MAY-PAC STIRS MEMORIES OF HAGLER-LEONARD FOR SUGAR RAY

Published

10 years ago

April 3, 2015

It has been said in Hollywood that there are no original ideas, just variations of familiar plots and story lines. And so it is in boxing, which perhaps is why the movie industry has ventured so often into the drama-drenched world of fights and fighters.

The great Sugar Ray Leonard has seen and done it all, and at 58 his perspective is such that he can pretty much tell when an old script is being dusted off for a contemporary audience. When he looks ahead to the May 2 superfight pitting Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, he has a sense of déjà vu, that he’s been there and done that. It is a feeling rooted in reality, at least to an extensive enough degree to make comparisons between May-Pac and Leonard’s April 6, 1987, showdown with Marvelous Marvin Hagler take on a sheen of legitimacy.

A fight five years in the making? Check, and check. A stylistic matchup between a mobile, quick-handed boxer and a relentless, southpaw punching machine? Check, and check. Global interest at a fever pitch? Check, and check. One fighter demanding, and getting, a laundry list of concessions from the other side in order to close the deal? Check, and check.

“There are distinct parallels,” Leonard told me. “The buildup to Mayweather-Pacquiao has taken, what, five years? Same as my fight with Hagler. No one thought Mayweather-Pacquiao would ever happen; no one thought that my fight with Hagler would ever happen. In fact, for a long time I never thought that it would happen for me with Hagler.

“Also, had Hagler and I fought five years earlier I don’t think it would have turned out to be as big as it was, or as spectacular. The wait made it an even bigger event, and that’s what’s happening with Mayweather-Pacquiao.”

Even with all the instances where Mayweather-Pacquiao appears to tearing pages from the Hagler-Leonard reference book, it should be noted that there are differences between then and now. Leonard, whose ring attributes more closely mirror those of Mayweather, was the underdog and the smaller man coming up in weight, with the added burden of a long period of inactivity in which he had fought only once in the preceding five years. Pacquiao is a southpaw, like Hagler, but let’s not forget that Marvelous Marvin pulled a switcheroo and opened his bout with Leonard in an orthodox stance, which came as a pleasant surprise to the guy in the other corner. Don’t expect “PacMan” to follow suit.

“I looked for every possible thing that would give me an edge,” said Leonard, a list which included wringing a grudging agreement from the Hagler camp to the larger ring, larger gloves (10 ounces instead of eight) and reduced number of rounds (from 15 to 12) demanded by Team Sugar. “Not a big edge, but a slight edge. When Marvin came out orthodox,that helped me. It was another edge. But if he had come out southpaw, I would eventually have figured it out because I fought southpaws pretty well. It would have just taken me a little longer to get into a groove.”

Before an accord was reached for Mayweather-Pacquiao, “Money” demanded a favorable 60-40 split of the huge financial pie and for other perks, such as having his name listed first in all promotional materials and being introduced after the fab Filipino. Where pride is concerned, such things matter, maybe even as much as money to fighters who are already unfathomably wealthy. Pacquiao finally acquiesced, as had Hagler when presented with Leonard’s non-negotiable preferences. But someone has to give a little at the bargaining table, as well as inside the ropes, and the Hagler side yielded to the comebacking legend Hagler sneeringly referred to as the “little dictator.”

Leonard’s response to that is, “Hey, who wound up winning?” Oh, sure, there are those who dispute the split decision for Sugar Ray, not the least of whom is the still-bitter Hagler, but the outcome is what it is and so shall forever remain.

“This fight (May-Pac) is about bragging rights, like my fight with Hagler was,” Leonard continued. “You can talk all you want about the money, and it’s ridiculous money, crazy money. But to these guys, it’s about more than that. Each wants to be able to say he won. There’s so much personal pride at stake, and you can’t put a price on that.

“When all is said and done, this fight, of all fights, means everything to these guys. Because the bottom line is, and should be, who beat who, not how much money you made.”

It remains to be seen how the final chapter of the Mayweather-Pacquiao saga is written, but here is the tale of Hagler-Leonard, and how that year’s Fight of the Century painstakingly came to be.

There was a widespread perception, dating back to Leonard’s gold-medal star turn at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, that the kid from Palmer Park, Md., with the megawatt smile, Muhammad Ali-like skills and affable personality was destined for superstardom, that all the good things life and his sport had to offer would be served up on jewel-encrusted platter. For those who came up the hard way, like Hagler – a product of the meanest streets of Newark, N.J., who moved to Brockton, Mass., as a teenager in 1969 and in the mid-’70s had to put in regular shifts at the Petronelli Construction Company before going to the gym to log hours more of hard labor as a fighter enrolled in the Petronelli School of Boxing. To Hagler, who was not quite so marvelous then, Leonard was not someone to be admired, but a source of jealousy and irritation. In the weeks leading up to the long-delayed faceoff with Leonard, Hagler derided his opponent as a “pretty HBO face” who took a shortcut to the superstardom the best middleweight in the world had had to claw and scrap to even approach.

They hadn’t fought earlier because Leonard as a welterweight had no problem making 147 pounds, while Hagler was a full-fledged middleweight who scared the hell out of most would-be foes, Leonard included. Leonard saw the weight difference as too wide a chasm to even attempt to bridge.

“Hagler, to me, was a unique machine, a unique beast,” the Leonard of today recalled. “There was fear inside of me. Most fighters won’t admit it, but there’s always an element of fear. We’re all scared of what could happen. But fear can be good as well as bad. Fear can paralyze you, which is bad, but fear can also make you so sharp your eyes are as big as headlights. You’re looking for every damn punch, every conceivable thing the other guy can throw at you. And that’s good.”

Any chance that Hagler and Leonard might share the same ring appeared to vanish when Leonard was diagnosed with a detached retina in 1982, an injury that, in those days before medical advances, often was a career-ender. It appeared that would be the case with Leonard, who retired with no thought of coming back at the risk of perhaps losing his eyesight, strangely ironic in light of the fact that his full birth name, Ray Charles Leonard, was in tribute to Ray Charles, the legendary blind musician and singer.

Without boxing and out of the spotlight that in which he had become so comfortable, Leonard admits to losing his way, drinking too much and doing cocaine. Nor was his sole attempt to recapture what had been lost a rousing success; he was floored in the fourth round of his May 11, 1984, bout with journeyman Kevin Howard before going on to stop the tough but limited Philadelphian in nine. Embarrassed that he had been knocked down for the first time as a professional, Leonard retired again, saying he had lost what he had that had made him such a special fighter.

A year and a half earlier, Leonard had taken his first leave, doing so with a dramatic and unexpected flourish. He invited Hagler to attend “A Night With Sugar Ray Leonard,” a black-tie charity event on Nov. 9, 1982, at the Baltimore Civic Center that was emceed by Howard Cosell. Hagler showed up in anticipation that Leonard would finally announce that he was ready to move up in weight and take on the finest 160-pounder on the planet. And why shouldn’t he have felt that way? Leonard had advised the media that there would be a “major press announcement.”

“A fight with this great man, with this great champion, would be one of the greatest fights in history,” Leonard said as a beaming and tuxedoed Hagler looked on. There was a dramatic pause before Leonard delivered the words that stung Hagler more than any punch ever could: “Unfortunately, it’ll never happen.”

So what convinced Leonard to return after his desultory performance against Kevin Howard? One was the unflagging belief that he still had more to give, and at a high level, if only if he could root around inside himself and rediscover it.

“I believe every good fighter believes he has one big fight left in him,” Leonard said. “And I believed mine would be against Hagler. As it turned out, it was.”

There were other factors involved in Leonard’s decision to not only return to boxing, but to go directly to the biggest, baddest threat out there. As was the case with Max Schmeling before his first fight with Joe Louis, he thought he “saw something” that would enable him to confound the oddsmakers (Leonard opened as a 3-to-1 underdog and went off as a 2½-1 longshot) and make history as the first man to win world titles in four different weight classes. Yeah, Hagler was still a monster, but maybe not quite as monstrous as he had been.

“When Duran fought Hagler (a close but unanimous decision for Hagler on Nov. 10, 1983), I was doing commentary for HBO,” Leonard said. “After 15 rounds, Duran came over and said to me, in English, `You fight him, you box him, you beat him.’”

If that didn’t plant a seed of inspiration in Leonard’s mind, Hagler’s last pre-Leonard bout, an 11^th-round knockout of John “The Beast” Mugabi, did. Mugabi, a tough-as-nails Ugandan, got the better of several toe-to-toe exchanges, landing hard hooks and uppercuts, before Marvin put him away.

“When Hagler beat Mugabi, I wasn’t exactly inebriated, but I was on my way,” Leonard admitted. “I was drinking so much back then. But still, I saw what I saw. It wasn’t that I thought Hagler was slowing down; I just thought that with my speed and my talent, I could do something with him.”

So The Return was set in motion, much to the relief of Hagler and, initially, to the consternation of an admittedly rusty Leonard.

“I feel very excited about the fact that he finally got his courage up,” the 32-year-old Hagler told reporters at his training camp in Palm Springs, Calif. “But when he made his move, he made it at the wrong time. I’m at my best right now, so I’m glad it’s happening now.

“If it had happened years ago, he had too much popularity, the Golden Boy out of the Olympics. Now, he’s just a curiosity. People want to see if he can come back and fight with an eye like that. I’m not a curiosity. I get asked why I’m giving him an opportunity even though when I wanted the opportunity, he didn’t give it to me. He was waiting for me to get old.”

Leonard’s return to serious training, meanwhile, was sluggish and frequently painful.

“For the first few months, my sparring partners were kicking my butt,” Leonard said. “They were banging the crap out of me. I would come home, my head down, walk in the kitchen and Juanita, my wife back then, would say, `Are you sure you want to fight Hagler?’ I’d get so mad. I got defensive. But when I think about it, she was right. I wasn’t ready – then.

“But every day it got a little bit better, a little bit better, until it all came back to me. It was frustrating when I knew I didn’t have it, that coordination, that touch. I had to fight through it. It was the most painful and agonizing experience of my life. I had to bite the bullet. I’d say to myself, `I know it’s there, I just know it.’ But I hadn’t found it yet.

“Then one day, about three months before the fight, I was in the gym and everything just fell into place. I snapped off a jab like I used to and I was, like, `Holy crap, this still works!’ I don’t know how to describe how that felt. It was ecstasy. But when you’ve been off as long as I was, you can’t really know for sure until you’re in that ring.”

Leonard said his fight plan – lots of movement, getting in and out, flurries late in each round to leave an impression on the judges – “was choreographed. I knew what I wanted to do.”

It also helped fuel Leonard’s fire that in a poll of 30 boxing writers, 24 picked Hagler to win, most inside the distance. After every round, Leonard would return to his corner and look at the media section “as if to say, `Hey, I’m still here,’” he noted.

The officials scorecards at the temporary outdoor stadium constructed on the tennis courts of Caesars Palace were all over the place. Judge Jo Jo Guerra might have been overly generous to Leonard in favoring him by a 118-110 margin, while Dave Moretti and Lou Fillippo each saw it at 115-113, with Moretti going with Leonard and Fillippo with Hagler.

“This is the greatest accomplishment of my life,” Leonard proclaimed at the postfight press conference. “Marvin never hurt me. He kind of slowed me up a little. I felt his power in the late rounds, but he never hurt me. I was able to do what I wanted to – stick and move, hit and run, taunt and frustrate.”

Hagler, not surprisingly, saw things far differently.

“I feel in my heart that I’m still the champion,” he said. “I really hate the fact that (the judges) took it away from me and gave it to Sugar Ray Leonard, of all people. It really leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

“I rocked him three or four times. He fought like a little girl in there. Those little flurries don’t mean nothing.”

Nor has Hagler, who never fought again, ever softened his stance. In 1995, when in Las Vegas to do commentary on WBC heavyweight champion Oliver McCall’s unanimous-decision victory over longtime former titlist Larry Holmes, he again spoke bitterly of the Leonard fight plan that found favor with Guerra and Moretti.

“That’s all he did all night long,” Hagler said of the furious flurries in the final 30 seconds of rounds that clearly tipped the balance of the scoring. “I thought I was fighting a professional, but he was just an amateur. I gave up everything for that fight I gave him the bigger ring. I gave him 12 rounds instead of 15. But when it came time for him to give me a rematch, he wouldn’t do it.”

Leonard doesn’t expect Mayweather, who got what he wanted in the prefight negotiations with Pacquiao, to reciprocate by giving “PacMan” what he wants inside the ropes. Leopards don’t change their spots, not if they want to continue being leopards.

“You’re not going to see Hagler-Hearns, you’re not going to see Roberto Duran-Sugar Ray Leonard I,” Leonard predicted. “Not going to happen. The way I fought Duran the first time, that was a mistake I made. The way Tommy fought Hagler was a mistake on his part, as far as I’m concerned. Tommy was far more effective as a boxer against a guy like Hagler. You fight Hagler the way Tommy did, he’s going to knock you out.

“A fighter has to fight his fight. You have to play to your strengths. That’s the only way to be effective.”

Which is not to say that Leonard, who is leaning toward Mayweather, is going all-in on a prediction for a fighter whose style is more or less an approximation of his own. If there is a difference, it might be that a prime Leonard had more of a finishing instinct when he had his man in trouble than Mayweather.

“This fight is not easy to call,” he said. “It probably will come down to which guy can get back to his total `A’ game.”

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The Hauser Report: Some Thoughts on Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul

Published

5 hours ago

November 17, 2024

Thomas Hauser

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Jake Paul boxed his way to a unanimous decision over Mike Tyson at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Friday night. The bout, streamed live on Netflix, was one of the most-watched fights of all time and, in terms of the level of competition, boxing’s least-consequential mega-fight ever.

We’re living in a golden age for spectator sports. Sports generate massive amounts of money from engaged fan bases and are more popular now than ever before. Today’s athletes are more physically gifted, better conditioned, and more skilled than their predecessors. Their prowess is appreciated and understood by tens of millions of fans.

Not so for boxing. For the sweet science, this is an era of “fools’ gold.” Yes, fighters like Oleksandr Usyk, Canelo Alvarez, Terence Crawford, and Naoya Inoue bring honor to the sport. But boxing’s fan base has dwindled to the point where most people have no idea who the heavyweight champion of the world is. The sport’s dominant promoter has a business model that runs hundreds of millions of dollars a year in the red. And most fights of note are contested behind a paywall that shrinks the fan base even more. Few sports fans understand what good boxing is.

Mike Tyson is 58 years old. Once upon a time, he was the most destructive boxer in the world and “the baddest man on the planet.” Prior to last Friday night, he hadn’t fought in nineteen years and hadn’t won a fight since 2003.

Jake Paul is a 27-year-old social media personality who wasn’t born when Tyson lost his aura of invincibility at the hands of Buster Douglas. Paul began boxing professionally three years ago and, before fighting Tyson, had compiled a 10-1 (7 KOs) record against carefully chosen opponents.

Netflix has roughly 283 million subscribers globally, 84 million of them in North America. Recently, it made the decision to move into live sports. On December 25, it will stream the National Football League’s two Christmas games on an exclusive basis.

Netflix took note of the fact that Tyson’s 2020 exhibition against Roy Jones drew 1.6 million pay-per-view buys and concluded that Tyson-Paul had the potential to be the most-viewed fight of all time. It purchased rights to the fight as an attention grabber and subscription seller for (a best-estimate) $40 million.

Tyson-Paul was originally scheduled for July 20. A compliant Texas Department of Licensing and Regulations sanctioned the bout as an official fight, not an exhibition. In deference to Tyson’s age, the fighters agreed that the match would be contested over eight two-minute rounds (women’s rules) with 14-ounce gloves (heavyweight gloves normally weigh ten ounces).

But on May 26, Tyson became nauseous and dizzy while on a flight from Miami to Los Angeles and needed medical assistance for what was later described as a bleeding ulcer. The fight was rescheduled for November 15. Later, Tyson described the incident on the plane as follows: “I was in the bathroom throwing up blood. I had, like, eight blood transfusions. The doctor said I lost half my blood. I almost died. I lost 25 pounds in eleven days. Couldn’t eat. Only liquids. Every time I went to the bathroom, it smelled like tar. Didn’t even smell like shit anymore. It was disgusting.”

Does that sound like a 58-year-old man who should be fighting?

As Eliot Worsell noted, Tyson-Paul contained all the elements of a successful reality show. “There are for a start,” he wrote, “celebrities involved, two of them. One is ‘old famous’ and the other ‘new famous’ and both bring large audiences with them. They need only tap something on their phone to guarantee the entire world pays attention. And that, in this day and age, is all you really need to green light a project like this.”

But Worsell added a word of caution, observing, “This has been the story of Jake Paul’s pro boxing career to date; one of smoke and mirrors, one of sycophants telling him only what he wants to hear. He has been fed a lie just as Mike Tyson is now being fed a lie, and on November 15 they will both play dress-up and be watched by millions. They will wear gloves like boxers and they will move like boxers – one hampered in this quest by old age and the other by sheer incompetence – and they will together make ungodly sums of money.”

There was early talk that 90,000 fans would jam AT&T Stadium on fight night. Initially, ticket prices ranged from $381 to $7,956. And those prices were dwarfed by four tiers of VIP packages topped by a two-million-dollar “MVP Owner’s Experience” that included special ringside seating at the fight for six people, luxury hotel accommodations, weigh-in and locker room photo ops, boxing gloves signed by Tyson and Paul, and other amenities.

But by Monday of fight week, ticket prices had dropped to as little as $36. Ringside seats were available for $900. And the press release announcing the eventual MVP Owner’s Experience sale backtracked a bit, saying the package was “valued at $2 million” – not that the actual sale price was $2 million. It also appeared that the purchase price included advertising for the law firm that purchased the package since the release proclaimed, “Just as every fighter in the ring stands to represent resilience, grit, and the pursuit of victory, TorkLaw stands in the corner of the people, fighting for justice and empowering those who need it most.”

That said, the fight drew 72,300 fans (inclusive of giveaway tickets) to AT&T Stadium. And the live gate surpassed $18 million making it the largest onsite gate ever in the United States for a fight card outside of Las Vegas. More than 60 million households watched the event live around the world.

The undercard featured a spirited fight between Mario Barrios and Abel Ramos that ended in a draw. Then came the second dramatic showdown between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano.

Taylor-Serrano II was for all four major sanctioning body 140-pound belts. Two years ago, Katie and Amanda did battle at Madison Square Garden on a historic night that saw Taylor emerge with a controversial split-decision win. Katie is now 38 years old and her age is showing. Amanda is 36. Taylor was an early 6-to-5 betting favorite in the rematch but the odds flipped late in Serrano’s favor.

Amanda began Taylor-Serrano II in dominating fashion and wobbled Katie just before the bell ending round one. That set the pattern for the early rounds. Serrano looked like she could hurt Taylor, and Taylor didn’t look like she could hurt Serrano.

Then in round four, Serrano got hurt. A headbutt opened a gruesome gash on her right eyelid. As the bout progressed, the cut became more dangerous. From an armchair perspective, it looked as though the fight should have been stopped and the result determined by the judges’ abbreviated scorecards. But the ring doctor who examined Serrano allowed it to continue even though the flow of blood seemed to handicap Amanda more and more with each passing round.

In round eight, referee Jon Schorle took a point away from Taylor after the fourth clash of heads that he thought Katie had initiated. By then, Serrano’s face resembled a gory Halloween mask and the bout had turned into a non-stop firefight. Each woman pushed herself as far as it seemed possible to go.

In the eyes of most observers, Serrano clearly won the fight. This writer scored the bout 96-93 in Amanda’s favor. Then the judges had their say. Each one favored Taylor by a 95-94 margin.

“My God!” blow-by-blow commentator Mauro Ranallo exclaimed after the verdict was announced. “How does one rob Amanda Serrano after a performance like that?”

In keeping with the hyperbole of the promotion, one might say that it was the most-watched ring robbery (although not the worst) in boxing history.

CompuBox is an inexact tabulation. But there’s a point at which the numbers can’t be ignored. According to CompuBox, Serrano outlanded Taylor in nine of ten rounds with an overall 324-to-217 advantage in punches landed.

From a boxing standpoint, Taylor-Serrano II made the evening special. Casual fans who don’t know much about the sweet science saw a very good fight. But they also saw how bad judging undermines boxing.

Meanwhile, as good as Taylor-Serrano II was, that’s not what Netflix was selling to the public. Jake Paul’s most recent events had engendered disappointing viewer numbers. This one was a cultural touchstone because of Tyson.

Paul has worked hard to become a boxer. In terms of skills, he’s now a club fighter (which is more than 99.9 percent of the population could realistically dream of being). So, what happens when a club fighter fights a 58-year-old man who used to be great?

Jack Johnson fought until the age of 53, losing four of his last six bouts. And the two he won were against opponents named Rough House Wilson (who was disqualified in what would be his only recorded professional fight) and Brad Simmons (who was barred from fighting again in Kansas because he was believed to have thrown the fight against Johnson).

Larry Holmes fought until age 52, knocking out 49-year-old Mike Weaver at age 51 and winning a unanimous decision over Eric Esch (aka Butterbean) in his final bout.

Paul was a 2-to-1 betting favorite. Serious PED testing for the fight was a murky issue but seems to have been minimal. Taylor and Serrano underwent VADA testing in advance of their bout. Tyson and Paul didn’t.

Tyson weighed in for the contest at 228.4 pounds; Paul at 227.2 (well over his previous high of 200). Following the weigh-in, Mike and Jake came face to face for the ritual staredown and Mike slapped Jake. But the incident was self-contained with no ripple effect and had the feel of a WWE confrontation.

That raised a question that was fogging the promotion: “Would Tyson vs. Paul be a ‘real’ fight or a pre-arranged sparring session (which was what Tyson vs. Roy Jones appeared to be)?”

That question was of particular note because sports betting is legal in 38 states and 31 of them were allowing wagers on the fight.

Nakisa Bidarian (co-founder of Paul’s promotional company) sought to lay that issue to rest, telling ESPN, “There’s no reason for us to create a federal fraud, a federal crime. These are pro fights that consumers are making legal bets on. We have never and we’ll never do anything that’s other than above board and one hundred percent a pro fight unless we come out clearly and say, ‘Hey, this is an exhibition fight that is a show.'”

Tyson looked old and worried during his ring walk and wore a sleeve on his right knee. The crowd was overwhelmingly in his favor. But it’s an often-repeated truism that the crowd can’t fight. And neither could Mike.

Once upon a time, Tyson scored nine first-minute knockouts in professional fights. Not first-round. First-minute.

Against Paul, “Iron Mike” came out for round one as hard as he could (which wasn’t very hard) while Jake kept a safe distance between them. Then Tyson tired and took all the air out of the fight. By round three, he was in survival mode with his head tucked safely behind his 14-ounce gloves. And Jake didn’t have the skills to hurt him.

The CompuBox numbers favored Paul by a 78-to-18 margin in punches landed. In other words, Tyson landed an average of two punches per round. The judges’ scores were 80-72, 79-73, 79-73 in Jake’s favor. It was a “real” fight but a bad one.

“I love Mike Tyson,” Terence Crawford posted on X afterward. “But they giving him too much credit. He looked like trash.”

Prior to the bout, Tris Dixon wrote, “Tyson-Paul is a weird event, and I can’t think of anything even remotely like it in terms of the level of fighters, celebrity, and their ages. The event is unique, and morally and ethically it is questionable. It is a cynical cash grab. I can’t see it being particularly entertaining as a high-level sporting event. But I’m sure once it starts you won’t be able to take your eyes off it.”

All true. But let’s remember that there was a time when Mike Tyson was universally recognized as the best fighter in the world. Not many people in history have been able to say that.

—

Thomas Hauser’s email address is thomashauserwriter@gmail.com. His most recent book – MY MOTHER and me – is a personal memoir available at www.amazon.com/My-Mother-Me-Thomas-Hauser/dp/1955836191/ref=sr_1_1?crid=5C0TEN4M9ZAH&keywords=thomas+hauser&qid=1707662513&sprefix=thomas+hauser%2Caps%2C80&sr=8-1

In 2004, the Boxing Writers Association of America honored Hauser with the Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence in boxing journalism. In 2019, Hauser was selected for boxing’s highest honor – induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.

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Golden Boy in Riyadh Results: Zurdo Ramirez Unifies Cruiserweight Titles

Published

1 day ago

November 16, 2024

David A. Avila

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Mexico’s Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez endured the grinding style of England’s Chris Billam-Smith to become the unified WBO and WBA cruiserweight champion by unanimous decision after a bruising battle in Saudi Arabia on Saturday.

“I’m a true champion,” said Ramirez.

Ramirez (47-1, 30 KOs) used angles and experience to out-maneuver the very strong Billam-Smith (20-2, 13 KOs) in Golden Boy Promotion’s first joint adventure with “Riyadh Season” in Riyadh, Saud Arabia.

Footwork by Ramirez seemed to surprise Billiam-Smith whose relentless approach could not corral the Mexican fighter who was fighting only for the second time at cruiserweight.

The former super middleweight champion used his experience and ability to create punching angles to optimum success against Billam-Smith. The movement confused the British fighter who never could find a solution.

“He has consistent shots,” said Billam-Smith. “I had trouble tracking him.”

But Billam-Smith used his relentless attacking style for all 12 rounds despite suffering a cut near his eye in the sixth round. He never quit and pounded away at Ramirez who simply out-punched the incredibly strong British cruiserweight.

No knockdowns were scored. Billam-Smith did have success in the 10^th round but couldn’t overcome the overall success Ramirez had tallied with body shots and straight lefts throughout the contest.

“It meant a lot for me to try and stop him,” said Ramirez. “But he’s pretty tough.”

After 12 rounds of bruising action all three judges saw Ramirez the winner 116-112 twice and 116-113.

Barboza’s Quest

After 11 years Arnold Barboza (31-0, 11 KOs) finally got his wish and met former super lightweight champion Jose Ramirez (29-2, 18 KOs) in the boxing ring and handed him only his second defeat.

“It was a long time coming,” Barboza said.

Barboza started slowly against the pressure style of Ramirez but soon gathered enough information to determine his own attack. Accuracy with jabs and body shots opened things up for the Southern California fighter from El Monte.

Ramirez seemed to lose that fire in his legs and usually attacking style. Though he occasionally showed the old fire it was only in spurts. Barboza took advantage of the lulls and pierced the former champion’s guards with accurate jabs and quick body shots.

He was sharp.

After 10 rounds all three judges favored Barboza 96-94 twice and 97-93.

“This was my championship fight,” said the undefeated Barboza. “I respect everything about him (Ramirez) and his team.” Ramirez’s only previous loss came in a bout with Josh Taylor for the undisputed world title at 140 pounds.

Lightweight clash

William Zepeda (32-0, 27 KOs) survived a knockdown to out-punch former champion Tevin Farmer (33-7-1, 8 KOs) and walk away with a split decision victory in their lightweight confrontation.

“I knew it was going to be a tough fight,” said Zepeda. “He surprised me a little bit.”

Zepeda opened up with his usual flood of punches from every angle and soon found himself looking up from the floor after Farmer floored him with a perfect counter-left in the third round.

It took the Mexican fighter a few rounds to find a way to avoid Farmer’s counter lefts and then the deluge of blows resumed. Though Farmer continued to battle he couldn’t match the number of blows coming from Zepeda.

After 10 rounds one judge saw Farmer 95-94 but the two other judges saw Zepeda by 95-94 scores.

“I just brought it to him,” said Farmer who knew it was a close fight.

Puerto Rico’s New Unified Champ

In a battle between minimumweight world titlists Puerto Rico’s Oscar Collazo (11-0, 8 KOs) knocked out Thailand’s KO CP Freshmart (25-1, 9 KOs) to become the WBO and WBA champion.

Freshmart, also known as Thammanoon Niyomtrong, was the longest reigning champion in the 105-division weight class for a total of eight years. That was quickly ended as Collazo’s floored the strong Thai fighter three times during their clash of champions.

Body shots proved beneficial to Collazo as both exchanged blows to the abdomen but the Puerto Rican added flashy combinations to control the fight for six rounds.

“I saw him breathing hard,” said Collazo.

Possibly understanding he was falling behind, Freshmart began to advance more aggressively and forced exchanges with the fast Boricua. Bad idea.

During a furious exchange in the sixth Collazo connected with a counter right hook on the chin and down went Freshmart. He recovered and finished the round.

Collazo opened the seventh searching for an opening and immediately connected with another right hook during an exchange of blows with the Thai fighter. Down went Freshmart again but he got up to fight again. Collazo moved in cautiously again and this time fired a left uppercut that finished Freshmart at 1:29 if the seventh round.

“We got the stoppage,” said Collazo the unified WBO and WBA minimumweight champion.

Puerto Rico has another unified world champion in Collazo.

“I want all the belts,” Collazo said.

Duarte edges Akhmedov

Mexico’s Oscar Duarte (28-2-1, 22 KOs) scrapped past Botirzhon Akhmedov (10-4, 9 KOs) in a rugged super lightweight battle to win by unanimous decision. But it was a close one.

“He’s a great fighter, a warrior,” said Duarte of Akhmedov.

Akhmedov started faster using angles and bursts of punches as Duarte looked to counter. In the second half of the 10-round fight the extra energy expended by the fighter from Uzbekistan seemed to tire him. Mexico’s Duarte took advantage and looked stronger in the second half of the match.

All three judges saw Duarte the winner 98-92, 97-93, 96-94.

Welterweights

Saudi Arabia’s Ziyad Almaayouf (6-0-1) and Mexico’s Juan Garcia (5-6-1) fought to a majority draw after six rounds of action.

Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy

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Jake Paul Defeats Mike Tyson plus Other Results from Arlington, Texas

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1 day ago

November 16, 2024

David A. Avila

Hake-Paul-Defeats-Mike-Tyson-and-Other-Resulys-from-Arlington-Texas

The power of Mike Tyson.

Tyson’s power was on display in the people he attracted from all over the world to fill up the 72,000-seat Texas stadium and to capture the interest of more than 160 million viewers on Netflix. But, not in the prize ring on Saturday.

Youth and Jake Paul (11-1, 7 KOs) were the winners after eight tepid rounds over legendary heavyweight champion Tyson (50-7, 44 KOs) who failed to beat the chains of time. But he did stir them a bit at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Paul moved in and out of danger against Tyson the former undisputed heavyweight champion whose name struck terror in the 80s and 90s. Though the social media influencer had a 31-year younger body, he could not take full advantage.

“I was afraid he was going to hurt me,” admitted Paul.

In the opening round Tyson stalked Paul like a hungry lion about to pounce on a piece of meat. The younger fighter used his legs and smart jabs to keep separation. It was a wise decision.

At times Paul would unleash quick combinations, but the experienced Tyson’s muscle memory kicked in and he easily avoided the blows. But from the third round on the legs seemed to lock up and every movement seemed a struggle.

Paul landed left hooks to the head but Tyson managed to avoid their full power. And when Tyson connected with a left uppercut in the fifth round Paul wagged his tongue to acknowledge it connected, but the power was not damaging.

The eight two-minute rounds were perfect for this fight.

When a 58-year-old body is forced to fight for its life with all the necessary tools such as agility, endurance and quickness, the mind can play tricks. But Tyson was resolute and kept advancing against Paul in every round.

In the seventh round the aged heavyweight rekindled a second wind and fired dangerous combinations for the first time since the second frame. His winning spirit blazed for a moment or two until Paul unleashed his own combination blows. The moment for miracles had passed.

The final round saw Paul use more jabs and a few combination punches. Tyson tried to fire back but was unable to get his legs to cooperate. Still, his bravado was intact and Paul marked the last 10 seconds by bowing down humbly in front of Tyson. Paul had survived the lion’s maw.

“He’s the greatest heavyweight to ever do it,” said Paul of Tyson. “He’s a really tough and experienced fighter.”

Tyson was almost silent after the fight.

“I knew he was a good fighter. I came prepared,” said Tyson.

Katie Taylor Wins Again

In an even more brutal fight than their first encounter, undisputed super lightweight champion Katie Taylor (24-1) again edged out Amanda Serrano (47-3-1) after 10 bloody rounds to win by unanimous decision.

It was Serrano who jumped on Taylor in the first round and ravaged the Irish fighter with rifling lefts that snapped her head back. There was no wasting time to get acquainted.

Taylor got her footing in the third round with her quick-handed flurries. Though Serrano landed too it was Taylor’s resilience that kept her from being over run by the Puerto Rican’s power blows.

In the third round however, Taylor rushed in with blows and then grabbed Serrano and butted her with her head. A bloody gash opened up on the side of the Puerto Rican’s right eye. The referee quickly acknowledged it was a butt that caused the bad cut.

In the next round the cut opened up even more and the referee and ringside physician asked if she wanted to continue. She acknowledged to continue though the fight could have been stopped and judged by the scores accumulated up to that point. Serrano probably would have won.

Serrano did not want to stop.

“I chose to be great,” Serrano said. “I’m a Boricua. I’ll die in the ring.”

For the remainder of the fight the two combatants battled furiously. It was even more savage than their first encounter in New York two years ago. The referee repeatedly warned Taylor for intentionally diving in with her head and took one point away in the eighth round. He could have deducted more but did not.

“Sometimes it’s tough in there,” explained Taylor.

Serrano’s right hooks and left crosses found their mark repeatedly. Taylor’s quick combinations and strafing rights blazed often. It was up to the judges after 10 rounds had expired. All three judges saw it in favor of Taylor 95-94.

Many in the crowd booed. Even the announcers seemed surprised.

“She’s a fantastic champion,” said Taylor of Serrano. “She’s a hard puncher and tough.”

Serrano seemed displeased by the decision, but happy for the success of the fight card.

WBC Welterweight Title Fight

The theme for the WBC welterweight title fight was only sissies block and slip punches as Mario Barrios (29-2-1, 18 KOs) the champion and challenger Abel Ramos (28-6-3, 22 KOs) slugged each other gruesome for 12 bloody rounds and a split decision.

Barrios retains the WBC title.

“I knew it was a close fight,” Barrios said. “He made it a war.”

The two Mexican-American warriors blasted each other with knockdowns but somehow continued to battle on.

Texas-born Barrios was defending his title for the first time and Arizona’s Ramos was finally invited to challenge for a world title. He accepted.

Barrios opened up with sharp jabs and rocked Ramos with a straight right. He almost went down. In the second round he was not as lucky and was floored with a perfect three-punch combination. Ramos smiled and resumed the fight.

After a few more one-sided rounds in favor of Barrios, who trains in Las Vegas with Bob Santos, the match seemed to be dominated by the welterweight champion. It was a false read.

Ramos opened the sixth round in a more aggressive attack and began hammering Barrios with right hands. A three-punch combination blasted the champion to the ground and forced him to take an eight-count. He barely survived the round as the crowd panted.

“He can crack,” said Barrios.

For the remainder of the match both fought back and forth with Barrios finding success with jabs and rights to the body. Ramos rocketed rights on the champion’s head and occasional left hooks but the right seemed lasered to Barrios head.

Both of their faces were swollen and bloodied by punches to the face and neither seemed willing to quit. After 12 rounds one judge saw Ramos the winner 114-112, another saw Barrios win 116-110, and a third judge saw it 113-113 for a split draw. Barrios retains the WBC title.

“It was a great fight for the crowd,” said Ramos with a smile. “Two warriors like us are going to give an action-packed performance.”

Indian Fighter Wins

Neeraj Goyat (19-4-2) of India defeated Brazil’s Whindersson Nunes (0-1) in a super middleweight fight after six rounds. No knockdowns were scored but Goyat was the busier and more skilled fighter.

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