If the fiscal year is divided into quarters, why not the fistic year as well? In the case of the boxing business, the first quarter of 2013 ended with a bang on Saturday night when Mike Alvarado won a narrow unanimous decision over previously undefeated Brandon Rios. At stake was the vacant WBO interim (Do. Not. Ask.) junior-welterweight championship.
Actually, the quarter ended not with one bang, but hundreds of detonations as the pair of 140-pounders fought at a torrid pace from the first round to the last. In the end, Alvarez gained not just a cut-rate world title belt, but also revenge for the seven-round stoppage he suffered at Rios?s hands last October.
Their first fight was also fierce and tight. Alvarado got some potent shots in, but Rios overwhelmed him. This time, Alvarado made adjustments to his game plan, and Rios didn?t. Instead of spending the entire fight trading with the heavy-handed Rios, Alvarado boxed, moved ? and traded at the opportune moments. Alvarado not only stuck and moved; he banged and moved as well.
Rios?s only answer to Alvarado?s tactics was to keep moving forward and keep throwing bombs. His aggression was almost ? but not quite ? enough to overcome Alvarado?s strategic success, as far as the judges were concerned. Rios acknowledged the loss of his ?0? during the post-fight interviews. But he also held up three fingers, signifying that he wants a third meeting with Mr. Alvarado.
Alvarado is amenable to a third fight, considering that Rios gave him a rematch after beating him the first time they met. The fans want Rios-Alvarado III. The fighters themselves want it. If the promoters want it, it?s on, and will be one of the most highly anticipated fights of the year. As it is, Rios-Alvarado II is running right behind the Timothy Bradley-Ruslan Provodnikov war, which occurred earlier in March, as a 2013 Fight of the Year candidate.
The difference between the two fights is that Bradley had to battle his way back from the brink of defeat to win the decision, while Rios and Alvarado dished out and absorbed almost equal amounts of punishment. Alvarado dished out just a little bit more, and that was enough to secure the victory.
If the Rios-Alvarado trilogy comes off (and there?s no guarantee it will, considering that promoters were somehow unable to put together an all-time megafight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr.), it has the potential to rank right up there with the ones between Micky Ward and Arturo Gatti, and Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera.
Fights like Rios-Alvarez and Bradley-Provodnikov go a long way toward easing fans? lingering disappointment over the failure of Pacquiao-Mayweather to be made when it mattered. They are also a sign that 2013 is well on the way to being a great fistic year.
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.
