The fallout from Floyd Mayweather’s unexpected (and second) retirement has Oscar De La Hoya and HBO still scrambling to fill the void.
One credible report has Joe Calzaghe and Roy Jones Jr. on HBO PPV on Sept. 20, the date HBO had reserved for the Mayweather-De La Hoya rematch. A Calzaghe-Jones fight could be for Calzaghe’s WBA and WBO super middleweight titles ? he gave up the WBC belt ? or more likely for his Ring Magazine light heavyweight crown. He won that with a narrow split decision over Bernard Hopkins.
Several weeks ago, Jones guaranteed on national television that he would be fighting Calzaghe next. Also, Calzaghe recently rejected a Kelly Pavlik fight, saying “Roy Jones Jr. is the right fight for me at this moment.”
Jones, formerly the top pound-for-pound fighter for almost a decade, is still ranked No. 3 in the light heavyweight division by the WBC, WBA and IBF, and No. 1 by the WBO.
Undefeated Andre Berto (22-0, 19 KOs), meanwhile, is now wearing Mayweather’s former WBC welterweight belt after stopping Miguel “Mikki” Rodriguez (29-3) in seven for the vacated title.
And don’t be surprised if De La Hoya now chooses ? yeah, it’s his choice because no one will turn down a fight with him because of his gate appeal ? former TV Contender champion Sergio Mora for his farewell fight on Dec. 6. Mora now has something De La Hoya wants badly ? a world title, namely the WBC junior middleweight belt.
Mora won it with a convincing win over Vernon Forrest, and the The Golden Boy is the No. 1 WBC contender. What better way to bow out than with a knockout victory and another belt?
I admit to being shocked at Mora’s win over Forrest, but there is no way Mora is going to beat De La Hoya.
Another option for De La Hoya would be to fight the winner of the July 26 Miguel Cotto-Antonio Margarito blockbuster. A more risky venture, but one that would elevate his stature in ring history.
So what will it be, Oscar? A sure-fire win and world title that would mean little, or a much tougher fight that could be a great career’s crowning jewel?
TITLE SHOT FOR RUIZ? It looks like two-time heavyweight champion John Ruiz of Chelsea will get another crack at a world title. Both Ruiz and former WBA champion Nikolai Valuev, the seven-foot Russian giant, have petitioned the WBA to strip current champion Ruslan Chagaev of his belt and sanction a bout between Ruiz and Valuev for the vacated title.
The Valuev-Chagaev title fight previously scheduled for Saturday was postponed for the second time when Chagaev tore his left Achilles tendon while training. It’s the third time Chagaev has pulled out of a mandatory title defense due to illness or injury since winning the title from Valuev in April, 2007.
Valuev is ranked No. 1 by the WBA. Ruiz is No. 2.
PACQUIAO IMPRESSES In the absence of Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao made a strong bid for the mythical pound-for-pound title with an impressive ninth-round knockout of David Diaz to win the WBC lightweight title Saturday night.
“Did anybody get the number of that truck?” said Diaz after the fight. “He’s fast. The speed was the difference in the fight. I have all the respect for him.”
It was Pacquiao’s fourth world title in four divisions. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum hinted that Pacquiao my go for a fifth next year by fighting Ricky Hatton.
“That,” Arum said, “remains to be seen.”
DUDDY WINS SMART Irish John Duddy of New York may finally be learning that he doesn’t have to take all those punches to win. The native of County Derry, North Ireland, showed more boxing skills than he has in the past against Charlie Howe (17-5-2) at The Castle in Boston on Saturday night.
“I made a point that I don’t have to be brave all the time,” said Duddy, who won every round on the cards of all three judges. “Just because I can take a punch doesn’t mean I have to. I had trouble convincing myself.”
DAWSON TO ROMANIA? It looks like WBC light heavyweight champion Chad Dawson of New Haven, Conn., will have to go to Romania for his next title defense against WBC interim champion Adrian Diaconu. Dawson’s promoter, Gary Shaw, was outbid for the title fight by Ganker Promotions of Romania, where his title could be at risk if the fight goes to the judges.
Dawson’s only other option is to allow his title to be stripped and take a fight with IBF champion Antonio Tarver, whom he had originally planned to fight.
ABRAHAM MAKES CASE Unbeaten IBF champion Arthur Abraham of Germany continued to make his case as the best middleweight in the world by stopping Edison Miranda (30-3) in the fourth round of their non-title (166-pound catch weight) rematch two weeks ago. Abraham floored Miranda three times in the fourth before it was stopped at 1:13.
This is one tough dude: Abraham won a controversial decision over Miranda in their first meeting, despite having his jaw broken in two places.
Bob Hanna covers boxing for The Standard-Times. Contact him at [email protected]
