One big right hand of Dmitry Pirog to the face of Daniel Jacobs in the 5th round of their July 31 contest and we have a new WBO middleweight champion and a potential tournament to which the winner would wear the reunification of the WBO and WBC Middleweight belts (The WBA and IBF belts are currently held by little seen German boxers Felix Sturm and Sebastian Sylvester).
While not officially deemed a tournament, a Paul Williams ? Sergio Martinez rematch, potentially on the same card as a Kelly Pavlik ? Pirog title fight, would no doubt set the victors against each other. This series of fights would not only be good for the middleweight division, but the sport of boxing.
Three big name fighters, a rising star and a variety of skills.
Paul ?The Punisher? Williams is a fighter largely touted for his freakish build (6?1″, 82″ reach) comparable to Tommy Hearns (6?1″, 78″ reach). Where Hearns was prided on having devastating sledgehammers for hands, Williams is prided on his output. The middleweight average of punches-per-round is in the high 50′s, Williams has been known to average in the 80′s and low 90′s.
Martinez proved to be a great matchup for Williams. Martinez, a former professional cyclist and soccer player, matched Williams output with athleticism. While Williams was throwing and landing punches in bunches, he looked stunted at times due to the movement of Martinez. According to Compubox in the fight prior to Martinez, against Ronald ?Winky? Wright, Williams threw over 100 more punches during the course of the fight.
At the end of the fight last December, either Williams or Martinez looked ready to drop at any time near the final bell. Adding frosting to the cake, seeing the two southpaws in the ring again would have title implications.
Lem Satterfield of Fanhouse.com on July 31 quoted a business manager of Martinez, Sampson Lewkowicz, reporting that the fight only needed ?some final details to be worked out? to be made.
Rick Reeno of Boxingscene.com reported on August 5 that Williams had been given two options by HBO for a next fight, Martinez or undefeated Ukranian WBO Light Middleweight Champion Sergei Dzinziruk. Reeno added that Martinez has already begun training in Oxnard, California with anticipation of an October fight.
While a Martinez-Williams fight would be about speed, stealth and movement, a Pavlik-Pirog fight would be about power. The two bangers have a combined 46 knockouts in 55 fights and more than a few of these are electrifying (see: July 31 fight against Jacobs fora neck-cracking Pirog knockout or simply youtube Pavlik).
Boxingnews 24 quoted Pirog as having a vast interest in anyone the middleweight division has to offer.
?I feel like I?m ready for any fighter,? said Pirog.
?I want to fight Sergio Martinez, I want to fight Kelly Pavlik or anybody in the category that will want to fight me. I?m ready or anybody and I really hope I can fight on HBO and impress my fans gain. I hope that I made an impression.?
For the fight between Pavlik and Pirog to happen, Pavlik needs to resolve issues concerning weight and members of his fight crew.
Pavlik has had a share of problems preceding and following his middleweight title loss to Sergio Martinez including a debilitating staff infection, rumors involving drinking and physical disregard, weight issues and now it seems, internal Team Pavlik issues.
Steve Kim of Maxboxing.com has exposed turmoil in the camp of Pavlik between father Mike and trainer Jack Loew.
?He?s (Pavlik) only 28; I feel right now he?s in the prime of his life and we?ve become one-dimensional and predictable and these are the things I feel have to be worked on,? said Mike Pavlik.
?That Kelly has to bring in an Emanuel Steward or somebody to work on some of the aspects that he had earlier in his career that he got away from.?
A response by Loew to Kim painted the picture of a trainer who expected the normal response of ?something is wrong it must be the trainer? after a couple losses by the hard-hitting Pavlik.
?It?s just a shame that people are starting to point fingers, said Loew.
?No, we?re not switching anything; we?re not changing anything or bringing anybody in. But yeah we do need a conditioner ? we need to get up with the times. He needs to get a nutritionist, without a doubt.?
While details for both fights, personal, professional and promotional need to be tweaked, the stage has almost been set for an exciting, competitive series of fights in the middleweight division. A Pavlik victory in a Pirog-Pavlik matchup could spark a rematch between Pavlik and Martinez, a fight which could be a tossup with a better cutman and conditioner in Pavlik?s corner. A possible Pavlik-Williams matchup could bring to fruition a fight that was quashed the first time around due to a Pavlik staff infection. A Pirog victory over Pavlik throws a wild card into the mix of a big title fight.
In a sport where none of the big fights seem to get made, where none of the best seem to fight each other, the Middleweight division is in a position of no one but the best left.
