LEVELS

Dear Dougie,

Just before my mailbag entry I’d like to say thank you for what you do. There aren’t many lines open between fans and the upper echelons of our sport (Twitter rants notwithstanding) and it makes a real difference to be able to discuss and even have jokes (“Bob Arum Jr” haha) with someone of such regard in the sport. FYI – I’d take the job of Uncle Bob Jr. and frankly I’d sell my house and upsticks stateside to make tea for him if it meant I could be around the sport I love… and maybe even get the odd ringside seat.

Anyway keep up the good work and onto my mailbag entry:

I hold my hands up – you were right not to be enamoured with the prospect of Kell Brook taking on Terence Crawford.

Whilst the fight was playing out as I’d thought what became clear was that at the elite level you cannot be caught lacking in any department. However, what surprised me was that it was Kell’s chin that wasn’t up to par anymore. Let’s be clear, the stiff jab he walked onto would not have done it for him a few years ago. Sadly, the legacy of his losses is stolen punch resistance.

I hope he retires now as the only fight left for him is the much-mooted Amir Khan fight that is past its sell-by date. Both have been brave and tremendous fighters for Britain who deserve a happy retirement in good health after punishing careers.

One man who shouldn’t retire soon is Crawford, who really is a special talent and we can only hope he gets the fights he, and the sport, deserve.

Speaking further of levels: Katie Taylor. Wow. That was a stunning display of confidence, balletic footwork and blurring hand speed of which the counter left hook was particularly cat-like.

To be honest I think she deserves a spot in the ‘male’ P4P rankings, they are only theoretical after all? Thanks & best regards. – Chris R, UK

Taylor vs Gutierrez. Photo by Mark Robinson

If Taylor keeps winning and exhibiting the form she did on Saturday (vs. Miriam Gutierrez, Ring’s No. 4-rated lightweight), I wouldn’t be surprised if we see that happen in the next two years. Right now, she’s No. 2 behind Claressa Shields in The Ring women’s pound-for-pound rankings, but the undisputed lightweight champ has more elite-level dance partners available to her than the undisputed middleweight champ. If Taylor were to win a showdown with Amanda Serrano (No. 5 in Ring’s women’s P4P rankings) at lightweight and then challenge the winner of the Jessica McCaskil-Cecilia Braekhus rematch (which will be for Ring’s inaugural women’s welterweight title) and win – both big IFs, I admit, but not inconceivable – I bet you at least one member of the men’s Ratings Panel (probably Diego Morilla, who serves as chair of women’s Ratings Panel) would nominate her for the men’s mythical rankings (and if enough panelists agreed, it wouldn’t be “the men’s” P4P top 10 anymore, would it?)

I hold my hands up – you were right not to be enamoured with the prospect of Kell Brook taking on Terence Crawford. It was nothing personal toward either fighter. I’ve got nothing but respect for both, but Brook had his time. He’s no longer a rated welterweight (hasn’t been since the loss to Errol Spence). This is Crawford’s time. He’s at his peak. Let’s hope it doesn’t pass him by before he gets the opportunity to test it vs. a fellow elite welterweight.

Whilst the fight was playing out as I’d thought what became clear was that at the elite level you cannot be caught lacking in any department. Yes Sir. And Crawford is elite. Brook may have been back in 2014 and 2015, but those days are gone.

However, what surprised me was that it was Kell’s chin that wasn’t up to par anymore. Sadly, the legacy of his losses is stolen punch resistance. I agree. Brook used to have reliable whiskers. I thought he could still take a decent shot. Although I gave him zero chance of winning the fight, I thought he could last into the championship rounds vs. Crawford. Maybe I wasn’t giving Bud enough credit for his punching prowess.

I hope he retires now as the only fight left for him is the much-mooted Amir Khan fight that is past its sell-by date. F__k that. I’d rather see Hopkins-Jones III.

One man who shouldn’t retire soon is Crawford, who really is a special talent and we can only hope he gets the fights he, and the sport, deserve. I’d do a back flip for Crawford vs. Yordenis Ugas at this point.

INSTANT REPLAY

Hey Dougie,

What’s worse?

A ref that calls a phantom head butt or after watching less than a round of video over and over for almost 30 minutes the refusal of the NSAC review panel to overturn it? – Rodemeyer

The commission is worse, because they appointed the bumbling official in the first place, and then they backed up his miscall after pretending to review it for half an hour. What’s more ridiculous than the poor ref and judging jobs that victimize the sport almost every damn week is the fact that the same nitwits keep getting prime assignments and keep f__king up fighters’ careers. It’s the commissions that need to be held accountable. And in the case of the Nevada Athletic Commission, when they standby poor performances, such as Adalaide Byrd’s scorecard for Canelo-Golovkin I, they’re admitting to the boxing world and to casual/would-be fans that they don’t care about being fair. That dreadful 118-110 tally was not Byrd’s first controversial scorecard, and Russel Mora’s miscall was not his first bad night (not by a longshot).

CRAWFORD POWER

What’s up Doug hope all’s well,

I think Lou DiBella summed up Crawford perfectly:

“Crawford adjusts like no one else. The slow start with him means NOTHING.”

Bud just seems like he’s playing chess in there… calculating, never panics, rarely makes mistakes, out-thinks you then proceeds to beat you. How do you see a fight with him vs Spence, Pacquiao going?

Also I’ve followed Crawford since he beat Bredis Prescott and I know Bud was a huge lightweight but his power seems to have increased from moving up to light welter then welter only Postol has went the distance with him out of both weight classes….who else (bar Roy Jones) in boxing have you seen do that where there power doesn’t just follow them up the scale it actually increases?

MM: Gerald McClellan vs Joe Calzaghe, Roy Jones

Cheers. – David, Dublin

I think Jones and Calzaghe would clearly (and obviously very carefully) outclass and outpoint the G-Man over the distance.

The Hitman carried his right-hand power up in weight and into the late stages of his career.

Regarding boxers who kept their power or appeared to punch harder as they moved up in weight, I gotta mention Thomas Hearns, who scored impressive KOs when he moved up from welterweight to junior middleweight (Roberto Duran TKO 2) and middleweight (James Shuler KO 1, Juan Roldan KO 4), and even all the way up to cruiserweight (Andrew Maynard TKO 1). Alexis Arguello was a renown puncher at featherweight but continued to score punishing stoppages against quality opposition at 130, 135 and even at 140 pounds (ask Mike Tyson’s old trainer Kevin Rooney if you don’t believe me).

I think Lou DiBella summed up Crawford perfectly:

“Crawford adjusts like no one else. The slow start with him means NOTHING.” Lou knows boxing. I had Brook winning the first two rounds, but looking sharp for six minutes doesn’t match much unless it’s a four-rounder. Crawford takes notes for one-to-four rounds and then begins his skillful ass whupping. He’s as good at this as Pernell Whitaker was, only he’s got more pop in his punches and a killer instinct.

Bud just seems like he’s playing chess in there… calculating, never panics, rarely makes mistakes, out-thinks you then proceeds to beat you. How do you see a fight with him vs Spence, Pacquiao going? I favored him over Spence before The Truth was involved in that car accident last October, and I thought he would retire The Fighting Senator had they fought while Pacquiao was still with Top Rank. Nothing has changed, other than Pac is older and Spence is a question mark until he can show us how he’s recovered vs. Danny Garcia. But I think both matchups would be competitive, I just envision Bud making the right adjustments and either outboxing them or working them over the second half of the fight.

THE FRANCO-MOLONEY PHANTOM “BUTT”

I couldn’t see a butt and I don’t think they saw one at ringside either.

I read this statement from Bob Bennet though:

“In our instant replay rules, they clearly state in the third paragraph that unless there is clear and conclusive evidence that a foul did take place, unless we are 100 percent sure, the referee’s ruling stands,”

I can’t find the instant replay rules online, but perhaps this explains it?

As Bennet said, the instant replay officials appear to only be able to overturn the referee’s decision if there is “clear and conclusive evidence that a foul did take place”

Is it possible (although dumb) that they can’t overturn a decision when there is clear and conclusive evidence that a foul did NOT take place?

Seems silly to not be able to just review and make a decision regardless of the error. – AC

If the NSAC can’t overturn a referee’s decision when they can’t find the accidental foul that is in dispute while reviewing the video playback then WHAT’S THE POINT OF HAVING INSTANT REPLAY!?

Photo by Mikey Williams/Top Rank

Mora said a headbutt (or multiple butts) caused Joshua Franco’s right eye to swell. The commission (Bennett and Robert Byrd) were looking for an accidental clash of heads in the first round after the fight ended. The only thing they needed to concern themselves was locating the moment when Moloney’s head crashed into Franco’s right eye socket. If, while reviewing the round, they see that Moloney’s jab is what caused the damage, the correct call is really quite simple, isn’t it? But I guess they didn’t see that.

I’m not saying the junior bantamweights’ heads did not come together during the opening round, they did. But it didn’t look like a CLASH of heads occurred (generally speaking, when this happens BOTH fighters react in pain), and most of the time when Moloney’s head next to Franco’s it was on the left side of Texan’s face.

CRAWFORD-BROOK

Hi Doug,

Hope you, the family, and team are keeping well.

Bud’s still the man!

Was there ever any doubt? I know you were lukewarm on this fight, but I was actually looking forward to it, even though I’m a Khan fan 😉

When Brook beat Porter, in his back yard, he was highly rated in the welterweight division. Yes he’s had some losses since then but he’s been competitive and has built up a hell of a lot of experience. Also he was coming off three wins and seem to make welterweight a lot more comfortably than before.

But Bud! One of my favourite fighters at the moment, just a pleasure to watch every time he’s in the ring. The first three rounds were interesting and Brook did have some success, however I still felt Bud was getting the better of him. But look at the finish. Bud just had so many more extra gears. Bud switched stance and caught him with….

Well, was it a jab or a hook or something in between but Kell Brook did not see it coming. And the finish after that was perfect.

Bud was in there with a proven, albeit a few years ago, decent counter puncher, former world champ, and someone who was naturally bigger than him.

For me it shows how many levels Bud is above the rest.

I think Tony Weeks was spot on in waving the fight off. There was no complaint from Brook in the ring all in the post-fight interviews.

So since Kell has faced both Spence and Bud now can we read anything further into that potential mega fight?

I know in the Spence fight Brook was coming off a devastating loss and injury to GGG. I still feel Bud showed he handled Brook a lot better than Spence. But it is a difficult one to draw any conclusions on still I think.

Can’t wait for Spence/Garcia, wicked fight! If Spence is victorious will we see Spence/Crawford next year considering all the promotional issues? Bud seems to have vended some frustration before this fight about getting top class opponents?

What’s next for Kell?

Let me brutally honest for a second. Kell got this fight and the GGG fight as he was the available opponent who brought the most money to the table. That goes for Khan also against Crawford and Canelo.

Considering Brook’s split with Dominic Ingle and recent split with Eddie Hearn, what options does he have left? Liam Smith fight perhaps? Khan? Both are not top-level fights but would generate sufficient domestic interest. Is that enough for Kell at this stage in his career? Kell has struggled with discipline in training through his career and without the potential for top-level fights, and the guidance from Ingle, I suspect it’s not enough to carry on.

MM

Brook who beat Porter Vs Khan who beat Alexander at 147

Brook Vs Garcia at their best at 147

Batman Vs Starlord

Keep up the good work and stay safe. – Tabraze, London

I’ll go with Brook by late KO over Khan and via close decision over Garcia. Batman beats EVERYBODY.

Regarding Brook’s future, yeah, I guess a domestic showdown with Liam Smith could make for a decent event in England, but I would consider the Sheffield man to be a 154-pound gatekeeper going forward, regardless of the outcome of that contest. I think he can serve a solid test for young guns like Tim Tszyu, Carlos Adames and Sebastian Fundora. I’d view him as a stepping-stone for seasoned veterans like Michael Soro and Tony Harrison.

Bud’s still the man! He’s the best welterweight in the game in my opinion.

Was there ever any doubt? Nope. Like I said last week, Brook’s chances were slim and none, and Slim left town.

I know you were lukewarm on this fight, but I was actually looking forward to it, even though I’m a Khan fan. I may be a blood-thirsty ghoul, but you’re a sadistic mother__ker. LOL.

Brook (left) on his way to winning the title from Shawn Porter, Photo by Naoki Fukuda

When Brook beat Porter, in his back yard, he was highly rated in the welterweight division. I wouldn’t call Carson, California, Shawn Porter’s “backyard,” but Brook bested an unbeaten American welterweight beltholder on U.S. soil and elevated himself to No. 4 in The Ring’s 147-pound rankings (behind Ring champion Floyd Mayweather Jr., Manny Pacquiao, Tim Bradley and Juan Manuel Marquez). By mid-2015, Brook (35-0) was Ring’s No. 1-rated welterweight.

Yes he’s had some losses since then but he’s been competitive and has built up a hell of a lot of experience. There was no shame to losing to Golovkin (35-0) and Spence (21-0), but we can’t minimize the damage Brook absorbed in those back-to-back beatings.

Also he was coming off three wins and seem to make welterweight a lot more comfortably than before. Yes, he won three bouts – vs. Siarhei Rabchanka, Michael Zerafa and Mark Deluca – after the loss to Spence, but that wasn’t a trio of world-beaters, and he didn’t even look all that good vs. Zerafa. Also, just because he made 147 pounds and looked like fitness model doesn’t mean that welterweight is the right weight class for the veteran at this stage of his career.

Photo by Mikey Williams/Top Rank

But Bud! One of my favourite fighters at the moment, just a pleasure to watch every time he’s in the ring. He is a joy to watch. He’s like my man Chocolatito in that I can be enthralled and entertained watching him ply his craft against a second-tier fighter.

Bud was in there with a proven, albeit a few years ago, decent counter puncher, former world champ, and someone who was naturally bigger than him. Yes, all of that is true, but was Brook a legit welterweight contender at this stage of his career?

For me it shows how many levels Bud is above the rest. Did you really need to see him whack Brook outta there to come to this conclusion? Come on, man, you knew this going in (or you should have known).

I think Tony Weeks was spot on in waving the fight off. It was a good stoppage.

So since Kell has faced both Spence and Bud now can we read anything further into that potential mega fight? Not much, other than it will be between the two best welterweights if it happens. Crawford fought Brook three and half years after Spence did, and styles make fights.

Can’t wait for Spence/Garcia, wicked fight! Agreed. It’s a dangerous outing for Spence (especially his first bout since his car accident last October) and a tall order for Garcia. Major props to Spence for not messing with tune-ups and going straight into a real fight.

If Spence is victorious will we see Spence/Crawford next year considering all the promotional issues? I think the Spence-Crawford showdown is 50-50 if Crawford remains with Top Rank/ESPN. It should happen as a co-promotion/cross-platform event, like Wilder-Fury 2, where both ESPN and FOX can combine their pre-event exposure to the casual fans, but you know how boxing is. If Crawford leaves Top Rank for the PBC, that fight has a better shot at being made, but it still might not happen in 2021. Al likes to take his time.

Bud seems to have vended some frustration before this fight about getting top class opponents. He needed to complain and push his promoter to make a deal with the PBC two years ago.

MYTHICAL MATCHUP

Doug –

Oscar who fought Quartey against Bud on Saturday? – Kevin Key

Duluth, MN

De La Hoya by close – maybe majority, perhaps controversial – decision.

CRAWFORD & TOP RANK

Hey Dougie,

I won’t get too much into the fight itself. I think it went the way many people predicted albeit quicker than most expected. The most interesting part of the night for me was during the post-fight interview. Bernardo Osuna asks how a fight with Errol Spence can be made and Crawford shoots an incredibly sarcastic look at Arum to turn the question on him. A lot of us don’t know what’s truly going on behind the scenes but Crawford’s demeanor tells me he’s getting fed up with Top Rank not being able to get him credible opponents. Whether or not that’s Arum’s fault or the PBC not being willing to make a deal is another issue. How close are we to seeing Crawford parting ways with Top Rank? Also, is a fight with Pacquiao as close to getting done as Arum suggests? – Evan

Evidently, the Pacquiao-Crawford showdown was close to being a done deal (although Bud was still holding out for more money) in Qatar before the pandemic kiboshed it. Bob Arum is going to try to get it done for the spring of 2021, but if that crossroads event can’t be made (for any reason) my guess is that Crawford’s days with Top Rank are numbered. His contract reportedly expires in October 2021, but if a major matchup (vs. Pacquiao or the Spence-Garcia winner) can’t be promised and delivered by the summer, he’s going to likely push for an early release and the Las Vegas-based promotional company might give it to him. They pay Crawford $3.5-$4 million per fight and that $7-$8 million a year could go to making A LOT of really good matchups that can help build their up-and-coming talent into attractions and stars.

Teofimo is the man at 135 pounds and now considered one of the 10 best boxers, pound for pound, by Ring Magazine.

You know who leads Top Rank’s young talent – Ring lightweight champ Teofimo Lopez. The dynamic 23-year-old boxer-puncher is the future. At one time, Top Rank had plans of matching Ring/WBA/IBF junior welterweight champ Josh Taylor vs. WBC/WBO super lightweight titleholder Jose Ramirez to crown an undisputed 140-pound champ who could then step up to 147 and challenge Crawford. But now they can match Lopez with the undisputed junior welterweight king and promote an event that would just as big (if not bigger) than the Taylor-Ramirez winner vs. Crawford. Shoot, Top Rank would have no problem reeling in Regis Prograis with the money they were paying Crawford. Imagine the round robin the Lopez-Taylor-Ramirez-Prograis combo could create at 140 pounds.

My point is that Top Rank has a lot of world-class-to-elite talent and big-fight options beyond Crawford (Tyson Fury vs. whoever, Taylor-Ramirez, Lopez vs. Taylor-Ramirez winner, Vasiliy Lomachenko vs. Shakur Stevenson or Miguel Berchelt, Stevenson vs. Berchelt, Artur Beterbiev vs. Joe Smith Jr., etc.)

If the only way Crawford can land fights vs. Pacquiao (who’s got one more fight with Al), Spence, Keith Thurman, Shawn Porter and Yordenis Ugas is to sign with the PBC, so be it. He’s gotta do what he’s gotta do to secure his boxing legacy and make the most money he can while still in his prime. More power to him if that’s what he chooses. However, before he crosses the street, he should make sure the grass is really greener on the other side. He should make sure his contract includes specific bouts and paydays guarantees. There’s no point in signing with the PBC if he winds up fighting Adrien Broner, Sergey Lipinets or even Mikey Garcia (even though the Broner and Garcia bouts would likely do well).

Email Fischer at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter and IG at @dougiefischer, and join him, Tom Loeffler, Coach Schwartz and friends via Tom’s Periscope or Dougie’s IG Live every Sunday.

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