0 comments by Tim Starks on 5/30/2022
Let us consider the matter of Gervonta Davis’ career, as it sits at a particular kind of crossroad: The kind where he can continue to tread water in relative safety, or takes the foundations of superstardom and builds upon them. They key word in the above sentence is “relative,” because Rolando Romero is not, as […]
0 comments by Jason Langendorf on 3/2/2020
For more than a year now, the conversation around Mikey Garcia’s prospects at 147 pounds could be summed up with a single theoretical question: skills or size? Even with the relatively recent proliferation of divisions and titles in boxing (not to mention meat-slab-building performance-enhancers), the goalposts can be moved only so far. At some point, […]
0 comments by Matthew Swain on 12/31/2019
“He’s not gettin’ up, Jim!” That’s all anyone has to say. You know what they’re talking about. In a single moment on Dec. 8, 2012, and with a single punch, Manny Pacquiao was rendered unconscious and mortal. And he was rendered so by the only man in eight years who’d managed to withstand him. The […]
0 comments by Matthew Swain on 10/29/2019
The gap between belief and knowledge can be vast. Or it can be 12 rounds. Last Saturday night, the World Boxing Super Series junior welterweight final on DAZN produced a compelling case study in what the difference looks like. American Regis Prograis entered the bout eager to test himself so that he could find out, […]
0 comments by Tim Starks on 9/12/2019
Few things in boxing inspire as much bile by their mere existence — or each list’s ability to inspire derision because of how obviously stupid its author is — as the mythical pound-for-pound list. That’s part of what makes them so delicious. The lists do possess a certain value, though, even the most obviously awful […]
0 comments by Matthew Swain on 8/26/2019
Kosei Tanaka defended his flyweight strap by an exciting stoppage again, defeating Jonathan Gonzalez. Tanaka went through several rough patches during the fight but rallied. Do you think it’s a matter of him fighting down to a level of his opponent, his own ceiling, or something else? And with talk of him moving up in […]
0 comments by Tim Starks on 4/12/2019
These are the times where you don’t hear from the defenders of the WBA, WBO, WBF and IBF belts who somehow think they’re good for boxing: when we get a mismatch nobody else but one of the alphabets wanted, asked for, or expected to be remotely competitive. Vasiliy Lomachenko crumpled his lightweight mandatory challenger Anthony […]
0 comments by Tim Starks on 3/16/2019
Bravery and stupidity often go hand in hand. When the bravery pays off in victory, you look the hero. When the bravery punishes you with pain, you look like you made a foolish choice. Mikey Garcia isn’t stupid in the ring, but Saturday night on Fox Pay-Per-View, his decision to move up to welterweight against […]
0 comments by Matthew Swain on 3/15/2019
Like Arthur’s knights, even the one who fucked his wife, had douchey hair, and eventually the ignominy of being portrayed by Richard Gere, the TQBR Crew must come together to discuss the important topics of the day. Smartphones our swords, and emotional disturbance our armor, we sally forth once more unto the breach, dear friends, once […]
0 comments by Jason Langendorf on 3/10/2019
There’s a word the Germans have gifted us – schadenfreude – that, in that uniquely American way, we have since deep-fried, tossed in buffalo sauce and dipped in ranch to turn into something else altogether. It’s not enough for us to take quiet pleasure in the misfortune of others. Nah, that’s for chumps. Our country […]
0 comments by Tim Starks on 1/4/2019
Welcome to The Queensberry Rules’ annual year-end boxing awards, continuing throughout this week. Here’s how we do it around these parts: The major categories are Knockout of the Year, Fight of the Year and Fighter of the Year. For each category, we give five finalists, with video and/or relevant info. On the second day after a category […]
0 comments by Tim Starks on 12/9/2018
The best boxer on the planet didn’t come in on a clear signal for large swaths of Saturday night, as Vasyl Lomachenko got some static from Jose Pedraza and maybe some interference from a layoff following shoulder surgery. Then came an electrifying two-knockdown 11th that shot the true Loma through in 4K. That Lomachenko was […]
0 comments by Tim Starks on 7/29/2018
For just a little while — about two and a half rounds, let’s say — it looked like Robert Easter might give Mikey Garcia some trouble all Saturday night long. But a Garcia knockdown in the 3rd, and a thorough takeover by midfight, reminded us yet that Garcia is an outstanding fighter. It was a […]
0 comments by Matthew Swain on 3/12/2018
Last Saturday night, from the rain soaked StubHub Center in Carson, Calif., Oscar Valdez did what he wanted to do. I’m not suggesting that he had his way with Scott Quigg in their featherweight bout on ESPN. Far from it. What he did was to assert his will over everything around him, most importantly over […]
0 comments by Brent Hedtke on 3/11/2018
Making truth claims about a sport as unpredictable and fluid as boxing can be journalistic suicide but I’m about to do it, consequences be damned. Before I do however, I want to stress that I’m in no way attempting to talk over your head or use technical jargon meant to intimidate or belittle you. This […]
