Dougie’s MASSIVE Monday Mailbag

Jul

PACQUIAO-MARGARITO BACKLASH?

Hello Dougie Fresh,
I just finished reading about a supposed comment from Floyd Mayweather during a celebrity basketball game where he “wasn't interested in boxing right now.” So now we get Uncle Bob telling us to go screw ourselves with a fresh dish of Margs. Money kinda told us AND Uncle Bob to go screw ourselves as well by not stating his intentions upfront.

But y'know what? He can. As much as I dislike it, that's the case. Like the prom queen, Money can prance around when he wants to because nobody has bagged him yet. Like the old adage about the difference between a girl and a.. uh.. well you get the point, Money can put out when he wants. When he does decide to hit center stage, everyone will want to see him get his due even more. Meanwhile, Manny Pacquiao risks his health and a few ring miles taking on Margarito. I think this is very much related to Uncle Roger's situation, although I honestly think Floyd could beat Manny without his help. No since in taking any chances tho, right? May as well play it safe and wait until next year. What's “Money” stand to lose 8-9 million off of a 30+ million expected purse? Ah, who cares! Lucky bastard..

I don't think Uncle Bob gets off so easy though. I think there will be some backlash about enabling Margacheato to benefit from all of this. Do you think there will be a lot of noise, perhaps even a few protests from anyone in the media? — JB

That’s a good question. I think there will be a lot of “noise” as you put it, mostly directed at Antonio Margarito, but doubt there will be any organized protests from boxing writers. I think Arum will somehow escape the majority of criticism (as he often does when involved in unethical and sometimes blatant illegal activities), at least from the mainstream sports media and the boxing writers who make up press row. Like Mayweather, and De La Hoya before him (both over-rated monsters he helped create), Arum’s got it like that. During the 1990s, Arum did as much dirt as Don King, perhaps even more, but the media always focused its critical eye on the ex-con from Ohio, not the Harvard Law School grad.

Why does Arum do what he does? He can. He’s the lucky bastard, not Mayweather, who the media is willing to criticize (it’s not just me anymore).

The simple truth that everyone should know is that without Arum, Margarito would be out of the world-title picture and the U.S. fight scene — forever. I’m not going to get mad at Margarito for wanting to continue fighting. That’s all he knows. That’s all he’s done his adult life. The dude turned pro at 15, which tells me he’s got no education to speak of. (I mean, really, when you’re a junior high grad from the Tijuana public school system, it’s not like you’re going announce your retirement from boxing and write that novel you’ve always thought about or pursue a master’s in art history after you get your license yanked for cheating).

If I’m going to be mad at anyone for Margarito getting this undeserved shot at the sport’s biggest attraction, it’s going to be Arum. However, I’m not mad. Mildly disgusted? Yeah. But it is what it is, and sadly, it’s what I expected.

I’m not going act outraged because I’m not among the legion of fans and media who consider Margarito to be a career-long cheater. If Pacquiao-Margarito winds up in Mexico, I have no problem with that. Hell, it will be a huge event there.

As a matter of fact, Pacquiao-Margarito will probably be a big event here in the States, if only because of the controversy that surrounds the Mexican mauler.

I’m curious to see how many American boxing writers who claimed they would basically boycott Margarito’s fights (and there were more than a few) will be ringside on Nov. 13 if the fight does somehow land in Las Vegas.

BLOWOUT?

Hey Doug,
I was just kind of stopped when I read Michael Rosenthal's statement that Margarito would not be competitive at 154 lbs fighting a former flyweight champion. It boggles the mind. I can't quite believe it, and won't, until I see it. — Stephen, Montreal

Prepare to be boggled, Stephen.

Just because Pacquiao is a former lineal 112-pound champ doesn’t mean he was ever a natural flyweight. He killed himself to make 112 pounds even as a teenager, and he lost that title on the scales. He was a natural junior lightweight when he was fighting at junior featherweight. He was a natural junior welterweight when he was fighting at junior lightweight. Pacquiao’s still a natural 140 pounder, but he’s such an awesome talent he can compete on the world-class level at 147 pounds.

Margarito was once a world-class welterweight. I’m not so sure now. He might be spent bullet. His last fight was at 154 pounds, but he didn’t look like a top-10 junior middleweight. Now, perhaps inactivity played a part in that average performance. If so, I can see him hanging tough with Pacquiao at the talked about 150-pound catchweight, but it’s going to be very hard for him clip the little dynamo. And Pacquiao’s going to hit him a lot more than Shane Mosley did last January.

SHAMBLES

Evening Dougie (well, morning my time),

Can't being to describe how utterly peeved I am at Manny fighting Margarito. I'm going to offer a very, very, very simple reason why:

One will point to the case of Billy Collins. Jeffrey Resto admitted it wasn't the 1st time he did it. Now I've played golf for a number of years to a pretty good level. I once gave my clubs to my local pro to be re-gripped and he naturally gave them to the junior assistant to do. I'd always ask for 1 small thin underlayer and one thick underlayer to be used, I got the clubs back a day later and upon gripping my wedge to do some stretches immediately felt that the grips were thicker — the kid had put 2 thicker layers on (after inspection of taking the rubber off).

Now I defy anyone to tell me Margarito had no idea what was in his gloves. Going back to my golf example we're talking about a thick layer being 1mm thick and the thin layer 0.5 mm thick and I knew the difference straight away. I struggle to comprehend how he had zero idea of what was in there and more to the point I refuse to believe it hadn't been done before.

Might as well add:

Is Manny going to struggle with the style of Margs? Of course not, he's tailor-made for him.

Is Manny going to struggle with the size of Margs? Of course not, Margs could weigh 3,292 lbs — still doesn't detract from the fact he makes Roseanne Barr look like Usain Bolt when moving.

I could go on but can't be bothered. Utter shambles for the sport that I love so dearly.

Arum should be hung by his selfish little testicles. — Geoff, London

Well, if that’s Arum’s punishment, I think Mayweather should be hung from his wee-wee next to his former promoter for at least an hour, because “Money,” and his need for a “break from boxing” (didn’t he just come out of retirement?), basically gave the Bobster the green-light to make Pacquiao-Margarito.

Regarding Margarito, I have no problem telling you or anyone else that he didn’t know what was in his gloves before the Mosley fight. You know why? Because he never had his gloves on with the loaded hand wraps. In fact, he barely had his hand wraps on for five minute before Naazim Richardson demanded that Javier Capetillo unwrap Margarito’s hands.

Margarito didn’t have time to even stand up and make a fist before those old bloody wraps that had the plaster-like remnants in them were confiscated by the California State Athletic Commission. He didn’t have the chance to punch his own wrapped hands with the loaded gauze inserts, let alone hit mitts with his gloves over the doctored wraps. So how the heck was he supposed to know what was going on?

I’m more familiar with Margarito than most (if not all) of the boxing writers who condemn him. I’ve been around him in the gym for more than 10 years. That guy zones out before he trains and fights. He had to, because Capetillo put his ass through hell in the gym. Trust me, he wasn’t paying attention to Capetillo while that crazy bastard was wrapping his hands.

I also know Capetillo pretty well. The dude is borderline retarded. If that dumb-ass has been pulling the wool over the eyes of the Nevada, New Jersey, New York and California athletic commissions for years with this illegal hand-wrap business then those commissions might as well be dissolved. They are worthless if their inspectors have been missing Capetillo slip inserts into Margarito’s hand wraps fight after fight.

And the trainers of all the fighters Margarito has fought over the years are also blind, because I’m telling you, Capetillo is NOT a slick or sly individual. He’s loud, obnoxious, sloppy man.

I don’t buy the theory that Margarito has loaded his gloves for previous fights. People who are habitual cheaters are secretive about their s__t, and Capetillo and Margarito were never like that in the gym. I think Capetillo panicked before the Mosley fight. His fighter had looked like dried-up dog doo doo in that camp. And to make matters worse, those fools weighed Margarito on their own messed-up scale and thought he was a pound over the weight limit (he wasn't). So Margz ran his ass off before the official weigh-in and drained himself down to 145.8 pounds. He was done before the fight and Capetillo knew it. So I think he freaked out and did some desperate s__t, because that’s the kind of guy he is. If he was a slick, calculating cheater, who has done the deed before and gotten away with it, there’s no way he slips those inserts in with Brotha Naazim staring down at him.

(Would you try some sneaky s__t with a big black bearded cloth skullcap-wearing Muslim glaring down at you? Hell no, you wouldn’t. That’s because you’re smart. Capetillo ISN’T.)

Anyway, General Cappy is gone from Team Margarito. Roberto Garcia is an honorable man, but like you, I don’t think having a real trainer in his corner is going to help Margz deal with the Pac-Monster’s speed, skill, footwork, and considerable (for his size) punching power.

LINARES-JUAREZ

Dear Doug,
Before I get to the Jorge Linares-Rocky Juarez fight, I'd like to express my hope that the NSAC doesn't succumb to the pressure to license Antonio Margarito. The fight's going to happen; no doubt about that. But it doesn't have to occur in the States.

On to Juarez/Linares: I'm really intrigued about this one. Juarez has always had difficulty with stylish, speedy fighters — which Linares is. On the other hand, I'd say it's fair to question Linares's chin after the J.C. Salgado demolition, and Rocky certainly can crack at 130 pounds as shown by the Jorge Barrios KO. I'll go with Linares on the theory that Rocky is on the downside–see the loss to Jason Litzau.

Linares by UD, but Rocky's got a puncher's chance. Your thoughts? I wish JMM/Diaz and Juarez/Linares were on HBO, though; would make a great World Championship Boxing card.

BTW, do you have any idea what plans Celestino Caballero has? Yuriorkis Gamboa and Elio Rojas are fighting; JuanMa and Rafa are going at it; Chris John's fighting Fernando Saucedo (???); where does that leave Celestino? Take care. — Patrick

That leaves Celestino with his d__k in his hands. Sadly, I think his best bet is to go to 130 pounds and try to land a fight with beltholder Rocky Martinez. I read on BoxingScene that the Puerto Rican slugger is willing to face the Panamanian Punisher (in Puerto Rico, of course), if he beats Ricky Burns in September. As much as I like Martinez (one of the most entertaining fighters in the game) I think Caballero can beat him.

Juarez is going to be gunning for that suspect chin of Linares’ but I don’t think he’s going to clip the Japan-based Venezuelan in the 10 rounds he’s got to work with. Rocky is a hell of a fighter, but he’s really short for a junior lightweight and he’s stuck in one speed. And Linares had a good training camp for this fight. I watched him spar five rounds with lightweight prospect Jesus “Pollo” Hernandez (8-0-2) on Saturday, and he looked sharp and agile, like a cat.

Juarez can’t be slept on. He’s stronger than Linares, he’s got more experience, and he’s craftier than people give him credit for. (And he deserved to win the Litzau fight via TKO. The referee missed the punch that caused that cut and swelling around the Minnesotan’s eye. I’m not criticizing the ref, I did the call for that fight, and I missed it, too.) However, when Litzau stuck and moved, he contained Rocky, and Linares can do it so much better than Litzau. I expect Linares to look good winning a competitive boxing match.

I agree that Pacquiao-Margarito shouldn’t happen in the States, but if the NSAC allows for it to take place in Las Vegas, the MGM Grand will be sold out (something it wasn’t for Mayweather’s fights with Marquez and Mosley) with the Filipino and the Mexican’s loyal fans.

L-A-M-E

Doug,
You like to poke fun at my letters when I go off half cocked, so enjoy…lol

There's a lot of things to be annoyed at these days. Chiefly among them is Floyd Mayweather's insistence on fighting once a year and torching the one true Superfight we all want to see. I don't understand this guy, after the way he completely dominated Shane Mosley he was riding a virtual groundswell of critical and commercial acclaim. He's just tossing away all of that momentum.

I'm annoyed that Antonio Margarito is getting a huge fight with Manny Pacquaio. I'll ignore for the moment that the guy’s a cheater, who very well could have killed someone. But exactly what has he done, besides getting his ass handed to him by Shane Mosley, to remotely deserve this fight? This is a joke and Arum is the jokemaster for putting on this sham….

Speaking of Pacquiao, at what point does everyone stop lapping his n__sack and start asking when the pound-for-pound king is going to take on someone with a shot at winning? He's supposed to be the top dawg in the sport, but instead we keep getting excuses about how this guy and that guy aren't big enough draws. Even though he drew about 70,000 people in Dallas to watch him fight an unknown Ghanaian boxer. Wake me up when Manny decides to take on a real challenge… and I'm so tired about hearing how it’s because Arum wants to keep things in house, like that makes it okay… the same writers that pressured (and rightly so) Roy Jones and Maywether need to turn up the heat now. If De La Hoya was washed up when Floyd faced him at 154 lbs, then what was the weight drained version who Pacquiao destroyed at 147 lbs? Sure the pre-Margarito Cotto was a monster, but exactly how dangerous was guy who barely escaped against Clottey? Fine, Ricky Hatton never lost at 140 lb, am I to believe Maywether wouldn't have handled him just as easily at his natural weight? Please… I won't even bring up Clottey's performance.

Also is THE RING going to strip Pacquiao of the Junior Welterweight crown? Or does he keep getting a pass? — Tom G.

That’s a good question, Tom. I don’t think THE RING will have to strip Pacquiao of the 140-pound title. I believe Pacquiao will relinquish it. If he doesn’t, I think THE RING’s editorial board should force the issue with Pacquiao’s “adviser,” our good friend “Mullet” Mike Koncz.

Regarding Pacquiao’s competition, I think you’ve conveniently forgot that the Filipino icon had never fought above 135 pounds prior to facing De La Hoya at 147 pounds and was a 3-to-1 underdog vs. The Golden Boy. I hate to paraphrase Roy Jones, but you musta forgot that Hatton looked better than decent taking apart Paul Malignaggi before he was decapitated by the Pac-Monster at his prime weight. And while Joshua Clottey and the post-Margarito version of Cotto wouldn’t have been top-10 welterweight contenders in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the two were considered top-five 147-pound contenders when Pacquiao fought them, and Freddie Roach’s masterpiece was engaging in only his second and third welterweight bouts.

I don't think Margarito deserves to fight Pacquiao or contend for even a vacant “world” title, but who makes for a better pay-per-view opponent outside of Mayweather? Tim Bradley? Andre Berto? Devon Alexander? I don't think so. They don't have as many fans as Margarito does, probably never will. Have they accomplished as much as Margz did at 147 pounds before he lost to Mosley? I don't think so. Not yet, anyway. Do victories over guys like Luis Collazo, Carlos Quintana, Junior Witter, Juan Urango, Kendall Holt, and Lamont Peterson earn a shot at Pacquiao? Those are the best fighters the aforementioned trio has fought. (And I thought Collazo beat Berto.)

If Bradley and Alexander fought and the winner of that fight took on Berto, the winner of that match would have the momentum and credibility to call out the PacMan and deserve a shot. He'd probably have more fans to bring to the big show, too.

Having said that, I’m not excited about Pacquiao's 150-pound fight with Margarito, and I think it’s time he caught some heat for playing Arum’s game and not facing more attractive opponents (as well as for fighting in so many damn catch-weight bouts).

If he really wanted to fight Mayweather, he could force Arum’s hand. That’s what truly great fighters do. The same, however, can be said about Mayweather. He’s the boss of his team. Nobody tells him what to do. If he really wanted to prove that he’s better than Pacquiao, and that he deserves to be the pound-for-pound king and the fighter of the decade, he would step into the ring with the Filipino badass and beat him. It’s as simple as that.

Pernell Whitaker didn’t complain when much of the media and most of the public considered Julio Cesar Chavez the pound-for-pound king. He fought him. And he didn’t care that HBO didn’t want him to fight the Mexican icon on Showtime, or that Don King would be the lead promoter of the event. He just wanted to show everyone that he was the better boxer (and he did, despite the controversial draw verdict). Chavez didn’t care that Whitaker had a style to give anyone fits. He didn’t care that he’d never fought above 140 pounds before. He just wanted to make Mexican history by winning that elusive fourth title in a fourth weight class, and hey, he gave it his best shot and the Alamodome in San Antonio was packed with his fans who wanted to cheer him on.

I have more respect for Whitaker and Chavez than I do for Mayweather and Pacquiao.

PAC VS. MARGZ

Hey Dougie,
Props on the commentary again on Fight Night Club. I loved that Oscar Andrade-Ramon Valadez barnburner, and I hope GBP will put them on again for fun (but I doubt it).

All I ask this week is this: is Pac-Margarito even competitive? All will be forgiven if we fight fans are given a good fight (perhaps I speak for myself on that point, though). All the best. — Robb

I think Margarito will make it more interesting than Clottey did, because he’ll come forward and he’ll let his hands go, but I doubt he’ll be any more effective than the Ghanaian was in March.

All Pacquiao has to do is watch out for “the Slice” — that left uppercut of Margarito’s — and I think he’ll win handily, either by UD or late TKO.

Thanks for the props on the FNC commentary. I’m having a good time doing those shows with Mario Solis, and I think L.A. fans are enjoying the fights. I KNOW they were thrilled by Andrade-Valadez. Everyone who witnessed that one live will be back to Club Nokia. I guarantee it.

There have been some excellent four-round brawls televised this year, but that fight is the best I’ve seen. I’d like to see a rematch but only after both young men get some developmental bouts and rounds under their belts. As punishing as the first fight was, it would be cruel to immediately stick them in the ring against each other again.

QUESTION ABOUT MANNY

Hey Doug,
How come Manny Pacquiao doesn't seem to even consider fighting in the Philippines? Hearing the fight could end up in Mexico, it just doesn't make sense to me. He's the big attraction, why should he go to Margarito’s country? Just curious. — David

Pacquiao should go to Mexico because the fight will be a bigger event there than it would be in the Philippines. Pacquiao has crazy fans who will fly from his home country and travel from any state in the U.S. to Mexico to watch him fight the Mexican national (heck, they'd travel anywhere in the world to watch him fight YOU). Margarito has fans, especially in Mexico, but he doesn’t have the kind of fans who will fly to the Philippines to watch him fight. In Mexico, Arum can fill any arena with Pacquiao’s AND Margarito’s fans. Plus, I think it’s easier for HBO (which will broadcast the bout live in the U.S. on its pay-per-view arm) to travel to Mexico than to the Philippines (where the time difference is significant) and he can probably get more money from Mexican television, too.

LUCKY SHUMENOV?

First, Beibut Shumenov wins what is widely reported as a suspect decision to win a light-heavyweight title in just his tenth pro fight, then he defends it against a guy, Uzelkov, who floors him with a nice counter left hook in the first round, and then seemingly stops punching for the remainder of the fight.

Has Shumenov just been really lucky lately, or is there something going on with him that I just cannot see? While I admire his straightforward, aggressive mentality, his technique looks a little bit crude to me, and he's clearly there to be hit by a good counter-puncher.

What's your opinion of him? — gopal rao

I though of Shumenov as a prospect before AND after his two fights with Campillo. He wasn’t ready for a boxer as slick and skilled as the Spanish southpaw. I didn’t see their first bout, but I called the action (with the legendary Col. Bob Sheridan) to the rematch in January, and take it from me, Shumenov DID lose that fight. I scored it 116-112 for Campillo (and I thought I was being nice to “Shumey” with that tally.)

However, I think Shumenov has benefited from six months of training with Kevin Barry. The New Zealander had only worked with Shumenov a few weeks prior to the Campillo rematch and the technical improvements were still new to the physical specimen from Kazakhstan. Shumey looked more relaxed, exhibited a consistent jab (something he never had before), and was strong down the stretch (instead of fading as he did in both Campillo bouts) on Friday. In my not-so-humble opinion, he proved to be lower top-10 contender with the Uzelkov victory.

He can be outboxed and counter-punched as you point out, but only by the top dogs of the division. And I think he would make excellent fights with aggressive light heavyweights, such as Tavoris Cloud and Chris Henry.

A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING

Dougie,
How's it going, man? First off, I just wanted to say that I think you've really settled in on FNC. When I saw your first show last year, my thought was that you were a good broadcaster — for a writer. This past Thursday I realized that you're just a damn good broadcaster, period. Fox Sports Midwest even saw fit to televise it on the same night it happened for once.

Second, I'm not sure I've seen it printed anywhere on RingTV yet, so I just wanted to make sure it got there — SEGURA vs. CALDERON! I gotta be honest. I really didn't think Calderon wanted that fight ever, but now we have the kind of significant match-up we might only see once a decade in the lowest two divisions. Can't wait for that one. Do you know if it's on PPV or HBO or….? I never thought I'd pay PPV money to see a couple mighty mites battle it out, but this one is huge even if the participants are not.

Finally, are you going to be in St. Louis for the Alexander-Kotelnik/ Johnson-Cloud/ Spinks-Bundrage card? I'm hoping to be ringside, and think it would be cool to meet you after all the times you've responded to my half-crazy self on here. Do you know if the Spinks fight will be televised? I was just wondering so I could decide whether I should try to position myself over Max Kellerman's shoulder that early in the night or not so as to see myself on Tivo later. I must say, Don King kind of screwed me out of my ticket processing fees by canceling the Spinks fight in June for no good reason, but he made up for it by loading up this card that I was going to anyway.

Oh, and one more thing — since I'm taking the bar exam in a couple days I have to give a shout out to my favorite boxing lawyer, Beibut Shumenov. He got schooled by Gabriel Campillo despite whatever the judges were smoking, but he looked like a whole different fighter against Uzelkov. How good do you think he is right now? I personally thought Uzelkov was overrated going in, but still. — Dan Culp, Columbia, MO

I think Shumey proved to be a lower-level 175-pound contender on Friday. I hope he continues to improve his technique and stamina. If he does he has potential.

The Spinks fight is not part of the HBO broadcast.

I won’t be making the trip to St. Louis for this card, but if Tim Bradley ever fights Alexander in ‘the Lou’ (and I think he will), I’ll be there. Maybe, Spinks vs. Angulo can be the co-feature to that showdown in the Show-Me-State. (Note to Gary Shaw: If you do make Bradley-Alexander and Spinks-Angulo and put the card in St. Louis, and call it “The Show-Me-State Showdown,” I at least want a shout-out at the kick-off press conference.)

RingTV.com broke the news on the Calderon-Segura fight being made. I can’t wait to watch that one. It headlines a small pay-per-view show (distributed by Integrated Sports in the U.S.), by the way.

Thanks for the kind words about my growth as a broadcaster. I’m going to keep trying to improve as much as I can.