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“All Access,” Ep. 4: Floyd Implies Canelo Has Weight Woes

Published

7 years ago

September 12, 2013

In the third episode of Showtime’s “All Access,” Mayweather advisor Leonard Ellerbe taunted Team Canelo, boasting that they handed Floyd a freebie, agreeing to a catchweight of 152 pounds without Mayweather seeking it.

That row continued somewhat in the final ep, episode four, which unfolded on Showtime at 8:30 PM ET Wednesday evening. But first we saw Floyd cashing out some chips, $473,000 and change, which was handed to a lackey, and stuffed in a valise. “The package has been delivered, baby,” says the fighter, happily, when the stacks were handed over.

It is fight week, and we see Floyd doing a shopping jag with some of his crew. He chows some fast food after the spree, hops into a luxury ride, while punters gawk.

Also in Vegas, Canelo trains. Chepo Reynoso, his trainer, says camp was executed perfectly. The fighter says he wants to fight already. Hollywood director Peter Berg checks in, and it is clear he’s rooting for the Mexican to win The One. Berg, you might recall, is good pals with Freddie Roach, NOT a Floyd fan, either.

Canelo’s last bout, against Austin Trout, is examined. The Mexican got it done in Texas, at the Alamodome, and we see his one-two dropping the New Mexico resident, the first time Trout had been dropped. We see Canelo’s defensive prowess in the late innings, and the new 154 pound champ crowned.

Back to the Money Man. They have a bowling night, Mayweather Promotions vs. The Money. I admit, I am not clear who is on which squad. Floyd, in his mellow voice which kicks in fight week, when he conserves energy, presides over the event, directing the bowlers.

Invites for an appreciation party are handed out. Then Floyd waves an article which said Canelo was ready to drop under 154 pounds to get the fight made. “We set you up, his team was a dumb team,” he said. Floyd says he and his team are smart, and pick foes wisely. Floyd says he’s a master at putting future foes on his undercards, making them look better than they all, to build them up, so he can knock them down, and make a pretty penny doing so.

He says Canelo hasn’t eaten in a few days, and is wearing plastic to carve down. Canelo is then seen ranting about the catchweight issue. “If he’s going to dish it out he better take it to,” he says.

Canelo does his seven day weigh in, and he’s supposed to be under 159; he’s 157.4, according to the WBC doc. He says the weight is no issue, but then again, would you expect him to admit it was if it was hampering him? That is something that could come up postfight, if Canelo underperforms, of course.

Next up, we see a common foe, Shane Mosley. Shane recalls that he rocked Floyd in round two when they faced off. “That almost ended things,” he says. Almost…Floyd got back in the flow, and got the W.

Shane says Floyd’s a master, but Canelo is better than Money thinks. The Mexican’s punches felt “pretty strong” and one body shot was “very painful.” He can hit hard but also box in slick fashion. If age is catching up with Floyd, it could be real interesting, because Canelo has been improving, Shane says in closing.

Next up, Floyd’s workout is closed but the select few. Daughter Iyanna says it’s getting near fight time, and dad gets quieter then.

Then, Floyd is asked about the Lucas Matthysse-Danny Garcia scrap. He says Mayweather Promotions wants to give good bang for the buck. We see highlights from each. “I think it’s great for both fighters to be on this big a stage, so they can someday become pay per view stars,” Floyd says.

The appreciation party is viewed. Drinking is done, dancing is done, smiles abound. Floyd Sr gets it done on the floor, and then Floyd takes a twirl.

Next, he chills, with Adrien Broner, and imparts wisdom.

Time for talk is near done, though, and we get closer to the time to put up. Who will be the one to get that L attached to their resume, we wonder? Three days to Fight Night, friends.

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Michael Woods

Articles

2015 Fight of the Year – Francisco Vargas vs Takashi Miura

Published

5 years ago

January 4, 2016

The Sweet Science

The WBC World Super Featherweight title bout between Francisco Vargas and Takashi Miura came on one of the biggest boxing stages of 2015, as the bout served as the HBO pay-per-view’s co-main event on November 21st, in support of Miguel Cotto vs Saul Alvarez.

Miura entered the fight with a (29-2-2) record and he was making the fifth defense of his world title, while Vargas entered the fight with an undefeated mark of (22-0-1) in what was his first world title fight. Both men had a reputation for all-out fighting, with Miura especially earning high praise for his title defense in Mexico where he defeated Sergio Thompson in a fiercely contested battle.

The fight started out hotly contested, and the intensity never let up. Vargas seemed to win the first two rounds, but by the fourth round, Miura seemed to pull ahead, scoring a knock-down and fighting with a lot of confidence. After brawling the first four rounds, Miura appeared to settle into a more technical approach. Rounds 5 and 6 saw the pendulum swing back towards Vargas, as he withstood Miura’s rush to open the fifth round and the sixth round saw both men exchanging hard punches.

The big swinging continued, and though Vargas likely edged Miura in rounds 5 and 6, Vargas’ face was cut in at least two spots and Miura started to assert himself again in rounds 7 and 8. Miura was beginning to grow in confidence while it appeared that Vargas was beginning to slow down, and Miura appeared to hurt Vargas at the end of the 8th round.

Vargas turned the tide again at the start of the ninth round, scoring a knock down with an uppercut and a straight right hand that took Miura’s legs and sent him to the canvas. Purely on instinct, Miura got back up and continued to fight, but Vargas was landing frequently and with force. Referee Tony Weeks stepped in to stop the fight at the halfway point of round 9 as Miura was sustaining a barrage of punches.

Miura still had a minute and a half to survive if he was going to get out of the round, and it was clear that he was not going to stop fighting.

A back and forth battle of wills between two world championship level fighters, Takashi Miura versus “El Bandido” Vargas wins the 2015 Fight of the Year.

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Jan 9 in Germany – Feigenbutz and De Carolis To Settle Score

Published

5 years ago

January 4, 2016

The Sweet Science

This coming Saturday, January 9th, the stage is set at the Baden Arena in Offenburg, Germany for a re-match between Vincent Feigenbutz and Giovanni De Carolis. The highly anticipated re-match is set to air on SAT.1 in Germany, and Feigenbutz will once again be defending his GBU and interim WBA World titles at Super Middleweight.

The first meeting between the two was less than three months ago, on October 17th and that meeting saw Feigenbutz controversially edge De Carolis on the judge’s cards by scores of (115-113, 114-113 and 115-113). De Carolis scored a flash knock down in the opening round, and he appeared to outbox Feigenbutz in the early going, but the 20 year old German champion came on in the later rounds.

The first bout is described as one of the most crowd-pleasing bouts of the year in Germany, and De Carolis and many observers felt that the Italian had done enough to win.

De Carolis told German language website RAN.DE that he was more prepared for the re-match, and that due to the arrogance Feigenbutz displayed in the aftermath of the first fight, he was confident that he had won over some of the audience. Though De Carolis fell short of predicting victory, he promised a re-vamped strategy tailored to what he has learned about Feigenbutz, whom he termed immature and inexperienced.

The stage is set for Feigenbutz vs De Carolis 2, this Saturday January 9th in Offenburg, Germany. If you can get to the live event do it, if not you have SAT.1 in Germany airing the fights, and The Boxing Channel right back here for full results.

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Articles

2015 Knock Out of the Year – Saul Alvarez KO’s James Kirkland

Published

5 years ago

December 29, 2015

The Sweet Science

On May 9th of 2015, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez delivered a resonant knock-out of James Kirkland on HBO that wins the 2015 KO of the Year.

The knock-out itself came in the third round, after slightly more than two minutes of action. The end came when Alvarez delivered a single, big right hand that caught Kirkland on the jaw and left him flat on his back after spinning to the canvas.Alvarez was clearly the big star heading into the fight. The fight was telecast by HBO for free just one week after the controversial and disappointing Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao fight, and Alvarez was under pressure to deliver the type of finish that people were going to talk about. Kirkland was happy to oblige Alvarez, taking it right to Alvarez from the start. Kirkland’s aggression saw him appear to land blows that troubled the young Mexican in the early going. Alvarez played good defense, and he floored Kirkland in the first round, displaying his power and his technique in knocking down an aggressive opponent.

However, Kirkland kept coming at Alvarez and the fight entered the third round with both men working hard and the feeling that the fight would not go the distance. Kirkland continued to move forward, keeping “Canelo” against the ropes and scoring points with a barrage of punches while looking for an opening.

At around the two minute mark, Alvarez landed an uppercut that sent Kirkland to the canvas again. Kirkland got up, but it was clear that he did not have his legs under him. Kirkland was going to try to survive the round, but Alvarez had an opportunity to close out the fight. The question was would he take it?

Alvarez closed in on Kirkland, putting his opponent’s back to the ropes. Kirkland was hurt, but he was still dangerous, pawing with punches and loading up for one big shot.

But it was the big shot “Canelo” threw that ended the night. Kirkland never saw it coming, as he was loading up with a huge right hand of his own. The right Alvarez threw cracked Kirkland in the jaw, and his eyes went blank. His big right hand whizzed harmlessly over the head of a ducking Alvarez, providing the momentum for the spin that left Kirkland prone on the canvas.

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez went on to defeat Miguel Cotto in his second fight of 2015 and he is clearly one of boxing’s biggest stars heading into 2016. On May 9th Alvarez added another reel to his highlight film when he knocked out James Kirkland with the 2015 “Knock Out of the Year”.

Photo by naoki fukuda

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