THE KILLER IS LIVE

What’s good Doug?
I will admit I have not seen much of Alfredo Angulo, but I have the feeling the K-Man (Kermit Cintron) will get to him Saturday night. I’m not going to try and break it down or pretend like I know how it’s going to happen I just have this feeling he will knock him out. I could be dead wrong and just so you know, I like my crow grilled with salt & pepper on the side. What’s your prediction? And who do you like in Clit (haha) vs Haye? Thanks. Mark – Orlando, FL

I think Klitshcko will survive some scary moments early and take out Haye in the fourth or fifth round, fulfilling the Hayefaker’s destiny of becoming the UK version of Jeremy Williams.

If you haven’t seen much of Angulo, you’re in for a treat. He brings heat. I don’t know if he can take a direct hit from Cintron, but that’s why this fight is interesting and worth watching. Cintron might hurt or drop Angulo in the early rounds, but from what I’ve seen of “Perro” in previous fights (vs. Richar Gutierrez in particular) he handles adversity well. My pick is Angulo by late stoppage.

ANGULO-CINTRON

I do think Cintron will run in this fight. He ran and was uncompetitive with Sergio Martinez. When I say uncompetitive, I mean he wasn't trying to win. If Angulo is putting on the pressure I don't know that Cintron is going to bite down and war with Angulo. His heart and mentality just isn't there. But then again, I have never seen Angulo fight anybody.

I still think the best fighter of the bunch is in jail. Kirkland would have banged Angulo out of there. — JB

Don’t be too sure of that. I asked Freddie Roach and some other local trainers who have watched more than a few rounds of sparring involving both Kirkland and Angulo (such as Eric Brown, who trains Rashad Holloway) and they all viewed the dream matchup as a toss-up. They’ve seen Kirkland get hurt with body shots and they know (like everyone else with eyes) that’s the Texan is a sucker a for straight right. Guess what? Angulo is ruthless to the body and he’s got a nice hard, crisp straight right. Brown’s a brother (who usually “bets on black” if you know what I mean) and he told me that he could see Angulo winning that one. The next time I see Craig McEwan and Sergio Mora (who have sparred with both Angulo and Kirkland) I’m going to ask them who they think would win that fight. I’ll let you know what they say.

As for Cintron, I think his best bet against Angulo is to stand his ground and bomb with the Mexican. He’s not a natural stick-and-move boxer. He’s at his best when he’s bombing. I don’t think he ran from Martinez, who was utilizing a fair amount of lateral movement, but he certainly didn’t take the fight to the talented Argentine. One thing is certain about tomorrow’s showdown, Angulo will take the fight to Cintron.

EL PERRO OR EL BORICUA?

Dear Mr. Fischer,
I write to you today with a bit of a conundrum. Who do I root for in the fight between “El Perro” and Kermit Cintron?

Kermit Cintron is a hard hitting fellow Boricua. IMHO, his two losses to Margarito should have asterisks as we'll never know how many Marga-Cheato Ws were due to tainted handwraps. Cintron was really unimpressive in his last bout at 154, which leads me to wonder why he's left welterweight. Are there bigger money fights at 154? Aside from Angulo, that entire weight class seems a bit boring too me.

Angulo's nickname of “el perro” (the dog) is similar to the nickname an ex-girlfriend gave me: “el perro sato” (the stray dog). As a fellow “dog”, I feel a certain loyalty to a fighter willing to go by an unflattering nickname. He's got a crowd pleasing style and the dog collar could become something his fans will mimic if he becomes a solid contender. I also like to see a fighter who'll take a cut over the eye and keep on scrapping (in case Robert “Ghost” Guerrero's reading this: DUDE, I am totally looking in your direction right now).

As you might recall, I've proven willing to “jump off the island bandwagon” regarding other PR-Mexico fights. Should I just root for both guys and say I'm a fan of the winner? That seems like kind of a cop out. Who do you think's going to come out of this with the W?

In your last column, you noted how Freddie Roach has a guy fighting the Iron Boy in a few weeks. I recently wrote to you about Roach trained Penalosa fighting Juanma Lopez. Does Roach have a thing against Puerto Rican boxers? He doesn't seem to train any and puts his boxers up against boricuas quite a bit lately. Roach seems willing to train boxers of any ethnicity and nationality EXCEPT for Puerto Ricans. Does Roach hold a grudge against the Island after getting his ass handed to him by Hector Camacho or am I reading too deeply into this? Maybe Roach has some Puerto Rican fighters in his stable I don't know about?

As always, thanks for putting up with my verbose emails. One of these days I'll learn to be more concise…

Sincerely. — Enrique Fern├índez Roberts, Washington, DC

Roach loves Puerto Rico and Puerto Rican fighters. It was in Puerto Rico, while training Oscar De La Hoya for Floyd Mayweather, that Roach realized that Manny Pacquiao could beat the Golden Boy. That was because southpaw Ivan Calderon befuddled De La Hoya in a sparring session.

It’s funny you mentioned the dog collar Angulo wears. His team started making them (thinner versions, just with studs, not the name “Perro”, on them, and colored brown) to hand out to his fans. Everybody at the Maywood Boxing Club is wearing them, giving the gym a kinky vibe. They gave me one. I thought my wife my might dig it. It creeped her out.

FUN READS

Dougie:
Enjoyed your Mosley-Mayweather mailbag tremendously — you're educating these fools. Also, job well done with your “4 Gyms, 3 Days” article. Things look like they are going well for you at The Ring. Happy belated, and keep up the good work.

Out of curiosity, what happened to Mike Katz? Is he still in the business? — Justin Conlon, Springfield, NJ

Katz is semi-retired. Sometimes he does stringer work for certain newspapers, but usually when I see him at a fight these days he’s just chillin’ old-school Brooklyn style. I’m happy to report that he seems healthy and in good spirits.

I’m glad you enjoyed the mid-week mailbag and the recent gym report. I had a lot of fun writing both articles.

NICE ONE DOUGIE

Dougie, hope all is well.
I have just woken up and done my usual morning check on Ringtv.com and scrolled through your 'Massive Mid-Week Mail Bag'.

Firstly I would like to thank all of those fake fight fans with s__t for brains, who quite honestly feel playing Fight Night Round 3 makes them boxing experts.

If it was not for their pathetic facts and arguments regarding the 'Floyd/Shane debate'… (Hahaha the race one!!!) you would not have had the opportunity to open a can of 'whoop ass' on them and write, what I feel is some, if not, THE best boxing material your side of the Pond has to offer. (Note: My tongue is not up your ass.)

And the guy who wrote; ‘Are You A Reporter or Columnist?’ Hahahahaha… He should be grateful you even went out your way to answer his question.

Well I feel that debate is well and truly over so will not bother making comment;

*COUGH* 'Floyd' *COUGH* 'Pussy' *COUGH* 'Mayweather'… *COUGH* 'Jr'

Oh yeah, have you ever herd of Steve Bunce (I’m sure you have), he loves to rant on, and the truth he smacks down on some issues I’m sure must constantly be getting him into trouble, what do you think of him?

So like I said Dougie… Mosley would win by late stoppage… (What!?)

No sorry, I meant, cheers for the awesome column, keep feeding me the facts and knowledge regarding the best sport in the world dude.

Take it easy. — Thomas Eldridge, Croydon, England

Thanks for the kind words (without the rimjob) Thomas. I appreciate it, especially coming from the UK, where I seem to have garnered more readers since my move to RingTV.com.

I guess I should thank the really rude “Mayweather ‘huggers”. They make for a humorous dialogue (sort of). However, don’t expect me to drag this thing out. There are real fights coming up that deserve our attention. I gave my opinion of Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather in that column I wrote last weekend, I gave Floyd’s fans their opportunity for a rebuttal in the Monday mailbag, and then I responded to the mailbag feedback (both pro and con) in the mid-week edition. After this mailbag, I’m pretty much done with the subject until Mayweather-Marquez fight week (even though I probably have close to 100 unread emails with “Mayweather”, “Mosley”, or “mailbag” as the subject).

SUGAR SHANE MOSLEY

Hello Mr. Fischer;
Just wanted to send a quick note in appreciation of your column comparing Mosley to Mayweather.

In the past your critique of Mayweather seemed a little on the hate side, because you focused exclusively on him. In this article you really shined because you compared Mayweather to a TRUE great, Mosley. Now, I've always appreciated Mayweather's skill and talent, but I've ALWAYS been a huge fan of Mosley. I truly believe Mosley has what it takes to KTFO Mayweather, and I believe that is why Mayweather will NEVER fight him. Mosley's just as quick, just as intelligent, but has much more heart than Mayweather could ever hope to have.

BTW, your mid-week mailbag was hilarious. Was it as much fun to write as it was to read? Are those two other email addresses legit? Keep up the good work. — Will Martin, Olympia, WA

I had a blast compiling and writing my responses to the mid-week mailbag; those fake emails were part of the fun. I was laughing out loud as I added them to the bottom of the column.

I’m glad you liked the column. I hope it spurs fans to beat the drums to demand the eventual showdown to take place. If not (and let’s face it, we can’t force Mayweather to fight who we want) then I’m just glad so many fans enjoyed reading it.

DOUBLE STANDARD

What's up Dougie? First of all, I appreciate your contributions to the world of boxing. You're highly respected for good reason. However, I do believe you don't criticize fighters based on the same criteria. I am a fan of boxing. I don't have a favorite fighter. However, it seems like you judge Mayweather not on what he's done, but on what YOU feel he should have done. I feel you hold him to a higher criteria than other fighters.

You say he's ducked this fighter or that fighter, but you can (but don't) use that criteria for every fighter active, including Shane Mosley or Manny Pacquiao. Pacquiao did fight Morales, Barrera, and Marquez. But, at 122lbs he could have fought Joan Guzman who has chased him to every division Manny went to. At 130lbs, he could have fought Jorge Barrios, Humberto Soto, and Joan Guzman, instead of Hector Velasquez (a guy who had previously been KO'd 4 times out of his 10 losses) or 3K Battery. At 135lbs, he could have fought Juan Diaz, Joel Casamayor, Michael Katsidas, or Nate Campbell instead David Diaz. And his last two fights were against guys Floyd already beaten decisively. You say you would like to see Floyd in a fight where he's not the favorite? He would perhaps have to fight at 168lbs for that to happen.

Do I think Pac ducked them? Absolutely not. I judge fighters based on what they've done, not on what I wanted them to do. I'm just using the same criteria that you use. You make it seem like Pacquiao never has soft touches (hand picked opponents) and he does. If you don't like Floyd, fine. I don't know him, Shane, or Pacquiao.

The only fighters I know are from the south. However, as a reporter/columnist I appreciated your work more when you call it with an unbiased eye. Just my opinion, bro. Also, don't let haters get to you either. It's showing up in your work. Take it easy, Doug. — Joshuwa

I have fun with the haters. It’s easy dealing with them. I’ve been doing it for years. Mayweather’s nuthuggers are no different from Tyson, Jones, or De La Hoya’s. They all fade away once their boy gets beat or looks like s__t in a fight.

If you really analyze this sport and the track records of it’s top fighters, you’ll see that I don’t have a bias towards Floyd or double standard; I’m just giving credit where it’s due.

VERBAL BEATDOWN

Hey Dougie,
I just have to write to applaud you on the verbal beat down you gave the Mayweather mob in your mid-week mailbag. I literally lol'd at your “At least my fighter HAS a pair of nuts to hug.” line. While I'm here I'm gunna go mad and say JMM wins UD vs Mayweather. Hugs and kisses. — Mark Miller, UK

Don’t go all Ellerbe on me, Mark.

I don’t think you’re “mad” for picking JMM.

WAR MOSLEY!

Mr. Fischer,
I hope all is well. The mailbags from earlier this week are classics. I agree with your points, and I wish more of the boxing media were beating the drums for a Mosley-Mayweather fight. I just wanted to point out some statements you made:

“That’s a smart woman, Joseph, hold onto her like Ellerbe does Mayweather.”

“…if being PC is so important to you maybe your sport should be figure skating.”

“At least my fighter HAS a pair of nuts to hug.”

Classic lines bro. But what really stood out were the logical and the coherent arguments you made. I'd find it difficult for anyone to counter your arguments, including other boxing scribes.

Simply put, Mayweather is scared to fight (or attempt to outbox) real welterweight fighters, especially those that surpass his physical ability (Margarito, P-Will, Mosley). What pisses off us hardcore fans is not necessarily PBF's attitude, but his reluctance to take on the top contenders in the ww division. While “Needs Money” was wasting our time, Margarito was fighting Clottey, Williams, Cotto, Cintron, and Mosley. Those are names I would have liked to have seen on Mayweather's resume. — Jaime, South San Francisco aka South City

Well put, Jaime.

Thanks for the kind words, and thanks for recognizing my “logical and the coherent arguments” along with all the not-very PC (and sometimes vulgar) zingers and one-liners.

THE MAYWEATHER PLAN

Dougie,
Mayweather's plan in the recent past has seemed to be as follows:

1. Fight a fighter who is “OK” to “good” and/or at a severe disadvantage (e.g., Marquez at 143-144)
2. Outclass the “OK” to “good” and/or disadvantaged fighter
3. Listen to the list of “excellent” to “great” fighters that everyone calls for him to fight
4. Rant that none of those “excellent” to “great” fighters has any chance of closing the gap between him and the “OK” to “good” fighters
5. Repeat

To be fair, Mayweather deserves some credit for fighting De La Hoya, if only for the fact that De La Hoya's greater size was considered problematic for him when rumors of the fight first surfaced. However, Mayweather's other recent opposition leaves a lot to be desired.

In the end, he needs to prove that the “excellent” to “great” fighters who are not disadvantaged (e.g., the ones at and above welterweight) cannot close the gap, rather than just spewing that silliness without any tangible support.

Thanks for your great writing!

(P.S.: Mayweather supporters need to drop the “he's coming out of retirement and can't be expected to jump in with a beast right away” excuse. If he needs a tune-up, call the Marquez fight a tune-up. Just don't insult everyone's intelligence by touting Marquez's greatness yet talking about how Floyd shouldn't be expected to jump in with a beast right away.) — Masa

Well stated, Masa. Thanks for writing in.

POLARIZING CHARACTERS

Remember when I told you that boxing had become complacent since Goldie monopolized the boxing landscape? And that the polarizing characters in boxing had, for the most part, become non entities? Well, I take it back my friend. Pink Floyd has returned, and with him comes his litany of hump backed losers, propping up the mirage of Floyd's greatness. If you remind them that Floyd hasn't faced a real challenge in years, or that JMM was fighting at 130 lbs a year ago, you are a hater. Well, I'm a hater then. I hate the fact that boxing has become a niche sport, which allows it's biggest stars, if they choose, to pull the wool over the eyes of the average boxing fan, f8ck the hardcore boxing fan, and manufacture an illusion of greatness. Pink certainly isn't the first fighter to do it, but his army of buttardos proves that he's perfected the craft. Kudos to you for sticking to your journalistic guns and fighting the good fight.

By now I'm sure you are tired of answering, and then re-answering the same tired retreads from Pink Floyd’s band of subnormal anchovies. Jonathon Swift has a quote applies to your battle of wits with this gaggle of single celled amoeba. “When in the presence of genius, you will know him by this sign, a confederacy of dunces will line up to oppose him.” Your cross to bear is a fight that must be won if boxing is going to continue to thrive. When greatness becomes a matter of collecting trinkets, tip-toeing the path of least resistance, and foregoing substance for style, well…we might as well be the music industry. You had to know that when you started down this path that it would lead to hours of arguing your point to fringe fans. Still, acquiring boxing knowledge is a like attending school, and when you finally convince Fraud’s fans that he is little more than an ex-fighter playing pretensy tough guy, we'll be able to congratulate that heard on finally achieving a 2nd grade level of boxing knowledge. It's not a task that should fall to a guy with your credentials, but someone has to do it, and I appreciate you making the sacrifice.

P.S. I for one am tired of the Leonard Ellerbe clown show. Do you think that sometimes Floyd just gets so sick of him that he can barely look him in the back of the head? Then again, he probably loves punching him in the back fat, and timing the jiggle effect.

P.S. 2 – Too much work to do this morning, so I had to type fast, and didn't take the time to check this!

CU soon my friend. — Kirk

Thanks for the props Kirk. I am getting tired of repeating myself to “Pink Floyd’s band of subnormal anchovies” (that line cracked me up). I don’t plan to make a career of it but I am aware that my less caustic replies probably cause some “fringe fans” to pause and review their logic and previous notions (which I consider to be a victory whether they ultimately agree with me or not). That’s about as much as I can do, aside from trying to write an enjoyable (sometimes funny, sometimes a tad crude) Letters to the Editor-type column.

Thanks for the quote from Swift (along with the “ÔǪ gaggle of single celled amoeba” line, which also made me LOL). I’ll probably print that out and tape it to my laptop.

Dougie can be reached at [email protected]