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Dougie’s Monday Mailbag

Fighters Network
09
Mar

Read on for all the fan feedback you can handle on James Kirkland’s TKO of Joel Julio, Victor Ortiz’s quickie KO of Mike Arnaoutis, Robert Guerrero’s disappointing No Decision, and your thoughts and mine on what’s next for the young guns in this week’s Monday Mailbag.

SATURDAY NIGHT FIGHTS

Hey Dougie,
Great card..coulda been better (longer) but GBP got what they wanted.

Though I’m super impressed by James Kirkland, I’m actually more disappointed in Joel Julio and his staff. I mean, it seems to me like Kirkland was just walking into right handsÔǪ even Lennox Lewis kept on saying “sit down on the right and hit him all night,” but his corner said nothing. He was underprepared and overwhelmed.



That being said, I think Kirkland has some fatal flawsÔǪ.however, I don’t know who at 154 is going to expose them! I mean, P-Willy vs. Kirkland would be the irresistible force vs the immovable object. Otherwise, I don’t know who has the guts to sit down on the right hand or the skill to outbox him. My darkhorse: Sergio Martinez. He’s super quick with great footwork and he’s a lefty as well. I would be interested to see thatÔǪ. though Sergio better know how to ride his bicycle!

Other fights I’d love to see him in: Kelly Pavlik at 160. Oh MAN would that be a blazing shootout! What do you think is next for Kirkland?

And how about Victor Ortiz? We’ve had Oxnard vs. LA (DLH- Vargas), Oxnard vs. Pomona (Vargas-Mosley)ÔǪ.hopefully the future holds a Palm Springs vs. Oxnard showdown with Timmy Bradley! – Tony, L.A.

Bradley has to do his part to make that future Southern California showdown happen by beating Kendall Holt on April 4, and that won’t be an easy task. I’d love to see Ortiz fight Bradley, Ricardo Torres, Juan Urango, and Mike Alvarado eventually. Those should be fun fights because of the aggressive nature of the fighters. A quick counter-puncher with fleet feet like Holt and a defensive technician like Lamont Peterson will probably give Ortiz the most trouble.

I’m not disappointed in Julio or his corner. They all did their best. Julio showed a lot of guts staying in there as long as he did. I think his team believed that Kirkland would tire out in the middle to late rounds and that Julio, who has gone the 12-round distance a few times, would come on and take the Texas badass out. They were wrong. Kirkland’s conditioning is obviously excellent and it helps keep him upright when he gets nailed by heavy handed dudes like Julio.

What’s next for Kirkland? I heard he might get a slot on the big May 2 Hatton-Pacquiao undercard, but the level of his opposition will likely be a step below Julio.

I agree that Kirkland vs. Williams would be an awesome fight, and I also agree that Martinez’s speed and style would trouble him. Other 154 pounders that would give Kirkland all he could handle, in my opinion, are veteran titleholders Vernon Forrest and Daniel Santos. Forrest’s experience, chin, poise, better technique and that straight right hand would be poison for Kirkland, but the younger man’s pressure, southpaw stance and volume punching could overwhelm the 38 year old. Santos’ stick-and-move style, size, reach, lefty stance and underrated power could set up a KO, but Kirkland might have too much heart for the sometimes-nervous boxer.

I don’t think we’ll ever see Kirkland in with Kelly Pavlik, but I wouldn’t be shocked if he took on one of his fellow 154-pound contenders we mentioned by the end of the year.

GHOST BUSTED

Hey Dougie,
It appears to me that Robert ‘the Ghost’ Guerrero quit last night. He clearly elected not to continue because Daud Yordan was showing him how to box. Never been too high on the Ghost. He always seems to struggle with his technique. He may have worn down Yordan because he appeared to be the stronger man, however, that is the way he wins most of his fights. Never seen him win a fight because he was technically better. How do you see him fairing against the elites of 130 pounds? Humberto Soto comes straight at you and may work in the Ghost’s favour. What do you think? – William O.

I think Yordan’s composure and boxing skill surprised him a little bit, but not as much as the headbutt did. I think the cut threw off his focus long enough for the referee to lead to him the neutral corner where he appeared to let the ringside physical talk him out of the fight. I think it happened too quickly for him to really think about it. I’m not saying Jon Shorle made a bad call or rushed anything, he did his job, but a more dramatic and demonstrative referee may have looked Guerrero in the eye and made it very clear that the fight was off if he admitted to not being able to see out of the eye. Of course, many fans will say that it was Guerrero’s job as a fighter to continue fighting, at least long enough to make it back to his corner where his cutman would have the opportunity to work on it. Those fans have a point.

However, I have a hard time believing after one and half rounds with Yordan that Guerrero wanted out. He’s been in much tougher fights with stronger and more experienced fighters than the talented Indonesian and he may have looked sloppy at times, as you noted, but he never quit or stopped trying in those bouts.

I thought he looked a little sloppy against Yordan, but maybe he’s still feeling the effects of his 10-month layoff. I know he fought in January, but that fight was over in 43 seconds. Prior to his hiatus from the ring, Guerrero displayed good, improving technique. He boxed beautifully against Spend Abazi, and he was definitely technically better than Jason Litzau. Watch the Litzau fight if you get the chance. Guerrero’s defense was as good as his offense.

I think you’re being hard on the young man, but you’re not alone in your opinion.

GUERRERO WANTED OUT

Hi Doug,
I don’t know, but it looks to me like Guerrero quit. He seems to be getting a free pass. Even the doctor wanted to let it go on. Shoulda let it go one more round at least. Hector Camacho Jr. didn’t get a free pass. I'll say it again looks like when he saw the blood he didn’t want no more. Take care. – Harry B., Stratford, CT

Well maybe some of the media is giving Guerrero a bit of a pass, but the fans certainly aren’t. I think the fans are being just a tad hasty with their judgment of Guerrero, just like when everyone jumps off the bandwagon the first time a young fighter loses.

You can call me soft, a West Coast homer or a Golden Boy Promotions shill, but I’m going to give Guerrero the benefit of the doubt. I’ve watched him train in Southern California gyms for years and he always had a strong hard work ethic and showed a ton of heart. I don’t think he’s a quitter.

I agree with you that it would have been better for him to at least give his corner a chance to work on the cut, and I understand what you’re saying about Hector Camacho Jr., but I think it’s unfair to compare Guerrero with “Junior”.

Guerrero won a world title in his 20th pro bout. In more than 50 pro bouts, Camacho hasn’t come close to fighting for one. When Guerrero lost for the first time (against rugged Gammy Diaz), he got back into the ring with the fringe contender and stopped him (the first to do so at the time). Camacho never tried to get James Leija, or Andrey Tsurkan or Omar Weiss back into the ring. I think I’m a good judge of character and I think Guerrero has it. I think he showed character to travel to Denmark to fight hometown hero Spend Abazi (who was 35-1 at the time) for his second crack at the IBF belt.

I’m going to chalk this past Saturday’s performance up to bad luck on a bad night and see what he does the next time he’s in the ring.

BOXING IN THE 'BAY!

Mr. Fischer,
1. The crowd at the HP Pavilion was great. I arrived around 5:30 or so and the place was filling up. After the national anthems and Guerrero’s introduction, the crowd was pumped, standing and cheering their fighter on. Being at the fight and having a hometown fighter to root for really made for a great experience.

2. I can’t believe Ortiz ko’d Mighty Mike. I haven’t seen Ortiz fight nearly as much as I have Mike. Mike is kinda like Rocky Juarez, a technically sound boxer who is too methodical. I always thought needed a killer instinct, because he should KO’d Torres.

3. Damn, Kirkland is one bad dude. You could tell the difference in fighters from their ring-walk song. I wish Julio would have stood his ground and sat down on his punches. Other than standing his ground and moving side to side (instead of circling the ring) I do not know what else he could have done?

4. Do you think the short time in between fights affected the performance of the fighters that lost more so than the fighters that won?

5. Golden Boy put on a good card, the fights were all solid. Speaking of DHL, the very same people that booed him when he was mentioned were all excited to point him out in the ring when they saw him. I bet most of the people who booed him would get his autograph if they had the chance.

He must look at Ortiz and say, damn, memories. Thanks. – Jaime, San Francisco

I hope Golden Boy Promotions returns to San Jose with another big card later this year. That was a good crowd this past Saturday, but with the right fights and more time to promote the event, I don’t think 9,000-10,000 is out of the question. I got to the arena around 3:30 so I could see all of the prospects do their thing.

I give gold stars to junior lightweight Eloy Perez (13-0-2, 3 KOs) and lightweight Luis Ramos (10-0, 5 KOs). Perez is one of the most technically sound young boxers out there. Ramos is a born fighter with solid technique, footwork and good power.

1)Hopefully, Guerrero puts on a show for his fans the next time he’s at The Tank.
2)Ortiz is a very big, strong 140 pounder, and Arnaoutis does lack killer instinct against stronger or more powerful opponents, but I was still surprised that the young man was able to hurt him so clearly that early. For the sake of the fans, I would have liked to see the ref give Arnaoutis more of a chance to survive Ortiz’s onslaught, but it wasn’t a bad stoppage. Arnaoutis should have punched back, and who knows? Had he taken any more shots from Ortiz he could have been seriously hurt.
3)Julio would have been KTFO if he stood his ground, which is why he didn’t.
4)I have no idea.
5)No doubt.

VICTOR ORTIZ

Does it seem to you like Victor Ortiz has been meticulously coached on how to do interviews? As my friend pointed out as he spoke to Max Kellerman after the Arnaoutis fight, he speaks in platitudes.

What are the chances Victor goes after an ex-champ or a current contender next? I think he's too much for another prospect to handle right now. – gopal rao

It does seem like Ortiz has been coached a little bit on his public speaking, which I think is a good thing. I wish more fighters would make an effort to present themselves better during interviews. Ortiz was much better at the post-fight press conference, by the way; he was more laid back and funny. I first met Ortiz when he was a 16-year-old amateur (his trainer at the time Robert Garcia brought him and fellow amateur standout Daniel Cervantes up to Joe Hernandez’s gym to spar with Edwin Valero, then just a prospect) and I recall that Victor was both affable and thoughtful when I spoke with him after their workout. So I think much of what you see on TV is just Ortiz’s natural personality coming out.

Will Ortiz go after an ex-champ or current contender next? I don’t see why not. He’s already blasted on out one former titleholder (Carlos Maussa in one round) and one former title challenger (Arnaoutis in two).

Maybe his team will go after a boxer like Paul Malignaggi or a bomber like Randall Bailey. Or maybe they’ll go straight for a belt (my guess would be Andreas Kotelnik, titleholder of the WBA, which rates Ortiz No. 4).

Doug Fischer can be reached at [email protected]

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