NEWARK, N.J. — Nothing for me to do before 4 p.m., when media check-in begins for this evening’s cruiserweight (200 lbs.) championship bout, so let’s work through the news with some Quick Jabs. Besides the items in the headline, we’ll hit Joe Calzaghe’s goofy pronouncements; some trainer switcharoos; and the Hall of Fame.
Pacquiao – De La Hoya: The Fight, And The Business
I’d promised a little follow-up about the 1.25 million buys for the Manny Pacquiao-Oscar De La Hoya fight this past weekend, specifically on whether it was a good or bad thing. (It’s worth noting that the figure could climb when final figures are tallied.)
Here’s the good, besides what I already said: It’s going to be no worse than the third-biggest selling non-heavyweight pay-per-view of all time, behind De La Hoya-Mayweather and De La Hoya-Felix Trinidad. So if you’re thinking boxing is dying — more on that a little later — I again encourage you to consider why, in some ways, it’s doing better than ever. I’m pleased that people are finding much to like about fighters south of the heavyweight division, in this case the welterweights (147 lbs.), because that’s where the future of boxing is, even if the heavyweights get a little life to them; the March junior lightweight (130 lbs.) fight between Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez was the biggest ever in pay-per-view buys, too, at around 400,000. This is a positive trend. Most importantly, the high ppv buy rate means a lot of people got their eyes on Pacquiao, whom, as I’ve said numerous times, I would love to see become the face of the sport.
Here’s the bad: HBO is going to get a very dumb idea reinforced, which is that undercards don’t matter. That undercard is deservedly being widely panned as one of the worst of all time, both in the matchmaking and the quality of the fights, and I’m embarrassed I had any notion that it would be a decent one. Here’s why HBO should drop that bad idea IMMEDIATELY: Their numbers absolutely, definitely could have gone up a good deal if they had put on a decent undercard. People who might otherwise be interested in paying for a pay-per-view broadcast out of the sheer desire to be good citizens have told me explicitly that they went to pirated Internet feeds specifically because they couldn’t see paying $54.95 for one fight and a bunch of mismatches.
Another note on the fight: BoxingScene surveyed some boxing authors and a great many of them concluded that De La Hoya overtrained, and that Nacho Beristain was specifically to blame. I don’t deny any longer that he deserves some blame for that overtraining, but De La Hoya came into camp on weight instead of slowly working down. Beristain’s failing was in not more rigorously monitoring that weight. He did make an effort — he actually had to encourage De La Hoya to eat more at one point — but he shared in this particular failing. I’m not saying De La Hoya would have won had he done a better job of not “saving some for the ring,” but I don’t think any reasonable person would argue against the assertion that De La Hoya’s goose looked cook from the moment he entered the ring.
Quicker Quick Jabs
A positive note on this weekend’s viewing schedule: Whether by planning or coincidence, boxing fans will be able to watch all three major televised cards Saturday instead of picking and choosing between the trio. Too often, the networks have counterprogrammed each other’s boxing cards and forced fans to choose between competing broadcasts, effectively dividing the boxing audience and, in the long term, hurting themselves. So anyone who’s interested in the Pacquiao-De La Hoya rebroadcast and Wladimir Klitschko-Hasim Rahman heavyweight fight can watch that at 4:45 p.m. Eastern time, or later that evening in a follow-up rebroadcast. Then, from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m., Versus will air the James Toney/Fres Oquendo heavyweight fight and its undercard. And beginning at 11 p.m., Showtime will broadcast the Kendall Holt/Demetrius Hopkins fight and its undercard…
I do expect the Holt/Hopkins bout at junior welterweight (140 lbs.) to be the best of the three. A Showtime rep passed along a tidbit that bolsters that theory: Back when they were amateurs, Hopkins apparently beat Holt three times. Amateurs and the pros are a whole different animal, as meetings between old amateur foes in the pros have shown again and again. But while Holt and Hopkins have some knockout power, they are both primarily boxers, so a boxing match between the two men, which would be more like an amateur bout, looks more competitive still than it did when it was announced after Ricardo Torres pulled out and Hopkins replaced him…
Both Lennox Lewis and Larry Merchant deserve their Hall of Fame inductions; Lewis really is one of the best heavyweights ever, even if not enough people noticed, and while I rag on Merchant sometimes, I think when he’s at his best in the announcing booth, he delivers lines that perfectly coalesce what’s happening in the ring. Ironically, whereas Merchant is one of the great boxing commentators over the time I’ve been following boxing, Lewis is the absolute worst. Then again, I’m pretty sure Merchant would make a terrible heavyweight…
I still think we ought to take seriously the original allegations of Sergio Manuel Medina that he took a dive against junior featherweight (122 lbs.) titlist Juan Manuel Lopez under threat of death from Lopez’ team, but the allegations have gotten a little weaker in successive days. Medina has reversed himself on the claim, and one of Medina’s team members also says there was no threat and believes he is mentally ill. Someone should look into the allegations, like the Nevada State Athletic Commission, but a questionable claim that was already going to be hard to prove keeps becoming more questionable…
Joe Calzaghe is a great fighter, but he grows more unlikable by the second. Every week, he says something that makes him look like a doofus. This week, after Pacquiao-De La Hoya sold a good 1 million more pay-per-views than Calzaghe’s recent light heavyweight (175 lbs.) bout against Roy Jones, Jr., he declared boxing a “dying sport.” Friend of the site Eugene pointed me to the remarks, which are, in, part: “Globally — in America for instance — you’ve got UFC, which has taken a lot off boxing business-wise. There is too much politics in boxing. Too many belts and too many champions, which dilutes real champions like myself. There are four world champions in each division and it’s bad because there are no stars any more. It’s a big problem… I’m glad I’m ending my career and not starting it because I don’t think it’s going to be that great in the future.” Dr. Calzaghe may be right about some of the symptoms about why boxing is ailing, but based in part on this past weekend’s strong pay-per-view numbers, if he was my doctor, I’d be getting a second opinion. The remarks reek of jealousy and, now that I’ve concluded this brief discussion of them, should be dismissed as such…
Two fighters are doing a trainer switcharoo that I strongly support, one confirmed and the other prospective. Shane Mosley has picked Nazim Richardson to train him for his January welterweight bout against Antonio Margarito, and I really would encourage Shane to focus on his defense, a Richardson specialty. I know he wants to knock out Margarito, but I see approximately zero chance of that happening, given Margs’ chin and Mosley’s only passable power. He needs to avoid trading, and move constantly, if he has any hope of winning. Second, Nonito Donaire is without a trainer, and for his upcoming 115-pound bout against Fernando Montiel, promoter Bob Arum says Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach is willing to train Donaire. I think that’s an excellent choice. In an interview last month, Donaire told me he didn’t need a trainer, which would be either A. the height of arrogance or, more likely, B. a public bid to let his father know that he can’t be replaced, after a backlash in the Philippines about the father/trainer/boxer/son falling out between Donaire and his pop…
Another boxer who needs to just knock off all the big pronouncem
ents, like Calzaghe, is Erik Morales. Morales, who’s retired but probably not for long, serially picks whomever old foe Pacquiao is fighting next to stomp Pacquiao. He did it with De La Hoya, and he’s doing it now with Ricky Hatton, the junior welterweight kingpin whom Pacquiao might fight in 2009. Morales was wrong about Pacquiao when they fought, he’s wrong about how good he’d be if he made a comeback and he’s wrong now. Time to stick a sock in it, Morales…
According to his team, the top super middleweight (168 lbs.) Mikkel Kessler, plans to fight in America in March. Chad Dawson and Winky Wright have both been rumored opponents, which would be excellent bouts, but a less attractive rumor is that Kessler would fight Alejandro Berrio. No offense to Berrio, who fights in an attractive style, but he’d be like the other two recent hopeless opponents Kessler has picked on in two straight bouts. It’s time for Kessler to put up or shut up…
The aforementioned Lopez is looking at the possibility of fighting Gerry Penalosa in the spring, which I think would be a very good test. But I wish Lopez would consider fighting Celestino Caballero. Caballero’s name hasn’t even passed his lips that I’ve seen. I’d be impressed if Lopez beat Penalosa, but I’d be mega-impressed if he beat Caballero…
Another 2008 U.S. Olympian is making his debut: Gary Russell Jr. will fight in January as a featherweight (126 lbs)…
A little “Ring Life” before we depart. My favorite part of the below video is the airbrushed shirt of the front-toothless daughter of heavyweight Chris “The Nightmare” Arreola. It reads: “Little Miss Nightmare.” Boxing doesn’t give me many chances to say this, but: AWWWWW THAT IS SO CUTE.
(Sources: ESPN.com; PA Sports; FightNews.com; Boxing Along The Beltway; BoxingScene; HBO; Showtime)
