IN MY CORNER: Sam Soliman says Anthony Mundine might lose the speed battle against veteran Shane Mosley this month.
SOLIMAN: MOSLEY UP TO SPEED
AUSTRALIA’S world No.1 middleweight contender Sam Soliman fought the super-quick Anthony Mundine three times but says Shane Mosley is the fastest fighter he’s ever seen.
Soliman and America’s former world junior-middleweight champion Sergio Mora are Mosley’s main sparring partners ahead of his October 23 fight with Anthony Mundine at the Sydney Entertainment Centre.
“He’s got the fastest jab I’ve ever come across,” Soliman told me.
“Mosley’s jab is almost unslippable. He’s definitely quicker than Mundine but it’s not just a matter of speed.
“He disguises the jab and his timing is just perfect. It’s even better than Kostya Tszyu’s timing and I sparred with a lot with him. I was faster than Kostya but his timing was so good I would have to throw three punches to make up for every perfect one he landed.”
Soliman is the IBF’s No.1 ranked middleweight but was denied a world title shot with Daniel Geale in May after having allegedly failed a post-fight drug test following his points win over Felix Sturm in Germany in February.
He blames the makers of an over-the-counter energy drink for not disclosing the stimulant “oxilofrine” which is banned by Germany boxing authorities but not by the New Jersey-based IBF.
Soliman, who twice went the distance with Mundine in close 12-rounders, expects Mosley to have problems with the Australian.
“I think it will be a competitive fight,” he said.
“Mosley is much faster but Mundine is bigger, younger (38 to 42) and he’s fighting at home which is a real advantage.”
One-legged fighter Brad Hardman. Brad lost the leg in a car accident which also claimed the life of a friend. Source: DailyTelegraph
HARDMAN TURNS PRO
BRAD Hardman, the inspirational Indigenous boxer who lost his left leg in a car accident, will make his professional debut next month.
Hardman, 32, will fight on the undercard to the Garth Wood-Martin Murray world middleweight title fight at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion on November 30.
The disabled boxer started sparring this week with Wood’s older brother, Nathan, a former rugby league utility with the Tigers, Roosters and Warriors and will spend eight weeks in hard training with Australia’s most successful fight coach Johnny Lewis.
His opponent has yet to be confirmed.
“Johnny suggested I fight pro,” Hardman said. “I had a few amateur fights before and after I lost my leg and he said if I’m going to fight I might as well get paid for it.
“I know my fight is no world title bout but hopefully my effort will show people that no matter what happens in life you can fight to overcome it.”
Hardman was joy-riding with mates at 15 when the car they were speeding in hit a power pole at 200km/h and split in two.
He lost his left leg and one of his mates lost his life.
Trainer Lewis said Hardman would shock whoever he faced on November 30 in their 90kg bout.
“Brad’s got a massive punch,” Lewis said, “and a huge heart.”
Sunday Mail articles on Hardman and Moree’s Indigenous hero Cameron Hammond, Anthony Mundine’s main sparring partner, are among the finalists at next month’s Australians Sports Commission awards in Melbourne.
Hammond will fight tough Filipino Joel Dela Cruz at the RNA Showgrounds on November 16. Dela Cruz boasts a win over Athens Olympian Ryan Langham.
CAPARELLO FACES TOUGHEST TEST
MELBOURNE’S world-class light-heavyweight Blake Caparello has been having tough sparring sessions with Dalby’s London Olympian Damien Hooper ahead of his biggest test next week on Fox Sports.
Caparello, undefeated in 18 starts, faces American Allan Green at the Melbourne Pavilion, Flemington on October 17, following an impressive victory over Kiwi Daniel MacKinnon on Fox in July.
Green is an impressive opponent with just four defeats in 36 fights, the defeats only coming against top-class Mikkel Kessler, Andre Ward, Edison Miranda and Glen Johnson.
The undercard boasts quality match-ups including former world lightweight title challenger Lenny Zappavigna and Rivan Cesaire and heavyweight Solomon Haumono against Marcelo Luiz Nascimento of Brazil.
Damien Hooper hopes to fight at Brisbane’s RNA Showgrounds on November 16 but is scaring opponents away with four KOs in his first four pro fights.
“We’re going to have to look at overseas opponents,” said his trainer Gareth Williams, “no one in Australia wants to fight him.”
LEAPAI LINKS WITH TUA
ALEX Leapai is planning to hit Auckland next month to train with New Zealand’s greatest ever boxer David Tua.
Leapai will fight Russia’s undefeated (33-0, 26 KOs) Denis Boytsov in Germany on November 23.
The 178cm Tua, who has knocked out four world heavyweight champs, will fight the 202cm Russian Alexander Ustinov at Claudelands Arena in Hamilton on November 16.
Leapai’s great Aussie rival, Perth’s former cage fighter Lucas “Big Daddy” Browne, faces giant Englishman Richard Towers in Hull on November 2.
Olympic boxer Todd Kidd. Source: CourierMail
OLYMPIAN GOES FOR GOLD
CABOOLTURE’S Beijing Olympian Todd Kidd travels to Gladstone on November 16 to fight Sydney’s Ruben Kennedy for the WBF version of the world welterweight title.
The card has some solid match-ups with Queensland’s shock punching heavyweight Hunter Sam going in against Kiwi-based American Clarence Tillman, a victim of Sonny Bill Williams.
Also on the card, the WBA’s No.14 ranked heavyweight, Mark de Mori of Perth, faces Lubos Suda of the Czech Republic.
TOOWOOMBA TORNADO OUT FOR REVENGE
QUEENSLAND-BASED Filipino Jack Asis is chasing a rematch with Japan’s Hirohito Fukuhara after their fight ended in a 10-round draw in Toowoomba on October 4.
One judge gave the fight to Asis 97-92 while the other two judges scored it 94-94.
The draw ended the eight-fight winning streak of the heavy-fisted Asis, who has beaten former Aussie champs Brett Smith and Josh King.
LAW WANTS TO NAB TITLE
WAYLON Law will make a second attack on Brent Elliott’s Queensland super-featherweight title on November 7 after their first scrap was Fight of the Year material.
Elliott won a split decision over eight rounds at Eatons Hill in Brisbane’s north on August 29.
The rematch, again at Eatons Hill, will be part of a bumper card that sees Nathan Carroll defend his Australian middleweight title against Dennis Hogan, former NRL player Joey Williams tackle Brett W Smith for the WBF lightweight title and former Australian champ Jason Cooper against Japanese super-bantamweight Yusuke Iju.
Juan Manuel Marquez (R) of Mexico lands a punch on Michael Katsidis. Source: AFP
MARQUEZ FACES BRADLEY STORM
WITH RECENT KO wins over all-time great Manny Pacquiao and Australia’s Michael Katsidis, Mexican veteran Juan Manuel Marquez faces the young and hungry WBO welterweight champion Timothy “Desert Storm” Bradley on Sunday (Australian time) at the Thomas & Mack Centre in Las Vegas.
Both have wins over Pacquiao.
Bradley, built like a 66kg bodybuilder, is unbeaten in 30 fights. He scored a controversial decision over Pacquiao in June last year.
Six months later Marquez knocked out the great Filipino in six rounds after coming up short in three earlier attempts.
Miguel Cotto throws a punch against Delvin Rodriguez. Source: AFP
COTTO GETS WITH THE STRENGTH
HOOKING UP WITH Manny Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach proved decisive for Pacquiao’s old foe Miguel Cotto with the Puerto Rican slugger stopping hot prospect Delvin Rodriguez in three rounds in Orlando, Florida on the weekend.
Roach was in Pacquiao’s corner when he battered Cotto in a 12th-round TKO in Las Vegas in 2009 but he showed him all the right moves for a pulsating victory on the weekend.
Cotto went into the bout having lost his previous two starts against Floyd Mayweather and Austin Trout.
There is talk of a Cotto-Shane Mosley rematch if Mosley gets past Anthony Mundine on October 23.
Cotto won a close 12-round decision over Mosley in 2007 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Back in 2004 Cotto was given a solid test over 12 rounds by Australia’s Lovemore Ndou.
Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, of Ukraine, right, hits Alexander Povetkin, of Russia. Source: AP
WLAD THE IMPALER STRIKES AGAIN
IT SHAPED up as a great heavyweight match-up like we used to have back in the 70s when Muhammad Ali, George Foreman and Joe Frazier ruled the sport.
But Wladimir Klitschko made his title defence against fellow Olympic gold medallist Alexander Povetkin in Moscow look like a walk in the park last Sunday.
The younger of the two world heavyweight champion brothers put on a clinical, if uninspired, performance before a 35,000 crowd that included Russian president Vladiimir Putin.
Klitschko retained his IBF, WBA, WBO and IBO world titles with a dominating decision behind his thumping left jab.
He had Povetkin down three times in the seventh round.
Klitschko’s older brother Vitali holds the WBC heavyweight title.
