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Dougie’s Monday mailbag

Fighters Network
01
Sep

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MARKETING MASTER MAYWEATHER

Hello Dougie!What I learned from the first episode of All Access: Floyd Mayweather is a marketing genius and he knows the more he acts the fool… the more the haters will hate… So the PPV rate will be closer to 1.5-1.6 million buys this time around.

Issue 2: Glove-Gate. It seems that both parties involved are speaking too much about the gloves and should decide and move on…. skills win fights! Paul Williams beat Antonio Margarito because of his high volume of punching and better skills… Miguel Cotto beat Sergio Martinez because of skills… gloves were not the real issue when Cotto lost to Margarito the question was stamina, Cotto has always faded after the 9th round in all his fights even when Shane Mosley stopped Margarito he kept coming… (my 2 cents)



Issue 3: Timing wins fights… after watching Marcos Maidana’s latest training session; plain and simple speed kills and Mayweather will counter him all night and maybe stop him in the 10th round and to add insult to injury if Mayweather was more willing to engage he could probably stop him in 6 rounds… Maidana is all heart and is a decent person and a good b-plus boxer but against an A-plus boxer, such as Mayweather, his only chance is to throw a change-up pitch and hope for a home run… and the odds are astronomical… still hoping for the home run derby ;)… here is a good headline for the years to come “Do you remember the 13th night of September?”

Take it easy Dougie! – Thomas Jackson, Finland

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Thomas.

Here’s what I learned from the first episode of “All Access: Mayweather Vs. Maidana 2”: Mayweather is still an ill-mannered sleaze and Maidana still has the personality of an egg plant. Oh, and both have children. I was reminded of that.

There was nothing new or interesting from either fighter. But the good news for the welterweights, Showtime, Al Haymon and Golden Boy Promotions, is that the first bout was surprisingly competitive. The fact that it was an entertaining fight is what will ultimately sell pay-per-view buys for the rematch. Mayweather’s tired arrogant-a__hole schtick and Maidana’s overused “everyman” role will not entice anyone who isn’t already a hardcore fan to part with money to watch the rematch live.

There’s a slight chance that Mayweather-Maidana II hits 1million buys (which I would consider a major victory given the matchup and circumstances). I seriously doubt they’ll come anywhere near 1.5 or 1.6 million buys.

Glove-gate: It’s over. Maidana will wear Everlast Powerlock gloves on Sept. 13. I agree that fight outcomes aren’t determined by the type of gloves a fighter wears, but I don’t think all gloves are created equal. Different glove brands and makes are helpful to different styles and various fighter attributes. The Grant gloves that Mayweather wears is a popular choice among boxers who rely more on speed and defense. They are light weight and well padded, which helps to block incoming punches and to cushion fragile hands. The Everlast Powerlock is more of a puncher’s glove because it’s designed to help the wearer make a tight, compact fist. However, it doesn’t have the bite of Maidana’s usual glove – the Mexican-style make that he wanted to wear in the first bout, the Everlast MX brand, which boasts a blend of horse hair and foam packed tightly in Mexican leather (like the traditional Cleto Reyes gloves made in Mexico.) (The Powerlock glove is just made with foam.)

Most fans and boxing media would disagree with your 2 cents on why Cotto lost to Margarito. They think it was more than Cotto’s stamina. They’re pretty sure something in Margz’s gloves had something to do with the Mexican mauler’s best performance. (I disagree with the conspiracy theorists. I just think his pressure, volume punching and sick toughness trumped Cotto’s box-and-punch-move style on that night.)

Williams beat Margarito because two of the official judges slightly favored his greater punch output over Margz’s harder shots, while the third judge was in Haymon’s pocket.

Cotto beat Martinez because he fought a cripple.

Timing wins fights: Yes, and timing, mixed with speed, lateral movement and a lot of holding on the inside, should be more than enough to neutralize and frustrate Maidana en route to a clear unanimous decision on Sept. 13. Is a knockout victory possible for Floyd? Yes it is. Maidana is there to be hit and hurt, and while he’s tough as nails, he’s far from invulnerable and Victor Ortiz, Amir Khan, Josesito Lopez, and even a faded Erik Morales proves – all four fighters hurt “Chino” at least once during their bouts with him. I don’t know if Mayweather is willing to commit to going for the stoppage, but if he really wants to make a statement in this fight, he should go for it. Maidana might be burned out from his recent string of hard camps and tough fights (Jesus Soto Karass, Lopez, Adrien Broner and Mayweather).

KO KINGS

Hey Doug,

In the absence of much fight action in the past week I’ve been looking up some old fights and reading Mike Tyson’s autobiography (found it in the bargain bin earlier this week!). As a relatively green fight fan my knowledge of boxing history is somewhat lacking, but whilst I’ve always appreciated great defensive fighters I’m now starting to favour the fighters that possess the ‘one hitter quitter’ and the art of the knockout. Tyson quoted Cus D’Amato: “ÔǪ to be successful a fighter must not only win, but he must win in an exciting manner. He must throw punches with bad intentions”. This got me thinking about some of the one-punch knockouts of recent times, such as Carl Froch v George Groves and Marquez v Pacquiao and some I’ve looked up from further back, including Hearns v Duran, Glen Johnson v RJJ, Julian Jackson v Herol Graham and Martinez v Paul Williams. With this in mind what are your top 5 one-punch stone cold KOs?

All the best. – Ben, UK

Good question, Ben.

My top five one-punch KOs of the past 15 years are:

Juan Manuel Marquez KO 6 Manny Pacquiao

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Hasim Rahman KO 5 Lennox Lewis

Antonio Tarver KO 2 Roy Jones Jr.

Manny Pacquiao KO 2 Ricky Hatton

Sergio Martinez KO 2 Paul Williams

(Honorable mention: Lennox Lewis KO 5 Hasim Rahman, Johnson KO 9 Jones, Nonito Donaire KO 5 Vic Darchinyan, Froch KO 8 Groves, Adonis Stevenson KO 1 Chad Dawson)


My top five one-punch KOs of the 1990s:

George Foreman KO 10 Michael Moorer

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Roy Jones Jr. KO 4 Virgil Hill (body shot)

Julian Jackson KO 4 Herol Graham

Kennedy McKinney KO 11 Welcome Ncita

Arturo Gatti KO 5 Gabriel Ruelas

(Honorable mention: Terry Norris KO 1 John Mugabi, Derrick Jefferson KO 6 Maurice Harris, Oleg Maskaev KO 8 Hasim Rahman)

My top five one-punch KOs of the 1980s:

Thomas Hearns KO 2 Roberto Duran

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Mike McCallum KO 5 Donald Curry

Michael Nunn KO 1 Sumbu Kalambay (nobody saw that coming, especially poor Sumbu)

Mike Weaver KO 15 John Tate

Mike Tyson KO 1 Michael Spinks

(Honorable mention: Jackson KO 3 Buster Drayton, Sugar Ray Leonard KO 4 Davey Green, Rocky Lockridge’s KO 1 Roger Mayweather, Hearns KO 1 James Shuler)

(I almost included Curry’s second-round demolition of Milton McCrory, but that was actually a “two-hitter-quitter”)

 

My top five one-punch KOs of all time:

Ray Robinson KO 5 Gene Fullmer

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Rocky Marciano KO 13 Jersey Joe Walcott

Bob Foster KO 4 Dick Tiger

Jersey Joe Walcott KO 7 Ezzard Charles

Jack Johnson KO 12 Stanley Ketchel

I’m sure I left out a dozen “one-hitter-quitters” that were more than worthy of mention, but do yourself a favor and search of all of these KOs on Youtube. There’s nothing quite like a one-punch knockout.

 

IS JUAN MANUEL MARQUEZ AN ATG?

Hi Dougie,

Hope you are well. I was reading some comments about Manny Pacquiao deserving to be an All Time Top 20 Fighter and then I considered your reasoning for why Bernard Hopkins is an All Time Great. From this I started to ponder whether Juan Manuel Marquez would be deserving of All Time Great recognition for similar reasons as Hopkins. This could potentially be justified by outlining the fact that he has faced the elite champions and become a champion in the multiple divisions that he has fought in even if he is the underdog. He has beaten Hall of Fame calibre fighters like Manny Pacquiao and Marco Antonio Barrera in style. His longevity in terms of fighting at the highest level is something to be admired. Not forgetting his obvious boxing talent where he has wonderful technique and is an expert counter puncher with an ability to go toe to toe or outbox his opponents. What do you think about JMM’s ATG credentials?

Onto Floyd vs Maidana, I know most are predicting Floyd to have an easier time of the second fight but if Maidana lands cleanly, do you think he has a chance of knocking him out? From what I’ve seen lately Floyd is losing his reflexes and foot speed with this in mind it’s only a matter of time before his chin gets seriously tested. I’d love to see that as it would add great drama to a Floyd fight that we don’t see often enough. Keep up the great work. Kind regards. – Anish, Ashton under Lyne, England

I don’t see Maidana knocking Mayweather out but we never know when age is going to catch up with a fighter who has been a pro as long as Floyd has. I haven’t really noticed Mayweather’s reflexes slowing down in the ring, but I have noticed that his speech has become a little garbled in the last year or two. I’m not saying that he has a “thick tongue” or that he’s slurring his words, but he’s not as quick or sharp with his answers to media questions as he was a few years ago. Mayweather was never articulate but he used elaborate better than he does now.

He could be wearing down. Maybe the grind of fighting twice a year, being as involved (on a promotional level) as he is, plus the pressure of delivering strong numbers for Showtime, is beginning to take a psychological/neurological toll. I can see that being a factor in this rematch. However, I also think Maidana could also be wearing down. Chino has been involved in his share of shootouts (Ortiz, Lopez), slugfests (Jesus Soto Karass), and grueling 12 rounders (Khan, Morales, Broner); and he’s had a very tough schedule over the past two years.

Sometimes the younger guy is the “older” man in terms of ring years. We’ll see who’s got more in the tank on Sept. 13.

Regarding Marquez’s all-time credentials, I think he’s definitely accomplished enough to be considered a first-ballot future hall of famer, one of the top 10 boxers from Mexico (which is saying a lot), one of the best fighters of the last 15-20 years, and arguably one of the greats of the modern era (he makes my top 50 fighters of the post-World War II era.)

However, if you’re talking about one of the greats of ALL time, meaning of any era – going back to late 1800s – no, I don’t think he makes the cut. He’s been a top dog at featherweight, junior lightweight, lightweight and welterweight over the past 15 years, and he’s won major titles in four divisions, which is nothing to scoff at, but when it comes to facing fellow hall of famers, he falls short of the true greats.

Marquez has faced three men who – like him – are locks for the International Boxing Hall of Fame: Pacquiao, Mayweather and Barrera. He’s also faced some borderline guys: Joel Casamayor, Chris John, and maybe you can toss Manuel Medina in there. Perhaps Tim Bradley will go on to accomplish enough to one day be considered a future hall of famer (or a borderline guy) but he’s not quite there yet.

Let’s give JMM the benefit of the doubt and say that Casamayor and John will eventually get into the IBHOF (I have mad respect for Medina, but he’s a real long shot), that’s five fellow hall of famers he’s faced. That’s tremendous; in fact, it’s “great” by today’s standards, but if we measure him against the best of all time, he’s gotta be compared to the elite standouts of the 1930s, ’40s and ’50 who fought more than 100 bouts and faced more than eight fellow hall of famers.

I’ll go more into my all-time great criteria in a special commentary piece that will run next week (yes, I’m finally pulling the trigger on that one).

 

MANTEQUILLA MYTHICAL MATCHUPS

What’s up Dougie Fresh, big fan and longtime reader since your days with Michael Katz at the HOB and Maxboxing with the Kimster. BTW, met you both at the former Home Depot Center yet I still haven’t made it to the mailbag. Gonna keep it short and on with my mythical matchups. My dad told me Jose Napoles best weight was at LW but was avoided and had to go to WW where he won his first title at 29. His biggest deficiency was skin prone to cuts, anyways here’s my list of matchups:

Jose Napoles vs Carlos Ortiz 135/140
vs Roberto Duran135/140/147
vs Aaron Pryor 140
vs Alexis Arguello 140
vs JCC Sr 135/140/147
vs Henry Armstrong 135/147
vs Floyd Mayweather Jr.135/140/147

vs SSR and SRL 147

Thanks keep up the good work.

(P.S. Think Vernon Forrest would have bested “Money” at 147 handily.) – Bizarro9, Crown Town, CA

Forrest’s height, reach, sharp technique and classic stand-up one-two style of boxing would have indeed been difficult for Mayweather. I don’t know if Forrest would have beat Mayweather “handily” but it would have been fascinating to see how Floyd would have dealt with the jab of the late “Viper.”

I’m so glad you brought up Napoles. I consider him to be one of the top five welterweights of all time, and he’s one of my all-time favorite boxers. The Cuban boxer-puncher was one of those dynamic, complete fighters with the perfect mix of style and power. Like Roberto Duran, I never get tired of watching Napoles work his craft. I could watch one of his fights every day for the rest of my life.

Anyway, your dad knows his boxing. Napoles turned pro at featherweight in 1958. From 1960 through ’64 he fought 30 bouts at or around the lightweight limit, winning 28 (15 by stoppage). From ’65 through to mid-’68, Napoles fought 18 bouts at or around the junior welterweight limit, winning 17 (15 by KO). (One of his junior welter victories was a 10-round decision over fellow hall of famer Eddie Perkins. The one loss was a fourth-round TKO – on cuts – to LC Morgan, the wayward father of my old trainer, Kevin Morgan.)

However, Napoles forged his hall-of-fame credentials during two legendary welterweight title reigns.

Onto your mythical matchups (which were really difficult):

Jose Napoles vs Carlos Ortiz 135/140 – Ortiz by decision at 135; draw at 140 pounds
vs Roberto Duran
135/140/147 – Duran by decision at 135 and 140; Napoles by close decision at 147
vs Aaron Pryor 140 – Napoles by decision
vs Alexis Arguello 140 – Napoles by late TKO
vs JCC Sr
135/140/147 – Chavez by close decision at 135, Napoles by decision at 140 and 147
vs Henry Armstrong 135/147 – Armstrong by mid-to-late TKO (on cuts) at 135; Napoles by close decision at 147
vs Floyd Mayweather Jr.
135/140/147 – Napoles by close (but clear-cut) decision at 135, 140 and 147

vs SSR and SRL 147 – Both Robinson and Leonard by decision (in very competitive fights)

 

Email Fischer at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @dougiefischer

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