Boxing Blog – TSS Tidbits

In Boxing News: Ricky Hatton’s next opponent

Ricky Hatton will have at least one fight before he takes on Floyd Mayweather. Hatton’s father and manager Ray revealed they will choose another opponent from a list including Arturo Gatti, welterweight champ Zab Judah and lightweights Jose Luis Castillo, Diego Corrales and Acelino Freitas: We will make an announcement by mid- January. It’s intriguing which way we should go. We want a May date. Gatti is reportedly the favorite to face Hatton next, provided Gatti gets past Thomas Damgaard on January 28th.

JE Grant offers his January, 2006 Top 25 Heavyweights list today. I always enjoy looking at Grant’s list, but the impoverished nature of the upper echelons of the heavyweight division is alarming. Wladimir Klitschko at number 3? Wladimir Klitschko has some tools, but a win over Sam Peter (in which he spent a lot of time clutching and grabbing) after some shaky recent performances (Sanders, Brewster and even Williamson) and he’s the number 3 heavyweight in the world? Actually, he might be. Other than James Toney, I couldn’t necessarily put anybody else above him. And how about Shannon Briggs at number 17? Maybe Shannon Briggs is the number 17 heavyweight in the world. But that says it all about the current state of the heavyweight division. When was the last time Briggs defeated a credible opponent? (Please don’t say Ray Mercer.)

Nikolai Valuev will make the first defence of his WBA heavyweight belt during April in Germany. Don King wanted Valuev to fight in the United States, but Valuev wants to remain in Germany for the time being.

(More Boxing News Links at TheSweetScience.com)

In Boxing News: Corrales, Castillo, Calzaghe

Our own Rick Folstad has an ex-fighter’s take on Corrales vs. Castillo III: three fights in the time it takes for an NBA season seems a little – I don’t know – too soon? It’ sure to upset some boxing fans, but Folstad has a point. And surely Corrales will box a little more this time instead of going toe to toe, which is Jose Luis Castillo’s fight. Then again, Diego Corrales has a warrior’s mentality, so nothing should surprise.

Scheduled to face Jeff Lacy in March it’s now or never for Joe Calzaghe. Calzaghe feels confident as he looks towards the Lacy showdown: I’ve the fight I have craved for ages and then every fight afterwards will be a massive occasion. 2006 will be my second coming. It seems like forever that the Welshman has been making the headlines in the UK, but never making his mark in the US. Writer Phil Woolever expects the power-punching Lacy to have his way with Calzaghe. I’m not so sure. Lacy has undoubtedly been impressive in powering through opponents, but he hasn’t yet met a fighter of Calzaghe’s (alleged) caliber. Despite Robin Reid and Scott Pemberton being bigger names, I’d suggest Syd Vanderpool might be the best fighter Lacy has defeated – and Vanderpool proved that Lacy can be hit, before – it should be said – wilting under the pressure of Lacy’s heavy hands. Regardless, full marks to Jeff Lacy for his willingness to go across the Atlantic to face Calzaghe. This game needs more Jeff Lacys. And the bout is undoubtedly one to look forward to.

Ahead of the cruiserweight showdown this weekend, O’Neil Bell has likened Jean-Marc Mormeck to a bull: He’s the bull, I’m the matador. We’ve been working on stepping side to side. And if it comes down to it where we have got to go toe to toe, I’m able to do that because of my past history. But right now we’re working to box, to be a boxer-puncher.

Interesting column in the San Diego Union Tribune on the perennial question of when weigh-ins should take place. The California State Athletic Commissioner is instituting a study meant to determine whether weigh-ins should be conducted on the day before a fight or on the day of the fight. Beginning yesterday, the commission’s intention is to chart what boxers weigh when they weigh in, what they weigh on the night of their appearances, and what they weigh after their bouts. It’s a tough one. At the elite level athletes will always search for every edge possible, and in this case it can sometimes mean endangering either their own health or that of their opponent.

Despite Manny Pacquiao being the betting favorite, Ring magazine tips Erik Morales to defeat Pacquiao again when they meet on Jan. 21st.

Finally, the Cleveland Plain Dealer runs down the top fights of 2005. Looking ahead to the year in boxing to come, Scott Mallon says The Glass Is Half Full For 2006 and asks: Where would boxing be without the WBC, WBA, IBF, WBO and every other alphabet organization? That really is an interesting question. Without the alphabet soup, what would fill the void? Surely something better, but what exactly would that be?

(More Boxing News Links at TheSweetScience.com)

Boxing News On The First Day Of The Year

First things first as it’s the first day of the year – Happy New Year to all the readers of TheSweetScience.com, and to all those who contribute to this website – writers, editors, and to those who contribute behind the scenes to make TheSweetScience.com possible. Hopefully the success of this site will continue to grow, as it did steadily throughout 2005. I think it will.

Today, the always-worth-reading Mark Staniforth of the Press Association in the UK wraps up the year that was in boxing and looks forward to 2006. The number one goal for the sport, says Staniforth, remains the discovery of the next great world heavyweight champion. Can’t say I disagree. And, unfortunately, can’t say I disagree with Staniforth on the prospect of that happening. But things can change quickly, so let’s see what 2006 brings.

Jeff Haney of the Las Vegas Sun writes the new year’s first big boxing event takes place Jan. 21, when Erik Morales and Manny Pacquiao square off in a rematch of their sensational fight last March. But there will be a man mysteriously missing from the main event at the Thomas & Mack Center that night: unheralded Zahir Raheem, whose upset victory against Morales in September has erased much of the luster from the promotion. To state the obvious, it’s the law of supply and demand in effect. That’s why Raheem is not in the main event on the 21st. And I can’t agree that Morales’ loss seems to have taken a lot of the shine off this promotion, If anything, Morales’ loss to Raheem – for me – may even add some intrigue to the Pacquiao rematch. Was the performance against Pacquiao the last great stand for Morales, or was the Raheem loss just a case of a bad stylistic matchup for Morales against a fighter who didn’t motivate him to prepare like he had for the Pacman? It is almost certainly the latter, but I can’t wait until January 21 to find out. Apparently those who voted on the online HBO poll don’t necessarily agree with me about Morales. Regardless, both Morales and Pacquiao are reported to be be putting in the work ahead of the Jan. 21st rematch. And win or lose in a rematch against Erik Morales, Manny Pacquiao is looking toward a rematch with Marco Antonio Barrera.

The Guardian has an interview with promoter Barry Hearn – The Big Interview: Barry Hearn . Admittedly, Hearn spends most of the interview talking about darts and snooker, but The Big Interview is always worth checking out: it has to be one of my favorite sports features, bar none.

Oscar De La Hoya and his wife, Millie, have a new baby boy. What a great way to ring in the New Year. Congratulations to the Golden Boy.

(More Boxing News Links at TheSweetScience.com)