Dougie’s FAT Friday Mailbag
STICKS & STONES
Hey Dougie,
So here's the deal… if Nikolai Valuev lets Daivd Haye get under his skin then more fool him. I don't know Haye personally, but I can tell you now that 90% of stuff that comes out of his mouth is more bravado then his true personality. I don't think anything Haye has done, or said, has been particularly personal, or offensive. Maybe it's a London thing, but that Lord of the Rings comment is the kind of comment my friends and I would throw at each other on a night out down the pub, all in the name of a bit of banter, to get a laugh. Maybe the Eastern Europeans don't have a sense of humor and, okay, that infamous T-Shirt may have been taking things a step to far, but come on guys lighten the f___ up. Haye wears a T-shirt with two decapitated Klitschkos, get over yourselves, Mike Tyson wanted to eat babies. Speaking of Tyson I'm so glad he seems to be getting himself straight. I grew up watching Iron Mike and he is no question a legend and a true mark of what heavyweight boxing is all about.
With this in mind, what's your opinion on having a super heavyweight division? Because, lets be fair, this fight really should be a no contest. Haye would win this fight hands down, if they were on a level, because lets be honest we all know why Valuev is champion, (would he even be a contender if he weren't a giant of a man?) but there is a very good chance Haye could get KTFO, or may not be able to come to terms with the vast difference with regards to their physical attributes. David Haye is giving away 100 pounds. There needs to be a big shout for a super heavyweight division, I think you should start banging the drums for it so these giants can go fight each other in Germany. If a super heavyweight division were to happen then maybe the heavyweight division could become exciting, once, again with some great match ups between the likes of Haye, Arreola, Chambers, Johnson and even Adamek if he decides to move up. Now doesn't that list of fighters and possible match ups get you a little excited.
Loved the R.A.-Mayweather interview. I feel really embarrassed to say this, especially if I'm lucky enough to make your mailbag with the possibility of other people reading this, but after the interview had finished I look down and noticed a tiny pee stain on my jeans! Take care and if possible give us a shout back. — Cheers, Chris, East London
Wow. That last bit was a little too much info, my man, but thanks for the email.
Regarding a super heavyweight division, I’m not going to beat the drum for that yet. If there were four or five heavyweight giants as talented and technically sharp as the Klitschkos I would probably be in favor of the creation of a new division for big men who weigh more than 240-250. But the fact is, apart from the Klitschkos, all the other guys who are taller than 6-foot-6 are ordinary. They can be beat by heavyweights who are under 6-foot-2 and under 230 pounds.
Exhibit A) Eddie Chambers W12 Alexander Dimitrenko.
Exhibit B) Most of Valuev’s fights. The giant lost to Ruslan Chagaev, went life and death with John Ruiz twice, and struggled with a 45-year-old Evander Holyfield. These heavyweights that troubled Valuev are not very big guys. In fact, they’re smaller than the pumped-up heavyweight version of Haye.
However, I don’t think Haye will do as well as they did. I favor Valuev in tomorrow’s contest, and it’s not because the big man has 100 pounds on Haye (although that is a factor). I like Valuev by late stoppage or unanimous decision because he’s got better fundamentals than Haye and he’s used to going the 12 round distance. I don’t think Haye can box a disciplined stick-and-move fight the way Chagaev and Holyfield did, and I don’t think he’s got the stamina of the Quietman.
Regarding Haye’s sometimes boorish behavior, I’m fine with most of it. I thought the decapitation T-shirt was in poor taste, but if he takes out the giant and then actually gets in the ring with the Klitschkos and knocks them out, I’ll give him a pass. If loudmouth fighters can back their big talk up in the ring — and actually do what they say they will — I don’t have a problem with them.
VALERO VS. DEMARCO
Hello Dougie,
How's it going, hope the family is doing great. I just have to say the Rugged Man interview with Fraud Mayweather is the best damn thing I've herd on the Internet all year. Rugged Man deserves to get some kind of award for that awesome interview. Now I just need to figure out which is the best 60 seconds of that interview so I can make it my new ring tone, haha!
How bout that Antonio DeMarco? I been driving his wagon since the Kid Diamond fight.
Unfortunately, he has to challenge your son Edwin Valero and in his hometown. If there's any fighter I wouldn't mind him seeing him lose to, it’s Valero. Still man I'm gonna call an early Upset Special, DeMarco via late-round TKO or decision.
One thing is certain, it will be a candidate for fight of the year. It may even match the Corrales/Castillo, Marquez/Vazquez and Morales/Barrera fights, I mean action, blood and guts-wise.
Every time Manny Pacquiao trains in the Philippines his performance isn't up to its usual standards. Against a bigger and hungrier man in Miguel Cotto it may backfire. Nobody has ever dominated Cotto so I will be impressed if Manny is the first. I have a hunch Cotto will upset Pacquiao but I been wrong before to pick against Manny, so this time I'm going with Manny. Man I don't know, I cant wait. Yours truly — Jorge, San Diego
Pacquiao looks like he’s 100 percent, Jorge. I think his performance will be to his usual standards but I still see a tough fight.
I don’t think Valero-DeMarco would be a fight of the year candidate. If DeMarco is going to beat “my son” he needs to box from a distance and make it as uneventful a fight as possible. I don’t believe the kid is durable enough to exchange punches with Valero. I could be wrong, but that’s my thinking. DeMarco is a very good young fighter, a bona fide lightweight contender, but I think he lacks the power and starts too slow to take Valero out of his game. And as nice as his technique is, it’s not like DeMarco is hard to find.
ROACH SAYS HAYE WILL KO VALUEV
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/boxingandmma/6487535/David-Haye-will-flatten-Nikolai-Valuev-says-Freddie-Roach.html
Freddie seems confident in the pick….I'm not so sure….I have never seen the giant buzzed….Haye is going to have to fight 12 disciplined rounds……I don't think he can knock that big lug over…… — JP
Roach is a genius when it comes to Manny Pacquiao and his other fighters. But fighters he doesn’t train? Mmmmm, not so much.
Here’s the deal: Haye is aptly nicknamed because he lobs quick haymakers without setting them up with a jab. He rarely makes use of lateral movement and he keeps his hands down. Now, add his questionable chin and stamina to the fact that he’s got shoddy technique and a porous defense.
That doesn’t look like a guy who’s gonna topple the giant. To be honest, I’m not so sure Haye’s a puncher at heavyweight. He dropped Monte Barrett four times and the shot vet got up after each knockdown. This is a guy who got blasted out in two rounds by Cliff Couser. I think Barrett would have got up from even the final knockdown if the ref had allowed it.
Another thing I noticed about Haye was that many of his cruiserweight knockdowns and knockouts were produced by looping right hands to the back of the his opponents' heads. He got away with that mess in England, but now he’s fighting in Germany against a guy whose head is too high up for him to reach around.
FLOYD'S VERBAL ASS WHIPPING
Dougie,
THANK YOU!!!
I had never heard of R.A., but that was epic. The fact that Mayweather was shrieking was hilarious. I'm a very happy boxing fan right now. — Matthew
R.A. doesn’t mess around. Check him out. He’s a good rapper and really funny columnist (especially when it comes to the film industry).
I can’t believe I’m still getting emails commenting about R.A. checking Mayweather on the radio, but I guess more fans are fed up with Floyd’s bulls___ than I thought. Good.
Maybe R.A. should get an award from THE RING or the BWAA.
IN FLOYD'S DEFENSE (SORT OF)
Hi Doug,
Just read your mailbag and all the response to Floyd's “interview” with the Rugged Man and though I agreed with the Rugged Man's points of contention (you can't really argue them) I did not like the manner in which he went about them. I know it was on a hip-hop radio show with little restrictions but it was childish with the insults and what not. Also although I would like to see Mayweather take a chance and fight Manny, Mosley, Cotto, even any top 10 welterweight who isn't coming of a loss (Judah) or a guy who got his position by beating a guy who had a bad night (Baldomir), I don't think someone like Rugged is in any position to bad mouth Floyd or any other boxer for that matter. Will he be paying their bills when they are in the dementia ward in 20 years? Floyd takes the least risk for the most money we all know that, but to channel Chris Rock I don't like it but I understand. If he can make boatloads of money and still talk well 20 years from now more power to him.
I do understand as well however that Floyd makes it easy to act in the manner that Rugged Man did but I did not like it. Dougie, like it or not Floyd will continue to make millions not fighting the best. Floyd “Easy Money” Mayweather that's who he is. I don't like it but I understand.
Thank you and all the best. — David Green (Warner Robins, Georgia)
I think you’re right. I think Mayweather will continue to fight guys he knows he can beat and he will continue to make the biggest purses in the sport, at least for another two or three bouts. At some point everyone will get a little tired of his act, but he’ll be ready to retire by then anyway.
So we can all expect him to fight Ricky Hatton again (hopefully) in Manchester (Lord knows, I don’t want cover that crap), and then maybe that freckle-faced teenager that Golden Boy Promotions is so high on, Saul Alverez, in Mexico.
We can forget about Floyd fighting the Cotto-Pacquiao winner, Mosley, or even guys like Josh Clottey. Hey, if he doesn’t want to fight a real threat, we can’t make him.
However, he — and the people around him (which includes HBO, Al Haymon and Golden Boy Promotions) — need to understand that fans and media (who don’t jock-ride) are not going to give him credit for smacking around non-threats. If he doesn’t want to live up to his potential and prove his talent he can’t expect the boxing press not to criticize him or drop him in the ratings.
As beloved as Joe Louis was in America (particularly post-WWII) the boxing media of his day referred to the majority of the guys he smashed in title defenses as the “bum of the month club.” Hey, those grumpy old white guys who wrote that were just keeping it real, and to Joe’s credit he never cried about it.
I totally understand if Mayweather wants to play it safe, but he loses his right to bitch about not being respected when he chooses to only face no-hopers.
VITO ANTUOFERMO
Hey Mr. Fischer,
Big fan of your blogs on RingTV.com!
Question: my dad and I were wondering whatever happened to Vito Antuofermo? Is he still active in the boxing world? Thanks tons! — SD
The former middleweight champ is alive and well in New York City. He’s at least “well” enough to have participated in a rap video produced by our good friend R.A. the Rugged Man a few years ago. Check it out, the name of the song is “Lessons”. That’s Vito and Mitch “Blood” Green playing the doormen of a club at the start of the video.
R.A., BOOK AND COLUMBUS
Doug,
Isn't the truth a powerful thing?
The Rugged Man spoke the truth and completely shut down a douchebag. I've been reading your stuff for years and I know you write the truth, so when I wiki'd RA and saw mention that you two were collaborating on a book, I was intrigued. First, is it true, and if so, do you have an anticipated publication date?
Hey you've written that you lived in Columbus for a few years, do you remember Nancy's at the corner of High & California? Greatest little diner I've ever been in. I went to OSU (and U. of Dayton too) and lived in UA and German Village for 20 years before the cold drove me out here to LA…..take care and keep up the good work! — DJA
My childhood was spent in Columbus, on the campus of OSU, where my parents were grad students. I do remember Nancy’s, and I occasionally ate there during my college days (at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio) whenever I visited the High Street area with friends for concerts and the like. My wife (who I met at Antioch) grew up in Dayton, and even attended U. of Dayton, where her father taught, one semester, so Ohio is definitely in the house.
Regarding the book with R.A., it was something we worked on for a few years, and we probably completed 50- or 60-percent of it, but it’s on the shelf for now. Hopefully, it’s a project that can be revisited one day.
Dougie can be reach at [email protected]
Trending
Jermall Charlo Stripped Of WBC Middleweight Title After Recent Arrests
Ryan Garcia Requests Analysis Of “B” Samples From Drug Tests Surrounding Devin Haney Fight
Andrew Moloney ‘grateful’ and ‘excited’ to face late-sub Pedro Guevara
Ryosuke Nishida looks headed to all-Japanese tourney to crown king of the bantams
Alan David Picasso stops Damien Vazquez in non-televised undercard of Canelo-Munguia