31/05/12 Pacquiao v Bradley, My take on this encounter

I have been wanting to write about the upcoming encounter on June 9th between Manny Pacquiao and Timothy Bradley for a while, the reason i have held off is because i wanted to take a step back and really look at both fighters and their preparation for the fight.
I have heard so many different opinions and outcome predictions from fight fans, most of which have the fight going the distance and have pacquiao winning on points, i say 'Come on, stop taking the obvious prediction'.
I have enjoyed certain other writers and reporters putting their neck out and stating either a 'Pacman' KO, or even a Bradley win, I'm still yet to see a Bradley KO prediction.
Ok so cards on the table right now, i have Pacquiao winning this fight on a majority decision, yes I'm not even predicting a full sweep amongst the judges, allow me to explain. We know the resume' that Pacquiao brings to this fight, we know the people he has beaten and we are very much aware of his Boxing ability and its not be questioned. What is to be questioned, is how many times since the Miguel Cotto fight as he had to really dig deep against opponents, that he should really be ending before the 12th round. Fights against Clottey, Margarito, Mosley and Marquez all went the distance, and these are Boxers that have slowly drifted past their prime and in a couple of cases maybe even to the end of their career. Many people had Marquez down a the winner of their 3rd encounter and he pushed Pacquiao very close in their previous 2 fights as well, ultimately Pacquiao picked up the win and that's what matters, but it all seems a bit to close for comfort.
Bradley on the other hand offers something completely different from any of the names mentioned above, a younger man with no fear, he will come at you all day long and wont stop until he wins. His 29-0 record will confirm that. Whilst Pacquiao has been increasing his P4P status by wins over older elites, Bradley has emerged a real Welterweight talent who has worked his way through some great young ring masters. Wins over Casamayor, Alexander, Peterson and Vazquez have put him right in the mix for a shot at the Philippine. (excuse the mention of Peterson, but he still posed a problem for Bradley).
Taking all this into account your probably asking why i have Pacquiao the winner and not Bradley, it's simple, how ever hard Bradley can hit, Pacquiao hits harder, no matter how fast Bradley is, Pacquiao is faster, no matter how much he is happy stand toe-to-toe and trade punches..............you get my point. Recent news of family issues and politics getting in the way of him concentrating on this fight do not worry me, i actually see it as an added incentive for him to win. Ask yourself did anyone think going to prison would effect Mayweathers performance? Elite athletes will not let outside issues effect them, especially someone of Pacquiaos class. As soon as the light shines on him in that ring, he has one thing in mind, to beat Timothy Bradley.

30/05/12 Alvarez v Kirkland looks likely

After the recent news of Paul Williams it has now been confirmed that a replacement is being found for 'Canelo' Alvarez and it looks to be in the shape of James Kirkland. A young 31-1 KO specialist, who is not to be looked over and could certainly cause Canelo a lot of issues. Alvarez the current WBC junior middleweight Champion has just come off the back of a dominating victory over Shane Mosley and is now looking for another test. Alvarez who has often been critasised for not being in the ring with anyone who can hurt him would defiantly answer the critics, as Kirkland bring 27 KO's to the table. Kirklands only loss came at the hands of Nobuhiro Ishida 3 years ago and it ended with him having a taste of his own medicine, since then he has gone on to look dominant and has rebuilt his bond with trainer Ann Wolfe. I still think Alvarez has the edge over Kirkland and has the unbeaten fight record to prove it, convincing wins over Hatton, Cintron and Mosley would suggest that he would add Kirkland to his list of defeated Boxers. Its certainly a fight that offers so much, lets hope they can make it happen for September 15th.

29/05/12 Can the British Heavyweights salvage the Heavyweight division?

At last it would seem that the British Heavyweight division has come alive. And i know that Audley Harrison hasn't exactly been the most memorable of fighters over previous years but he is still another name that we have now mixing up the division. The big four are Obviously David Haye, Dereck Chisora, David Price and Tyson Fury. I have confirmed before that i am a huge David Haye fan and have no problem saying so, and as bias as it seems i still feel he is the strongest hope for a British Heavyweight to obtain another world title. What is good is that 2 years ago it was only Haye that seemed to be able to compete at a world level, but a great performance against Vitali Klitschko from Chisora has put him in the mix, Fury has already proven he can beat Chisora, and did so for the British title. That belt now belongs to David Price who is looking a real prospect for the future.

As we already know we are all staring Haye and Chisora in the face, awaiting a winner, even the fight fans most anti of this situation find themselves awaiting the outcome. Its a grudge match that has reached such a personal level you cant help but feel curious to what will happen when these two men square up. Obviously the consequences of this fight are that both fighters have no back from the BBBC and wont have from here on out, so they will have to rely on their own Boxing status and promotion to get them any future shots. The man they both have in their sites is Vitali Klitschko, but the vibe being picked up from the Klitschko camp isn't exactly positive. Recent rumours have confirmed that Tyson fury is looking for a showdown with the winner of this bout. Obviously with a win already over Chisora and the size difference against Haye, why shouldn't Fury put himself in the mix, i really think he could cause both men problems.

Audley Harrisons recent win over Ali (who i hear you say) Adams has sparked to life his career.....again! He has recently confirmed he wants new British Champion David Price. I see a really bright future for the Liverpudlian and can see him challenging for a world title very soon, i also see him dominantig Harrison if the fight was to go ahead.

It is great to see 5 Different fighters all at different stages of their careers mixing it up with each other. This is great for British Heavyweight Boxing but also great for World Boxing. Haye has already tasted world glory and is hungry for it one more time after coming out of retirement. Chisora put up his best performance against Vitali and just fell short. Both Fury and Price are the two young guns that are looking to make a stamp on the division, with both of their promoters already saying they could get in the ring with one of the Klitschko brothers. Its an exciting time for the Heavyweight division and looks to only be getting better, lets hope it carries over into the World Heavyweight division.

28/05/12 Paul Williams left Paralysed after crash

Further tragic news has struck the Boxing world today and left all of the Boxing nation in shock, 2 time Middleweight Champion Paul 'the punisher' Williams was involved in a motorbike accident and has been left paralysed from the waist down. His manager released a statement confirming that the crash took place on Sunday and involved him turning a corner with a car and forcing him to swerve into the opposite lane. Williams came off his bike and severed his spinal chord leaving only part of the chord left for doctors to protect, this will allow Williams to move his upper body. Right now Williams is in hospital and is completely paralysed from the waist down, he is scheduled for surgery on Wednesday. Williams, most popular for getting a win over P4P contender Sergio Martinez was due to take on 'Canelo' Alvarez in September. An incredible Middleweight Boxer with a pure ability to Box inside the ring, we send our best wishes to Paul and the sport will miss him every moment he is out of the ring.

28/05/12 Update on Carl Froch's situation

 “Good news….Just been to Hospital & the x-ray on my right hand has come back clear, I will resume training in 2 weeks.”
 The words just Tweeted by Carl Froch, great news for the new IBF Champion and the British fans who await to see what route the 'Cobra' will now take with his next fight.Froch seems to have ruled out any chance of taking on Andre Ward again but does think he can beat him if he was to get a rematch with the American. My advice would be to stay well clear of Andre Ward for now and make a couple of defences of the crown with the likes of Kessler and Dirrell, 2 rematches I'm sure fight fans would love to see. Kessler has confirmed he would happily travel to England to take on Froch and i think this will be the likely outcome.
I'm sure Froch will continue to deliver top quality opponents, both because of his age but also he has never been one to duck a fight. Froch said himself on Steve Bunce's Boxing hour that he was 'no spring chicken' and is perhaps closing in on the end of his career, but knows that there are many matches available, even more so now he has the belt. Froch stated after the Bute fight that if he had lost he would have pulled the plug on his career and retired, this shows that Froch has clearly looked at his future and any other loss might convince him to end it. But for now the Brit is in great shape and after this blip with his hand he looks ready and raring to go.

28/05/12 Last Chance for Audley Harrison

The 27-5 Heavyweight Audley Harrison picked up a win the weekend with a 4th round stoppage over Ali  (who i hear you ask) Adams. Harrison said he wanted one last shot at the sport he loves and said he needed this fight for him. It now leaves him in the position of wanting a classier opponent and maybe even a title shot, word has it that Tyson Fury is in his sights. I have nothing against Harrison apart from the lack of effort put in when he took on David Haye, if he had used the effort like he did 2yrs ago against Michael Sprott the British public may have given him a bit more respect the obscene amount of money he walked away with. It just seems its a lot of talk from the Olympic gold medallist and not much delivery whenever he enters the ring. A part of me hopes that he can land a shot against someone like Fury but maybe that's me just wishing for a great comeback story. It takes a while to get recognition as a Boxer (just ask Carl Froch) but Harrison had it handed to him after the Olympic win, problem was he couldn't maintain his early amateur Boxing ability and got found out very quick. After continuous attempts to get his career on track, is this the moment we see the 40yr old take his moment.

28/05/12 'The Jackal' in terrific form

Two unbeaten fighters, Carl 'The Jackal' Frampton and Raul Hirales both put thier records on the line Saturday and Frampton proved why he is one to watch. Showing great technical ability inteh ring Frampton was able to close off the Mexican from early on in the fight. Frampton danced around the ring and produced some brilliant counter-punching that left Hirales looking rigid and powerless. It was great to see two men put their unbeaten records on the line so early in their carers and it was a great chance for Frampton to silence any critics he may of had prior the bout. After the Munroe fight fell through Frampton had to find himself a new opponent but one that would bring him a tough fight. After 12 rounds Frampton was declared the clear winner by UD and now leaves him looking for his next fight, hopefully not long before we see him in a world title encounter.