Is the blood work controversy between Mayweather and Pacquiao a legit roadblock or just hype? Was Ward vs. Gatti the best trilogy of the decade? Does Steven Luevano stand a chance against Juan Manuel Lopez? Is Gary Shaw Promotions a second rate operation? 411?s Patrick Cassidy and Jonathan Yaghoubi debate these topics and more in the latest edition of 411 Boxing Fact or Fiction!
Welcome to this week’s Fact or Fiction! Ramon has stepped away from the editor’s desk for a few days on some personal matters, and our best wishes are with him. But this means I’m in charge of this week’s Fact or Fiction, and I’ll be scoring the answers! This will be the final exhibition bout on Fact or Fiction; starting in 2010, the scores will be kept and winners will be crowned. Facing off this week, my little right-wing love nugget Patrick Cassidy goes up against Jonathan Yaghoubi who has pulled himself away from the New York Knicks games long enough to grace us with some boxing knowledge.
I know everyone’s been talking about Pacquiao/Mayweather, so this will be a Testgate-free edition of “Fact or Fiction,” so in the words of Kenny Bayless, “What I say, you must obey!”
1. Gatti/Ward was the best trilogy of the decade.
Patrick Cassidy — FACT. I know the purists will take Vazquez/Marquez but Ward and Gatti has something special that the other lacks. Maybe I have a bit of East Coast bias but I know some of my boxing friends who still talk about Gatti/Ward like it’s a family member. I remember when and where I was for each of those fights, I can’t say the same about Vazquez/Marquez. That stuff matters when gauging importance. Not to mention Gatti/Ward had such a great storyline of a hard nosed fighter looking for his one chance to make something of his career and the grizzled veteran looking for redemption. You can’t beat that.
Jonathan Yaghoubi ? FACT. With all due respect to the Vazquez-Marquez trilogy, there was no series of fights this decade that even came close to the amount of drama that Gatti/Ward brought us. It was not just the best trilogy of the decade, but it might been the best in the history of this great sport. These guys were true warriors and represented what boxing is about. No showboating, just fighting. The first fight of the trilogy was the best, and it deserves a place among the handful of greatest boxing matches in the history of the sport. Round 9 of fight one is perhaps the greatest display of toughness and guts you will ever see in boxing. Who could ever forget Jim Lampley yelling at referee Frank Cappuccino to stop the fight for Gatti as he was just being battered. But Gatti stayed on his feet and fought back to go the full 10 rounds.
The second and third fights were no different as they these guys continued to give it everything they had and more. The second fight was great because Ward wouldn’t quit even though Gatti was obviously getting the best of him. In third fight, Arturo Gatti broke his right hand in the fourth on a punch to Ward’s hip early in the fight which forced him to change his whole style. After the round, Gatti told his corner that he had broken his hand, but when his trainer asked what he wanted to do, he didn’t hesitate: “I’m gonna keep fighting.”
Marquez and Vazquez was great but two of those fights didn’t even go the distance. Ward and Gatti did not even think about giving or letting the ref stop the fight. It’s pretty sad writing this because I just don’t think we will ever get as great trilogy ever again.
ROUND 1: Seems like a feeling-out round as both guys are making the same points. I’m somewhat surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for Vazquez/Marquez, though. I’m giving it to P-Cass because of what Yags said at the end, that we would never see as great a trilogy again. I disagree. Great fights happen when you least expect it; same for great trilogies. Red corner takes the round. 1-0 Cassidy.
2. Despite major successes and new world champions, you still consider Gary Shaw Promotions second banana to Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions.
Patrick Cassidy ? FACT. Gary Shaw is undoubtedly one of the smartest guys in the sport. He doesn’t have the huge bankroll of his rivals and yet he consistently produces great champions which says a lot about his abilities. However, I don’t believe championships makes you a premiere promoter, star quality does. I can’t compare Manny Pacquiao to Chad Dawson or Shane Mosley to Timothy Bradley. Gary Shaw has great fighters but he’s yet to turn them into great stars.
Jonathan Yaghoubi ? FACT. Gary Shaw is starting to get up there but isn’t quite on the Top Rank or Golden Boy class just yet. Shaw knows his boxing very well and has got some great talent in his stable with the likes of Chad Dawson and Rafael Marquez. However, they just aren’t the star boxers that Rank and GB have. Shaw can put together the exciting fight but does not have the guys to put on a big PPV fight. He may have some champions but what does it all mean if people don’t know who they are? When I see one of Shaw’s boxers take part of a 24/7 show, then we will know that he is finally one of the top promoters in the business.
ROUND 2: Another very close round that could have gone either way. Both guys started well by giving props to Shaw, but then launched into arguments about great fighters versus great stars, which I understand. However, to me, having champions is just as important as having stars. Those who chase the belts have to go after champions, and if you have those champions, you will have to be involved. Also, I as the referee have to issue a warning to Yags: You’re waiting to see Shaw’s boxers on 24/7? Andre Dirrell is part of Fight Camp 360 on Showtime right now. Red corner takes the round. 2-0 Cassidy.
3. OK, I lied… there will be Pacquiao/Mayweather questions. With the bloodwork controversy in the press, you think this is a legitimate stumbling block, and not just “hype.”
Patrick Cassidy ? FICTION. I’ve wavered on this throughout the week before settling on a good old fashioned conspiracy theory. The promoters already have a great storyline of the obnoxious bad guy vs the humble good guy but what if they realized they could make even more cash if they got us to believe the guys legitimately hate each other? I think that’s where this story comes to play, their probably is some legitimacy in the negotiations but I really think it’s more hype than substance.
Jonathan Yaghoubi ? FACT. This is no shocker to me that this fight is still not signed. But I never thought it was not going to be about the money. Mayweather and his father are convinced that Pacquiao has done steroids in the past. Floyd has said that the Philippines is known for being one of the biggest steroid providers in the world. He knows this is going to probably be the toughest fight of his career and will do whatever takes to slow Manny down before the actual fight. I don’t think this is hype at all because people are going to buy and watch this fight no matter what. The hype has been there for months and Pacquiao and Mayweather should know that. These guys are the top two stars in the sport and just want to make sure that one is not getting over on the other. At the end of the day, this fight will get it done because they just “have” to.
ROUND 3: There’s enough hype as it is already. It’s like adding water to a full glass; it just spills over. There may be a conspiracy theory at hand, but I don’t think it’s for publicity’s sake. Blue corner takes the round. 2-1 Cassidy.
