By Dave Berry: It’s natural to hope for better prospects in a new year. What ends up playing out in reality, however, is often far different. Such is often the case with our beloved sport of boxing.
2010 came and went with most of the sport’s biggest stars appearing sparingly, and against lackluster competition. 2011, though, offers us the hope for change, with two promising bouts in the year’s first two months, between Timothy Bradley and Devon Alexander, and Fernando Montiel and Nonito Donaire, respectively. What’s on tap for the rest of 2011? Here are the predictions.
1. Manny Pacquiao will finally face a young unbeaten opponent. It’s hard to imagine a scenario in which the 39-year-old Shane Mosley tops Manny Pacquiao. And once the drubbing is complete, the boxing populace will rightfully continue its demands for Pacquiao to take a risk against a younger, unbeaten opponent. Call it the curse of the great one, but boxing fans demand more of Pacquiao than they do of other fighters. Should he continue to fight after facing Mosley, the best fights that can be made are against Andre Berto or the winner of the Bradley vs. Alexander fight. That’s assuming that a fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. doesn’t get made, and that brings us the second prediction for 2011.
2. Floyd Mayweather Jr. will not fight in 2011. Mayweather has no concerns about his place in history among the sport’s all-time greats, no matter what public opinion might be. The fact of the matter is that Mayweather beats to his own drum, and he will fight only when he wants to, and against whom he wants to. And when you consider his legal issues, and his lack of self-promotion as of late, it seems likely that Mayweather will stay on the sidelines once again in 2011. He may be the most technically sound fighter of his generation, but with each passing day, it seems highly unlikely that we’ll ever see the super bout between him and Pacquiao.
3. The junior welterweight division will produce fireworks. 2011 kicks off with Timothy Bradley facing Devon Alexander, a rare matchup that features two of the division’s brightest stars going head-to-head without forcing the public to endure years of tune-up fights just to build anticipation beforehand. The Khan vs. Maidana and Ortiz vs. Peterson fights in December solidified the belief that the 140 pound division is loaded from top to bottom, and the potential for scintillating fights can be made at every turn. Bradley vs. Alexander should only cement the power of this division further.
4. Sergio Martinez’s next fight will be at a catch weight. His next dance partner seems likely to be Sergei Dzinziruk, the undefeated junior middleweight who has a perfect record through 37 fights. The number of good money fights at 160 pounds is slim, and with 168 pounds being a large jump in weight, it’s likely that Martinez will find the best opponents in the junior middleweight division, in bouts with catch weights around 157 to 158 pounds. Will he get his wish of a showdown with 154 pound champion Miguel Cotto? That brings us to the fifth prediction.
5. Miguel Cotto will face Antonio Margarito in a rematch on the weekend of the Puerto Rican Day Parade in NYC. This fight has been more about the when, and less about the if. Cotto’s bout against Ricardo Mayorga on March 12 is little more than a stay busy bout against a fighter who throws his best punches when he’s behind a microphone, but no longer when he’s in the ring. At this stage in Cotto’s career, he wants big money fights, and a Margarito rematch, with the subtext of revenge, is the biggest fight he can make. Should he come away with a victory, look for a late year showdown against Sergio Martinez.
Will 2011 be a better year for boxing than 2010? Will there be any pleasant surprises or big breakthroughs? Stay tuned!
Like what you’ve read here? Questions or comments? Email me at iamdavidberry@yahoo.com.
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