, against an easy opponent.

Castillo was matched against Lanardo Tyner (18-1), though it appears he now faces a less talented foe, Sebastian Andres Lujan (29-5-2). The fact that Castillo is on WNFs against Lujan suggests that his career is ending, at least as far as competition at the top goes.

The ESPN FNF looks good. Also, Showtime’s show will let us see how good Pawel Wolak is. At 21-0 (14 KOs), he is facing Ishe Smith, 19-3 (9 KOs). Smith is an inconsistent fighter, who may provide an interesting test for the young contender.

On Saturday, HBO and Showtime "compete" again. On Showtime, former flyweight champion Vic Darchinyan challenges IBF super flyweight champion Dimitri Kirilov. Both men have similar records in their last three fights: both lost their titles; won a fight; then fought to the first draws on their respective records.

On HBO, Joshua Clottey and Zab Judah face off for the vacant IBF welterweight crown. Clottey, 30, has a 34-2 (20 KOs) record. He was giving Antonio Margarito a tough fight, before an injury ended his chances of pulling off an upset. Since then, he has won four in a row, including a decision over Corrales in Diego’s last fight.

Judah, approaching 31, is 36-5 (25 KOs), and the former 2-time jr. welterweight and 3-time welterweight title-holder. He gives up a half-inch in height, but 8 inches in reach (if the information I have is accurate).

Both men are well-known for "dirty tactics." Referees tend to call fouls against each early, due to their reputations. Zab is still very fast, and hits hard. He doesn’t always train hard, and thus can tire out after 6 or 7 rounds. When tired, his defensive skills are reduced, and he is not known for having the toughest chin in the business.

Clottey has great defensive skills, though they are based on his covering up with his long arms, rather than avoiding punches as Judah does. He has a good body attack.

Either man could win, but I think Clottey has the advantage. He wants to fight Margarito again, and actually has the best chance of any fighter today against him.

Enjoy the fights!

[H2O Man]

1. Castillo vs Lujan

is on the ESPN schedule for tonight. I'd have rather seen him fight Tyner, but something must have come up. It could still be an interesting fight tonight. It might give us an opportunity to see if he has enough left to fight against a top contender. Or he may "get old" in the ring before our eyes. Ten rounds is a lot longer when you are on the decline.

Enjoy the fights.

[TroubleMan]

2. I'll definitely be tuning in.

I'll never forget his fights with Corrales. Even if he's not the same fighter he used to be, it's way more than enough to make me tune in.

[H2O Man]

3. Good.

I'll be interested to hear what you think. If he wins, I could see him fighting any of the top ten in the division.

Interesting news on Jeff Lacy: on the same day that he publicly announced his retirement, his attorney said he is definitely signing to fight Jermain Taylor. I think both of those guys are among the most decent men in the sport today. If they do fight, it could go either way.

[TroubleMan]

4. He looked sluggish and ready to retire.

None of the fire that he used to have in his eyes is there. It seemed he was just going through the motions. I think he should retire. He's been boxing 18 or 19 years and had a good career. It seems the desire and dedication are no longer there. At his age he would have to work even harder to be successful than when he was young, but it doesn't look he's willing to do that.

He said he'll retire if he loses this fight. Well he lost a lopsided decision, and it would seem by looking at him, he's ready to hang it up - at least for now.

[H2O Man]

5. Yep.

If he fights again, it will be a case of his being the "opponent." A promoter will look to feed him to some young fighter on the way up, who might have a lot more punching power than he had coming at him last night.

I felt bad for him. The saying about old fighters came to mind: "I could see the openings, but couldn't get the punches off; I could see the punches coming, but couldn't get out of the way." If he doesn't retire, then the time comes when you don't see the punches coming, and that really hurts.

[H2O Man]

6. Don't miss the HBO fight tonight.

There is word that the winner of the Clottey vs Judah fight will be fighting Margarito next. (I believe Margarito is looking to defend against the winner, then fight Paul Williams early next year.)

It has been interesting to read the press reports & predictions on this fight. Although it isn't on the same level as last week's super fight, the "hard core" boxing community recognizes it as an extremely important fight. The expectations are that Judah will look good in the early rounds, but tire out in the middle rounds, and either be TKOed late, or lose a decision. There are people who think that if he is prepared, Judah will upset Clottey; "SecondsOut's" writers have 16 people picking Clottey, and 4 picking Judah.

Clottey is a strong, hard-hitting fighter with very good defensive skills. He was doing well against Margaito, until he fractured both hands during the middle rounds. Although the score cards didn't reflect it afterwards, most people thought Clottey was ahead after six rounds. More. Margarito was hospitalized after the fight, due to concerns about head injuries.

Clottey's style and power would have presented Zab with a serious challenge at any time in his career. Because Zab is on the downside of his career, this is an especially dangerous fight for him. Although he is "only" 30, he has had a long career, starting when he was a youngster. It is interesting to compare this with Floyd Mayweather, who has recently retired. The reason Floyd decided to retire at a relatively young age is because of his concerns about the wear-and-tear that the sport has inflicted on him. On the surface, it would seem that Floyd hasn't really taken a beating in the ring. But as a fighter who started as a child (like Zab), the combined efforts have taken a toll. His hands, for example, cause him pain in training; his back and shoulders also cause him pain. So it isn't the fights that we see on tv, as much as the hard work associated with training that has done the damage. (Note: Clottey's hands are a potential issue tonight, too. He punches very hard, and the human hand doesn't hold up well.)

The comparisons between Judah and Mayweather go further. Both started boxing as kids, because they came from "boxing families." Both were physically gifted in ways that very, very few fighters are. But the development of those skills took different courses.

Judah had a dedicated father, who believed in self-discipline. Mayweather had a bum for a father, who lacked self-discipline. Judah is an outstanding example of a fighter who failed to reach his full potential, because he lacks self-discipline; Mayweather is a perfect example of a fighter who reached his full potential, because of his intense sense of self-discipline.

Judah was, at his best, a little faster with his hands, much faster on his feet, and hit significantly harder than Floyd. Both have uncanny defensive skills, including the "radar" that made them hard to hit. But Zab was too often so overconfident that he did get hit, and he was decked in fights he won, and in fights he should have won. Floyd got hit by Corrales, and fought through it.

As a result, Floyd has retired undefeated, and boxing people will long debate how great he actually was at his peak, while Zab is still fighting, and boxing people will long discuss how great he may have been if he every reached his full potential.

[doublethink]

7. Your last sentence says a lot about those two fighters careers ....

Mayweather and Judah, and I am in total agreement on both those counts.

Anyway tonights fight (Clottey vs Judah) was appropriately stopped by the ref in my opinion. That was quite a cut Judah had .... seemed to go across just about the whole eyelid. Didn't need to punish that eye anymore unnecessarily and it looked like Clottey was getting stronger, beginning to really control the fight. Zab seemed to be tiering to me just about the same way Cotto tired against Margarito in last weekends fight. Did you notice how Clottey even began jogging towards Judah while hunting him down in the same way Margarito did Cotto? And whether the cut was caused by a head-butt or punch ..... at least when they went to the scorecards the judges got it right.

This was a good fight too. Enjoyed it. I'd like to see Clottey vs Cotto sometime in Nov or December and the winner take on Margarito ............ :)

[H2O Man]

10. Another strange Zab Judah fight.

I think he showed that if one does not take advantage of an opportunity, that opportunity is lost forever. Others may come along that look similar, but they are different. Zan has blown numerous opportunities over the years, and we saw clearly that he no longer has the same options .... not inside or outside the ring, in the context of his boxing career.

Still, he was focused on winning, and even though his skills are reduced, he was actually trying harder than he has in fights in the past. So he will still have another chance, against another contender, sometime soon. But it remains to be seen if he can remain focused for two fights in a row. With his reduction in speed and reflexes, a lack of focus will close the door on his career.

[doublethink]

12. Re-watched the fight again this afternoon ......

and it seemed 'closer' to me than it did last night, the possible outcome that is before it was unfortunately stopped by the cut. Don't ask me why but I had a different impression of the fight this afternoon? That being said, it was also an obvious punch (uppercut) that opened Jabs eyelid. So a TKO was really in order anyway.

Yeah Jab's persona over the years gives the impression that maybe we never really saw the best of him. Don't think we'll ever know now though. Maybe it was just his 'persona' that fooled us all into believing he could of done more over his career? Strange fight, strange fighter this Zab Judah .... strange (but very cool) name always to me too. :)

He should fight De La Hoya next and both call it a night ??? Might be an interesting match.

[H2O Man]

13. The cut was

definitely a result of that punch, and not a butt. In fact, although Zan was using his head inside throughout the fight, in the final clinch, it is evident he was aware of the cut, and was holding on trying to clear his eye.

The referee made the wrong call, but not purposely. The fighters were both breaking the rules in almost every round; the most obvious example was Zab's low blows, but there was a heck of a lot more going on in there. Because the ref didn't see Zab's eye after the punch that cut it, and there was some contact of heads in the clinch, he assumed the cut resulted from a butt. That ugly a cut often does come from a butt.

I thought the fight was even going into that final round. Either man could have won. Clottey was stronger, but Zab was landing hard shots in the previous round, that were beginning to show results in moving Clottey physically.

If there was "instant replay" available, the ref would have ruled it a TKO for Clottey.

Zab's peak may actually have been his fight against Mickey Ward. That might sound odd, because he matured physically after the fight, but he became over-confident to an extent that it canceled out the physical advantages. The Ward fight was where his skills and focus intersected at their highest point. He went on to win titles, but as everyone in the boxing community recognizes, "Zab, we hardly knew ye."

A Judah vs de la Hoya fight makes sense, which is why it will not happen. Oscar wants a "safe" fight. Oscar wants to win a "super fight" without fighting in a real one. Him and Zab wouldn't be a super fight at this point in their careers, and it wouldn't be safe for Oscar. I'd also like to see Oscar fight Clottey.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

8. Shouldn't Judah/Clottey have been ruled a TKO?

Even if the ref ruled that the eye-cut was caused by an unintentional headbutt, I think the ref should have still considered calling it a TKO stoppage.

The reason I say that is that the ring doctor said he wouldn't have stopped the fight on the cut. He stopped the fight based on Judah's inability to see and he didn't provide a medical opinion on whether the inability to see was based on the impact that caused the cut. In fact, I remember seeing the ring doctor testing and holding up fingers to the sides of both eyes, the injured right eye and the uninjured left eye. He said he tested Judah's eyes three times and Judah said he couldn't see out of either eye. In my opinion, since the ring doctor stopped the fight based on the inability to see and could not attribute the inability to see to the cut that the referee ruled was caused by a headbutt, this should have been a TKO.

[H2O Man]

9. I think that

the doctor's opinion was that the cut was responsible for Zab's inability to see. The doctor didn't stop the fight, though. He gives his opinion to the referee, who stopped the fight. The referee ruled the cut was caused by an accidental head butt. Thus, the rules mandate that the fight, after a certain number of rounds, goes to the scorecards.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

11. The doctor when interviewed gave an ambiguous response

He never specifically said that the inability to see was due to the cut. He did say that the blood that was getting in the eye had absolutely nothing to do with the inability to see. He said he cleaned the blood out of the eye, and Judah still couldn't see after the administration of three eye tests. The referee called in the doctor because of a cut. The doctor suggested the fight be stopped because of the inability to see, not because of the cut. Maybe it was the ref's job to ask if the two were connected, as a matter of reasonable medical probability.