A few days ago it was reported by Greg Leon at BoxingTalk.com that discussions where in place to stage an April 10th bout between Paul Williams and Kermit Cintron. HBO would televise the contest with an undercard attraction between WBC Welterweight champion Andre Berto vs. former Jr. Welterweight champion Paulie Malignaggi also reportedly slated.
A few years back there were talks of Cintron and Williams meeting when the two were both Welterweight champions. On July 14th, 2007 Williams claimed the WBO Welterweight strap with a spirited decision win over Antonio Margarito in Carson, California while Cintron scored a crushing knockout on the same night in Atlantic City by crushing Walter Matthysse in two rounds to defend his IBF belt. A Williams-Cintron bout seemed intriguing but never came about.
Berto was scheduled to face off with Shane Mosley this coming January 30th at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada, but withdrew himself from the contest due to personal issues connected to the devastating January 12th earthquake that struck his native country of Haiti. While Mosley has moved on and is eyeing a possible clash with Floyd Mayweather, Berto now may find himself in the ring with fellow Dibella stable mate Malignaggi.
Wanting to get a feel for what the boxing public thinks of the proposed doubleheader and how the combatants match up with one another, I gathered some choice comments from some select boxing forums. In their own words, this is what the fans are saying about the possible Williams-Cintron/Berto-Malignaggi twin bill…
(EastCoast @ EastSideBoxing.com)… “Not surprised, Berto fights LW Forbes, goes life and death with a real WW in Collazo, fights a slow moving Jr WW in Urango, now fights a light hitting Jr WW in Paulie.”
(silent_storm @ Sherdog.net)… “Solid.
Good to see Berto take another fight instead of waiting around for the whole PBF/Mosley/Pac saga to unfold.”
(Prada @ Boxrec.com)… “Not many folks are giving Cintron a chance but I for one think he has more than a great chance to take Williams out. We all know that Cintron doesn’t handle pressure too well and while Williams may be a volume puncher, he’s not exactly a pressure fighter… He’s not the pressure fighter that Margarito is… Margo puts on a lot o pressure on the inside and mauls his opponents but Williams is different. He’ll throw punches in bunches from the outside and leaves himself vulnerable at the same time. I think Cintron can beat em.”
(LEGION @ SaddoBoxing.com)… “I’d love to see Williams open up the Cintron tear ducts; Kermit will be sobbing by 7th round. Berto/Malignaggi no thanks”
(11 Player @ EastSideBoxing.com)… “PW vs. Cintron is a nice fight; PW wins it because he is a superior talent.
Berto has to fight Collazo, it’s his mandatory and it will be a better fight than Malignaggi. Then he should face Cotto later on the year.
Malignaggi should get it on with Campbell.”
(Sinister @ Sherdog.net)… “Paul is absolutely a live dog against Berto, anyone who thinks otherwise hasn’t been watching Berto Fight.”
(milmascaras1 @ Boxrec.com)… “I think Williams takes Cintron out in the later rounds. Cintron is a good fighter but he’s going to become increasingly frustrated by Williams constant nonstop attack and whither like a daisy.”
(gudnite vienna @ Saddoboxing.com)… “Paulie- Berto sounds ok to me.. Who else do you want him to fight with Pac, Clotty, Mayweather, and Mosley all now fighting it looks like..
Maybe you could make a case for Cotto having another go, but I suspect he will take a bit of time off…”
(Boxed Ears @ EastSideBoxing.com)… “Andre, what kind of Floyd-assed move is this? Fight a welterweight . You’re a welterweight champion now. Act like it. This is crap. Paul and Cintron is a good match but I think Cintron might knock Williams out. Which is a shame because I like Paul a hell of a lot more.
And what do you mean Berto/Malignaggi is a great match? How? Why should a feather fisted light welterweight who struggled to beat a pudgy blown up lightweight as his last achievement get a shot at the WBC welterweight title? What has he done to even get a shot at a light welterweight title?”
(The Ratman @ Sherdog.net)… “I think those are ok fights. I surprised at the Williams fight, I thought he would fight Pavlik for sure. Should be a safe fight for Berto, keep him winning until he gets another shot a the Pac-Mosley-Floyd show.”
(SFW @ Boxrec.com)… “I read an interview where Cintron actually thinks he got a draw against Martinez, instead of getting stopped like he should have been. Cintron should have 2 losses to Martinez in my book, Williams will probly win, Kermit isn’t as tough in the ring as he is in his interviews.”
(NeckBreaknAiken @ EastSideBoxing.com)… “Can’t believe how everyone counts Paul out nowadays…
It’s actually pretty funny. And people wonder why folks like Floyd, etc. pick fighters who they can dominate. PW gets criticized for being the exact opposite of Floyd.
He fights tough, risky fighters. Although he has physical advantages, he comes to fight every time. He doesn’t run. He talks a little, but isn’t a loudmouth.
How can you hate Floyd, and then talk about a guy who’s almost the exact opposite.”
(mschatz @ Sherdog.net)… “Cintron doesn’t interest me. He’s ok as a stay-busy fight, but I cant say that I am particularly excited about seeing him fight Paul. I was hoping to see Pavlik/Williams. Failing that, Williams/Martinez at 154 would be great. I just hope we actually see Sergio get the nod to fight Pavlik.”
(Blodhemn @ Boxrec.com)… “Martinez should have wins against both Cintron and Williams.
Cintron/Williams isn’t a bad fight at all. Williams has horrible defense and Cintron can crack so it wouldn’t surprise me to see an upset KO. Williams most likely frustrates Cintron with close range arm punches with a possible late stoppage.
If both are up for it, why not? It’s an exciting fight at least.”
(Username92 @ EastSideBoxing.com)… “why would Paulie even think about fighting at welter, has small and weak a LW . Berto beats that ass all night in a fight I really don’t like the sound of.
Paul will break Cintron’s heart and stop him mid to late rounds, Cintron cant handle relentless pressure and work rate. Only thing is Paul does get hit A LOT and Cintron does bang”
(Southpaw Stephen @ Boxrec.com)… “I can see Williams possibly hitting the canvas in this one, but I think he will wear Cintron down and take him out. I can’t believe someone said that Williams doesn’t pressure. His pressure will break Cintron down HARD.”
(Henke67 @ EastSideBoxing.com)… “Wasn’t Williams-Cintron supposed to happen a couple of years back? It’s still an interesting fight and I hope it comes off. I assume this proposed fight would be at 154 but I’d like it to be at 147 to see if Williams can still be effective and strong at the weight.
Paulie shouldn’t be fighting above 140 but I still think he’ll give Berto a lot of trouble.
My first instinct is that Williams and Berto win, by tko and close decision respectively.”
(Pugilistic @ Saddoboxing.com)… “Williams vs. Cintron is an interesting matchup.
I personally feel that Cintron won’t be able to deal with the pace and pressure that Williams would apply. I expect Williams stopping Cintron on the ropes at some point in the later rounds.
Cintron does make this fight interesting with his power though. Cintron is a big puncher and Williams is easy to hit, Williams has showed a durable chin throughout his career but was dropped hard by Martinez who isn’t a huge puncher like Cintron.
Berto vs. Paulie is a joke of a fight. It would be like the Berto – Forbes fight.
Surely there is a better actually welterweight fight out there for Berto.”
(Bubba @ EastSideBoxing.com)… “I don’t think Malignaggi has ever been in a good fight.
Well, except not if you count the beat downs from Hatton and Cotto.
But seriously, why is Berto fighting another light welterweight?? Can’t Berto fight legit welterweights?!”
(Spicoli @ Saddoboxing.com)… “From Mosley to Paulie…does it get any more anti climatic than that This one has grab a pillow written all over it to me…….IF Cintron can box out and stay smart vs. Williams as he did with Angulo he may make it interesting with Williams defensive lapses…..than again Angulo has the foot speed of a tortoise and Williams pure two fisted volume, size will keep Cintron in a shell early and catching much body work.”
