:boxing: Boxing Bits ::05.31.15:: The Three Weeks After…/The Month in Review

[Intended Date: May 31, 2015. Original Post Date: June 2, 2015.]

Can you feel it?

That change in the air? The growing chatter? The warm glow enveloping the sport? The sun rising over the horizon?

YES, THE BOXING WORLD HAS BEEN SAVED!!! EVERYTHING HAS CHANGED!!!! EVERYTH—

Wait, hold on…no…nope, everything is still the same after Mayweather-Pacquiao as it was before. No incredible increase in coverage or awareness. No water-cooler discussions of the upcoming weekend's bouts. No talks of legend of that night. No change in the sport's reputation or perception, for better or worse—same for the aforementioned participants…

No, nothing did change. It was only appropriate, and wholly expected, that a majority of the audience were "let down" by the fight, either by lacking knowledge of the true specifics of the match-up or by blind adoption of the superfluous hype. And perhaps equally expected, so was the overblown perception of the match quality…

—Because…it was actually a pretty decent-to-good fight. That might not have been the range one might have hoped for with all of the hype and/or after parting with $99.99 (and the joke's on you, even at $89.99 for SD…), but that was kind of fight you were likely going to get.

—Simply put: Pacquiao's approach to fighting Mayweather lost him the match. He threw far more to "hit" Mayweather than "land", in the process trashing his typical pinpoint combo work with intense-looking, but ineffective punch throwing. Between this, his constant pressuring/following-around-and-standing-in front-of Mayweather without pulling the trigger, and his near non-existent lateral movement, it was clear that Pacquaiao was overthinking how to take him on. As a result, all Mayweather had to do was toss out a few jabs and straights, move around a bit, and that was that.

—Mayweather did not look like or do anything special…and he really did not have to. Pacquiao made his night real easy for him…

—Not serving the Filipino any favors was his atypically-loose conditioning. Normally, his body looks very lean and chiseled, but much of that was M.I.A., which certainly showed itself past the eighth with the steadying drop in power and energy…

—Overall, while fight itself was not bad, it never moved beyond second gear, either. Nothing was proven or resolved with Pacquaio employing a flawed game plan and Mayweather not having to do much, in return. It felt like just another fight and nothing beyond that. It was, basically, what it was.

And yet, there was also no dearth of great, big fights in its wake, given that the "Savior of Boxing" was also supposed to be its swan song and everything was to burn in a fiery blaze into a void of bottomless nothingness…

—Like Canelo-Kirkland, which—surprise, surprise—was a better, more thrilling event than The End of the (Boxing) World. It was a short, very brutal war that wasn't quite FOTY, but not every good bout needs to be held up as such before the first bell or after the last.

—Kirkland is as tough as a WWII tank, but against someone with vastly more skill and like-brawling attributes, he was about as able to hang in there as one would in today's world: not for long. Someone was going down hard and going down bad, and he did so via sick KO3…

—However, even after an absence of length, it is hard to be too impressed with Canelo's victory. With the gulf in skill between them, Kirkland looking battle worn beyond his years, and having no Ann Wolfe in his corner, there was no excuse for Canelo to lose that match-up, much less have it go past Rd. 3. If anything, it should have ended much sooner than that (perhaps thanks to Kirkland's thickness and heart, and some of Canelo's ring rust).

—Naturally, many got swept up in the spectacle to glob even more praise onto Canelo and salivate over him giving it to Golovkin. Just as a gap existed between Canelo and Kirkland, there exists a sizable one between the former and Golovkin. It is not as stark, but the fight would may only appear as a more refined and extended version of Canelo-Kirkland, with Golovkin picking apart and outclassing the Mexican superstar. Certainly not a doe-eyed follower of the similarly-vaunted Golovkin, but Canelo still has a ways to mature as a fighter. Facing him at this point of his career would be a massive mistake and could do serious damage to his brand, long-term. It would make the Mayweather fight look like a swell idea…

—Speaking of Golovkin, he may have put on his brightest spin doctor coat and act as if he had everything under control, but Willie Monroe, Jr. poked more holes in his facade than he would like to/can afford to admit. The latter's lack of experience and power were the deciding factors, as his speed, innate prowess, and willingness (sometimes to a fault) to lock horns with Golovkin helped keep him in the game far longer than anyone believed he would. Monroe would eventually succumb to his power and voluntarily retired in the 6th after incurring a third big knockdown, but he showed that the Kazakh, yes, has chinks in his armor…

—Just as smart aggression and no show of respect could best Mayweather, a master fighter—or, at least, an able one with some pop that shows no deference to his specter—could tame Golovkin. He has yet to face such a fighter and he has been tagged by and shown more vulnerability towards those who have more solid boxing skills. Monroe was a greenhorn, but employing some genuine skill helped make him as live a dog as he could be…

—One thing that tends to be lacking in the boxing community today—even among veteran observers—is the thought that no boxer is unbeatable. That may seem obvious, but the way so many get wrapped in the allure of a boxer with a good deal of fighting and popular upside makes it seem less so. No matter how good one is, there is always an aspect in their game, a deficiency yet corrected, and/or a physical/mental attribute that is there that can be exploited, to say nothing of flat-out bad match-ups (i.e. weight or size discrepancies, clash of styles).

—Joe Frazier was able to outbox Muhammad "GOAT" Ali. Pacquaio is prone sharp counterpunching, hence his eternal foil in Juan Manuel Marquez. Bernard Hopkins is weak against fast-handed fighters. Mayweather's record may read "perfect", but Jose Luis Castillo (and later, IMO, Marcos Maidana) says otherwise (falling in line with the earlier points). Lennox Lewis and Wladamir Klitschko are two of the most dominate heavyweights in the last 20 years, but others have dominated their chins with one single punch.

—No perfect pugilist exists. There is always something—no matter who, no matter how impregnable—to exploit. It may be something simple or it may take the right opponent (and not solely a big-named one…), but everyone's beatable. Let us not confuse affability or blinding talent with infallibility…

—Now, speaking of a future idol, how about that Roman Gonzalez? Young, but has impressive patience for someone who could just swarm his way to victory. That kind of mindset won't lead to a long title reign, if any, but to already show restraint and knowing when and how to break an opponent down, can, and was the most laudable thing about his network debut. He still needs to continue to hone his skills (meaning he's not quite ready for the upper-echelon, yet) and he fought a very ready, but very past-his-prime Edgar Sosa, but if he keeps it up, he could be a big star in the next few years.

—James DeGale surprised many by not only beating Andre Dirrell, but knocking him down twice in the second round. That said, he made much of his afternoon tougher than it had to be by overthinking his situation and creating much empty space by sitting on a "big punch" trigger, rather than simply setting up his punches again so he could end things quicker. It allowed Dirrell to come back into the match in the second half, but the points damage was done early and DeGale was competitive enough to claim the win. The dynamics sound awfully familiar…

—DeGale clearly has both the goods and the great need to bring those goods together better and fight more assuredly…

—Not the best year for the Dirrell brothers, huh?

—What happens when Chris Algeri happens to get a hold of the same cheat code Sergey Kovalev used when he beat Bernard Hopkins like a grizzled veteran beyond his years (a.k.a. his trainer, John David Jackson)?  You get someone that more than gave resident-heir-apparent Amir Khan all he could handle…

—This was not the scrappy, teetering-on-the-edge Algieri against Provodnikov, or the one woefully outclassed and embarrassed by Pacquaio, but someone who was finally marrying his tenacity, long dimensions, and hand speed and looking like a world-beater in the process. He wasn't able to utilize his offense as effectively as the champion—which was the only real edge Khan had in the fight—but he made what was thought to be a "sacrificial lamb" role into one that just bought a few more extra paydays. Had Algieri lost, he would have likely become a "name" guy that is useful for propping up an undercard or used as stepping stone for an upstart, but lacking any real creditability for a spot on the title scene. Despite a loss, the match did more favors for him than his Prodvodnikov victory…

—In a slight contrast, Khan may have looked good in fending off a surprise challenge from the future nutritionist, but did it make him look good enough for a Mayweather deal, or was he made to look too weak having his hands full? Hard to fault the tough bout given expectations and Algieri being both similar in size and comparable (albeit lesser) in hand speed (less excusable: his dearth of footwork…). Khan has all of the physical tools to make sport of Mayweather, but I am unsure if he has the right style or game at this moment to pull it all off…


So, as you can see, boxing is still very much alive, just like the world was after 1999 came to a close. And like Jan. 1, 2000, onwards, everything remains very much the same.

"No kidding…"