Articles

Will Algieri Throw a Gem…or Get Shelled?

Published

10 years ago

November 17, 2014

Matchmaker Ron Katz told me before his kid Chris Algieri was to fight Ruslan Provodnikov that the Long Islander had a real good chance. Now, you might expect him to say that, being that this in-the-game for four decades fightmaker is employed by Algieri promoter Joe DeGuardia. But…we have to note how that played out this past June, how Katz was spot on in his assessment, of Algieri’s skills and heart.

That in mind, I reached out to the NY fight game perennial to get his take on the Saturday clash between the hearttrob and the Congressman, which will unfold in Macau, and on HBO PPV.

First off, Katz didn’t make the trek to Macau, as he has a heart flutter and episodes of irregular beats mean the trip would be a bit of a roll of the dice. He will be here in the States, fingers crossed tighter than will be healthy for his digits.

So, Mr. Katz, what about it…will Algieri pull off another most significant upset, this time against a boxer a step and maybe two up from Provodnikov?

“My heart says yes, my head hasn’t caught up with my heart yet,” he said, chuckling.

I asked if he had a historical comparison, in styles of the fighters, or points in their career, that came to mind, and he ruminated on it. “Not style wise, but this is almost like Mancini-Arguello, though I’m hoping for a different outcome,” he told me. “I’m hoping Algieri is like Arguello!” (Arguello battled Boom Boom in October of 1981, and the Nicaraguan idol scored a TKO14 victory.)

Katz said he won’t know by the second or third round how things are going to play out, based on Manny’s hand speed, or Chris’ ability to land the jab, or anything along those lines. “Based on last fight, no. Because who’d have thought Chris would have recovered and fought the way he did after two rounds. If Chris can get Manny off rhythm he has been fighting with lately, it could be very interesting. Manny is very adept at using his feints to put you out of position and in a defensive posture that he can capitalize on. If Chris can react as Juan Manuel Marquez did in the last Pacquiao fight, and become offensive rather than defensive, that is one way to upset his rhythm. He also needs to get Manny to open up. Manny has been far more technical lately and if Chris can get him to become undisciplined it will serve him well. Not easy to do, but doable,” Katz said. “All in all, I think Chris is one of those kids who comes along out of nowhere every once in awhile. He proved what he is made of and what his abilities are. Yes, he’s fighting one of the top fighters in the world, but at the end of the day, I think destiny is on his side, and he will shock the world by defeating Manny Pacquiao! Yes, my head has now caught up with my heart!”

Seems to me both his eyes are wide open, and he’s seeing the fight with the breadth of his experience, even though his heart is speaking loudly, even though he allows himself to ponder the romantic nature of another upset win, not to mention what it would mean to his company if Algieri downed the Congressman. “It’s like a kid coming up from the minor leagues and facing the world champs in Major League Baseball,” he continued. “Either he takes them by surprise and throws a gem or he is completetely overmatched and gets shelled. But destiny is on his side!”

Love it. Eyes wide open, purely candid, with a hint of romantic yearning. Readers, your thoughts on Katz’ take?

Follow Woods on The Twitter, and be prepared to put up with the odd political digression and sub-Tweeting foolishness. https://twitter.com/Woodsy1069

Post Views: 0

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Michael Woods

Articles

2015 Fight of the Year – Francisco Vargas vs Takashi Miura

Published

9 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.

Post Views: 0

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Articles

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

Published

9 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.

Post Views: 0

Share The Sweet Science experience!

Articles

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

Published

9 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

Post Views: 0

Share The Sweet Science experience!