He is not the sort who when he is not assigned to an event, chooses to steer clear of all things fistic. Larry Merchant didn?t work the Juan Manuel Marquez/Juan Diaz HBO Championship Boxing card in Texas on Saturday, but he did watch that thriller, and the entertaining co-feature as well. TSS reached out to one of the fight game?s top pound for pound analysts, poet laureate Larry Merchant, to get his take on what went down.
Merchant was impressed by JMM?s work against Diaz, and like all of us wondered early in the fight if the 35-year-old had gone graybeard overnight, and wouldn?t be able to keep up with the young buck Diaz, ten years his junior.
?It was a terrific fight,? Merchant told TSS. ?Like Hopkins/Pavlik, Mosley/Margarito, the veteran fighter looked years younger when he could deal with a fighter coming straight at him. Marquez has made an unusual transition from pure boxer to boxer/puncher/warrior. Boxers often slow down, fight flat-footed as they get older. But it?s not common to show the raw fighting spirit that was hidden inside Marquez for years. Early in the fight, it raised questions as Marquez was being assaulted by Diaz was this one of those occurrences like when Hatton fought Tszyu and the older fighter was exposed to not having enough to deal with that kind of aggression and hunger?? As we all saw, Marquez did have enough to deal with it, as his second wind kicked in, and he started to kick butt.
Merchant disagrees with me, and thinks the John draw call in the fight against Juarez wasn?t a horrid travesty. ?I thought Juarez fought well,? Merchant said, ?and this is two fights in a row where he?s fought good fights against good fighters, and he looked better than he has previously. I think a fight against WBO featherweight champion Steven Luevano is a natural. I think Juarez has revived his career, and he can stand up to anyone at 126 and 130.? Larry and I diverge on this issue, which is rare for me: I don?t like the amount of flush shots Juarez takes, believe John schooled him pretty good, and fear that he is a fighter destined to end his career never having prevailed in a signature bout. We shall see how it plays out for the ever game Texan?
In higher weight divisions, Merchant is psyched for Pacquiao/Hatton on May 2. He thinks Hatton can maul and brawl and make a solid account of himself. ?Hatton is strong, tough, very willing and smart. He?s got a chance to make a serious fight out of it.?
That fight?s outcome will determine where chips fall for other fighters. Other chip movers I asked Merchant about include Floyd Mayweather. Merchant notes that Mayweather advisor Leonard Ellerbe is out of hibernation, sniffing around, seeing what?s what. Merchant thinks there is a chance that this is a tease, and Floyd will stay away. He also thinks we might see Floyd and Oscar do it again. But Merchant?s gut tells him Oscar will pack it in, that he has plenty of money, and will stay close enough to the sport with Golden Boy Promotions to keep him busy. ?I think he?s not going to come back, it?s just a hunch on my part,? Merchant said. (Dang, two divergences in one More Merchant column! I say Oscar?s stubborn pride speaks to him, and he takes one more bout, a farewell fight.) Merchant reminds us that both Marvin Hagler and Lennox Lewis turned down eight figures to meet Ray Leonard and Vitali Klitschko, respectively, so there are precedents for folks leaving great gobs of cash on a table.
Merchant fans should know that he will work the April 11 Paul Williams/Winky Wright clash in Vegas, and is amped to see Chris Arreola on that night (against Jameel McCline?). April 11 will be a fistic orgy for fight fans, as HBO will also run a Pacquiao/Hatton 24/7, and a doc on the Thrilla In Manilla, Merchant pointed out. Three weeks later, Merchant will provide his insights on the Pacquiao/Hatton clash.
SUPER SPEEDBAG Tip of the TSS cap to the Showtime boxing crew. They hosted a media lunch at the Palm in NYC on Friday afternoon, and the gesture spoke volumes. Sure, in this economy, a free lunch is an awesome thing. But I mean the fact that boxing chief Ken Hershman, executive producer Gordon Hall, producer Richard Gaughan, announcers Steve Farhood and Nick Charles, and publicists Chris DeBlasio and Anne Vantornhout all sat down a bunch of keyboard tappers, and engaged in a roundtable bull session. The gesture signified that they want feedback, they want to improve, they want to be communicators, they don?t want to rule from an ivory tower, and act like they are too good for the punters.
We got a few news tidbits, too, along with a kickaxe Caesar salad and solid filet. First, Hershman said he is trying hard to get boxing on CBS. The CBS Corporation owns Showtime, and CBS, so he has an inside track and a hold on the ears of some influencers who could make that happen. It?s not an easy sell, as it is typically more lucrative for a network to put on a repeat of one of their scripted dramas, which are expensive to produce, and which they want to wring every ounce of juice out of. But Hershman seems hellbent on getting the sweet science onto network TV. ?It?s a top priority,? he said.
Most all in the room agreed that that pay per view model doesn?t showcase the sport of kings to a new generation of fans, and that the core fanbase of boxing is aging, and in danger of going extinct, because too many of the sport?s drivers have paid too much attention to fattening their bottom line, instead of offering solid product for a fair price.
Promoter Kathy Duva of Main Events was also present. She shed some needed light on the difficulties for promoters, who so often loom as tempting whipping posts for us keyboard tappers. Duva pointed out that many boxers have guaranteed contracts, and so that means promoters have to maximize revenue, to meet those guarantees, so we get some of these less-than-stellar PPVs which force fight fans to hand over too much money to their cable company. One Duva point especially hit home?all of us can agree that we want fighters taking the risk to earn a damn fine living. So that means promoters sometimes have to do a PPV, to get a fight on TV, so they can sell foreign rights, and make a profit, which usually isn?t as much as some of us might think, after deducting production costs, and monies paid out to commissions, and sanctioning bodies and state taxes.
Duva said that she?ll continue to stage shows in Newark. Jersey and Jersey area fight fans will likely turn out in healthy numbers for her April 24 card, which will feature John Duddy against foe TBD (TV will consist of a Duva-sponsored production to be shown on the Bar Network, which is basically a closed circuit feed in US taverns, and a delayed showing on a cable channel, like MSG).
Duva said matchmaker Russell Peltz is narrowing down a list of opponents, and will put Duddy, in line for a title crack real soon if he keeps winning, in tough.
Fight fans should be pumped to see prospects like Ronald Hearns (vs. Harry Joe Yorgey) and Yuri Gamboa (vs TBD in April) get stiffer tests on Showtime as we move deeper into The Year of Boxing 2009.
Another bonus: I do believe I made some headway in eliminating one of my main pet peeves. I?ve long wanted Showtime to use some sort of punchstat system on their shows, and Hershman said that is being considered. ?We are working on a system,? Hershman said. I concede that counting punches is no exact science, but this is the age of stats, and fantasy sports, and I like to cite the punches thrown and landed stat for readers, as one element they can use to help them decide who won a tight fight. Like when we saw that John landed 150 more punches than Juarez?Gaughan?s stock rose in my eyes as he sat down with me after the lunch and picked my brain on why I think a punch-count add would be a net plus for the network. Imagine that?a producer listening to someone with a passion and knowledge for the sport, someone who is tapped in to what the fans want?
I?ve said this before and reiterate?we tappers aren?t afraid to point out the people and organizations that are bumbling, and we can?t be afraid to engage in some back patting, either. I like the job this Showtime crew does; I like their regard for the sport, and the pride they have in their brand.
