The new year in boxing is off to a somewhat slow start, with the first major match ? Orlando Salido?s defense of his WBO featherweight title against undefeated challenger Mikey Garcia ? coming up on the 19th. That fight promises to be a good one. Garcia sports 26 knockouts in 30 wins. But Salido has previously faced another highly touted young knockout artist ? Juan Manuel Lopez ? and stopped him twice. Can Garcia ace the fistic exam Lopez flunked? Fight fans are looking forward to finding out.
Meanwhile, some other developments are of interest in these early days of 2013. Super-middleweight champion Andre Ward was scheduled to defend his title against ex-middleweight king Kelly Pavlik on January 26. But the bout was called off after Ward suffered a shoulder injury during training camp. Who, however, is disappointed that this encounter didn?t come off? Pavlik was impressive in his two victories over Jermain Taylor half-a-decade ago. But he hasn?t been the same since he was schooled in decision losses to Bernard Hopkins and Sergio Martinez. Pavlik would have been a ?gimme? for Ward, who faced a grueling gauntlet of competition during the Super Six super-middleweight tournament, and went on to stop light-heavyweight champion Chad Dawson. It?s too bad Pavlik missed out on a big payday. If the cancelled bout isn?t rescheduled, Ward will have to look for another ?gimme? if that?s the direction he wants to take.
As for Hopkins, the old slickster is going to lace ?em up again on March 9, when he tries to pull the IBF light-heavyweight crown from the head of undefeated champion Tavoris Cloud. In his last bout, Hopkins lost an unequivocal decision to Dawson. At 47, ?B-Hop? has been urged to retire since at least 40 ? the age at which he told his late mother that he would hang up his gloves. But Hopkins is one of those rare fighters whose skills have not eroded with age. He was neither humiliated nor outclassed in his loss to Dawson. Cloud, who was highly regarded earlier in his career, received a ?gift? decision over Gabriel Campillo last year. The ageless Hopkins stands a good chance to pick up where Campillo left off, and win where Campillo lost. With yet another title to his credit, Hopkins might then be ready to call it a career.
Moving on, you gotta admire a guy who is willing to get back on the horse that threw him. I?m talking about Seth Mitchell, the American heavyweight hope who was demolished in two rounds by underdog Johnathon Banks in November. The circumstances of that fight were like those of a Rocky movie.
Banks?s long-time trainer, Emmanuel Steward, had passed away not long before the bout. And Banks took over the training and corner duties for his friend and stablemate Wladimir Klitschko in a successful heavyweight title defense against Mariusz Wach. Despite those distractions, Banks dropped Mitchell three times in the second round to secure the stoppage. Mitchell asked for a rematch ? and he?s got it, coming up on February 16. Mitchell?s also got a chin problem, which showed when he was rocked by Chazz Witherspoon in an earlier contest. That doesn?t bode well for him in his return bout with Banks. Still, Mitchell is eager to try again, and kudos to him for that.
The fuse to this year in boxing has been lit. The fireworks are on the way.
Charles R. Saunders is the author of several books including Sweat and Soul: The Saga of Black Boxers in the Maritimes from the Halifax Forum to Caesars Palace, as well as the Imaro series of fantasy/adventure novels. Considered by many to be one of the leading authorities on boxing in Canada, he is the current Vice-President of Boxing for the Society of North American Sports Historians and Researchers. His award-winning novel, Damballa, which centers around a fictional heavyweight title bout, is available at Amazon.com.
