Something that freaks me out is when I’m standing next to a man at the urinal and he’s going hands-free. The guy next to me today who did it made it even freakier by standing there with his arms crossed. He looked very much like a genie. I’ve tried to do it before, but I always have technical problems that I won’t really go into here.
What does this have to do with the boxing schedule outside of HBO’s headlining junior middleweight bout between Saul Alvarez and Ryan Rhodes? Nothing. But I feel weird just jumping into the schedule without a little patter.
- Adrien Broner vs. Jason Litzau, Saturday, HBO, Guadalajara Mexico. Here’s one where, as much fun as I make of all the ridiculous overhype about Al Haymon’s influence with HBO, it’s legit. Broner is a more exciting fighter, in my experience, than he showed last time he was on HBO in a close win over Daniel Ponce De Leon. But it’s kind of a head-scratcher how he got back on HBO so quickly after that miserable performance, unless you can chalk it up to Haymon. Again, it’s not that Haymon doesn’t have power, it’s just that he doesn’t have as much as people pretend. Litzau is a guy who got himself another HBO fight after defying his sacrificial lamb status against Celestino Caballero, which had something to do with the raw determination he showed and something else to do with Caballero being 100 percent flat that night. If Broner is motivated to prove the De Leon fight was a fluke, he can dominate Litzau talent-wise, probably even stop him visciously. If he isn’t, Litzau’s just game enough to give Broner another tough night.
- Fernando Guerrero vs. Grady Brewer, Friday, ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes, Austin Texas. As fun as Guerrero is, he’s been beset by doubts that he lacks the size and/or skill to be an elite middleweight. That makes this move down to 154 intriguing. Nor is Brewer some kind of pushover against whom to make a debut in a new division. He’s a tricky guy, one who had Erislandy Lara hurt in his last fight, albeit in a bout he ultimately lost. The undercard doesn’t do much for me; we’ll get a look at late-starting welterweight prospect Karim Mayfield, but it’s against Stevie Forbes, who no longer appears useful as a trial horse given a couple bad losses.
- Anselmo Moreno vs. Lorenzo Parra/Gennady Golovkin vs. Kassim Ouma, Friday, Panama City. This isn’t a bad double-header that might be worth tracking down, if the TVMax link ends up working for you. Moreno is the #2 bantmaweight in the world and might be in line for a meaningful bout against Nonito Donaire, if Donaire can ever get his promotional situation resolved. Despite a draw with Jorge Arce in his last bout, Parra is notorious for his ugly loss in a fight with Caballero, so don’t expect beauty here, but Parra’s a rough customer if nothing else. Golovokin is a middleweight prospect who’s provoked a lot of salivation with his power and skill, while Ouma has seemingly been on his last legs multiple times only to surge back, in his last iteration by modifying his volume-punching style to one with a bit more technique. Ouma shapes up as the toughest test for the green Golovkin in his career thus far.
- The Rest. Minor TQBR favorite Miguel Vazquez takes a sorta stay-busy lightweight fight on Fox Sports Deporte et al against Marlon Aguilar Saturday… Prospects Omar Figureroa (lightweight) and Gary Russell, Jr. (featherweight) are the featured boxers on TeleFutura’s “Solo Boxeo Tecate” Friday.
