Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting
Tomorrow night is a big night of boxing for the true fan, with not one, not two, but THREE potentially exciting bouts to watch, involving three under-appreciated, top-ten pound-for-pound guys who would dearly like to catapult themselves into the PPV-money stratosphere.
Here’s the Large breakdown:
MIGUEL COTTO v. CARLOS QUINTANA
Cotto is probably the best bet of the big names going tomorrow night to turn into a superstar – an undefeated Puerto Rican brawler with a penchant for bloody, Gatti-esque wars in the ring (above Cotto, left, gives Paulie Malinaggi the beating he so sorely needed). He’s making his debut at 147 against his fellow undefeated countryman, Carlos Quintana, a hard-punching southpaw who surprised Joel “Love Child” Julio last June. They’re fighting for the WBA welterweight belt that Ricky Hatton vacated to go back down to 140. I confess I don’t have a solid prediction for you. I’ve seen Cotto fight a lot, and I was at his slugfest with Ricardo Torres in 2005, one of the best fights of the year. The only Quintana fight I’ve seen is his Julio win, where he looked impressive, but then again Julio looked like shit. I would venture to guess that Cotto will win by KO, but his propensity to open up and find himself on the canvas along with Quintana’s clear power make me think that it could easily go the other way.
ANTONIO MARGARITO v. JOSHUA CLOTTEY
Margarito is making quite a name for himself these days as “The Man That No One Wants to Fight.” Bob Arum has told the entire world a hundred times over that he offered Floyd eight mil to fight Margarito and Floyd turned it down to fight Baldomir, which means absolutely nothing to me, because the only man Floyd wants to fight is Oscar, and so why would he risk an eight mil bloodbath with Margarito and scotch a 20 mil superfight with ODLH? Nevertheless, the fact remains that Margarito is a dangerous fighter, a tall welterweight with dazzling speed, a (very) poor man’s Tommy Hearns. Clottey is a brawler from Ghana by way of the Bronx with no a-listers on his resume. Could be explosive early, but I’d wager quite a bit that Clottey won’t go the distance.
WINKY WRIGHT v. IKE QUARTEY
This is the fight I'm really worked up for. I said it when the fight was made and I'll say it again now - Winky is ALL motherfuckin man for taking on Quartey right now. The Wink fights anyone, anywhere, and if people still appreciated boxing as an art form and not a forum for pure bloodlust, he would already be a PPV attraction. This fight's on his home turf in Tampa, and Quartey is about seven years off his prime, but still... did you see that Quartey/Forrest bout? Ike is anything but a shot fighter. He's still a technician, still throws that beautiful hammer of a jab, and still has the heart of a lion. Winky remains the number two pound-for-pound in my book despite the draw with Jermain, but if he's looking past Ike to a Taylor rematch, he could get himself whupped up in front of the home crowd tomorrow night. I say Wink in a decision (probably a controversial split decision given Quartey's history), but should be some excitement getting there.
If you've by chance forgotten what kind of heart the Bazooka possesses, check this shit out - Feburary of 1999, round twelve with Oscar. It's the jaw-dropping finale of the defining fight of Ike's career, one that he still thinks he won (Large had it a draw):
Here’s the Large breakdown:
MIGUEL COTTO v. CARLOS QUINTANA
Cotto is probably the best bet of the big names going tomorrow night to turn into a superstar – an undefeated Puerto Rican brawler with a penchant for bloody, Gatti-esque wars in the ring (above Cotto, left, gives Paulie Malinaggi the beating he so sorely needed). He’s making his debut at 147 against his fellow undefeated countryman, Carlos Quintana, a hard-punching southpaw who surprised Joel “Love Child” Julio last June. They’re fighting for the WBA welterweight belt that Ricky Hatton vacated to go back down to 140. I confess I don’t have a solid prediction for you. I’ve seen Cotto fight a lot, and I was at his slugfest with Ricardo Torres in 2005, one of the best fights of the year. The only Quintana fight I’ve seen is his Julio win, where he looked impressive, but then again Julio looked like shit. I would venture to guess that Cotto will win by KO, but his propensity to open up and find himself on the canvas along with Quintana’s clear power make me think that it could easily go the other way.
ANTONIO MARGARITO v. JOSHUA CLOTTEY
Margarito is making quite a name for himself these days as “The Man That No One Wants to Fight.” Bob Arum has told the entire world a hundred times over that he offered Floyd eight mil to fight Margarito and Floyd turned it down to fight Baldomir, which means absolutely nothing to me, because the only man Floyd wants to fight is Oscar, and so why would he risk an eight mil bloodbath with Margarito and scotch a 20 mil superfight with ODLH? Nevertheless, the fact remains that Margarito is a dangerous fighter, a tall welterweight with dazzling speed, a (very) poor man’s Tommy Hearns. Clottey is a brawler from Ghana by way of the Bronx with no a-listers on his resume. Could be explosive early, but I’d wager quite a bit that Clottey won’t go the distance. WINKY WRIGHT v. IKE QUARTEY
This is the fight I'm really worked up for. I said it when the fight was made and I'll say it again now - Winky is ALL motherfuckin man for taking on Quartey right now. The Wink fights anyone, anywhere, and if people still appreciated boxing as an art form and not a forum for pure bloodlust, he would already be a PPV attraction. This fight's on his home turf in Tampa, and Quartey is about seven years off his prime, but still... did you see that Quartey/Forrest bout? Ike is anything but a shot fighter. He's still a technician, still throws that beautiful hammer of a jab, and still has the heart of a lion. Winky remains the number two pound-for-pound in my book despite the draw with Jermain, but if he's looking past Ike to a Taylor rematch, he could get himself whupped up in front of the home crowd tomorrow night. I say Wink in a decision (probably a controversial split decision given Quartey's history), but should be some excitement getting there.If you've by chance forgotten what kind of heart the Bazooka possesses, check this shit out - Feburary of 1999, round twelve with Oscar. It's the jaw-dropping finale of the defining fight of Ike's career, one that he still thinks he won (Large had it a draw):
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home