This Time, Barker Had The Winning View From the Canvas

Published

11 years ago

August 18, 2013

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – Yogi Berra, the legendary New York Yankees catcher and master of the malaprop, once observed that you can see a lot by looking.

Newly crowned IBF middleweight champion Darren Barker is from across the big water in London, so he can be excused for not knowing much about the wit and witticisms of an 88-year-old, long-retired American baseball player. But he does know that you can see so much more when you’re on your hands and knees in the boxing ring than you can when you’re flat on your back.

Barker had given WBC middleweight champ Sergio Martinez periodic trouble in their Oct. 1, 2011, title bout in Atlantic City’s Boardwalk Hall, but then the magnificent Argentine southpaw felled him with a thudding right hook to the head in the 11^th round. The challenger then spent the next 10 seconds looking up at the lights with unfocused eyes before referee Eddie Cotton waved his arms and gave him the rest of the night off, not to mention 22½ months’ worth of recriminations.

To steal another notable line from the great Yogi, it must have seemed like déjà vu all over again on Saturday night here at the Revel Casino-Hotel, when IBF middleweight king Daniel Geale sent him crashing to the canvas with the single most devastating punch of the night, a perfectly placed left hook to the liver that had the effect of sucking all the air out of Barker’s lungs, as if it had been vacuumed.

This time, however, Barker went down on all fours, which afforded him a better, more inspirational view than he had had under similar circumstances against Martinez. As he struggled to catch his breath, gasping in agony, he peered through the ropes and saw the concerned faces of his mother, wife and sister. And although they weren’t physically in attendance, he also imagined seeing his baby daughter, Scarlett-Rose, and his late brother, Gary, also a boxer, who died in a tragic car crash nearly seven years ago.

As Cotton — who again was the referee for Barker’s second shot at fulfilling his pugilistic dream – raised and dropped his right arm nine times, something in the two-time former European middleweight champ’s brain and heart directed him to jump up, to beat the count, to give himself another chance to do what he had been unable to do in his only previous trip to this seashore resort town. Barker might have been a mere milli-second from again tumbling into the abyss, but he willed himself to not only survive, but take the fight to Geale, an Australian, in the closing moments of that crossroads round.

Six rounds later, Barker (26-1, 16 KOs; pictured, hands aloft, with promoter Hearn to his right) was awarded a close but correct split decision that caused his small, exuberant group of fans from the United Kingdom to go daffy and his British promoter, Eddie Hearn, to excitedly climb through the ropes and jump up and down as if he were on a pogo stick.

“I wasn’t sure when Darren went down if he would get up,” Hearn said. “I saw him bite down on his gum shield. But I knew how much (his getting up and going on to win) meant to him … how much it meant to all of us. Darren was just not to be denied tonight.

“The way he fought back after that knockdown was some of the bravest stuff I’ve ever seen in the ring. It just showed the determination of the man.”

Barker, who went off as a slight 7-4 underdog, was somewhat the busier fighter, as evidenced by punch statistics provided by CompuBox. He landed 292 of 862 blows (34 percent) to 259 of 693 (37 percent) for Geale (29-2, 15 KOs), who was fighting for the first time in the United States. The disparity was a bit wider in power punches, with Barker – who concentrated his attack to the body – connecting on 244 of 582 (42 percent) to 211 of 503 (also 42 percent) for Geale.

Those, however, were not the numbers that were most important. Judge Alan Rubenstein turned in a scorecard favoring Geale, 114-113, but that was countermanded by those submitted by Barbara Perez and Carlos Ortiz, who went with Barker by the respective margins of 116-111 and 114-113. Thesweetscience.com card also had Barker ahead, 115-112.

If there was any controversy – hey, this is boxing, so there had to be at least some, right? – it was that Rubenstein and Ortiz each gave the 12^th and final round to Barker, despite the fact that he had eaten several solid shots and appeared to be hurt when the final bell rang.

Barker, by all accounts a truly nice guy, admitted at the postfight press conference that someone or something saved him at his moment of seemingly imminent demise. Maybe it was the sight of his distraught family, hoping and praying that he’d clamber to his feet in time. Maybe it was the fact he had mentally vowed to win in honor of his late brother. Or maybe it was some higher power that had predetermined that, on this night, he would not – could not – fail.

“When I was down on the ground, it was all going through my head – my wife, my family, my daughter,” Barker said. “It made me get up … Someone picked me up. I’m glad they did.”

It was a good night for boxing in general as the HBO Boxing After Dark telecast also featured another title changing hands in Atlantic City, with Spain’s Kiko Martinez (29-4, 21 KOs) dramatically stopping Jhonatan Romero (23-1, 12 KOs), the IBF super bantamweight champ from Colombia, with a barrage of punches along the ropes in the sixth round. Martinez fired away 525 times, a work rate which, if maintained, would have totaled 1,000-plus punches had the bout gone the distance. Romero tried to maintain a more comfortable distance between himself and the short (5-foot-5) Spaniard, but Martinez frequently was able to crowd him into tight spots from which he could not easily escape.

“It was a great show,” said a semi-glum lead promoter, Gary Shaw, whose fighters – Geale and Romero – relinquished their belts. “This is the kind of show boxing needs to keep it at the forefront.”

That great show, however, did seem a bit misplaced geographically. Atlantic City is a fight site that usually yields its bigger crowds when there are one or more fighters from the area, or those who at least have established a local following (think Arturo Gatti). The four boxers at the top of the card hailed from Sydney, Australia (9,960 miles away), London (3,588), Cali, Colombia (2,705) and Aliante, Spain (3,928). Together they had totaled one previous appearance in A.C., that being Barker’s matchup with Sergio Martinez.

“Obviously, Gary Shaw lives in New Jersey and he has a relationship with HBO,” reasoned Hearn. “But it was a strange setup. Still, the people liked what they saw. The spectators were winners as well as Darren.”

The Revel, which has been open for business (and business in a flagging economy hasn’t been good), was making its debut as a host to a boxing event and wanted to put its best foot forward if more fight cards are to be staged in its 3,800-seat Ovation Hall. But the arena was less than half-full and some of those in attendance no doubt were comped. But kudos must go to the 50 or so Brit diehards who waved Union Jacks, sang (mostly off-key) “Walking in a Barker Wonderland,” to the tune of “Walking in a Winter Wonderland,” and periodically erupted into chants of “Come on, Darren! Come on, Darren!”

Despite his new title, Barker evidently has a way to go to rise to the national-hero level of, say, Manchester native Ricky Hatton, whose megafight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand lured 3,900 fortunate ticket-holders and 25,000 screaming Brits to the southern Nevada desert. Barker, 31, will have to build on the foundation he just laid if he is to grow his fan base, on either side of the Atlantic.

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Bernard Fernandez

Avila Perspective, Chap. 281: The Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia Show

Published

1 day ago

April 18, 2024

David A. Avila

Avila-Perspective-Chap-281-The-Devin-and-Ryan-Show

Over the years bouts between old foes such as Devin Haney and Ryan Garcia tend to be surprising.

Yes, both are only 25 but have known each other for many years.

When undisputed super lightweight champion Haney (31-0, 15 KOs) steps into the prize ring at Barclays Center to meet challenger Garcia (24-1, 20 KOs) on Saturday, April 20, fans will be witnessing the continuation of a feud that began more than a decade ago.

And though the champion is a heavy favorite, familiarity is Garcia’s best weapon heading into their fight on the Golden Boy Promotions card that will be shown on PPV.COM with Jim Lampley and friends. DAZN pay-per-view is also streaming the card.

In many ways Haney and Garcia have ventured down the same path. From amateur sensations to fighting in Mexico while teens to asking for the biggest challenges available.

“Whichever version of Ryan shows up on April 20, I will be ready for him. Ryan Garcia is just another opponent to me,” said Haney who holds the WBC super lightweight title after his win over Regis Prograis.

The first time I saw Haney as a pro he battled the dangerous Mexican contender Juan Carlos Burgos at Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula. It was an impressive performance against a fighter who fought three times for a world title.

Haney was 19 at the time.

My first look at Garcia as a pro was in his first bout in the U.S. when he met Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Cruz at the Exchange in downtown Los Angeles. The Boricua looked at Garcia and tried intimidating him with stares, taunts and the usual patter. During the fight both swung and missed until the second round when Garcia zeroed in and took him out.

Garcia had just turned 18, the legal age to fight in California.

Both fighters did not have the Olympics credentials that lead to fame. But their talent has allowed them to fight through the dense smoke that is professional boxing.

Haney has defeated numerous world champions such as Prograis, Vasyl Lomachenko and George Kambosos Jr., while Garcia has stopped champions Javier Fortuna and Luke Campbell.

As amateurs, Garcia and Haney battled six times with each winning three.

“They know each other very well,” said Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions. “Ryan is going to beat Devin Haney.”

Haney has a buttery-smooth style with one of the best jabs in boxing. He’s very adept at keeping distance and not allowing anyone to fight him inside. His reflexes are outstanding, yet he seldom fights inside. That’s his weakness.

Garcia fights tall and has superb hand speed and a lightning quick left hook. Though his defense lacks tightness his ability to rip off three-punch combinations in a blink of an eye pauses opponents from bullying their way inside.

“These guys always just look at me and look at me like I don’t know how to box,” said Garcia on social media. “Why was I one of the best fighters in the amateurs. Why was I a 15-time National champion…why did I beat everyone I came across.”

Haney is a strong favorite by oddsmakers to defeat Garcia. But you can never tell when it comes to fighters that know each other well and are athletically gifted.

When Sergio Mora challenged Vernon Forrest he was a big underdog. When Tim Bradley fought Manny Pacquiao the first time, he was also the underdog. And when Andy Ruiz met Anthony Joshua few gave him a chance.

Haney and Garcia have history in the ring. It should be an interesting battle.

PPV.COM

Jim Lampley will be leading the broadcast on PPV.COM for the Haney-Garcia card at Barclays and texting with fans on the card live. He will be accompanied by journalists Lance Pugmire, Dan Conobbio and former champion Chris Algieri.

The PPV.COM broadcast begins at 5 p.m. PT. and is available in Canada and the USA.

Other News

MMA stars Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal will be holding a media day event on Friday, April 19, at NOVO at L.A. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.

Diaz and Masvidal will be boxing against each other in a grudge match on June 1 at the KIA Forum in Inglewood, Calif. The two MMA stars met five years at UFC 244 with Masvidal winning by TKO over Diaz due to cuts.

This is a grudge match, but under boxing rules.

Fight card in Commerce, Calif.

360 Promotions returns to Commerce Casino on Saturday April 20 with undefeated super lightweight Cain Sandoval leading the charge.

Sandoval (12-0) faces Angel Rebollar (8-3) in the main event that will be shown live on UFC Fight Pass. Also on the card are two female events including hot prospect Lupe Medina (5-0) versus Sabrina Persona (3-1) in a minimumweight clash.

Doors open at 4 p.m.

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Boxing Odds and Ends: The Heavyweight Merry-Go-Round

Published

3 days ago

April 16, 2024

Arne K. Lang

Boxing Odds and Ends: The Heavyweight Merry-Go-Round

There were few surprises when co-promoters Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren and their benefactor HE Turki Alalshikh held a press conference in London this past Monday to unveil the undercard for the Beterbiev-Bivol show at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on June 1. Most of the match-ups had already been leaked.

For die-hard boxing fans, Beterbiev-Bivol is such an enticing fight that it really doesn’t need an attractive undercard. Two undefeated light heavyweights will meet with all four relevant belts on the line in a contest where the oddsmakers straddled the fence. It’s a genuine “pick-‘em” fight based on the only barometer that matters, the prevailing odds.

But Beterbiev-Bivol has been noosed to a splendid undercard, a striking contrast to Saturday’s Haney-Garcia $69.99 (U.S.) pay-per-view in Brooklyn, an event where the undercard, in the words of pseudonymous boxing writer Chris Williams, is an absolute dumpster fire.

The two heavyweight fights that will bleed into Beterbiev-Bivol, Hrgovic vs. Dubois and Wilder vs. Zhang, would have been stand-alone main events before the incursion of Saudi money.

Hrgovic-Dubois

Filip Hrgovic (17-0, 13 KOs) and Daniel Dubois (20-2, 19 KOs) fought on the same card in Riyadh this past December. Hrgovic, the Croatian, was fed a softie in the form of Australia’s Mark De Mori who he dismissed in the opening round. Dubois, a Londoner, rebounded from his loss to Oleksandr Usyk with a 10^th-round stoppage of corpulent Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller.

There’s an outside chance that Hrgovic vs. Dubois may be sanctioned by the IBF for the world heavyweight title.

The May 18 showdown between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury has a rematch clause. The IBF is next in line in the rotation system for a unified heavyweight champion and the organization has made it plain that the winner of Usyk-Fury must fulfill his IBF mandatory before an intervening bout.

The best guess is that the Usyk-Fury winner will relinquish the IBF belt. If so, Hrgovic and Dubois may fight for the vacant title although a more likely scenario is that the organization will keep the title vacant so that the winner can fight Anthony Joshua.

Wilder-Zhang

The match between Deontay Wilder (43-3-1, 42 KOs) and Zhilei Zhang (26-2-1, 21 KOs) is a true crossroads fight as both Wilder, 38, and Zhang, who turns 41 in May, are nearing the end of the road and the loser (unless it’s a close and entertaining fight) will be relegated to the rank of a has-been. In fact, Wilder has hinted that this may be his final rodeo.

Both are coming off a loss to Joseph Parker.

Wilder last fought on the card that included Hrgovic and Dubois and was roundly out-pointed by a man he was expected to beat. It’s a quick turnaround for Zhang who opposed Parker on March 8 and lost a majority decision.

Other Fights

Either of two other fights may steal the show on the June 1 event.

Raymond Ford (15-0-1, 8 KOs) meets Nick Ball (19-0-1, 11 KOs) in a 12-round featherweight contest. New Jersey’s Ford will be defending the WBA world title he won with a come-from-behind, 12th-round stoppage of Otabek Kholmatov in an early contender for Fight of the Year. Liverpool’s “Wrecking” Ball, a relentless five-foot-two sparkplug, had to settle for a draw in his title fight with Rey Vargas despite winning the late rounds and scoring two knockdowns.

Hamzah Sheeraz (19-0, 15 KOs) meets fellow unbeaten Austin “Ammo” Williams (16-0, 11 KOs) in a 12-round middleweight match. East London’s Sheeraz, the son of a former professional cricket player, is unknown in the U.S. although he trained for his recent fights at the Ten Goose Boxing Gym in California. Riding a skein of 13 straight knockouts, he has a date with WBO title-holder Janibek Alimkhanuly if he can get over this hurdle.

The Forgotten Heavyweight

“Unbeaten for seven years, the man nobody wants to fight,” intoned ring announcer Michael Buffer by way of introduction. Buffer was referencing Michael Hunter who stood across the ring from his opponent Artem Suslenkov.

This scene played out this past Saturday in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. It was Hunter’s second fight in three weeks. On March 23, he scored a fifth-round stoppage of a 46-year-old meatball at a show in Zapopan, Mexico.

The second-generation “Bounty Hunter,” whose only defeat prior to last weekend came in a 12-rounder with Oleksandr Usyk, has been spinning his wheels since TKOing the otherwise undefeated Martin Bakole on the road in London in 2018. Two fights against hapless opponents on low-budget cards in Mexico and a couple of one-round bouts for the Las Vegas Hustle, an entry in the fledgling and largely invisible Professional Combat League, are the sum total of his activity, aside from sparring, in the last two-and-a-half years.

Hunter’s chances of getting another big-money fight took a tumble in Tashkent where he lost a unanimous decision in a dull affair to the unexceptional Suslenkov who was appearing in his first 10-round fight. The scores of the judges were not announced.

You won’t find this fight listed on boxrec. As Jake Donovan notes, the popular website will not recognize a fight conducted under the auspices of a rogue commission. (Another fight you won’t find on boxrec for the same reason is Nico Ali Walsh’s 6-round split decision over the 9-2-1 Frenchman, Noel Lafargue, in the African nation of Guinea on Dec. 16, 2023. You can find it on YouTube, but according to boxrec, boxing’s official record-keeper, it never happened.)

Anderson-Merhy Redux

The only thing missing from this past Saturday’s match in Corpus Christi, Texas, between Jared Anderson and Ryad Merhy was the ghost of Robert Valsberg.

Valsberg, aka Roger Vaisburg, was the French referee who disqualified Ingemar Johansson for not trying in his match with LA’s Ed Sanders in the finals of the heavyweight competition at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. Valsberg tossed Johansson out of the ring after two rounds and Johansson was denied the silver medal. The Swede redeemed himself after turning pro, needless to say, when he demolished Floyd Patterson in the first of their three meetings.

Merhy was credited with throwing only 144 punches, landing 34, over the course of the 10 rounds. Those dismal figures yet struck many onlookers as too high. (This reporter has always insisted that the widely-quoted CompuBox numbers should be considered approximations.)

Whatever the true number, it was a disgraceful performance by Merhy who actually showed himself to have very fast hands on the few occasions when he did throw a punch. With apologies to Delfine Persoon, a spunky lightweight, U.S. boxing promoters should think twice before inviting another Belgian boxer to our shores.

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Anderson Cruises by Vapid Merhy and Ajagba edges Vianello in Texas

Published

6 days ago

April 14, 2024

Arne K. Lang

Anderson-Cruises-by-Vapid-Merhy-and-Ajagba-Edges-Vianello-in-Texas

Jared Anderson returned to the ring tonight on a Top Rank card in Corpus Christi, Texas. Touted as the next big thing in the heavyweight division, Anderson (17-0, 15 KOs) hardly broke a sweat while cruising past Ryad Merhy in a bout with very little action, much to the disgruntlement of the crowd which started booing as early as the second round. The fault was all Merhy as he was reluctant to let his hands go. Somehow, he won a round on the scorecard of judge David Sutherland who likely fell asleep for a round for which he could be forgiven.

Merhy, born in the Ivory Coast but a resident of Brussels, Belgium, was 32-2 (26 KOs) heading in after fighting most of his career as a cruiserweight. He gave up six inches in height to Anderson who was content to peck away when it became obvious to him that little would be coming back his way.

Anderson may face a more daunting adversary on Monday when he has a court date in Romulus, Michigan, to answer charges related to an incident in February where he drove his Dodge Challenger at a high rate speed, baiting the police into a merry chase. (Weirdly, Anderson entered the ring tonight wearing the sort of helmet that one associates with a race car driver.)

Co-Feature

In the co-feature, a battle between six-foot-six former Olympians, Italy’s Guido Vianello started and finished strong, but Efe Ajagba had the best of it in the middle rounds and prevailed on a split decision. Two of the judges favored Ajagba by 96-94 scores with the dissenter favoring the Italian from Rome by the same margin.

Vianello had the best round of the fight. He staggered Ajagba with a combination in round two. At the end of the round, a befuddled Ajagba returned to the wrong corner and it appeared that an upset was brewing. But the Nigerian, who trains in Las Vegas under Kay Koroma, got back into the fight with a more varied offensive attack and better head movement. In winning, he improved his ledger to 20-1 (14). Vianello, who sparred extensively with Daniel Dubois in London in preparation for this fight, declined to 12-2-1 in what was likely his final outing under the Top Rank banner.

Other Bouts of Note

In the opening bout on the main ESPN platform, 35-year-old super featherweight Robson Conceicao, a gold medalist for Brazil in the 2016 Rio Olympics, stepped down in class after fighting Emanuel Navarrete tooth-and-nail to a draw in his previous bout and scored a seventh-round stoppage of Jose Ivan Guardado who was a cooked goose after slumping to the canvas after taking a wicked shot to the liver. Guardado made it to his feet, but the end was imminent and the referee waived it off at the 2:27 mark.

Conceicao improved to 18-1 (9 KOs). It was the U.S. debut for Guardado (15-2-1), a boxer from Ensenada, Mexico who had done most of his fighting up the road in Tijuana.

Ruben Villa, the pride of Salinas, California, improved to 22-1 (7) and moved one step closer to a match with WBC featherweight champion Rey Vargas with a unanimous 10-round decision over Tijuana’s Cristian Cruz (22-7-1). The judges had it 97-93 and 98-92 twice.

Cruz, the son of former IBF world featherweight title-holder Cristobal Cruz, was better than his record. He entered the bout on a 21-1-1 run after losing five of his first seven pro fights.

Cleveland southpaw Abdullah Mason, who turned 20 earlier this month, continued his fast ascent up the lightweight ladder with a fourth-round stoppage of Ronal Ron.

Mason (13-0, 11 KOs) put Ron on the canvas in the opening round with a short left hook. He scored a second knockdown with a shot to the liver. A flurry of punches, a diverse array, forced the stoppage at the 1:02 mark of round four. A 25-year-old SoCal-based Venezuelan, the spunky but out-gunned Ron declined to 14-6.

Charly Suarez, a 35-year-old former Olympian from the Philippines, ranked #5 at junior lightweight by the IBF, advanced to 17-0 (9) with a unanimous 8-round decision over SoCal’s Louie Coria (5-7).

This was a tactical fight. In the final round, Coria, subbing for 19-0 Henry Lebron, caught the Filipino off-balance and knocked him into the ropes which held him up. It was scored a knockdown, but came too little, too late for Coria who lost by scores of 76-75 and 77-74 twice.

Suarez, whose signature win was a 12^th-round stoppage of the previously undefeated Aussie Paul Fleming in Sydney, may be headed to a rematch with Robson Conceicao. They fought as amateurs in 2016 in Kazakhstan and Suarez lost a narrow 6-round decision.

Photo credit: Mikey Willams / Top Rank via Getty Images

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