Martin Wade's Loaded Gloves
for the Week ending March 20th,
2011...
This week your boy stepped up his TV
game, and lets just say I'm living "large" and in HD. Now I'm one of those
old grouchy guys who can't stand to watch March Madness because College
hoops is so diluted. You know that guy, "back in my day you had grown ass
men on both teams! Patrick Ewing was blocking everything, in daisy dukes!"
But more inches can make even that "dog" of a product look good to me. So
I can't tell you how much I anticipated Lucian Bute's debut on Showtime. I
also looked forward to seeing the replay of Cotto vs. Mayorga and hearing
some commentary that didn't sound like what I call "Roy talking about
God... and Roy." I'll also throw in a new feature this week for those of you
who feel this column is too often negative. So Happy Belated St. Patrick's
Day to you all; and don't forget the contributions to boxing from Irish
greats like Billy Conn and Muhammad Ali... go ahead look it up. So lets get
this thing on and poppin, and be sure not to ask me if I look down when my
hands are being wrapped I'm listening to my headphones and
"concentrating."
Lucian Bute
and the Proverbial "Breadbasket"
What I'm about to say is
fundamental, and it sounds good in theory but you never see it.
Sometimes the fundamentals aren't sexy, which is why Lebron James can't
seem to find the post and the most talented fighters usually forego the
basics. Lucian Bute is possibly the best 168 lb. fighter in the world,
and if anyone from the Super Six beats him he'll need a quarterback
flask. Its not that I was looking for more than an exhibition against a
game foe in Brian Magee, I just didn't expect the greatest body punching
exhibition in modern history. When Roy Jones made Virgil Hill scream
like Prince back in 1998 it was a "eureka" moment for an audience
bewitched by flashy combinations. You got a peak into the notion that
body punching isn't just for shorter less talented pressure fighters.
When Bernard Hopkins hit De la Hoya on that "special place" we were so
stunned half of us have no problem calling Oscar a quitter. We've yet to
see a fighter with all of the physical advantages use his athleticism to
repeatedly go downstairs. With Mikkel Kessler sitting ringside
the Canadian Golden Boy stayed close enough to get hit (when he didn't
have to) and ravaged Magee's body dropping him 3 times with uppercuts.
After one knockdown in round 7 Bute flashed a smile that said "this
thing is so easy when I do that." By the time Bute stopped his foe in
round 10 the announcers were so visually indoctrinated they assumed it
was another body shot. It was a great showing for an elite fighter
crashing one of the best parties in boxing. The irony is just a few
pounds north in his own backyard a legend that would look much better on
his resume will be visiting in May. The Super Six for all of its good
qualities is a slow moving train and Bute is having trouble making 168
lbs. Hopefully Bute can jump over to HBO for a light heavyweight fight
next year. He can't lose in the division "story line" here; he can
either face Hopkins to redeem Canada or Pascal for the hearts and minds
of their homeland. Wouldn't you like to see how Hopkins copes with an
athletic guy testing that 46 yr. old midsection?
Sergio Calls
'Em
All Out, So What's the Problem?
Whenever a pound for pound
fighter puts on a show one of the things I
like to do is scour the message boards. It's
an easy way to gauge the temperature of
public sentiment, and yes bark down a crazed
basement dweller every now and then. What I
heard in response to Sergio Martinez called
out Cotto, Pacquiao and Mayweather was "pick
on someone your own size or bigger." Quick
history lesson here, it's been done before
and based on the "image" of the fighter you
condoned it. Sergio Martinez is an epiphany,
a great athlete who came to the sport late
with a great smile and kind demeanor. You
don't picture him as "aggrieved" even though
he is from an impoverished background like
many fighters. You also have this out of
whack protectionism for Manny and Floyd, two
freakishly strong guys for their size.
Marvin Hagler spent the 80's yearning for a
shot at three men, one of them coming from
as far down as lightweight. Why? Because
he'd cleaned out the division and that
is where the money was, one fight with
Leonard could set your kids up for life and
he knew it.
Bernard
Hopkins, two inches taller and having
started his career at Light Heavyweight used
to call Shane Mosley a "midget" in trying to
goad him into a fight. He finally got hold
of Trinidad at age 36, the age Sergio
Martinez is right now. De La Hoya was NOT
the fighter Pacquiao and Mayweather are now
and many of you gave him an outside shot at
out boxing Hopkins. How is it OK to watch
Manny and Floyd beat bigger men that wont
fight and collect junior middleweight belts
and not OK for a REAL threat to face them?
Martinez weighed less than the welterweight
limit in his pro debut so why is he even in
the same category as Hagler and Hopkins?
Miguel Cotto will get a huge check for a guy
Sergio mercifully wont even mention, so how
is his "revenge" of Margarito more valid?
Because both guys are shot? Isn't it much
more marketable to sell real challenges as
opposed to revenge bouts between fighters no
longer capable of exacting true justice?
Nonito Donaire
Signs with GBP
and Divisions in Boxing
Years ago we worried about big fights being
made between HBO and Showtime fighters. That
concern is now obscured by the Cold War that
is Golden Boy vs. Top Rank. A Boxing fan
would need a guide to try and figure out what
fights can be made based on the two rosters.
Unlike the NFL there will be no divisional
interplay because Boxing is a
self-destroying animal. You see, part of
"owning" a division is so that you can be
autonomous in your activities and not have
to see the enemy make a buck. As I said
before, neither one of these bastards is
truly deserving of a monopoly because it
requires big picture responsibility to the
sport as a whole. Bob Arum went on the
Boxing Truth pod cast last week and pretty
much made it clear that a future truce
between the two companies is impossibility.
The Manny Pacquiao defamation lawsuit is
still in the courts and now he's promising a
showdown in regards to Donaire's contract.
When there is animus and hatred many suffer,
not just you and I but limited guys like
Alvarez and Chavez, who could get rich
against one another despite their
mediocrity. From a divisional standpoint I
don't get it, all Oscar has to offer is
Abner Mares and no real premier match-ups on
the way up the scale. There's also scuttle
bug out there that "wifey" Donaire was
starting to hate on the Pacquiao treatment
and what (she felt) it meant to her husband.
Donaire, a Filipino, was
denied packaging on recent Pacquiao PPV's
because he wouldn't sign with Manny Pacquiao
Promotions. It's like the music business,
any boxer with a name starts a phantom
company (with no offices) designed to screw
the younger fighters coming up. The pledges
that get their asses beat usually deal out
the worst whipping to the freshmen of the
next class. When you look at the roster at
Top Rank you wonder if we'd even be at this
impasse if Arum afforded Donaire a little
star treatment. The actual fights at Super
Bantamweight (Rigondeaux, Molitor) and
Featherweight/Beyond (Gamboa, Lopez) are all
at Top Rank. I don't see an end in sight for
these two, until we can understand WE keep
them solvent and can break them they will
continue to profit from a model that often
denies service (competitive battles) to
their primary market. These are the two
firms that will be credited for not making
the biggest fight of this generation, and
guess what boxing fans... They don't care.
And speaking of denying
Services...
Curtis
"50 Cent" Jackson on Boxing
You'd
think desensitizing and dumbing down a whole
generation of black males would be a full
time job; think again. Fiddy just kinda went
ghetto Bert Sugar with his take on Manny
Pacquiao and his lil homey Floyd via
Twitter. He called Pacquiao a steroid user
who takes American Dollars back to the
Philippines. He also urged those who think
the "three-loss" Pacquiao can beat his friend to
stop following him. Is Mr. Jackson aware
that his words aren't helping his friend in
regards to the defamation suit against him
and the longer public statements like this
continue the less likely it is the fight
will happen? Is he also aware that Floyd
Mayweather created this scenario with his
extended semi-retirement? Where he no doubt
did some good things with his money (in
charity) but threw a lot of it in the air...
remember Curtis? You were there. He accused
Pacquiao of fighting Floyd's "leftovers"
sounding like a scorned boyfriend from the
past. They're called common opponents in
boxing and as stupid as it is Manny is
trying to eviscerate guys Floyd couldn't
finish. I don't agree with it, and it isn't
getting Floyd any closer to the negotiating
table but it is what it is. Floyd, a self-
described business man is a piss poor
manager of his surroundings because he has
too many loose cannons in his
"organization." From family members who
randomly curse their way through interviews
while stockpiling libel/defamation evidence
to rappers on social media. My only advice
to Floyd is to seek PR help and don't ever,
ever, ever run for office. To show you how
insignificant 50 Cent is to changing
anybody's mind (on boxing) with his
"analysis" the tweets I just informed you
about are from March 12th.
"Corner of Grace"
the
Klitschkos, James Toney
In his "parting shot" from
this weekend's "Sports Reporters" Jeremy Schapp lamented the American demise of the
Heavyweight division and called for the
brothers to fight one another. Jeremy Schapp
is a sports journalism heavyweight and
someone I view to be (unlike myself) a
responsible voice in the medium. The
Heavyweights are traditionally thin and
generations like the 1970's are actually
anomaly. If a Larry Holmes and Mike Tyson
beat everyone put in front of them, we can't
ask for more because everyone isn't that
good. We already don't give a damn about
where these guys end up at 50 and those are
just the physical setbacks. Imagine the
emotional and mental scars of beating the
hell out of your own brother to please a
sick sensationalism addicted country-that
isn't even yours! Since their reign began
they've held to their brotherly bond despite
our ignorant questions and they've done so
with grace. I give them much credit for
doing so, because I'm not 100% sure two
Americans wouldn't fight their own brother.
Remember the best fighter we've produced
over here had a father who contemplated
training a fighter to beat him. The
fighter had to excuse the trainer
from the corner to remove the spector of it
all.
James Toney is a tough Hall
of Fame fighter and I would imagine
stubbornness contributed to a lot of his
greatness. At Heavyweight Toney has been a
cantankerous heel on the subject of his
weight. The more we question and point it
out to him the more profane and rebellious
he got. I used to think that one day soon
"Lights Out" was going to beat up a reporter
for following up on questions about weight
-and I was determined that it wasn't going
to be me. Finally, like most of us but a lot
later, James decided to cross this hurdle
and humble himself enough to address this
issue with a physician. What was discovered
was a low T count and Thyroid condition that
caused his weight to balloon. Now on
medication since his last fight vs. Damon
Reed on February 24th James is weighing less
than the 257 lbs. he weighed on fight night.
For boxing purposes it may be too little too
late because the clock is ticking for the 41
year old; but for quality of life he just
bought himself some good years. You see,
James Toney doesn't owe us an explanation
for his weight but his children who love him
deserve answers. At my age when I'm at the
gym I'm not there just to look cute, I have
grandchildren I want to see grow up and to
me that is the only fight worth winning.
Kudos for James for looking out for himself,
and most of all looking out for his Family.
Short
flurries that Make the Judges Think I Won
the Round
Canada sure knows how to put on a fight but
I have one tiny little suggestion for the
promoters. No fully clothed dancing girls on
the damned pole! its un-American and it
looks out of place. Repeat after me, Pole...
Naked. Got that? Congrats to Jon Jones for
becoming the youngest MMA champion ever. No fully
clothed dancing girls on the damned pole!
it's un-American and it looks out of place.
Repeat after me, Pole... Naked. Got that?
Congrats to Jon Jones for becoming the
youngest MMA champion ever. He won the
welterweight title beating Shogun Rua. It
couldn't have happened to a better young
man. Nazim Richardson
believes he has the strategy to goad Manny
Pacquiao into a fight... and? Mayorga is
back with a three-fight deal with DK, so
look out ya'll, somebody's manhood is soon
to get questioned. What the hell is the
World Boxing Board and how shady is it that
they "belted" Cotto being based in San Juan.
Their mission statement is to restore
confidence in fans and media and the first
thing they do is make Cotto a champ for
stopping a crash test dummy... I feel more
confident already. Floyd Mayweather Sr. is
writing a book and will go on a twenty-one
city tour to tell the truth about his
relationship with his son. Man there ain't
21 people (let alone cities) that care about
what happened with him and Floyd Jr. People
don't buy books by Joe Jackson, they buy
them by (or about) Michael. In this case
there's no Joe or Michael because Floyd
isn't that kind of star, it won't outsell
the worst Ali book. Sometimes we get caught
up in the moment to the point we think the
last thing we saw is the best thing we ever
saw. Before you compare Sergio Martinez's
speed and athleticism to Roy Jones go to youtube and
type "Roy Jones Middleweight." Roy was the
greatest athlete to ever put on a pair of
gloves and it isn't even close.
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