By Harlan Davies: This time last year Pavlik’s career was the stuff of envy for many fighters. He was unbeaten, had conquered Jermain Taylor twice for via TKO and a unanimous decision for the undisputed middleweight championship, had steam-rolled through the under-matched Gary Lockett in three rounds and was in negotiations to topple Bernard Hopkins that October. At that point in his career he looked untouchable and eligible for the place as the Sweet Science’s next superstar.
He was expected to beat the old legend and catapult himself into the orbit of super-stardom. However, that would prove a costly mistake that would derail his bandwagon.
Pavlik (35 wins 1 loss 31 KO’s) fought Bernard Hopkins last October and ended up being schooled by the crafty veteran in a wide unanimous decision. He trudged into the fight as the heavy favorite, as the younger, fresher, stronger up and coming star that would be the first man to knockout B-Hop. It was the type of bout that was constructed as a stepping stone for the younger fighter, few would have predicted that the 44 year old legend would pull off something special but he did.
Hopkins out-boxed Pavlik for 12 rounds, showing superior speed, work rate and above all a better game plan. Pavlik looked lethargic and defeated going into the second half of the fight, demonstrating a lack heart and will. Going into the final round it looked as if he had submitted to conclusion of the first “L” was going to be put on his record.
In the post-fight interview, he was answer-less to what had just happened, putting a slight blame on the catch-weight of 170 lbs which made him feel not like “himself”. The boxing community had been astonished by the result and Hopkins advised Pavlik to go back to 160 lbs where he remained the Kingpin of the division.
Pavlik seemed to take the advice on board and took a fight with the WBC No.1 challenger Marco Antonio Rubio in his hometown of Youngstown, Ohio. Pavlik was expected to beat the average Rubio and he did within 9 one-sided rounds. It was a get well fight and mildly entertaining with Pavlik’s crowd-pleasing style allowing him to get the nod of satisfaction from the boxing fraternity. On the other hand, the fight was safe and unadventurous which could have symbolized a new era of safe defenses for the Ghost.
His career has been thrown into obscurity for the past year until now, with the fight with Williams on 3rd October on HBO which will aid him to get back on track. It is a mega-fight no doubt, with to fighter’s with exciting styles and abundance of talent. Fireworks will be expected and the outcome will help morph their careers. This is a superb career move for “the Ghost” because it was beginning to seem like he was destined to become a boring champion who would make a bundle of monotonous defenses with the outcome already known.
It’s going to be a tough fight Pavlik for because Williams is none for his obscene punch out-put along with his awkward southpaw style, many are predicting Pavlik’s downfall already but at this stage he has gained momentum and has thrown himself back into the limelight.
To be fair the middleweight division is in short supply of talent so it is that more difficult for Pavlik to obtain the big fights. Arthur Abraham has moved up in search of bigger things in the super-middleweight tournament while Felix Sturm remains the WBA champion and there were talks of a fight later this year but will probably not materialize because of the low purses and the fact the Sturm remains to be one of the most protected fighters in the sport. Anthony Mundine is another prominent figure but less deserving of a title shot after narrowly squeezing past Daniel Geale via split decision.
Despite this, many other fighters in his predicament would have put on half a stone and moved up to the talent-infested super middle-weight division where he could have chased fights with the likes of Froch, Kessler and Dirrell. He then missed another opportunity to fight them guys by refusing to take part in the Super-middle weight tournament where he would have traded punches with the elite.
His excuse was that they would ruin each others careers “for peanuts” but could not be further from the truth. They are guaranteed a place in the spotlight where their careers will flourish, they will earn the respect of the fans and interest from promoters.
Above all, they are helping keep boxing alive; boxers with the temperament like Carl Froch should be admired. Froch is fearless and possess’ the “I’ll fight anyone, anywhere” attitude. As opposed to Kelly Pavlik who looked forecast for a bunch of cozy defenses before “The Punisher” came along. Perhaps Pavlik’s confidence has been knocked after being humiliated by Hopkins leading him to question his own ability amongst the best and maybe this fight with Williams is just good timing.
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