Underwater boxing! Better than fireworks boxing? Probably not, but it’s artier. For other “insane underwater movie sets,” go here. (h/t friend of the site Jim)
Besides the stuff in the headline, we’ve got some notes on some early weekend action, the future of boxer Nonito Donaire, Andrew Bynum’s boxing future and more.
Quick Jabs
Boxing lost one of its all-time great chroniclers this week in George Kimball. I’m not big on writing obits for everyone in boxing who dies; it’s mainly the people who meant the most to me personally. So here’s what Kimball meant to me: The two of us scrapped a little bit, but he respected me, so far as I can tell, sending me a copy of his book “The Manly Art,” his latest compilation of columns. Even in his older years and battling cancer, Kimball kept churning out quality work, particularly at The Sweet Science, where he made his home, still one of my favorite boxing sites. And he wrote a stone cold classic boxing book in “The Four Kings,” which deserves to make most short lists of the best boxing books ever written. If his passing offers the chance for some good in the world, it’s that people were talking about him a lot this week and “Four Kings” got a fresh wave of attention. Do yourself a favor, if you haven’t read it yet: Pay tribute to Kimball by buying “Four Kings.” You’ll be happy you did…
Boxing said goodbye to Ricky Hatton this week with his official retirement from the ring, an overdue decision. I’m more bullish on Hatton’s case for making the Hall of Fame than some, because Hatton was one of history’s finest junior welterweights and a long-time inhabitant of the pound-for-pound top 10, with a signature win over Kostya Tszyu. He gave us a lot of excellent fights, including the Tszyu bout, and he even forced Floyd Mayweather into a good battle with his style. He also was on the wrong end of a highlight knockout from Manny Pacquiao, but it’s one more mark of an eventful career from a boxer who always gave it his all in the ring. Outside the ring, he was as entertaining a character as you could want, a hard-drinking and funny Brit who was the most popular guy in the sport over there for the past decade or so. Even though it was time for him to go, I’ll miss Hatton. May the Hall voters see it the same as me…
I won’t miss heavyweight David Haye if he retires, which he says he’ll do if he doesn’t get a Wladimir Klitschko rematch, a rematch he absolutely doesn’t deserve based on his poor showing in the first bout. Do us all a favor, Wlad: Turn down the rematch. Rid us of Haye. Another if-no-rematch-retirement threat this past week came from featherweight Celestino Caballero, who after his controversial loss to Jonathan Barros wants the WBA to order a do-over or he’s gone. Caballero probably doesn’t deserve to go out like that, but he doesn’t interest me the way he used to, so if he retires, he retires…
If you didn’t catch the main event for Friday Night Fights, go watch the replay on ESPN3. Super middleweights Jesus Gonzales and Francisco Sierra produced a stirring brawl that’ll be worth at least a Fight of the Year honorable mention, one in which Gonzales emerged victorious by unanimous decision. It was a different kind of Fight of the Year candidate; most rounds featured punch counts in the 20s, but they also traded knockdowns, bled all over the place and made all of the punches they landed count. Here’s another highlight from the weekend, junior welterweight Jessie Vargas flattening Walter Estrada. You don’t see ’em like that very often. Mark it down as another Knockout of the Year candidate for 2011.
This was a really nice feature on the dilemma of ring doctors from the New York Times. Check it out…
L.A. Lakers center Andrew Bynum is working with Freddie Roach on his boxing skillz, but don’t expect him to actually give the sport a go during the NBA lockout. Lots of athletes do the off-season workouts in boxing because it helps with their footwork and whatnot….
The Jermain Taylor comeback has hit any number of hitches, the latest an argument with his mother that got the police involved. This is fairly worrisome…
Most of the rest of this post will be devoted to varius dealings of the promoter Top Rank. First off, Top Rank boss Bob Arum said pound-for-pound king Pacquiao will take drug tests for a welterweight fight Floyd Mayweather, but not if they’re administered by the USADA. Lame. This is a hitherto unrevealed barrier to a Pacquiao-Mayweather bout…
Arum also said that the network that lands the Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez III showdown, be it HBO or Showtime, will do so as a package deal for Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito II. No reason given. Is it Top Rank trying to enrich the money it makes off both fights? Are they worried that Cotto-Margarito II wouldn’t otherwise be as rich a fight, or something?…
Bantamweight Nonito Donaire’s trainer Robert Garcia said that he’s close to signing a deal with Top Rank. While I understand Donaire wanting out from Top Rank to move to Golden Boy, prompting a legal battle, and while I have my doubts this is a marriage that will be free of strife, all I really care about at this point is that Donaire gets back in the ring soon. He’s too good a fighter to be derailed by this kind of thing…
Arum said that he’s giving welterweight Mark Melligen one more chance to bounce back after a loss to Sebastian Lujan. His trainer has been absolutely brutal in saying Melligen wasn’t prepared at all for the fight. I’m not sure how high Melligen can go; I doubt it’s very, even if he’s properly focused. All I know is that I enjoyed the Lujan bout and wouldn’t mind seeing him again even if he’s not at the highest level…
We close with Mayweather and a dancing dog.
