Mostly quick takes on the three bouts on ESPN2′s Friday Night Fights, in chronological order, then some thoughts on Bernard Hopkins’ studio work:

There are good things you can say about Floyd Mayweather, Jr., but only some of them are correct. His ring return has prompted some very fanboyish poster-worshiping, fawning behavior from people who may be very well affixed as if by glue to his fur-lined jockstrap, judging from the way they’re defending Mayweather on the incorrect […]

The man above on the right, light heavyweight Beibut Shumenov (photo from Cyber Boxing Zone), is the most advanced “prospect” you’ve probably never heard of, and he’s fighting this weekend. We’ll get to him in a second, along with the other subjects in the headline, plus a look at some bouts in the works, the […]

There is just an incredible volume of news out there in the aftermath of Saturday night’s junior welterweight championship fight between Manny Pacquiao and Ricky Hatton, ranging from items on SportsCenter coverage of the fight to where Pacquiao felt the majestic knockout punch he landed to the positively evil behavior by Hatton trainer Floyd Mayweather, […]

The needle scratches on the record this weekend. Boxing’s 2009, less than halfway through, has been making beautiful music so far, giving fans quality match-up after quality match-up with nary a penny paid by HBO for an unwanted mismatch. No one wanted the rematch airing on HBO Saturday between light heavyweights Chad Dawson and Antonio […]

If you don’t remember Bayan Jargal from his appearance on Versus last year, here are a couple reasons I wanted to interview him: 1. Know how he got that Versus gig? He gave good work to Paul Williams — yes, THAT Paul Williams — during Williams’ sparring for the Versus main event, and it earned […]

One must never say never in boxing, especially when contemplating affairs of the negotiating table. Ever seen “The Lion In Winter?” Negotiations for boxing matches put it to shame for sheer conniving, manipulating brinkmanship. That said, there is legitimate cause for worry that Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather, Jr., which would be the most important fight in […]

Crikey. Today, The Wall Street Journal today linked to and posted excerpts from a blog post by The Queensberry Rules and I totally missed it somehow. I’m usually such an egomaniac I definitely notice this kind of thing. Cory Humes, one of the benevolent kingpins here at the MVN family, informs me that the column […]

Did you hear the one about how Floyd Mayweather, Jr. thinks he gets to retain his title as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, that is, the best fighter in the world regardless of weight division? “I am the king and no one has taken my crown,” he said Saturday afternoon as he announced […]

Part II of our look at the aftermath of the Manny Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton fight examines Hatton one day later, and the undercard. Earlier today, Part I looked at Pacquiao. Multiple reports now have indicated Hatton is OK after that chilling knockout. A few, too, have suggested that as a fighter, “OK” is about as high […]

Part I of our look at the aftermath of the Manny Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton fight examines Pacquiao one day later. Later this evening, Part II looks at Hatton and the undercard. I’m still reeling after the fight. Not quite as badly as Hatton was left reeling, but pretty badly. Try this on for size: After this […]

I’ll have plenty more to say later about the Manny Pacquiao’s shockingly easy 2nd round knockout of Ricky Hatton, but for now, quick thoughts: Before this fight, I would have favored Floyd Mayweather, Jr. to beat Manny Pacquiao. Now? Maybe the other way around. That was the Knockout of the Year so far. I was […]

We’ll liveblog the big and worthy mega-fight round by round, as well as its contemptible undercard, and maybe if there are long delays, we’ll even flip over to the Boston Celtics-Chicago Bulls Game 7. Pacquiao-Hatton

[UPDATED: This is all official. More details at the end of the post.] Today at noon Pacific Time, Golden Boy Promotions will make a “major boxing announcement,” and The Los Angeles Times, ESPN and BoxingScene all report that the announcement is that Floyd Mayweather, Jr., will unretire to face Juan Manuel Marquez on a July […]

Now that’s entertainment. Welterweight prospect Carlos Abregu got dropped in the 1st round by Irving Garcia’s straight right; came back to stagger Garcia in the 2nd with a right uppercut and batter him so badly it’s unfathomable how he remained on his feet, not to mention that in the middle of his daze, he staggered […]