Weekend Review
Posted Jun. 28, 2009 at 10:35am
By Michael Rosenthal
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BIGGEST WINNER
Marcos Maidana: First, the Argentine slugger was lucky to be in the same ring with Victor Ortiz on Saturday night in Los Angeles. The fight was first offered to Dmitry Salita, who turned it down. And, second, he took full advantage of it. He had his share of problems, namely three knockdowns in the first two rounds, but he persevered and proved to be the tougher of the two young fighters. Now, he’s in the thick of the title picture with a possible shot at the winner of the July 18 Andreas Kotelnik-Amir Khan fight in Manchester, England. Maidana-Khan would be a fascinating matchup, particularly in light of Khan's questionable chin.
BIGGEST LOSER
Victor Ortiz: Everything was in place for Ortiz to become a star – the ability, the power, the charisma, the backing of his promoter and HBO. Then, during his coming out party in L.A., he fought a stupid fight and will have appeared to give up in the eyes of many fans. This isn’t to say that Ortiz is finished. He’s only 22. He most likely will have learned from the mistakes he made on Saturday night and become a better fighter as a result. However, one thing is crucial: He has to want it. After the fight, he said things fighters don’t say – about not wanting to take punishment, about having a lot of thinking to do. He must shift from that line of thinking to realize his potential.
MOST FORTUNATE
Staples Center fans: Ortiz’s ill-advised decision to brawl with a brawler was a blessing to the crowd: The fight was absolutely thrilling while it lasted. The fighters winged punches at a terrific rate and you could count the jabs on one hand, the result being five knockdowns in five-plus rounds and the promise of more to come had it continued. The way it ended probably precludes it from being a Fight of the Year candidate, which came to mind during the action. Still, no one was cheated on Saturday night.
MOST CONSISTENT
Juan Manuel Lopez: The best fighter in action on Saturday night was the unbeaten Puerto Rican star. Lopez (26-0, 24 KOs) forced Olivier Lontchi to retire after nine rounds in Atlantic City, N.J., his 14th consecutive knockout victory. No one in boxing appears to be a more-complete fighter and no one is hotter at the moment. Now, we look forward to him stepping up to face the likes of Rafael Marquez, Israel Vazquez and Celestino Caballero. If he passes those tests, he could become the face of boxing when current superstars like Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. call it quits.
TOUGHEST STRETCH
Golden Boy Promotions: A March 7 card featuring Ortiz, Robert Guerrero and James Kirkland – all Golden Boy fighters -- was billed as the next generation of stars. Since then, Kirkland landed in jail when he was allegedly caught in possession of a gun, which violated his probation on a previous conviction. Guerrero was labeled a quitter by some after his fight against Daud Jordan was stopped because of a bad cut. And Ortiz’s considerable momentum came to a halt Saturday, not to mention an ending similar to that of Guerrero. It has been a rough stretch for Oscar De La Hoya’s promotional firm.
BIGGEST PUNCH
Deontay Wilder: The former Olympic bronze medalist landed a bomb on the chin of Kelsey Arnold on Friday night in Cincinnati that knocked Arnold out upon contact. It was Wilder’s fifth consecutive first-round knockout and sixth KO in six fights. The “Bronze Bomber,” a reference to his bronze medal in the 2008 Games, is just starting his career but could develop into the first-rate heavyweight Americans have been craving for years. He needs seasoning – under co-trainer Mark Breland – and more meat on his 6-foot-7 frame but he looks promising.
BEST FIRST STEP
Paul Spadafora: The former lightweight titleholder Wednesday fought for the first time in 14 months (and for only the fourth time in four years) because of legal problems yet got the job done, stopping Argentine Ivan Bustos in six rounds in front of the hometown fans in Pittsburgh, Pa. Spadafora, an excellent boxer but a light puncher, is only 33 and hungry to resurrect his once-impressive career. It’s not too late for him to make some noise as a junior welterweight or welterweight – if he can keep his personal life in order. He's trained by Pernell Whitaker.
MOST UNKNOWN IN U.S.
Arthur Abraham: The undefeated Armenian continues to roll, stopping Mahir Oral in the 10th round Saturday in his adopted homeland of Germany. It was the 10th defense of his middleweight title, an impressive feat. Still, he remains relatively unknown in the United States because of a lack of exposure here. He stopped Edison Miranda last year in Florida, his only fight in the U.S. Fans here would love to see him face Kelly Pavlik or Paul Williams at middleweight or, if he moves up in weight, Andre Ward at 168. Most likely he’ll move up and face a non-American in his next fight but probably will fight here soon.
WORST MONEY MANAGEMENT
Evander Holyfield: News item – The former heavyweight champion is facing foreclosure again on his 54,000-sqaure-foot mansion outside Atlanta. How does anyone squander the more-than-$200 million Holyfield reportedly earned in his long boxing career? We shouldn’t be too surprised; so many other boxers have managed a similar feat. However, Holyfield seemed to be more level-headed than most. Now, sadly, he’s forced to continue fighting at 46 but probably cannot command the big money he’d need to turn his financial situation around. The guess here is that he’s going to have a much more-modest lifestyle from here on out.
BEST QUOTE
Victor Ortiz "I'm young, but I don't think I deserve to get beat up like this. So I have a lot of thinking to do," he said after losing a war to Marcos Maidana on Saturday.
Michael Rosenthal can be reached at RingTVeditor@yahoo.com
