This much is clear, while the record books will say (for now, at least) that Tim Bradley halted Nate Campbell in three rounds this past weekend at the Agua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage, California, the reality is that the bout should’ve been ruled a ‘no-decision’. Because as noted football coach Bill Parcell’s would say: the tape don’t lie.
There was a clear- and unintentional- clash of heads between the two early in the third stanza which caused the nasty gash near the left eye of Campbell and the ‘spots’ that ‘the Galaxxy Warrior’ said he was seeing. Just at this anticipated hook-up was heating up, it would be waved off.
But this much was also evident, for the first nine minutes of this clash it was Bradley who had clearly taken early control of this bout and it looked as if he was on his way to victory.
” I was actually just getting started,” said the victorious native of Palm Springs, in his dressing room about 45 minutes after the rather anti-climatic victory.” I mean, I was just getting started, it took me a few rounds to get me warmed up in there and then once I got comfortable and relaxed, it took me awhile to get relaxed in there. I was just being cautious for the big punches. But once I started flowing, my corner told me,’ Relax, relax a lil’ bit more. Keep your defense sharp’ and then we started putting it all together, then.”
From the very beginning, Bradley banged away downstairs. He believes he was already in the process of breaking down his older foe.
” Absolutely, it didn’t matter, head-butt or no head-butt, because as the rounds kept going on, I get stronger and stronger. I threw more punches as the rounds go on and I just kept feeling him getting older and older each round.”
His trainer Joel Diaz was pleased with how the bout was unfolding,” Exactly the we planned it,” he stated.” When we start training for every fight we always come out with a plan and we stick to the plan. We got a plan A, a plan B, unfortunately we didn’t have to use plan B. Our plan was to dominate him in the beginning, out-smart him, because all of the talking he does. He’s the one that got under Tim’s skin, like Kendall Holt did. Kendall Holt got under his skin, he brought him in and connected on him. So we had good preparation mentally and physically, so he followed my instructions and everything was good. I was expecting Tim to finish him in the next round.”
And everything was predicated on ‘the Desert Storm’ swarming the body. Bradley isn’t a power puncher by any means( just 12 stoppages to his credit in 25 professional outings) but he’s as physically well conditioned as any boxer on the planet and he throws a high volume of leather.
” Somebody that age can’t take that much beating to the body. A 37-year old can only take so much,” said Diaz.” Every time Timothy went to the body he was really doing some damage.”
But of course, like in the case of the tortoise and the hare, it’s not always about how quickly you start, but how you finish. Last year when he gored ‘the Baby Bull’ Juan Diaz in Cancun, Mexico, Diaz- like Campbell, using a high work rate- jumped out to an early lead but it was Campbell who quelled the early momentum and took control of the proceedings in the late stages. Earlier this year, Diaz once again jumped out to an early and commanding lead against Juan Manuel Marquez, only to succumb to the precision and veteran savvy of the future Hall-of-Famer.
Boxing, at the world-class level, for the most part isn’t a sprint, but a marathon. And we’ve seen in recent history that youthful exuberance can be overcome by seasoned professionalism.
In what was quite the hectic hallway in the bowels of ‘the Show’ theater where this fight was staged, a sharply dressed Campbell- who had a thick bandage over his damaged eye- was headed out to the hospital.
” Watch the replay,” he would tell this reporter, who was able to grab a quick minute with him before being whisked away by members of the California State Athletic Commission. To him, the fight hadn’t even begun.” Shit, they believe he can beat me but Timothy can’t punch. I hurt Timothy. Timothy never hurt me.”
As he went back to his corner after that rough third round, he let it be known that he could not see. As he sat on his stool, he told his cutman Jim Waldrop,” Jimmy, stop it now.” And as he explained to the ringside physician that he had spots in his eye- perhaps a sign that there was blood forming in the back- not only was the fight stopped but he was told that he would have to go to the hospital immediately.
” THIS IS WRONG!!! THIS IS WRONG!!! THIS IS WRONG!!!” bellowed out Campbell to ringside spectators and anyone else who would listen. It wasn’t so much the stoppage of the fight that bothered him, after all, he had made it clear that he didn’t want to go on, but because referee David Mendoza had not ruled that the clash of heads had caused his injury, this bout would be ruled a third round knockout. For a proud man like Campbell, that’s a bitter pill to swallow. And he’s had more bitter pills than a extra large bottle of aspirin throughout his career and life.
There’s no doubt that Campbell and his handlers have a case and precedent on their side for this decision being overturned (more on that later) but what they most likely wont get is a return bout with Bradley.
Bradley’s, co-promoter Gary Shaw told Maxboxing at ringside on Saturday night,” Look, he (Campbell) was getting hurt, he was growing older by the round, by every punch. Whether it got stopped then, I don’t think it goes two more rounds. Tim was really hurting him to the body.” When asked if he was interested in staging Bradley-Campbell II, Shaw would say bluntly:” No, not really. The fans have seen it, Showtime has seen it. Y’know. we want to move on to bigger and better. We’ll fight anyone.”
Bradley isn’t opposed to facing Campbell one more time.
” Why not? Why not? I’m too quick for him. He has good power but I’m too quick for him. And I got the Lord on my side. That’s going to be hard to break my spirit,” said Bradley, who’s turning into a pretty damn (oops, I mean ‘darn’, sorry Tim) good professional prizefighter. It’s going to take someone very good to beat this guy. It’s interesting, but as he has moved up to the elite stages of this sport, he has continued to evolve right in front of our eyes.
” Styles make fights, if you put Timothy against any style, we’re going to get in there and look good,” said Diaz.” In every fight, he’s improving and he’s going to look better and better.”
Bradley is ready to go big-name hunting.
” Manny Pacquiao, Mayweather, Cotto- I want to fight one of the stars. One of the guys who they say is a big star. That’s who I want to fight, a big star.”
AFTER FURTHER REVIEW
Last summer I was at a fight between James Toney and Hasim Rahman where it looked like ‘Lights Out’ was well on his way to a victory before the fight was halted before the fourth round. Toney, has shook Rahman earlier but he had also suffered cut a from bangin’ noggins with Toney.
The fight was originally ruled a TKO for Toney but as evidence mounted that the cut was not caused by a clean punch, the CSAC made the correct (if unpopular) ruling to change the official verdict to a ‘no-decision’. Yes, it was clear that Rahman was looking for a trap door, but eventually the right call was made. And Rahman, in a case of perverted justice was rewarded with an HBO assignment versus Wladimir Klitschko later on that year.
I can see the same thing happening this weekend because it was clear as day that Campbell suffered his ailment from a headbutt. But here’s the thing, while they may get this decisioned changed, since this wasn’t a WBO mandatory or anything of that nature, and with Campbell and his reps talking about other fights, along with a mandatory defense they have due against Lamont Peterson coming up, there is nothing they can really do to enforce a rematch.
Campbell has always been a consummate fighter, but perhaps like many other contemporary boxers he decided to make a calculated decision (like Rahman did) and call it a day and then perhaps start over. But perhaps forgetting that at his age, his options are quite limited. The boxing business isn’t fair, and perhaps the only real choice he had on Saturday night was to fight on with a badly impaired right eye because he’s not the type of boxer that others will be in a rush to face him.
More than ever, boxers have to realize that taking the easier way out, can have deleterious effects on your career and perhaps even your reputation (nothing can stir up message board banter like a fighter who decides to bow out of a battle.) Perhaps the question that should be asked of fighters with cuts and the like shouldn’t be, ‘Can you see?’ but ‘Can you fight on?’ Because there is a clear distinction between the two.
Diaz, who was a fighter( like all his brothers out of the Coachella Valley) before becoming a trainer, concurs,” Yes, there’s no doubt. There’s been times in the ring when I see fighters that are cut and they say,’ Clean me eye.’ There’s two different things.’ Clean me eye. Wipe my eye.’ But never,’ Oh, I can’t see.’ You seen ‘the Ghost’ Guerrero, it was very obvious he didn’t want to continue (versus Daud Yordan).”
Bottom line, men of the past like Carmen Basilio- and more recently Arturo Gatti, who’s memory was ironically enough paid tribute to by Campbell- fought on when their vision was hampered. And when Campbell took the title from Diaz, Diaz fought much of that fight with a cut that affected his ability to see.
Boxing is a brutal sport, and a fighters actions certainly shouldn’t be dictated by the whims of a bloodthirsty audience, but this is game where tough and often irrational decisions have to made by those who chose to participate in it.
As for Campbell, he should get this decisioned switched. But most likely, he wont be getting another crack at Bradley.
JUNIOR TWITTER
Honestly, I can’t say I was too upset by Junior Witter calling it a day versus Devon Alexander after eight rounds. I think ‘Atmanne’ said it best on my Twitter page:’ Witter did the right thing…for the fans, I was falling asleep.’ And the live crowd since the audience at ‘the Show’ was getting very restless.
Using his sound technique and grounded fundamentals, Alexander fought about as well as you can expect against one of the most unusual and unorthodox fighters in recent memory. I’ve said it before, Meagan Fox wouldn’t look good in there with Witter.
Witter, had a nice career. He should be congratulated for that. But let’s hope that for our sake he’s never back on American airwaves. I think we’ve all had enough.
FINAL FLURRIES
Not including ‘the Pac Man’ (who fights at any weight he negotiates) the 140-pound class has some really good potential match-ups with the likes of Bradley, Alexander, Peterson, Marcos Maidana, Victor Ortiz, Amir Khan, Juan Urango, Randall Bailey and the like….How bout a bout between Campbell and Alexader. Both are represented by Don King and this fight might draw well in St. Loo….Don’t know if it really came through on the Showtime broadcast but I thought Darren L. Hughes did a great job in getting the crowd revved up during Bradley walk into the ring with his song, ‘Warriors: Sweat, Blood and Tears’….Derrick Mason’s retirement from the Baltimore Ravens was so short he should be an honorary boxer….Gotta say, the Agua Caliente has one of the best buffets I’ve ever had. I stuffed myself silly. Seriously, I felt like Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade float….Twitter.com/stevemaxboxing…..
