Don?t call it aggravation. More of a nuisance. I spent part of my Saturday night away from any place with HBO coverage. Thanks to my trusty laptop, I was able to catch parts of the Chavez/Zbik fight on a few streams here and there. I?d watch until the show would get cut off, shut down, what have you. I?d then find another. Strangely, I began to find a pattern that I could liken to certain promoters and their respective hidden agendas. The same way I had to keep pounding away at internet connections, Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. had to keep plugging away at shams of fighters in order to finally get a cookie. A Mexico-based WBC belt. Believe me, I tried like mad to find a stream for Froch/Johnson first. No dice there.
I give much appreciation to the candor and honesty of Sebastian Zbik. He stated clearly before the bout that he knew he?d need a knockout to win. He knew he had no chance of influencing the judges or the crowd in little JCC?s backyard. The crowd went nuts, too. All those times Chavez connected to Zbik?s back, gloves & elbows resulted in grandiose bellows. Please, let me pause for a moment. I?m taking nothing away from his performance, heart or effort. I just knew beyond any reasonable doubt that the fight was over before it started. Not ?Iron Mike of the 80?s? over, but ?call me the springboard fighter? over. I wonder what we?d have to talk about now had Chavez lost. It wasn?t to be, though. Too many greater wonders on the horizon. That being said, it may have been called an off night or injury-riddled performance had he slipped. Sometimes, it doesn?t make any difference. Remember Jones/Hopkins II? Bernard did his part in defeating Enrique Ornelas. Roy had been pummelled by Danny Green. Along came the Pay-Per-View.
Many fighters today are using the springboard approach. Disguise it as a tuneup for one and a glaring opportunity for the other. How that must pump the less-favored side with confidence. Either that or the convenient announcement of one?s comeback versus a ?huh??? opponent. Take Pretty Boy, Money or whatever his moniker is these days. He decided to make his return to the ring the same day Pacquiao faced Ricky Hatton. Manny?s slated to face Marquez one more time. Juan Manuel has a tuneup against Colombian fighter Likmar Ramos. I thought he was supposed to fight David Diaz. Either way, Likmar, go ahead and throw the boxing world a Marquez monkeywrench. Try as hard as you can, anyway.
Floyd will now fight Victor Ortiz. Vicious Victor, I?ve no love for Kansas, but don?t be another springboard. I don?t think you can beat Floyd, but why not give it all you have? One of the biggest stepping stone fights of recent years has been mentioned in more than one boxing column this week. Oscar de la Hoya did not beat Felix Sturm. Go back and watch it if you need to do so. Bernard Hopkins was on the undercard. Oscar introduced himself into the middleweight divison looking like he?d swallowed a keg. They met in the center of the ring afterwards to announce their impending fight. Oscar got an undeserved victory vs Felix Sturm. No matter, though. No KO meant nothing stood in the way of the pot o? gold in the form of a Hopkins/Oscar matchup. De la Hoya faced B-Hop to see who was the king at 160. A left hook to the Golden Boy?s liver settled that argument.
