DON’T look now, but half of 2015 is already gone. And if you?re wondering where it went, well that makes two us.
Time flies when you?re having fun, and indeed we had an action-packed second quarter, which included an event that was in the making for more than five years, and saw the return of a boxing superstar whose talent was too good to stay idle all this time.
Here?s our quarterly update:
1.) Floyd Mayweather Jr. (48-0, 26KOs)??Money? defeated Manny Pacquiao last May in a bout billed as ?Fight of the Century?, which miserably failed to live up to expectations .
Floyd fought smart and avoided the exchanges which was to be expected of him in order to get the victory. But that didn?t sit well with the fans, especially those who were casually attracted to the fight because of the hype that preceded it.
2.) WladimirKlitschko (64-3, 53KOs)?No change here as ?Dr. Steelhammer? retains the no. 2 spot after defeating Bryant Jennings via Unanimous Decision last April in a lackluster fight.
Wlad showed his age in this fight , but at 39 years, and having cleaned up the division, he has nothing left to prove.
3.) Roman Gonzalez (43-0, 37KOs) ??Chocolatito? is now a bonafide boxing superstar. Too bad he fights at the flyweight division, which usually doesn?t get stellar billing compared to the higher weight divisions.
He?s the real deal?fast, accurate and powerful. And last month, he demonstrated just how good he can be, stopping former world champion Edgard Sosa in two rounds.
4.) Manny Pacquiao (57-6, 38KOs)?The ?Pacman? drops a spot in our rankings on account of that loss to Mayweather. The controversy that attended the scoring in that fight paled in comparison to the tempest that would follow after Pacquiao announced that he had suffered a shoulder injury prior to the fight, thus limiting his movement and effectiveness.
Litigation commenced as some fight fans bewailed the fact that they were ?duped?into placing bets on an injured fighter.
5.) Gennady Golovkin (33-0, 30KOs)- The reigning IBO, WBA and WBC middleweight champion was his usual brutish self last month, walking through Willie Monroe in 6 lopsided rounds.
Unbelievably, ?GGG? now owns a 20-kayo streak dating back to 2008 and it appears like there?s nobody at his division to seriously threaten him.
A Miguel Cotto matchup is apparently in the works, and that should be interesting.
6.) Sergey Kovalev (27-0, 24KOs) ? ?Krusher? hasn?t fought since he scored an impressive TKO of the formidable Jean Pascal last March, but he is penciled to defend his WBA, IBF and WBO trinkets next month against NadjibMohammedi.
7.) Guillermo Rigondeaux (15-0, 10KOs) ?The Jackal? hasn?t been active since struggling against HisashiAmagasalast year and so he drops a spot in our rankings;
8.) Terence Crawford (26-0, 18KOs)- Crawford came out of nowhere last year to pancake Cuban YuriorkisGamboa in 9 rounds. He followed that win nicely with a unanimous decision victory over Raymundo Beltran.
Last April, he moved up in weight to win the vacant WBO super lightweight crown by stopping Thomas Dulorme in 6 rounds, and earned a spot at our rankings
9.) Timothy Bradley (31-1, 12KOs)- Due to inactivity, ?Desert Storm? also drops in our rankings, but today he will be trying to fend off the challenge of the rugged Jessie Vargas
With only 9 KOs in 26 victories, Vargas isn?t much of a puncher, but neither is Bradley. Still, their styles could make this fight intriguing with Vargas holding the height and reach advantage over the more compact Bradley.
10.) Andre Ward ( 28-0, 15KOs) ? Son of God? made a triumphant return to the ring after being sidelined for almost two years due to injuries and contractual issues.
Call it impeccable timing, but he just might be what the sport needs right now.
VERBATIM. ?I was injured in the first fight with Manny Pacquiao, still gave him credit. Second fight, I was injured in the second round, didn?t make no excuses. He should have kept his mouth shut.?Timothy Bradley (thaboxingvoice.com)
LAST ROUND. It?s on Yvette YntigDapat who celebrates her birthday this week. Cheers, ?Teacher Tet?!
