Canelo-Lara: A High Level Encounter

07/11/201407/11/2014 by skodabanton099

Canelo and Lara (Photo credit: Esther Lin/Showtime) Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (43-1-1, 31KO’s) must be commended for taking this fight with Erislandy Lara (19-1-2, 12KO’s). Lara, the Cuban defector, is as slick a southpaw as there is and stylistically looks to be a nightmare for the 23 year old Canelo who is looking to maintain the momentum he gained against Alfredo Angulo in March earlier this year.

Lara is himself coming off a convincing display against fellow left-hander Austin Trout in December 2013. Both Trout and Angulo are common opponents of Canelo and Lara, so we have two instances where they are directly comparable.

Terrence Crawford v Yuriorkis Gamboa review

06/30/2014 by skodabanton099

By James Allen: In his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska on the twenty-eighth of June 2014, Terrence Crawford successfully beat back the challenge of Yuriorkis Gamboa to his WBO Light-Welterweight title.

The two men met with identical undefeated records, though Gamboa’s campaign has mainly been waged at Super-Featherweight, and the disparity in size between the two has been evident ever since the first press conference. This clearly didn’t matter to Gamboa then, and it didn’t seem to bother him as they listened to the silky tones of Michael Buffer introduce the fight to a rabidly partisan crowd.

Chris Algieri dances away with the title

06/16/2014 by skodabanton099

By James Allen: This was not a fight Chris Algieri (20-0, 8 KO’s) was supposed to win. How is it that a man who has never been past ten rounds in his life had the audacity to go up against the destroyer of the division and take his title away?

Ruslan Provodnikov earned his reputation as an undeterrable force in March of last year in a losing effort against a then undefeated Timothy Bradley. That night, Ruslan was just there to make up the numbers, having jumped up a division to keep the champ busy. He fulfilled his objective, visibly shaking Bradley almost every time he landed a significant attack and walking through whatever came back at him. Bradley out-boxed the challenger for large stretches in between, and despite taking a knee under immense pressure in the twelfth round, scraped through with the decision.

Martinez vs. Cotto Pre-Fight

06/04/2014 by skodabanton099

By James Allen: Anyone who has been following the build up to this fight will be well aware of the demands made by challenger Miguel Cotto to facilitate it. He wanted his name put before the champion’s in the promotional campaign. He wanted the bout fought at 159lbs; one pound under the middleweight limit. And on June 7th at Madison Square Garden, in front of what has become Cotto’s home crowd over the past few years, he will walk out and be introduced second to the ring, the spot traditionally held for the champion.

Cotto feels as though he has earned these allowances and has shown little humility as he steps up to become the first ever Puerto Rican to claim a strap in four divisions. He has consistently proven he can generate vast amounts of revenue whenever he fights, especially so when fighting on Puerto Rican Day Parade weekend in New York City. His fellow country men always turn out for their favorite son.

Froch vs. Groves II: The Fallout

06/02/2014 by skodabanton099

froch#7 By James Allen: On May 31st, in front of the biggest post-war attendance for a boxing event in this country, Carl Froch provided a definitive finish in his rematch with ‘Saint’ George Groves. Not since prior to Froch’s demolition of Lucian Bute in May 2012 had there been so many questions surrounding ‘The Cobra’ and whether he could still produce the same level of performance that made him a three-time world champion.

In his first contest with Groves in November of last year Froch was put over in the first round by what has now become the most replayed knockdown in recent memory. He got up from the sledgehammer-like blow and trudged through eight more rounds of Groves unloading heavy artillery in high volume on him, but somehow managed to stay on his feet. Froch produced a rare rally in the ninth that brought about the heavily contentious stoppage from referee Howard Foster, which helped make the rematch in to the extravaganza it eventually became.

Marquez beats Alvarado by just about a shutout

05/19/2014 by skodabanton099

By James Allen: Observers can be forgiven for wondering whether Juan Manuel Marquez (56-7-1, 40 KO’s) was beginning to slip just a little bit as the his fight against Mike Alvarado (34-3, 23 KO’s) on May 17th approached. His last outing saw him suffer a lopsided points defeat to fellow Manny Pacquiao conqueror Timothy Bradley last October, where the younger man’s athleticism was a telling factor.

Ten months previously he had achieved what will be remembered as his most famous victory as he left long-time rival Manny Pacquiao face-down and motionless after landing a devastating right hand with only seconds left in the sixth round. However, the clinical finish combined with an earlier knockdown in the third flattered to deceive.