I’m back as a guest for tonight’s edition of the Bad Culture Boxing Radio show to discuss all the recent news from our favorite sport. With host Jeandra LeBeauf (www.badculture.net), we’ll be discussing this weekend’s big Showtime fight between Adrien Broner and Paulie Malignaggi, Seth Mitchell vs. Johnathon Banks, last week’s destruction of Juan Manuel Lopez, Hopkins-Kovalev, Riddick Bowe’s embarrassing foray into Muay Thai, Frida Wallberg’s cerebral hemorrage scare, and much more.
You can call in to discuss the sport with us at (347) 945-6550. The show will be available tonight HERE.
BETHLEHEM, PA — NBC Sports put on another superb boxing card last night at the Sands Casino Resort headlined by heavyweight contender Bryant Jennings taking on a Russian bull of man in Andrey Fedosov. It was billed as a solid test for Jennings, who has been campaigning in vain over the last year to earn a title shot. While he’ll likely fall short of that goal for 2013, his performance last night did a lot to show he should be viewed as one of best American heavyweights.
HANDLING THE PRESSURE: Fedosov did a very good job of closing the gap on Jennings and banging away with hard body shots. Because of a marked disparity in reach, Jennings wisely opted to keep the fight at mid and long rage, where he scored with solid jabs, right crosses and hooks. He was hurt a few times to the body in the second, and got surprised a few times when Fedosov came up top with compact left hooks. The Russian was able to get these opportunities because Jennings simply covered up inside rather than exchanging.
This must have been pointed out by his trainer Fred Jenkins, because Jennings made his most effective adjustment in round three when he countered Fedosov inside with a massive right uppercut-left hook combination. Fedosav immediately careened backwards into the ropes with Jennings right on his heels with an assortment of brutal hooks. To his credit, Fedosov was nowhere near going down despite his head getting the speedbag treatment courtesy of Jennings’s power shots.
“HE’S TRAILOR-MADE FOR YOU!”: Jenkins said this in the corner before round five and implored Jennings to keep turning his foe and working his counter-shots. Jennings, who was visibly breathing harder due to the movement and having to push back constant pressure, probably wasn’t completely buying Jenkins’s assessment. Nonetheless, he was dealt with the pace better by deflecting Fedosov’s hooks upstairs with his gloves, and working the jab to maintain distance.
While Fedosov continued to land the eye-catching body shots, the jabs and right hands of Jennings were the shots that caused the most noticeable physical damage. Fedosov’s left eye had begun to badly swell by the fifth, and Jennings teed off with varied combinations and a few chopping hooks to close the sixth.
It would be those shots that pretty much beat the fight out of Fedosov, who capitulated the contest in the corner by telling Steve Smoger that he could no longer see.
TITLE SHOT TIME?: Considering the Klitschkos have given opportunities to guys like Manuel Charr and Jean Marc Mormeck recently, Bryant Jennings has done more than enough to earn a title shot. However, the champs are tied up for the rest of the year with Wladimir facing Alexander Povetkin, and Vitali taking on Bermane Stiverne. It’s doubtful the other remaining American heavyweights (Deontay Wilder, Malik Scott) would face him, so it’s probably going to be another tough Russian like Kubrat Pulev on Jennings’s plate if he looks to fight again this year.
KOVALEV NEXT FOR HOPKINS?: Sergey Kovalev ran through Cornelius White and made it know in his post fight interview that he’d love to “touch” Hopkins in the ring. Hopkins had made it a late-career trait to show how limited most of these hard-punching young sluggers are, but Kovalev also possesses a trait that has historically troubled the Executioner; a high work-rate. When you combine this trait with the power that Kovalev has in both hands, it’s not far-fetched to see this fight resembling B-Hop’s close bouts against Jermain Taylor.
On the other hand, Kovalev has yet to be smacked with a really good counter, get roughed up inside or even face a fighter that didn’t just stand in front of him. White’s trainer Frank Tate claimed they had worked on that, but the only real movement we saw was when White’s body parts were doing their own individual dances after receiving a Kovalev power-punch.
Kovalev will have to do more against a credible opponent to get Hopkins in the ring, but he can make an explosive fight with WBO titlist Nathan Cleverly, who’s also on his radar. I’d favor Kovalev to take that one via KO.
TRUJILLO TKO1 WATKINS: To end on a humorous note, last night’s NBC card also featured the debut of former Golden Gloves champ Arturo Trujillo. The above pic is of his opponent, Philly fighter Anthony Watkins, who’s wearing the look of a shell-shocked fighter. In less than 30 seconds, Watkins literally got the taste (and mouthpiece) smacked out of his mouth repeatedly in route to quick KO loss. Despite all that, the sullen post-fight interview from Trujillo would have you thinking he was the one who had his brains scrambled.
The weigh-in for tomorrow night’s (June 15) featherweight showdown between Mikey Garcia and Juan Manuel takes place in just a few hours from American Airlines Arena in Dallas. the stream opens at 1:45 p.m. with undercard weigh-ins starting at 2:15 p.m. Garcia and Lopez hit the scales at 2:30 p.m.
Saturday’s fight will air as an HBO “Boxing After Dark” with Garcia defending his WBO featherweight title. The card airs at 10:45 p.m. EST.
The July 14 matchup between Bernard Hopkins and Karo Murat is now canceled due to Murat experiencing visa issues getting into the country.
The news was broken late last night courtesy of Maxboxing’s Steve Kim and confirmed this morning.
Hopkins, coming off an impressive unanimous decision win over Tavoris Cloud in March, was going to make his first defense of his newly won IBF light-heavyweight title. Murat, an Armenian fighter who resides in Germany, was the mandatory for the IBF title and last fought in June 2012, knocking out Sandro Siproshvili in seven rounds. The July 14 bout would have been Murat’s first in the United States.
At press time, Hopkins is hoping to land a September unification date with either Adonis Stevenson (WBC), Nathan Cleverly (WBO) and Beibut Shumenov (WBA).
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I’m sure Hopkins is mad since all that training will go to waste, but this will likely be a “blessing in disguise.” Every one of the current titlists are winnable fights for Hopkins, with the most high-profile being Adonis Stevenson with his two-punch KO over Chad Dawson last weekend.
Here is where it gets dicey. With HBO not doing business with Golden Boy, Stevenson would also have to choose between networks. If he stays with HBO, his options would be Andre Ward (who despertately needs a name opponent for his return) and Carl Froch. The downside there is that he’d probably be subjected to a catchweight. We also can’t forget Jean Pascal in what would be a fun brawl (Note: Contractually this might not be possible with Lucian Bute deal still in place).
Stevenson could do good business with Hopkins, but as always that’s a tough fight. B-Hop loves sluggers so he’d jump at the chance. If I were Stevenson, I’d look for my own unification against Cleverly or Shumenov. Those are hard, action fights, but with guys that will be there to be hit.
Adrien Broner is less than two weeks away from making his welterweight debut in a title match against Paulie Malignaggi. In this short Showtime clip, Broner discusses why Malignaggi is simply a stepping stone to his journey to the Hall of Fame.
The Bad Culture Boxing Radio Show returns tonight with special guest Ryan Bivins of @sweetboxing (https://sites.google.com/site/sweetboxing/) and BadLeftHook.com. Odds are very good if you’re even a semi-casual fan, you’ve noted the @sweetboxing tag on most full fights posted online in recent years. Fans and writers alike can always count on Sweetboxing to post full boxing cards for any cards they’ve missed from around the world. And www.badlefthook.com is one of the sport’s leading sites regarding in-depth boxing analysis.
Tonight, he joins host Jeandra LeBeauf discuss the fallout from the dueling Showtime and HBO cards last weekend (Maidana vs. Lopez, Dawson vs. Stevenson), and this weekend’s HBO showdown between Mikey Garcia and Juan Manuel Lopez.
The show starts tonight at 9 p.m. PST can be streamed HERE.
LOS ANGELES, CA — It was billed as a war. Marcos Maidana and Josesito Lopez delivered that spades. In the end, Maidana overcame several perilous moments to score the bout’s only knockdown in the sixth, and quickly stopped Lopez with a barrage of power shots against the ropes.
The co-main event wasn’t too shabby either, with Alfredo Angulo and Erislandy Lara going through several momentum changes before the accuracy of Lara’s stabbing straight left produced a grostque orbital bone fracture that immediately stopped the contest.
It was a memorable night that sure didn’t start off as one via the snoozer that was Jermell Charlo vs. Demetrius Hopkins. Let’s get right to the highlights.
LARA DROPPED TWICE AND PULLS VICTORY FROM DEFEAT: I was one of the people very adamant that Angulo stood very little chance of winning this fight. How could a guy that let Kermit Cintron of all people outbox him off the backfoot possibly deal with a technician on Lara’s level?
For the first two rounds, that seemed to be the case. Lara was on the move as expected, changing directions on a dime to keep Angulo from getting leverage on his shots. Lara was shooting the southpaw straight left down the middle, and several times Angulo was stopped in his tracks with his head snapping backwards. However, Angulo was plowing forward and whenever Lara took a rest on the ropes, El Perro uploaded hooks to the body.
The body-punching of Angulo was relentless; every time Lara stopped and covered up, he took at least 4-5 shots downstairs in addition to clubbing shots on his arms and gloves. The first pronounced momentum shift for Angulo came in the fourth when Lara, perhaps getting too cocky, got caught with his hands down and dropped by a hook. Angulo tried to pounce, but Lara’s footspeed was still good enough in his buzzed state to get him through the round.
For the rest of the fight, the bout became the viewer’s preference — Angulo’s pressure and body-punching, or Lara’s defense and still-supurb straight left counters? Both strategies were clearly taking a tool. However, Angulo appeared to be pulling ahead when another hook dropped Lara in the ninth. This one was worse with Lara having to hold and run to get through the round.
Yet in the very next round, Lara put an end to the drama with his umpteenth left hand, which this time caused Angulo to recoil in immediate pain as his left eye socket swelled to grotesque levels. Lara landed another as Anuglo completely turned him back and stopped fighting, giving the referee no choice but to call the bout.
ANGULO A QUITTER?: There was no shade on Twitter last night for Angulo quitting, and I doubt we’ll see any in the coming days. I can’t even imagine the surge of pain that went through him based on how badly that eye area got. Sure, we’ve seen numerous guys fight through that injury (Paulie Malignaggi, Shannon Briggs, Antonio Margarito and most recenty Denis Lebedev), but an orbital bone fracture varies per person and we have no idea at the extent of Angulo’s damage.
The main worry at this point is Angulo’s career. We’ve see with Margarito and Briggs that it effectively ended theirs. Angulo’s looked pretty bad, and at the very least he’ll be out of the ring for a long time, maybe even until this time next year. It makes Lara’s statement to Angulo before the fight even more potent.
I’m a technical fighter. I’m a technical fighter and he’s a brawler, and we’ll see who has the longer career.
LARA VS. COTTO, ANYONE?: As for Lara, he showed a toughness that we don’t often see from Cuban fighters since they’re able to avoid dogfights most of the time. The body-punching was clearly getting to Lara, but he never panicked nor abandoned what was working (that left hand). What Lara does need to address is a better inside strategy. The constant movement every round is tiring, and instead of just stopping and letting Angulo wail away, a few more clinches could have given him a true breather sans the punishment.
I would love to see Lara in there with Miguel Cotto, as this was a title eliminator. If I was advising Cotto, it wouldn’t be the fight I’d want coming off the Trout defeat. But when has Cotto ever picked the “smart business decision” over the more challenging fight? Cotto has never pulled a Mayweather and it wouldn’t surprise me in the least to see him face Lara before the year is out.
As for who would win, you have to give Lara the edge. The merciless Cotto that cut down another southpaw stylist in Carlos Quintana years ago is long gone. This is a higher weight with Cotto having much more mileage on him. However, the Cotto who gave Mayweather hell last May can make this one very, very interesting. If Lara doesn’t improve on the mistakes he made against Angulo, a Cotto win is not out of the cards. I’d love to see it.
MAIDANA THE MANIAC: Just minutes after seperating Josesito Lopez from his senses, there was a small discussion on whether the referee had jumped in too soon. Maidana had brought Lopez to his knees off a doubled-up right hook, and summarily blasted Lopez repeatedy against the ropes when he got up. Lopez was trying to fight back but getting the worst of the exchanges. When asked if the stoppage was fair, we got an answer with classic Maidana flair.
Good job by the referee, but I wanted to hit him some more.
Maidana, like Brandon Rios, is just one of those guys that is more feral animal than human in the ring. His pain tolerance and desire to inflict abuse in just more pronounced in his makeup than the average fighter. Getting hurt more often than not makes him come back stronger. Lopez badly folded him to the body in the fourth with a left hook, and in nearly every round landed 2-3 jarring, haymaker right hands. Maidana would take some time to compose himself and go right back into Lopez’s grill with his own power shots.
The main difference was that Maidana knew to hold when hurt, and was much more compact and consistent with his power shots. You don’t normally marvel at the accuracy of someone like Maidana, but his looping hooks around and through Lopez’s guard were excellent.
Props to Josesito Lopez for yet another thrilling battle. But as I said last night, brawling with Marcos Maidana is never the most sound strategy. When he worked behind the jab and used his range to keep Maidana on the outside, he had his best rounds. But we all know the old Tyson adage; “Everyone has a plan until they get hit.”
LOPEZ BACK TO 140, MAIDANA VS. MATTHYSSE?: Lopez weighed 145 for yesterday’s fight and made it clear in the post-fight interview that a return to junior welterweight would be his best move. He’ll be welcomed back in a division with lots of interesting matchups on the table with other guys looking to rebound from tough losses (Lamont Peterson and Zab Judah, for example).
On the other hand, Maidana can make exciting matchups with pretty much everyone at welterweight. He can look at the Berto-Soto Karass winner, an Amir Khan rematch, or the big proposed matchup with countrymen Lucas Matthysse. I’d like that fight to marinate for a bit as Matthysse has unfinished business at 140 against Danny Garcia.
Let’s hear your thoughts. Did you enjoy Showtime’s card, and what future matchups would you like to see for the victors?
Prediction: It’s been nearly a year since Josesito Lopez’s career-defining win over Victor Ortiz. In fact, that was Lopez’s last win period, as he went on to get crushed by Canelo Alvarez in a weight mismatch last September. A Khan fight at 140 earlier this year fell through, and Lopez finds himself back in the ring Saturday night with another name fighter in feared slugger Marcos Maidana.
From their weights, you can tell Lopez isn’t a big welter, and since Maidana himself is only a few fights removed from the 140 pound division, the weights shouldn’t be much of a factor. What will be is Maidana’s pressure and body-punching. With both guys being heavy punchers, I have to go with the fighter who’s proven to not only be more durable, but also the one who possesses a higher workrate. With such a long layoff, Lopez will likely try to fight in spots, much like his strategy against Victor Ortiz. Unfortunately for Lopez, during those lulls Maidana will be right in his grill banging away.
Lopez will land some haymaker rights and have Maidana stunned at times, but I see the merciless Argentinian grinding down the brave Lopez in route to a late TKO stoppage on the ropes.
Angulo: 153.5 lbs.
Lara: 153.8 lbs.
Prediction: This fight was a very bad idea for Angulo, whose last fight against Jorge Silva showed he still had some rust to work off. For all the criticism of Lara, he’s a technician of the highest order. Even though he disappointed in his draw against Vanes Martirosyan last year, Angulo is a brutish, plodding slugger by nature and will have a frustrating time trying to corner Lara and land clean on him. The Cuban will use that ring and his footwork to keep Angulo off-balance and his power stifled, all the while pecking away with his jab and counters.
Aside from a KO, Angulo’s only change is making this one very ugly by roughing up Lara in the clinches. Problem is, I think Angulo’s feet are way too slow to even get close enough to Lara to do that on a consistent basis (keep in mind Angulo was outboxed off the backfoot by Kermit Cintron… again… Kermit Cintron!). Expect Lara to cruise to a unanimous decision with only a few, isolated dramatic moments.
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Maidana vs. Lopez, a 12-round fight for Maidana’s WBA Intercontinental Championship, is promoted by Golden BoyPromotions and sponsored by Corona and AT&T. The tripleheader will take place on Saturday, June 8 at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. and will be televised live on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING beginning at 10:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. PT. The event can be heard in Spanish using secondary audio programming (SAP). Maidana vs. Lopez is presented in association with Goossen Tutor Promotions and Thompson Boxing Promotions. Also featured will be a 12-round showdown between all-action warrior Alfredo “El Perro” Angulo and top rated super welterweight contender Erislandy Lara for the vacant WBA Interim Super Welterweight World Championship which is presented in association with Blue Wave Group and a 12-round fight between veteran Demetrius Hopkins and unbeaten phenom Jermell Charlo for Hopkins’ USBA Junior Middleweight Championship and Charlo’s WBC Continental Americas Super Welterweight Championship. Preliminary fights will air on SHOWTIME EXTREME at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).
You are only as good as your last fight. The titles, Pound 4 Pound accolades and even your resume will be slandered after one bad performance. Look no further than Chad Dawson, who despite being the linear champion at light-heavyweight, has been all but forgotten after being taken to the woodshed by super-middleweight kingpin Andre Ward last September.
Sure, there was a valid excuse for the performance. Dawson had to boil down to a weight limit he hadn’t been at in years, and the warnings signs were evident when rumors came out of his training camp that he was knocked out in sparring and noticeably weaker. But this is the cold world of boxing, where the results in the ring trump any of the circumstances behind it, and Chad Dawson finds not only his 175 WBC title at stake, but his marketability as an elite fighter on the line when he faces limited by dangerous slugger Adonis Stevenson in Montreal Saturday night (June 8) on HBO. A few years ago following Dawon’s disappointing first career loss to Jean Pascal, Bernard Hopkins told this writer that Dawson’s career was a “failed stock” that HBO brought into. Since then, Dawson has gone on to hand Hopkins one of the few uncontroversial losses of his career. This weekend, we find out if Dawson can truly resurrect his name after the biggest setback of his career.
Beats, Boxing & Mayhem: You’ve become infamous for running through trainers. In fact, you’ve changed trainers 10 times in 11 years. With that said, a few have been trainers you’ve gone back to more than once like Eddie Mustafa Muhammad. What renewed your faith in him?
Dawson: If you really think about it, Eddie is the one who got me to my highest [career] point. When I was up, Eddie was there. And even when I lost to Pascal, Eddie still called and was there for me. He’s a great man and great trainer and the one I’m the most comfortable with.
Beats, Boxing & Mayhem: Hindsight is 20/20, but what was your mindset in taking that Andre Ward fight?
Dawson: I was a tremendous mistake on my part. I took the fight – no one else is to blame on my team. I’m the boss and they followed my lead. The weight took a toll on me. I can’t blame anyone but myself.
Beats, Boxing & Mayhem: Quiet as it’s kept, you’re always taking tough fights. Why another dangerous fight after coming off a KO loss?
Dawson: I’ve got to give the fans something. I can to show the world that I’m still one of the best Pound 4 Pound fighters in the world. I took the fight because he’s a big puncher. I checked him out and watched his tapes. The most that people say about him is he’s a big puncher.
I’ve been in the ring with big punchers, but I’ve survived. That being said, he’s never faced anyone liked me. I know I can deal with a fighter like him. We’ll see if he can handle me.
Beats, Boxing & Mayhem: What else can be done at 175 if you get by Stevenson? You’ve already beat Hopkins…
Dawson: I’m interested in a Ward rematch, but he’ll have to come to me this time. I’m not interested in catchweights. I did what was asked of me last time. But I doubt he’s interested in doing the same thing at 175. That will be the reason the fight won’t happen.
Far as a Bernard Hopkins [trilogy], Bernard doesn’t want anymore parts of me. I think the people can see that. That won’t happen again. But I do want any potential big fights. Carl Froch is one of those guys who might move up to light-heavyweight. Whatever would interest the fans is what I want.
Beats, Boxing & Mayhem: I know he’s tied up for the rest of the year, but have you given up on getting revenge on Jean Pascal?
I’m always definitely interested in that fight. I know he’s wrapped up with Bute. After I dust Stevenson off, I’m sure he won’t want any parts of me either. On the 8th, they’ll see something from Chad Dawson they’ve never seen before. We’ll try to make the Pascal fight for early 2014, but he has to get by Bute and that’s a tough fight for him.
Beats, Boxing & Mayhem: Why should we believe you about a “new Chad Dawson?” We’ve heard this before.
Simple, I have no doubts in my mind. It’s different when you go into a fight with doubts. Did I do enough? Did I not do enough? I know I did enough in training this time. When I fought Antonio Tarver the first time, I let my hands go. I was in such great shape that everything flowed and came that night. I’m in the same situation with this camp. I worked very hard. My weight is perfect and I’m leaving the gym at 110%.
The great camp showed me how much of a mistake I made going down to 168 pounds for the Andre Ward fight. Believe it or not, it’s been a big confidence booster to be back. I’m looking forward to showing everyone I’m still one of the best.
It’s funny because I always joked about moving up to heavyweight one day. Honestly, I’m 30 years old and this is the division where I’ll probably end my career. I can’t see myself fighting at cruiserweight. I have make light-heavyweight easy and it’s my natural weight.
Beats, Boxing & Mayhem: If you’re staying at 175, the division looks to be going international with UK guys like Nathan Cleverly, George Groves and James DeGeale trying to build their names. Could you be enticed to take a risk and go overseas?
I definitely think they have to come over to the States and make a name for themselves. I’m through with going to people’s backyards. My years of doing that are over. If they want a title shot, they have to come to me.
Chad Dawson vs. Adonis Stevenson airs live on HBO “Boxing After Dark” on June 8 at 10 p.m. ET. On the undercard, Yuriorkis Gamboa returns to the ring to face Darleys Perez.
Tonight’s edition of the Bad Culture Radio Show brings WBO middleweight titlist Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin and American heavyweight contender Bryant Jennings. Quillin will have a lot to say on his division’s consensus #1 fighter, Sergio Martinez, the possibility of moving up to 168, and facing the ”boogeyman” of his weight-class in rising star Gennady Golovkin. On the other hand, the undefeated Jennings is waiting for his big break. He’ll have lots to say on the Klitschkos and whether he feels he’s now America’s last hope at heavyweight.
As usual, the esteemed Jeandra LeBeauf of BadCulture.net will be hosting. You can call in with questions at (347) 945-6550. The show will be available tonight HERE.
