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Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Michael Katsidis Preview & Prediction

2010-10-05T17:46:00.000-07:00

On November 27th, HBO will televise the world lightweight championship encounter as Michael "The Great" Katsidis challenges a living legend, WBA/WBO champion Juan Manuel Marquez. If Katsidis wins, he will have dethroned the top dog of the division and thoroughly shake up a talent-rich lightweight class in the process. A victory for Marquez, on the other hand, confirms his status and perhaps sets up a high-profile entry into the 140 lbs. ranks.

Michael Katsidis (27-2, 22 KOs)
30 years old, 5'7" tall, 66" reach
Australian

Katsidis is an all-action puncher. Although he is a legitimate contender, at age 30 Katsidis has yet to grasp the brass ring. In his first stab at the big time, he was knocked out in a see-saw battle with Joel Casamayor (in what turned out to be the Cuban's last big win). In his second try, he was out-fought and bloodied by Juan "Baby Bull" Diaz. He has since been on the comeback trail, including a win that saw a past-his-best Jesus Chavez quit on his stool and a knockout of untried-but-undefeated Kevin Mitchell.

Marquez vs. Katsidis Preview

Juan Manuel Marquez (51-5-1 with 37 KOs)
37 years old, 5'7" tall, 67" reach
Former featherweight and super featherweight champion, current WBA/WBO Lightweight Champion
Mexican

Marquez needs little introduction to fight fans. He is one of the great counter-punchers in the game today, arguably the best active fighter from Mexico, and the one-time arch-rival of Manny Pacquiao. Marquez is also the kingpin at lightweight. His recent loss to a much bigger Floyd Mayweather was certainly no disgrace, and while Marquez shows signs of slowing down, he shows no signs of actually "becoming old." His combination of skills, ring savvy and hitting power represent a truly formidable combination for any boxer in the 130, 135 or 140 lbs. divisions.
Marquez vs. Katsidis Prediction & Analysis

In July, Marquez showed everyone that age hasn't diminished his prowess by winning a rematch over Juan Diaz, and improving on his performance in the process. "Dinamita" busted up "Baby Bull" on his way to a huge points win, and "Baby Bull" was the guy who out-macho'ed Katsidis in 2008. Although Katsidis has heavier hands than Diaz (who is a swarmer rather than a puncher), Marquez is a heavy favorite in this encounter.

Michael Katsidis is a warrior and has some grit, and it is easy to imagine his assault scoring points and bagging a few rounds early in the fight. However, he has showed us nothing new in his comeback, with the two noted wins being over a tough-yet-shopworn Chavez and an undefeated-but-untested Mitchell. A man who can defuse the assault of Manny Pacquiao will certainly be able to blunt the attack of Katsidis. Once Marquez figures the Australian out, he will turn the tables on him, take control of the fight, and put the man down.

Prediction: Juan Manuel Marquez TKO10

Briggs vs. Klitschko Preview

2010-10-01T12:08:00.001-07:00

After reading many amusing articles about how Shannon Briggs (51-5-1, 45 KO’s) has a real chance to beat Vitali Klitschko (40-3, 38KO’s), I realized that the author, who will remain anonymous, truly does believe that “The Cannon” will indeed knock out Dr. Ironfist. So lets look at the facts that this other anonymous author fails to mention:

Briggs stands at 6 feet 4 inches tall, 3 inches shorter than Klitschko. But they do have an equal 80” reach. So Klitschko well not have the reach advantage that the Ukrainian usually has. Who has the better jab with that reach, Klitschko. Who has the wild hooks, Briggs. Briggs does have 30 first round knockouts on his resume. That is pretty impressive, until you take a look against who…. Ironically the same writer/author slams Pacquiao about his alleged PED use, which he has never been tested positive. But in December of 2009, Briggs (coming off a 30 month layoff ) first round knock out of Marcus McGee (22-17, 11KO’s) was ruled a “no-contest”, due to Briggs testing positive for illegal substance. But he backs Briggs….

Maybe Briggs was trying to get back to his training that he put in when he lost to Lennox Lewis (41-2-1, 32KO’s) for the WBC title in 98. This is a good example to compare Briggs and Vitali, being that they both had a showdown fight vs “The Lion”. Briggs got knocked down three times and the fight was stopped via TKO in the 5th round. Briggs had some good shots early on, but Lennox was in control of the fight. Four years later, June 21, 2003 – The world awaited a great match up, V. Klitschko vs. Lewis. This was a well deserved match up, unlike the robbery that “Big George” Foreman had to endure to Briggs, for Briggs to get a undeserved shot at Lewis ( Talk about a robbery…) Klitschko on the other hand lost to Chris Byrd and won 4 straight including a WBA heavyweight eliminator fight, to earn his shot at the champ. In the 3rd round Lewis landed a massive right hand shot that opened a deep cut above the Vitali’s left eye. In the cut round between rounds 6 and 7, the ringside doctor deemed the cut to severe and the fight was stopped. But since the cut was from Lewis big right hand, and not from a headbutt, Lewis rightfully go the TKO stoppage. But you can not forget that when Lewis was getting his hand raised by the referee, many fans began booing “The Lion”. It sounds weird hearing that now, being that the fight took place in Los Angeles California. HBO in recent months have come out saying that they are not going to showcase anymore Klitschko’s bouts because of lack of interest in the American fight scene. But in 2003 even the fans at the fight that night, knew that Lennox barely got past a youthful Vitali, and we all awaited a rematch. In boxing, fighters fight for money and world titles, and this was to be the biggest money fight for a title in the heavyweight division in 2003/2004. Even Lennox knew that it was his time to go. Something in that fight he saw in Vitali or felt his own skills diminish compared to Vitali, and knew that he would beat “The Lion” in an event of a rematch. How could someone retire from boxing after such a great career and end it on a somewhat debatable outcome from the new rising star in the division. Why would the champ not want to take one more great fight to end a great hall of fame career. After all since Vitali was ahead on all three judge scorecards, which had the bout at 58-56. Vitali even with that cut on his left eye was still 2 rounds in the lead. Mind you that cut happened in the 3rd round, 4 rounds for Vitali and only 2 for Lewis. Vitali still had the guts to go on for 3 more rounds and still win them, with blood pouring into his eyes. He still had the skill and fighters heart to go head to head, with the champ. He did not get knocked down unlike Briggs, but withstood his ground until the fight was stopped. It would have been a hell of a rematch, and Lennox Lewis knows it as well.

So we know Vitali has the chin and heart over Briggs, what does Briggs have against Vitali? Briggs usually catches his opposition with wild swinging hooks that flatten the B Level fighter. Starts throwing them at the beginning of the round, taking heavy breaths in between shots. After all in 58 total fights, “The Cannon” has knocked out 45 of them, and 30 in the first round. But against what kind of skill level fighters…. Lets look at what Dr. Ironfist brings to the table.

Vitali has two things that most boxers don’t possess. Klitschko has an extensive kickboxing career, 34-1 22KO’s, and a PhD in sports science. Could it be thats the reason why Vitali has never been knocked down… in a boxing fight. You can say that, ya, Vitali has tasted the canvas, but you have to go all the way back to the mid 90′s where his only lost in kickboxing came by a swinging back spin kick, which didn’t connect to Vitali’s concrete chin, but to his thigh. Briggs has also tried kickboxing back in 2004, where he is 1-0. But Vitali originally came from a kickboxing background. Which is where he got his powerful straight back slickster stance from. He has the ability to lean back on his right foot and gets even more lean leverage in his slickster stance with his long torso ( 6 ft 7 inches ). He pulls away from the fighter leaning back _/, so when the fighter comes in throwing and Vitali leans back even further with little back steeping it really throws off the fighter. Meaning Briggs really has to commit himself when coming in to land those powerful hooks. Briggs can come in if he can get past Vitali’s jab, but once he is in range of Vitali, unlike his younger brother Wlad, Vitali doesn’t leave his chin over his chest. Vitali unleashes that great right hand, that has Dr. Ironfist the highest knockout percentage of all heavyweight champions in total fights. He has 40 wins, and 38 came from knockouts. Vitali knows how to drain a fighter and then attack when the stamina is drained or they are trying to recover. That sports science degree really comes full circle when you watch his tactical plans in the ring. Briggs on the other hand…

Briggs has been quoted with his awesome game plan, that he wants to implicate onto Vitali. But I really hope he is joking. In an interview on the radio program “On the Ropes” at easideboxing.com, the 38-year-old Briggs said “I’m going to be the heavyweight champion of the world. Plan A is to knock him out in the 1st round, Plan B is to knock him out in the 2nd round, Plan C is to knock him out in the 3rd. And if I don’t knock him out at all, I plan on beating him in every round and that’s my main goal.”

I know that Briggs has been very pleased with his newest asthma medication. But for a man that usually weighs 260-270lbs. And to slim down all the way to below 250lbs, all while being 38 years old… it has to have you wonder, is there any power left in that “Cannon”?

Not to take away anything from such a remarkable achievement. But he is 38 years old, and going up against Vitali Klitschko. How can anyone really think that Briggs has a standing shot against a man that makes all his opponents look weak, and gassed out before he goes in for the knockout. To say that his game plan is to come out of his corner swinging and looking for a knock out against a man that has seen 42 professional boxing fights and has never been on the floor… Its jut not going to happen… And if it does, my wife will have to clean the couch because I will have crapped myself and passed out from shock.

In my eyes, this fight has very little appeal. I am American, and would love to see Briggs pull this off to bring home a belt to the good ole USA but I do not believe that Shannon will even get close to beating Vitali. There is a reason why after the major hype of a Lennox Lewis vs Vitali Klitschko II rematch, Lewis declined and stuck to retirement. With little opposition left in the heavyweight division back in the early 2000′s why wouldn’t he take a rematch fight to prove once and for all that Lewis was the big “Lion” he was. Fighters are in this sport to make money, and this fight would have garnered big money for his last official fight. I guess Lennox wanted to keep his loses to two rather than three. Briggs has terrible defense, gets gassed out early if he doesn’t get an early knockdown. In reality the only fight that would have appeal containing Briggs, would be against David Tua (51-3-2, 43KO’s), and even then thats a HBO Boxing after dark matchup. In the end, Briggs loves to get those 1st round knockouts. 30 of his 45 KO’s have come within round one. Briggs himself has stated how he wants to come out swinging for Vitali. Briggs also has an asthma condition, does he not realize that this is a 12 round bout? Vitali, has the highest percentage of knockouts in the heavyweight division. Breaks down the opposition before he comes in with his right hand, plays cautious until he see’s an opening. What are the chances that even Lennox Lewis couldn’t get Vitali down in their fight, that Shannon Briggs will do it, in round one, two or three… I mean if he is really hellbent on getting an early knockout, he is going to be gassed out sooner and dropping his hands. In the end, Briggs well get a mouthful of Grant campeon leather applied to his head after he is gassed out from trying to go for a knock out against a man that is too smart to let that happen. Because we all know that Vitali can take a punch. Even ones that ripped threw his skin and gush blood for rounds…all while still coming forward, blood, sweat,guts and all. The same punch can land on Briggs, but Briggs is on the canvas shortly after. After all, Briggs has been KO’d 2 out of 5 loses. If you can’t figure out the sports science around boxing, don’t worry because Dr. Ironfist can school/tutor your as* any day out this week.

I would love to see a next to the Author name in articles to have a tally on predictions percentages correct wins. Because I believe that the anonymous author writes just to have people like me write something in return. He is a great villain that we all need much like Mayweather Jr. And to see if writers actually stick to what they believe in or what they want to hype up.

Watch Klitschko vs Peter Free Live Stream Rematch

2010-09-08T05:31:00.000-07:00

Watch Klitschko vs Peter Live Stream. The Klitschko vs. Peter fight will be aired live this Saturday, September 11 from Commerzbank-Arena Frankfurt, Germany. The Klitschko vs Peter rematch fight will be televised live by ESPN.

The boxing heavyweight title Wladimir Klitschko vs Samuel Peter 2 fight rematch video dubbed as “Showdown in Frankfurt” is set to take place on September 11, 2010 live at the Commerzbank-Arena in Frankfurt, Hessen, Germany.

The Klitschko vs Peter 2 video rematch will be a heavyweight division title match with Klitschko’s title belts at stake.

On their first fight, Klitschko defeated Peter via Unanimous Decision last September 2005 handing him his first career loss.

Gamboa vs Salido Live Online Streaming

2010-09-06T09:57:00.000-07:00

Watch Yuriorkis Gamboa vs Orlando Salido Live Online Streaming. Watch the title unification bout of WBA belt-holder Yuriorkis Gamboa (18-0, 15 KO’s) vs. IBF champion Orlando Salido (34-10-2, 22 KO’s) for the World Featherweight Championship. The Gamboa vs. Salido fight will be on Saturday, September 11, 2010 at the Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. This fight will be broadcasted on HBO in the airtime of 9:45pm. This is a somewhat interesting bout but not the fight that boxing fans really want to see Gamboa in. He should take care of the 29-year-old Salido without too many problems unless Gamboa gets reckless and gets caught by one of Salido’s big shots.

Pacquiao-Margarito Los Angeles Presscon Photos

2010-08-31T23:43:00.000-07:00

Superstar Manny Pacquiao and three-time world champion Antonio Margarito pose during the press conference to kick off their national press tour with stops in New York and Dallas. Pacquiao and Margarito will do battle, November 13 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Pacquiao vs Margarito is promoted by Top Rank in association with MP Promotions and Cowboys Stadium. This telecast will be available live on HBO Pay Per View.

Click here for more Pacquiao-Margarito Los Angeles Presscon Photos

Mosley vs Mora Live Online Stream on Pay-Per-View

2010-08-31T22:52:00.000-07:00

Watch Five-Time World Champion Sugar Shane Mosley (46-6, 39 KO’s) and former Junior Middleweight World Champion Sergio Mora (22-1-1, 6 KO’s) hit the boxing ring on September 18, 2010 bout at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Mosley is looking to rebound from a recent lopsided 12 round unanimous decision defeat against Floyd Mayweather Jr. While Mora aims to retire 38-year-old Mosley with his three inch height advantage.

I see Mosley losing to Mora and getting dominated by him. I don’t understand the logic of picking a mover like Mora as an opponent following a one-sided loss like the one that Mosley suffered at the hands of Mayweather. This fight could end up looking a lot like Mosley’s loss to Mayweather. Mora is fast, deadly with his pot shots and has an excellent jab. And most of all, he’s really hard to hit.

This is gonna be an exciting fight to watch. So stay tune. This boxing megafight is distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View.

Mosley vs Mora Announced in Las Vegas Press Conference

2010-08-31T12:06:00.000-07:00

A press conference was held at the Mandalay Bay to officially announce the Sept 18 junior middleweight match between former champions Shane Mosley and Sergio Mora. Welterweight prospect Saul Alvarez and junior welterweight Victor Ortiz will fight separate foes on the card.

Photos by Chris Cozzone

Top 10 Ring Magazine Pound for Pound Fighters

2010-08-31T03:37:00.000-07:00

Manny Pacquiao (Philippines ) 51-3-2 (38 KO) Welterweight Currently: WBO Welterweight Champion, WBO Super Champion, WBC Emeritus Champion
Floyd Mayweather Jr (USA) 41-0 (25 KO) Welterweight Currently: WBC Emeritus Champion
Juan Manuel Márquez (Mexico) 51-5-1 (37 KO) Currently: Lightweight WBA and WBO Lightweight Champion ("Undisputed"), The Ring Lightweight Champion, WBO Super Champion
Nonito Donaire (Philippines ) 24-1 (16 KO) Currently: Junior bantamweight interim WBA Super flyweight Champion
Shane Mosley (USA) 46-6-0-1 (39 KO) Welterweight
Paul Williams (USA) 39-1 (27 KO Middleweight
Sergio Gabriel Martínez (Argentina) 45-2-2 (24 KO) Middleweight, Currently: Junior middleweight, WBC and The Ring Middleweight Champion
Pongsaklek Wonjongkam (Thailand) 76-3-1 (40 KO) Flyweight Currently: WBC and The Ring Flyweight Champion
Fernando Montiel (Mexico) 43-2-2 (33 KO) Bantamweight Currently: WBC and WBO Bantamweight Champion, WBO Super Champion
Wladimir Klitschko (Ukraine) 54-3 (48 KO) Heavyweight Currently: WBO and IBF Heavyweight Champion ("Undisputed"), The Ring Heavyweight Champion, WBO Super Champion

Click here to check the current ranking.