A Look Back At Vitali Klitschko vs. Lennox Lewis

Would Lennox Lewis have gotten knocked out by Vitali Klitschko had the fight continued? Was Lewis out of shape? Would the outcome of the fight be different had Vitali Klitschko not gotten cut? Who would have won a rematch?

Those are some of the prevailing questions when it comes to the Lewis vs. Klitschko bout. These questions have been asked right after the fight, in 2003, up until this day. I can't answer all these questions - no one can - but it sure is fun to speculate.

First of all, to the questions of Lennox Lewis being out of shape. He was! But that was his fault. He came into the fight heavier than usual. Most people like to point out Lewis was out of shape because he was supposed to fight Kirk Johnson, then at the last minute Vitali Klitschko stepped in to fill the void. This is all true - but Vitali Klitschko was ALSO training to fight someone else at the time. And if I remember correctly, it was Lewis' people who offered Vitali the fight. He took it. This argument needs to be thrown out the window (about Lewis not being prepared for Vitali) because Vitali wasn't prepared for Lewis either. When you're the heavyweight champion of the world, coming into ANY fight out of shape is no excuse. Vitali came into the fight in shape, Lewis didn't. Both fighters were unprepared for each other.

Now that that is out of the way, onto the fight: Probably the most exciting heavyweight fight in a long time. It was full of drama and excitement.

Lewis was no doubt surprised at Vitali's aggressiveness in the first round. I'm sure he underestimated Klitschko's ability, as it showed in the first two rounds.

Round 2 Vitali Klitschko almost got Lennox out of there, landing a perfect right hand which went under Lewis' lazy jab. Lewis hung on for dear life, until his head was cleared. The remainder of the round saw Vitali roughing Lewis up.

Round 3 was much more even. Both men landed some good, solid shots. This is the round Vitali Klitschko got cut in - which, in my opinion, was Vitali's last round in which he had some serious momentum. It all went down hill from there for Vitali. Things started to swing back into Lewis' favor.

Rounds 4, 5 and 6 saw both men landing some clean shots; Vitali's jab was effective throughout - and Lennox's jab started finding its mark after round 3. Rounds 5 and 6, particularly, started to swing to Lewis' favor heavily. Lennox Lewis was dog tired, but there is no question, as the fight progressed he started to land with more regularity.

At the end of round 6, Vitali walked slowly to his corner, while Lennox slumped down onto his stool like a sack of bricks. Both men were breathing heavy. Both were exhausted.

This is where the debate is most heated; some say Lennox Lewis would have inevitably gotten knocked out had the fight continued. Others say the momentum had swung in Lewis' favor, and that Vitali's cut would have only gotten worse.....both sides make excellent points. In my humble opinion, Lewis was gaining momentum, landing with more regularity, etc. As the fight wore on it was Lewis' for the taking. That's what I saw.

Would the fight have turned out differently had Vitali not gotten cut? I think so. This was Vitali's first cut, and it was a bad one at that. It bothered him, no doubt about it. Be that as it may, Vitali did get cut; it's apart of boxing.

There are a lot of what ifs when it comes to this fight. My ruling is that if Vitali Klitschko came out to face Lewis in the 7th round, he would have been grinded down, if not in the 7th round, the 8th or the one after that. It was only a matter of time.

After losing to Lennox Lewis, Vitali Klitschko made quick work of Kirk Johnson, destroying him in 2 rounds. The loss to Lewis actually gave Vitali a lot of confidence. And I think Lennox Lewis sensed this. Maybe Lewis himself thought "What if Vitali didn't get that cut?"

Shortly after the Kirk Johnson vs. Vitali Klitschko fight, Lewis retired. I can't say I blame him. "What if Klitschko doesn't get cut in the rematch?"

I posted the full fight between Klitschko-Lewis - so you can judge for yourself.

Miguel Cotto vs. Manny Pacquiao One Step Closer To Being A Done Deal

According to Bob Arum, Top Rank's boxing promoter, Miguel Cotto vs. Manny Pacquiao is one step closer to being a done deal. Arum recently said, "everything is fine."

Right now the proposed date for the bout between Miguel Cotto vs. Manny Pacquiao, is November 14 in Las Vegas.

Take Bob Arum's "everything is fine" comment whatever way you want, but it's nice to hear a little reassurance, considering all the bouts that have been canceled within the last year.

Full Fight Of Miguel Cotto vs. Shane Mosley

Full Fight Of Joe Calzaghe vs. Roy Jones Jr.

Wladimir Klitschko Dominates Ruslan Chagaev

Wladimir Klitschko dominated Ruslan Chagaev, every minute of every round. Wlad's torpedo-like jab was on display again, as he hammered Chagaev throughout the bout. Ruslan's corner put an end to his misery and stopped the fight at the end of round 9.

It was another bore-fest of a fight hosted by Wlad. Wladimir Klitschko is probably too skilled for his own good; he dropped Ruslan early in the fight and it seemed he could have stopped Chagaev anytime he wanted, after round 4. But he didn't. In typical Wlad fashion, it was the jab, followed by the right hand, over and over again. Ruslan was a stand-still punching bag made for target practice, yet Wlad didn't seize the initiative.

I now know why HBO refused to put this fight on their network. If HBO had any sense, they would refuse to broadcast any fight that involves Wladimir, minus David Haye.

I am not saying Wladimir Klitschko is devoid of talent; he has a lot of talent. I am saying that he is God-awful boring to watch. Wladimir, with his size, speed and skill, should be destroying heavyweights; getting them out of there early, instead of torturing us with his monotinus one-twos and safety first approach.

If there was one thing I was impressed with tonight, it was Ruslan Chagaev's chin.

Wlad is now the ring champion.

I wonder if David Haye watched tonight's fight? I'm sure he did - and I hope he's feeling guilty and at least 50 percent responsible for subjecting us to the Klitschko-Chagaev fight.

Jean Pascal Beats Adrian Diaconu By UD

Jean Pascal, after having been beat by Carl Froch, goes on to decision Adrian Diaconu in an exciting 12-round bout. Pascal won by UD.

Adrian Diaconu got dropped in round 5; he would get up to finish the fight - and make it a good one at that. This fight saw decent back and forth action. No doubt that both men have been elevated by their gutsy performances.

This was the first loss of Adrian Diaconu's career. It's back to the drawing board for him

As for Jean Pascal; maybe a rematch with Carl Froch is in his future.

Rocky Marciano Quotes

"Why waltz with a guy for 10 rounds if you can knock him out in one?"

"In the ring, I never really knew fear."

"I was on my face. I heard the count from one to 10. I kept telling myself that I had to get up, but I couldn't move. I couldn't make myself move. It was the strangest feeling."

"I have always adhered to two principles. The first one is to train hard and get in the best possible physical condition. The second is to forget all about the other fellow until you face him in the ring and the bell sounds for the fight."

"I don't want to be remembered as a beaten champion."

"I believe, in my prime, I could have fought with anybody alive."

An Early Preview: Miguel Cotto vs. Manny Pacquiao

With the fight between Miguel Cotto and Manny Pacquiao close to being signed, what can we expect?

All the talk recently has been about what weight the two fighters will agree to meet each other at. Early speculation is that the fight will be at a catch-weight - most likely 144 lbs. I feel, personally, Manny Pacquiao should meet Miguel Cotto at welterweight and forget the catch-weight; if Manny Pacquiao beats Miguel Cotto at a catch-weight lower than 147 lbs., excuses will start to creep up: Miguel Cotto was weight drained. He wasn't comfortable fighting lower than welterweight. Cotto's frame is too big. He was dehydrated . . . and so on. For such a mega-fight, boxing fans do not want excuses. May the best man win ( Let's not forget, Manny Pacquiao is perfectly capable of fighting at welterweight).

Regardless of what weight the fight takes place, Manny Pacquiao will have a significant speed advantage over Miguel Cotto. Cotto will have the power advantage - and will be bigger ( Ricky Hatton was bigger too and look how that worked out for him). Miguel Cotto is no Ricky Hatton, in that he's more of an operator inside the ring; Ricky Hatton was one dimensional, Cotto's not.

I think Manny Pacquiao's in and out south-paw style will give Cotto a lot of trouble. The outcome will be determined by how well Miguel Cotto can adapt to Manny Pacquiao's relentlessness and speed. We already know what to expect from Pacquiao - he brings it everytime he steps into the ring. The question mark remains on Cotto; will his confidence and self belief be where it was prior to his fight with Margarito? I don't think it will be. Not to say Miguel Cotto wont bring the house of cards on fight night, because he will. However, I don't think Miguel Cotto is where he was, say, two years ago.

I think the fight will be competitive until the very end. One reason I do not think Pacquiao will blow Cotto out of the water is for the simple fact that, Cotto has a good jab and underrated speed. The jab of Cotto will give Manny trouble - but in the end, someone is getting stopped and it'll most likely be Miguel Cotto. Manny Pacquiao has better stamina than Miguel Cotto. I think Manny's superior stamina will be the deciding factor in this bout.

My early prediction: Manny Pacquiao wins via 10 round TKO.

Larry Merchant Quotes

“Only fighting each other could have brought that much effort out, at a time in their careers when fighters, given all the punches that had landed on them, generally don't want to go that far.”

“He had long ago established he wasn't just another pretty face, but it was a reminder of what was going on inside his body while he was entertaining us.”

“Everyone remembers Ali afterwards could hardly get off his stool because of the effort he gave.”

“It was the third fight. They had both been beaten. If the fight was as significant as it may seem in hindsight, it wouldn't have been held in Manila. It would have been the Thrilla in Chicago.”

“Frazier was never the same after his first fight with Ali. He fought the best fight of his career in that fight.”

“I don't think that boxing historians have been able to find a case in which a great fighter, or a fighter presumed to be a great fighter, came to such an ignominious end.”

“It's hard to break through the clutter of fighters out there trying to get attention.”

“I haven't seen Johnson enough in the past to know, but he's a guy who's fought all these years, 16 years, finally gets a title, he's fighting for his biggest payday, he's still fighting back in occasional flurries, just as Jimmy Garcia did when he fought Gabe Ruelas. So he was still fighting back, Every time he went back to the corner he seemed to be going slower and slower. In fact I did mention after the eighth, ninth round that he sorta wobbled onto his stool. So the signs were there and it's in the hands of the referee.”

“The thorough bred against a clamor, or rather the Porsche vs. the pickup truck.”

“There are too many governing bodies. They're all corrupt. I think they have replaced the old Mobsters with the kind of 'corporate rule' of boxing.”

“Follow the wisdom of the great actor, James Cagney, you hit your mark, you look the other guy in the eye, and you tell the truth.”

“I think it all depends on how good this fight is. I don't know how to rank it. If this turns out to be a dramatic fight and Roy wins, people will look back at all three (in a fond way). But he has to win in a theatrical way. That would make it a great trilogy, maybe.”

“He's so good, you wonder what's wrong with him.”

"Maybe he won't look like a guy who's been eating too many of those airplane cinnamon buns."

Lampley: "will the seething undercurrent of the buildup now be reflected in what we see in the ring?"

Merchant: "probably. sure. because mayorga is a rude, crude dude in the ring as well as outside. in a sense, what we have here is class warfare with boxing gloves....mayorga looks at him as a hated slumlord, and oscar is coming to collect the rent"

"Chris Byrd has two punches - pitty and pat."

"Peter comes from the old school of swing in case you hit something."

"Castillo used his hands more when he was making his way from Cuba to Florida."

"He had a Michael Richards kind of bad day."

"That whale was just harpooned."

"You can see the colors of Ghana on Jantuah's trunks and robe. Bright, vibrant colors. You can take the boy out of the tropics, but sometimes, you can't take the tropics out of the boy"

"Despite the reality of what goes on inside the ring, the business of boxing is based on illusion. And if you want an example, I'll give you an example. The last big fight that Mike Tyson won was against Michael Spinks fifteen years ago."

What's Next For Sugar Shane Mosley?

At 37 years of age, time seems to be running out for Sugar Shane Mosley. There is no doubt Mosley will fight again; he just came off a spectacular performance against Antonio Margarito. Shane stopped Margarito in the 9th round, after dominating most of the fight. You would think fighters in and around Mosley's weight division would be lining up to fight him - but that's not the case. That has never been the case with Sugar Shane Mosley.

Shane Mosley, at 37 years of age seems to have caught a second wind in his career. Going into the Margarito fight, not many boxing fans gave him a chance. Who can blame them? Margarito is a huge welterweight, who could easily fight at middleweight if he wanted. Not only because of Margarito's size advantage which saw him as the heavy favorite going into the fight with Mosley, but his then seemingly undentable chin and his previous fight in which he wore down Miguel Cotto to win via 11th round TKO. Shane Mosley's age was said to be a factor leading up to the fight - another contributing factor which lead to the crow many of us had to eat after the bout.

Even after such a boxing performance as Mosley put on in January, it's good to keep grounded when it comes to the sport of boxing and put things into proper perspective: Sugar Shane Mosley will be 38 in a few months. He is human. Everyone can't be a Bernard Hopkins - a timeless machine.

While Mosley's victory against Margarito was great (given his age, it ranks up there with one of the best victories of his career) he is running out of time.

Sugar Shane Mosley has a few options left on the table before riding off into the sunset to end a brilliant boxing career. He can face Manny Pacquiao, the winner of the Mayweather-Marquez bout, or campaign to fight Paul Williams.

Right now, Shane Mosley is campaigning hard to fight Manny Pacquiao. There have been a few exchanges between the Pacquiao-Mosley camps, flirting with the idea. Mosley would prefer the fight take place at 147 lbs. and the Pacquiao camp would like a catch-weight of 144 lbs. Given Mosley's age, and the fact that he hasn't fought below 147 lbs. in years, you have to wonder if he can manage to squeeze his body down lower in weight without draining himself. Three or four pounds is huge in boxing at the smaller weights, even more so considering Mosley's age. I would favor Pacquiao by decision if Mosley agrees to fight at a catch-weight.

Everyone wants a piece of Pacquiao, including Miguel Cotto, who is fighting Joshua Clottey June 13. I suspect no announcements will be made regarding Pacquiao, Mosley or Cotto until after June 13.

Whatever the case, I have no doubt Sugar Shane Mosley will fight at least one more big fight before retiring. The key words are "at least." Knowing Mosley, he will fight a couple more times before hanging them up - win or lose.

Personally, I would like to see Mosley exit stage left at the height of his glory. Get out on top. Seldom does that happen in boxing.

David Haye's Keys To Victory

David Haye, the charismatic 28 year old heavyweight that will be facing Wladimir Klitschko June 20, in Germany, will have to do more to be victorious than his previous performance.

Perhaps David Haye looked sloppy in his bout against Monte Barrett because it was his first fight at heavyweight. Haye did not use his jab all that much in the Monte Barrett fight, showed little head movement and jumped in range often without setting up his punches. With that being said, David Haye displayed good speed and decent power - something an opponent needs in order to beat Wladimir Klitschko.

Considering all the hype leading up to this fight, which the heavyweight division so desperately needs, I expect Wladimir Klistschko to be properly motivated. Isn't he always though? Yes, Wladimir is a consument professional, but a Wladimir Klitschko that is properly motived and who has a perceived legitimate threat, fights better; a lot better than the jab-n-grab safety first Wladimir Klitschko. David Haye seems to have lit a fire under Klitschko. David Haye's mouth has been good for publicity, good for hype, but could turn out to be bad in the end for him.

I expect Wladimir's trainer will have him go right after Haye. Klitschko cannot afford to be a safety first boxer in this fight, and Steward knows this; he will have Wlad fight more aggressively.

I also expect David Haye to fight aggressively as well, because that is what you need to do in order to prevail against Wladimir Klitschko.

Haye cannot win the fight on pure aggression alone - he will have to implement his jab, head movement and not stand still. If he stands still, Wladimir's jab will cause real problems.

I can't see this fight being fought at a slow and measured pace, because both heavyweights are fast and powerful. Haye and Klitschko will want to get each other out of there as quickly as possible. I'm expecting a heavyweight collision with the fight not going past 4 rounds. Someone is definitely getting knocked out and knocked out early. If Haye can do even half of what is expected of him, it might be Wladimir Klitscko on his back being counted out by the ref.

Stay tuned.