PBC ON FOX, PACQUIAO-BRONER

Hi Dougie,

Hope this find you and the family well. Keith Thurman really impressed me Saturday night. He could have taken a much easier fight after his injury lay-off, but to his credit, chose to challenge himself with Josesito Lopez. It looked like he was cruising to a win and then the 7th round – he barely survived it and while he won most of the rest of the rounds, Lopez was clearly dangerous until the end. Thurman also gave an honest interview, admitted he was in trouble and wasn’t at his peak. Kudos to Fox and the PBC. There need to be more quality fights with quality sportsmen on prime time on network TV to advance the sport. The broadcast team also was spot-on, learning and improving from their last card.

Again, though, there was the judging. How could Dawn Ackerman score the fight a draw? I didn’t score the fight, but Thurman gets a 10-8 for his 2nd round knockdown, and Lopez negates that with his 7th round near-destruction of Thurman. That leaves 10 rounds, and to me Thurman had to have at least won 6 of them, probably more. What can be done to get better judging?

I watched the Sunday rerun of Manny Pacquiao-Adrien Broner. Why would anyone pay for that? I vowed never to buy another Pacquiao fight after he ripped me off for $100 fighting Mayweather knowing he had an injured shoulder, and AB portrays himself as so classless that if I had anything else to do I wouldn’t waste my time watching him. Thurman says he wants Manny, and who could blame him, for the history and the money. Would Manny stand a chance? I don’t see it, against Thurman or Spence, Crawford, or Porter, they’re all too fast for him, and Manny can still box, but his footwork is nothing compared to his younger self. Could he defeat Danny Garcia? Maybe, but I doubt it. Watching Manny against these top-tier welterweights would be like watching Willie Mays playing for the Mets, dropping fly balls in centerfield. It would be a sad sight, and he could get hurt. Thanks again for all you do with the mailbag. – Ken Kozberg, Oakham, MA

Thanks for sharing, Ken.

I wouldn’t favor Pacquiao against any of the young 147-pound guns, but I’ve been wrong about the Filipino Icon before (I think I picked Tim Bradley to win their second or third bout – I can’t recall which return bout and don’t care enough to check it out). Despite his advanced age and considerable wear and tear, Pacquiao remains a legit top-five 147-pound contender, so I can’t fault him if he wants to face fellow welterweight standouts. I wouldn’t count him out against Keith Thurman, Shawn Porter or Danny Garcia. I would count him out against Spence or Terence Crawford.

I watched the Sunday rerun of Manny Pacquiao-Adrien Broner. Why would anyone pay for that? Because they’re diehard PacFans. He’s got a dedicated fan base, and he earned it.

I vowed never to buy another Pacquiao fight after he ripped me off for $100 fighting Mayweather knowing he had an injured shoulder, and AB portrays himself as so classless that if I had anything else to do I wouldn’t waste my time watching him. Fans have short memories, and the fact that Broner is a dick helped sell pay-per-views because marks wanted to see Pacquiao humble him.

Keith Thurman really impressed me Saturday night. You’re in the minority according to my Twitter timeline. But I thought Thurman acquitted himself well considering his previous injuries and the amount of time he’s been off.

He could have taken a much easier fight after his injury lay-off, but to his credit, chose to challenge himself with Josesito Lopez. I have a lot of respect for Lopez, but he’s 34 years old, he’s fought once a year since 2015, and he’s been in several ring wars. He wasn’t considered a huge challenge to Thurman. And Thurmy couldn’t have headlined a Fox show had he chosen an easier opponent.

It looked like he was cruising to a win and then the 7th round – he barely survived it and while he won most of the rest of the rounds, Lopez was clearly dangerous until the end. That’s why they call him the Riverside Rocky. The man does not give up.

Thurman also gave an honest interview, admitted he was in trouble and wasn’t at his peak. I know I’m in the minority, but I like Keith, and his thoughtful interviews are part of that admiration.

Kudos to Fox and the PBC. There need to be more quality fights with quality sportsmen on prime time on network TV to advance the sport. I agree. I only watched the main event live, but I thought it delivered action and drama. That’s what it’s all about. 

Again, though, there was the judging. How could Dawn Ackerman score the fight a draw? By giving Lopez the benefit of every doubt, same as Tom Schreck giving Thurman the benefit of the doubt with his 117-109 score. I think Steve Weisfeld had the most realistic tally with 115-111.

What can be done to get better judging? For starters, fans could put more pressure on state athletic commissions to hold judges accountable for really poor scorecards.

LAY OFF THURMAN

Dougie,

Great to see my fellow St. Petersburg resident, Keith Thurman, return to the ring tonight. I thought he looked sharp considering the two-year layoff. His quickness and his legs seemed at their best. Obviously, his timing seemed a bit below his peak form. Josesito brought the fight as he always does. He is a boxing fan’s dream. His quiet and classy attitude outside the ring are strangely matched by his tenacious and relentless aggression inside the ring. He almost upset Keith’s big return and it was pleasure to watch this entertaining fight.

I know many people will be hard on Keith and will talk about the things that Errol Spence would have done to him had he gotten him in trouble like Josesito did. Need I remind them that Keith has fought the best of the welterweight division and is still undefeated. Now, in his first fight back in two years, he fought a game challenger who was constantly putting on pressure and although he had some scary moments, he still was able to put a beating on the larger fighter. If Spence gets past Garcia, which is not a foregone conclusion, yet is as I expect him to do, then he and Keith Thurman can finally fight. Spence has the power and skill to beat him, but Keith also has power, speed, and skills to befuddle Spence. We are the lucky ones who will get to see it play out. Until then, people should lay off Keith and just enjoy what he did tonight in Brooklyn and enjoy a stacked welterweight division with multiple possible matchups.

Mythical Matchups:

Hearns v. Mayweather @ 154

Pryor v. Tszyu @ 140

De La Hoya v. Tszyu @ 140

Thanks again! Sincerely. – Greg

Hearns by KO before Round 6, Pryor by late stoppage, and De La Hoya (the Jesus Rivero-trained version) by close decision.

I agree 100% with your assessment of Lopez and his bold stand against Thurman.

I know many people will be hard on Keith and will talk about the things that Errol Spence would have done to him had he gotten him in trouble like Josesito did. You know boxing fans. They’re so sure Spence will crush Thurman that they don’t even want to see that fight. Of course, most of the same fans who say Thurman has no shot against Spence will change their tune if the IBF titleholder suffers one wobbly moment or loses more than two rounds against Mikey Garcia. These are also the same fans that predicted that Lopez would get blown out by Thurman. That’s boxing for ya. Nobody cares to allow the fighters to fight the fights anymore.

Need I remind them that Keith has fought the best of the welterweight division and is still undefeated. You don’t need to remind them. They know. They just don’t give s__t. And I understand their apathy with Thurman. He never capitalized on his two big victories (which he won by the skin of this teeth) and he’s been evasive whenever the subject of Spence has come up. So fans and media have crowned Spence the unofficial welterweight king even though the Texas southpaw hasn’t accomplished as much as Thurman has.

Now, in his first fight back in two years, he fought a game challenger who was constantly putting on pressure and although he had some scary moments, he still was able to put a beating on the larger fighter. Just because Lopez is taller than Thurman doesn’t mean that he was the larger fighter in the ring. And I think they put a beating on each other. The punishment wasn’t one-sided.

If Spence gets past Garcia, which is not a foregone conclusion, yet is as I expect him to do, then he and Keith Thurman can finally fight. Let’s hope it happens this year. If it doesn’t happen in 2019, it might not happen. I can see Spence moving to the 154-pound division in 2020.

Spence has the power and skill to beat him, but Keith also has power, speed, and skills to befuddle Spence. Agreed.

We are the lucky ones who will get to see it play out. Will we?

Until then, people should lay off Keith and just enjoy what he did tonight in Brooklyn and enjoy a stacked welterweight division with multiple possible matchups. Thurman’s too eccentric for the average knucklehead fan not to ridicule, and the PBC hasn’t done a good job of getting the major welterweight titles in its possession consolidated – they could have just as easily made Spence-Porter instead of Spence-Garcia and Porter-Ugas to kick off 2019, and then they could have had Thurman face the winner of Spence-Porter in the summer, but it is what it is… we can’t blame fans for being cynical bastards.

THURMAN VS. PACQUIAO

Hey Dougie –

I have become less interested in boxing lately mainly due to the GGG-Canelo scoring debacle and the numerous good fights that should be made but most likely won’t be made:

-Crawford-Spence

-Mikey-Loma

-Wilder/Fury-Joshua

Even with my waning interest I found myself watching Pac-Broner last week and Thurman-Lopez this week. I have to say that as unimpressed as I was with both winners it may lead to an interesting fight between them.

I would like to see a Pac-Thurman bout and I think the Pac that beat Broner beats the Thurman that fought Lopez. Thurman fights too much on the back foot and despite a good jab never gets his own offense going. I think the age-worn yet persistent Pac-Man still has enough offense and power to keep Thurman at bay and win on points.

I guess this is why I continue to watch and follow boxing. You never know when a fight you didn’t think was worth it all of a sudden becomes something to look forward to.

How do you see a Pac-Thurman fight going?

Keep it up, Dougie. Always enjoy reading you. – Dennis O, Jersey City

Thanks for the kind words, Dennis.

Keith Thurman says he’s open to a fight with Manny Pacquiao, even if he has to go overseas to make it happen.

I think a Pac-Thurman fight would be an interesting and competitive matchup. I favor the 30-year-year-old Floridian with 29 pro bouts over the 40-year-old Filipino with 70 pro bouts. And it’s not just about age and fighter mileage. It’s about styles, in my opinion. Pacquiao was able to dictate the fight tempo against Broner because the Ohioan is a low-volume puncher who is also rather flat-footed. I think Thurman’s tendency to “fight off the back foot,” as you describe, will trouble Pacquiao, who is too old to go on the hunt for 12 rounds. And Thurman has Broner’s speed, but more punching power. I think his lateral movement and ability to “punch on the fly” (as the older-timers would say) will trouble Pacquiao enough to earn a decision. Think of Pac’s first bout with Bradley, which I know he should have won, but imagine Timmy with more punching power.

ALL-ACTION SATURDAY

Hi Doug,

With your encouragement in my previous letter around Christmas I subscribed to DAZN (money well spent) and with that and my DVR for the broadcast channels I settled in to enjoy the fights Saturday night. I will just hit some of the high points for me.

FIRST…Adam Kownacki. His nick name “Babyface” is perfect as he looks like something from that movie where the scientist blows the baby up into a giant. My wife commented that he didn’t look in very good shape but I told her to just watch. It was exciting to watch him dismantle Gerald Washington. He is a likeable sort as well. He can hit, he comes to fight and he wants his shot. I only hope he gets it. It remains to be seen how far he can go but whoever he fights, I will be tuned in.

SECOND…Keith Thurman. OK he has been off for awhile and I thought that Josesito Lopez had been chosen because he is a credible opponent, will give Keith some work, but not pose a serious threat. Boy was I wrong about that. Lopez came out fast but suffered an early knockdown. Thurman settled into a rhythm and was delivering some smooth counters and then came the seventh round. Suddenly Lopez is the puncher and knocked Thurman from corner to corner. I really thought Thurman might be stopped or at least dropped in that round. Lopez came forward with determination for the remainder of the fight and while Thurman’s counters had to hurt, Lopez never showed it (at least to my eyes in the excitement of watching the fight).  I think Thurman might need another tuneup before jumping in the deep end….and he might want to drop the “One Time” monicker. It really doesn’t seem to apply anymore at the top of the division.

FINALLY….Jaime Munguia. I had been a fan since I saw him vs Sadam Ali. Munguia is a big guy for the division and has an impressive and improving skill set (he might need to learn how to hold though). I had not seen his opponent Takeshi Inoue before. Though Takeshi lost on all cards they didn’t reflect the fact that he was in the fight all the way. He never stopped coming forward and managed to pin Munguia against the ropes and clock him over and over with overhand rights. He also never blinked under fire and showed great courage and determination. He just wasn’t big and strong enough to do the damage that was necessary. Still, it was a tougher night than Munguia expected going in. It was also mentioned that Munguia is having trouble making 154. There is a whole lot of action available to him at 160. Overall it is looking like 2019 is going to be a good year for fans like us. Whatta you think? – David, Nashville

Time will tell, David, but the potential is there.

I wasn’t surprised that Inoue brought the ruckus for 12 rounds. That’s how Japanese

Jaime Munguia attempts to blast Takeshi Inoue with a left uppercut but the Japanese challenger stalked through every power shot. Photo by Tom Hogan-HoganPhotos / Golden Boy Promotions

fighters roll. I thought Munguia moved, jabbed and went to the body well, but he’s got defensive flaws and a bad habit of backing to the ropes. He’s still a work in progress. If he’s truly killing himself to make 154 pounds, I think he should move up to the middleweight division. There’s more available competition for him there, such as the Gabe Rosado-Maciej Sulecki winner, Brandon Adams and Steven Butler, and I think those opponents would make for good fights and test him further. Eventually, there’s WBO beltholder Demetrius Andrade (who I think would outbox him right now), and maybe a year or two from now, there’s an all-Mexico superfight with Canelo, but the young man from Tijuana has to keep learning and winning to get there.

Adam Kownacki. His nick name “Babyface” is perfect as he looks like something from that movie where the scientist blows the baby up into a giant. If he ever fought Jerrell Miller, it could be billed as the “Battle of the Babies.” Andy Ruiz Jr., who truly looks like a massive baby, could fight the winner.

It was exciting to watch him dismantle Gerald Washington. Was that a shocking outcome to that matchup? I didn’t think so.

He is a likeable sort as well. He can hit, he comes to fight and he wants his shot. I only hope he gets it. He’ll get one if he keeps winning and building a fan base, but I don’t think he’s earned a title shot yet.

Keith Thurman. OK he has been off for awhile and I thought that Josesito Lopez had been chosen because he is a credible opponent, will give Keith some work, but not pose a serious threat. Boy was I wrong about that. That’s why they fight the fights. The same thing can be said about the Munguia-Inoue and Jesus Rojas-Xu Can fights. We can’t count out determined underdogs.

I really thought Thurman might be stopped or at least dropped in that round. I didn’t think Thurmy would get knocked out (unless it was a premature or controversial stoppage), but I wouldn’t have been shocked had he taken a voluntary knee in Round 7 just to catch a breather.

Lopez came forward with determination for the remainder of the fight and while Thurman’s counters had to hurt, Lopez never showed it (at least to my eyes in the excitement of watching the fight). I think Lopez earned another high-profile fight with his tremendous effort, maybe Jamal James or a British prospect like Josh Kelly or Conor Benn. Lopez vs. Francisco “Chia” Santana would be a doozy.

I think Thurman might need another tuneup before jumping in the deep end. Maybe. The hard 12 rounds he went with Lopez had to knock off a lot of ring rust. If Pacquiao can’t get the Mayweather rematch and agrees to fight Thurman next, I doubt that Keith would feel the need for a tuneup prior to that showdown. I think he’d jump at the opportunity.

…and he might want to drop the “One Time” moniker. It really doesn’t seem to apply anymore at the top of the division. I never liked that nickname, even when he was whacking guys out.

KOWNACKI AND THURMAN

Hi Doug,

I really enjoyed the fights last night on Fox! I had never seen Kownacki except for the picture on Ring Ratings. I didn’t realize The Pillsbury Dough Girl and Butterbean had any children! He made short work of Washington! Washington looks ‘Stiff’ and ‘Slow’. At his age he probably won’t get any better. Kownacki took him out quicker than Wilder & others. Makes you wonder if maybe he hits harder than Wilder! Thurman looked great! I’d love to see him fight Garcia or Spence Jr. Lopez tried but he was outclassed. I thought I caught a glimpse of you outside the ropes. Were you there? – Mike

I was not. Was somebody in Brooklyn trying to steal my ponytail-and-nerd-glasses look? Is nothing sacred!?

I had never seen Kownacki except for the picture on Ring Ratings. It doesn’t do him justice, does it?

I didn’t realize The Pillsbury Dough Girl and Butterbean had any children! Stop. We don’t tolerate body shaming here in the mailbag.

He made short work of Washington! Washington looks ‘Stiff’ and ‘Slow’. At his age he probably won’t get any better. No, he won’t. But he did quite well in this tough sport for a former college football player.

Kownacki took him out quicker than Wilder & others. Makes you wonder if maybe he hits harder than Wilder! I doubt it. I think he got to a faded version of Washington.

Thurman looked great! Calm down.

I’d love to see him fight Garcia or Spence Jr. Me too. Fingers crossed.

Lopez tried but he was outclassed. No shame in that. I respect Lopez just as much as I do Thurman.