Philippines wins the Boxing World Cup against Mexico 5 to 1

Turns out that the fight wasn't on pay-per-view and I don't have HBO so I can only read news about it and Fightnews.com has the early results which shows that Philippines is ahead of Mexico by 3 - 0. The first win was a unanimous decision by Diosdado Gabi against Jose Angel Beranza, the second was from Michael Domingo via unanimous decision over Miguel Roman, and the third was a third round knockout of the Mexican Jorge Cardenas by the hands of Filipino AJ Banal. The Filipinos are doing really well so far, but I'm not going to get my hopes up until this is over because I know Mexicans are also very well-prepared for this event.

Philboxing.com says that it's now Z Gorrez and Eric Ortiz in the ring. Gorrez keeps hitting Ortiz with big lefts and is winning the early rounds. Doctor stops the fight in the eight due to a swelling from Ortiz, Z Gorrez wins and it's 4 - 0 Philippines. Good job Gorrez!!

I actually got a software to watch the fight from the advice of the forum guys at Philboxing.com and watched the next fight with Gerry Penalosa against WBO champ Jhonny Gonzalez. Gerry Penalosa was the attacker while Gonzalez did the counter-punching hitting Penalosa occasionaly. It was like this throughout the rounds with an occassional burst of action from both fighters until the seventh... During the seventh, Gerry hit Jhonny with a beautiful left hook to the body which sent him on his knees. The referee immediately started the countdown, but eventually stopped the fight because Jhonny wasn't able to stand up. Philippines 5, Mexico 0.

The last fight, I regret to say for my fellow Filipinos, was a disappointment. Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista was annihilated by Daniel Ponce De Leon in the first round via a left hand. In my opinion, it was just a punch that got lucky and Bautista wanting to attack right from the start because of what the other Filipinos showed through the night. I doubt that there will be a rematch, but if Bautista recovers from this and fought his way up again, he definitely should have one with De Leon again. Losing is not a bad thing and maybe Rey will learn from it and be better than ever. The greatest boxers in history also have losses and that's what makes them stronger. I will still watch Boom Boom's fight no matter what and congratulations to my country, the Philippines, for winning the World Cup by a landslide 5 to 1!!!

The Boxing World Cup looms over the horizon...(Update!)

Photo courtesy of Philboxing.com.

Mexico has been long known for its world-class boxers and it has produced many throughout boxing's history. One could say that the country of Mexico dominates the lighter divisions of boxing. However, one country has been quietly challenging Mexico's long time domination of the lighter weight classes. Queitly pouncing not only on its best fighters, but also on other country's fighters. Every fight fan knows what country I am talking about and they have seen one of the major upsets caused by this country's emerging fighters.

The country I am talking about is none other than mine: the Philippines. I'm not going to hide the fact that this article might be biased since I'm writing it, but I try to be an honest writer. Fight fans have seen and felt the big splash that Manny Pacquiao has been causing and he's not the only one doing it. Recently, other Filipino fighters have been making names for themselves and for their country. Manny Pacquiao vs. Marco Antonio Barrera 1 and his Erik Morales trilogy, Nonito Donaire vs. Vic Darchinyan, Florante Condes vs. Muhammad Rachman, Z Gorrez vs. Fernando Montiel, and Rey Bautista vs. Sergio Manuel Medina, those are just some of the most exciting fights we have seen. The Philippines continues to tighten its grip on boxing.

One such event that will finally showcase the competition of both countries in boxing is closing in on us all. The Boxing World Cup, Philippines vs. Mexico, is not far away and each country's boxing fans and fighters alike will be watching this event (that includes me, of course). The event will pit each country's best fighters against one another (too bad it doesn't include the fight between Pacquiao and Barrera, but both will be attending the event). Which country will win the cup? Well, Philippines, of course, seeing as it is my country. But seriously though, I will choose to avoid any single fight prediction in this one since getting the cup depends on which country will win the most fights and the competition is very high.

As my last and closing statement on this article, I just want to say: Good luck to the fighters from both countries and I hope to see them fight with all they've got! More info on the event on Philboxing.com (Philippine website in English, since I'm no good at reading Spanish).

Update: So I just called up my uncle in Folsom, CA and he told me he had breakfast with Rey Bautista, Z Gorrez, and the others. What the hell?! I told him: How did you know where they stayed? He said he checked MannyPacquiao.ph and saw the address there and then got driving directions for it. I mean, he just knocked on their door and straight up asked them for breakfast! Although being the good people that they were, they agreed and my uncle told me that they were really nice people. As for myself who is really far away from Sacramento right now, I just asked my uncle, who will be ringside, if I could have their autographs.

Miguel Cotto vs. Shane Mosley

So the internet boxing world is buzzing with the recent news of the Miguel Cotto vs. Shane Mosley fight becoming possible this November 10th. It is going to be held at the Madison Square Garden and both their titles will be up for grabs for whoever wins. This may offend those Mosley fans out there, but Shane is facing off against a fighter in his prime and still improving. He, on the other hand, is past his and has probably learned everything he can about fighting. Mosley has great boxing skills as he proved by beating De La Hoya and Vargas not only once, but twice. Miguel Cotto needs more high caliber opponents (not old guns) and his true test is still yet to come, in my opinion. Although Mosley may have experience and a good roster of opponents in his record, he is past his good years and Cotto might get the win on this one.

Rodel Mayol stopped by Ulises Solis in the eight!

Ulises Solis, brother of Jorge Solis whom Pacquiao knocked out on his last fight won against Filipino challenger Rodel Mayol. Rodel Mayol walked into Solis' big right and was stopped in the eight round. I think Mayol wasn't really ready for that fight, Solis' is a good fighter, maybe better than his brother, and he was more experienced than Rodel Mayol. Maybe Solis should try Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista next time...

David Diaz decisions Erik Morales

Pics and info from Fightnews.com.

It seemed a bad night for Erik Morales just like many of his fight nights, lately, as he lost to David Diaz via a unanimous decision which was pure BS, in my opinion. Morales was fighting in Diaz's hometown and he scored a knockdown against him during their first round in which the judges didn't even took notice. Morales boxed smartly tonight against Diaz and won the early rounds, but surprisingly, he lost the rest of the later rounds resulting in Diaz's victory. Sure Morales was getting old for boxing, but he was clearly better than Diaz. The post-fight presscon showed all the controversy Team Morales felt when his dad stated the facts I had just mentioned and Morales commenting on what dad said. Diaz retorted back on those issues by saying that that's what he always did: fight aggressively and come back in the later rounds and that's what he did tonight just like any other nights. Meanwhile the camp of Erik said that the referee and one of the judges ignored Diaz's rough tactics and illegal blows which caused them to lose. Because of this fight, Erik Morales has also decided to retire.

A bad outcome for the fight and I didn't expect Diaz to be that much of a rough fighter. I didn't think that hometown decisions would also be involved in this one, but it turns out that it might be. Nonetheless, one way or another I always thought that Morales was on his way to retirement and I just hope everything goes fine with his life after boxing. To read more info on the presscon click here.

Israel Vazquez defeats Rafael Marquez in the sixth!

In what one could consider a bloody brawlfest (which was better than the first fight, in my opinion), Israel Vazquez shocked Rafael Marquez with a left hook in the early opening of round six, and went for the kill on Marquez who was still fighting back when referee Guadalupe Garcia stopped the fight. It seemed that what Vazquez had in store for Marquez was a fierce left hook and a renewed determination and hard training that clearly showed tonight. Marquez had a harder time with Vazquez than during their first fight, but each fighter was clearly hungry for the win. Each had caused cuts on each other in the early rounds which made it a bloody fight from the start.

They started exchanging punches fiercely throughout the round, but Vazquez was the better fighter in the ring tonight staggering Marquez in round three and finally stopping him on the sixth. Although the stoppage might cause controversy again because Marquez was still fighting back, I think Vazquez would've still won the fight and he said that if it wasn't stopped during round six, he would've stopped him in the next. This controversial stoppage can only mean one thing for both fighters and fight fans: a third fight. Both fighters have expressed their interest in a third fight and it is highly possible to happen. We can only look forward to the last chapter in this newly born trilogy. Additional info on Fightnews.com.

Morales vs. Diaz lightweight championship fight tonight!

Pic courtesy of Fightnews.com.

Tonight is also Erik Morales' comeback fight against the Lightweight champ David Diaz on HBO Pay-per-view at 9pm ET/ 6pm PT. Now with the fight between Vazquez and Marquez also happening tonight, which fight to watch? Well, the Vazquez vs. Marquez rematch, of course! One, because it's free if you have Showtime; and two, because these guys are bound to be more exciting to watch than a washed-up Morales, right? Although I think the Showtime fight will be more worth watching than the pay-per-view, I don't think Morales is washed-up. He can still bring exciting fights like he always does and I'm sure he will give it his all in the ring tonight. I'm also sure some of my fellow Filipinos out there will be watching the Morales-Diaz fight. Since I haven't seen Diaz's fights, I will not make any predictions because it's bound to be unfair for Diaz, but I do hope that Morales wins. He can brawl and box and it depends on which side of him comes out in the ring tonight.

Rafael Marquez vs. Israel Vazquez rematch is today on Showtime 9pm ET/PT!

The rematch between these two exciting fighters is today and if anybody has Showtime then you should watch it. Rafael Marquez, the brother of Juan Manuel Marquez, will defend his WBC Super Bantamweight title against Israel Vazquez for the second time. As most fight fans already know, Israel Vazquez lost to Rafael in their first match when he quit the fight in the seventh, probably either due to an injury or he just doesn't have the heart. Marquez was clearly the better fighter that night staggering Vazquez several times while Vazquez himself did fought valiantly. Rafael clearly has the better boxing skills giving Israel a hard time that night. I still believe Vazquez could have continued the fight, but if a fighter tells his coach he wants to quit, I think there's nothing he can do (or us fight fans). Tonight they are having their rematch and I hope both fighters fight to the end this time, no quitting. If Vazquez wins this fight, then we are going to have ourselves another great trilogy if a third fight becomes possible. I think Rafael Marquez still has the better technique and heart; however, Israel Vazquez will come out hungry for the win tonight and he has trained hard for it. Who knows what Israel has in store for Rafael come fight night, but my prediction leans toward a second win for Rafael Marquez via a knockout during the late rounds (or Vazquez quitting the fight again). For those of us whose memories need to be refreshed, here's a short video summary of their first fight:

Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Ricky Hatton?

There has been talk that both fighters' camp are negotiating a fight between the two. Now that's what I'm talking about! Finally, two young, undefeated, unproven fighters facing off against each other! I would definitley watch this fight since I'm sure one of them will lose and a lot of us think it's Hatton. I always have a very big interest when it comes to watching an undefeated fighter lose for the first time, just to see how he would take it. Ricky Hatton is a smaller fighter than Floyd Mayweather and for Ricky, that is a huge disadvantage since Mayweather is used to fighting opponents naturally bigger than him. Some of us would think that Hatton might get slaughtered here. However, I think it would be an interesting fight since both of them are young and hungry fighters and they're both at their prime. There's only one thing that I think is strange though: Oscar De La Hoya expressed an interest to fight Hatton and that would mean more money for Hatton than Mayweather whose fights aren't that exciting to watch, instead he opted to fight Mayweather instead. I have no complains though, because Hatton looks like he wants to prove himself by beating the guy that everybody considers as the best fighter in the world, pound for pound. Ricky Hatton is going to be the underdog in this fight and it would be good if he could pull off an upset. I have been wanting to see Mayweather lose a fight for a very long time and I have been wondering who that guy will be. I almost thought it was Oscar De La Hoya, but it turned out to be just another one of Mayweather's fight where he was running away against his opponent. If he keeps running away against a smaller fighter in the form of Ricky Hatton, then I'm going to turn off the TV right away. All of us want to see a new aggressive Mayweather, not the same thing over and over again and now that Hatton is a smaller fighter than him, would he still do a hit and run? W'ell see when the fight really happens on December...

Update: The superfight is official and will be promoted by none other than Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions and (what's this?) Floyd Mayweather's Mayweather Promotions! Talk about irony here... The fight is on December 8 and is dubbed as "Undefeated". A lot of people are thinking that Hatton's 0 is gonna go, but it will be an interesting match-up. The fight venue is at MGM Grand in Vegas.

Vernon Forrest's win over Baldomir

It seems that Forrest won himself a championship belt via a unanimous decision against Baldomir... I'm really neutral for this fight, and I say a good start for Vernon Forrest coming out of a long break from boxing. Now all he has to do is find a new opponent to defend the belt against. That's really all I can say about that as I'm not an avid follower of these guys. More info on Fightnews.com, though.

Vernon Forrest vs. Carlos Baldomir on HBO BAD...

Pic from HBO Boxing.

It's tonight and since it's not on pay-per-view, maybe it's worth watching. But to put it bluntly, these guys haven't been on the spotlight for a while and their performances have been disappointing lately. Still this can be a good watch for fans of both fighters, but I'm afraid to say that I'm not one of them... I haven't seen Forrest fight for a while and he lost to Mayorga which is a fighter that I consider to have the least skill in all of boxing (probably alongside Edwin Valero) and Baldomir's win over Gatti didn't really do it for me since Gatti has been on the decline. And him vs. Floyd Mayweather was the most boring fight and mismatch I have ever seen. Maybe I'm just too much of a fan of blood and gore in fights, but I don't think these guys has the potential to make an exciting fight. Either way, I predict a win by Carlos Baldomir due to the fact that he has been more active than Forrest. Both guys weighed in at 154 lbs, by the way.

UFC 74 website now available!

Yep, UFC 74 website is up and running if y'all want to check it out. It has all the information you need on the fight and then some. Tell the Boxing and MMA Rantings sent you.

The noise has died down for this week...

Not much going on in the world of boxing and MMA lately. Some news are appearing, but most of them are about the upcoming fights this August or about promotional companies' plans for the future. However, the coming months will be interesting with the World Cup of boxing coming up, Pacquiao vs. Barrera 2, Morales vs. Diaz, UFC 75 on Spike TV, and maybe Vargas vs. Mayorga as well. We'll see what happens...

Bernard Hopkins beats Winky Wright!

It seems that Winky brought the action to Bernard. But in the end, Bernard showed the judges who was the better boxer when he pulled off a unanimous decision over Winky. Bad night for me again, it seems that the boxers I'm going for keep losing! By the way, the scores were 116-112, 117-111, 117-111 all for Bernard Hopkins. But can't complain since in boxing...ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN. Maybe after this, Hopkins will finally retire. I don't know about Winky, though, we'll have to see. As usual Fightnews.com provides the earliest fight results. Fight pics below...

Pics courtesy of HBO Championship Boxing. (More info there!)

Michael Katsidis decisions Czar Amonsot

In a fierce war between the two, Michael Katsidis drops Czar Amonsot on the second and tenth to finally earn a unanimous decision. Czar Amonsot gave it his all in a fight which should have a rematch, just so the fighter that I was going for can have another shot. But, really, the fight does deserve to have a rematch. I'm sure every Filipino out there is proud of Czar's performance and will want to watch him fight again. Congratulations to Katsidis, no hard feelings.

Michael Katsidis vs. Czar Amonsot tonight!

Tonight on the Bernard Hopkins - Winky Wright undercard, another one of my fellow Filipino fighters will again be faced with an undefeated Australian opponent (think Darchinyan-Donaire). Czar Amonsot (18-2-1 10 KO's) of the Philippines will be fighting Michael Katsidis (22-0 20 KO's) for the WBO Lightweight title. Both of Amonsot's loss were against Simson Butar Butar of Indonesia although I regret to say that Czar was unprepared for both fights. But now with the help of his team he is more than prepared and during the weigh-in was 133 lbs, 2 lbs under the 135 lb division while Katsidis was 135 lbs. Again this match may be compared to Darchinyan-Donaire, but I don't see any similarities in this fight since Katsidis is clearly not what you would call a Darchinyan kind of fighter, he is a good fighter. However, Czar Amonsot is also a good fighter that just needs a good mentor to bring out the best in him and I do think that he is in the best shape coming in to this fight. Although chances might go against Amonsot just looking at his and Katsidis' records, I will be going for him and I predict Czar Amonsot by either late round knockout or unanimous decision. Good luck to all the fighters tonight.

Hopkins vs. Wright, will it be worth watching?

July 21st will see Bernard Hopkins and Winky Wright facing each other in an HBO Pay-per-view event. Both these guys have been great fighters and their records speak for itself. Bernard Hopkins looked great in demolishing Antonio Tarver, Felix Trinidad, and stopping Oscar De La Hoya. Winky Wright had two wins over Shane Mosley, a win over Felix Trinidad and Ike Quartey, and a draw with Jermain Taylor (which I thought he won). Lots of good fighters on their records and both of them fought the same guys in Felix Trinidad and Jermain Taylor. It's about time they fought each other, but I think they waited too long. These guys should've fought when they were both younger then it would have been more interesting. These guys are best known for their defense than their offense and for them to have an exciting fight, their opponents should be the one pushing the action to them. In other words, they do good when faced against offensive fighters like Felix Trinidad, for example. But what would happen when two defensive geniuses are faced against each other? I think they would just be defending against each other, but one of them has to push the action. Although this might be a good match-up, I don't think this will be an exciting fight (although it will be more exciting than Mayweather's fights). If you were a fan of both fighters in the past then you would watch it, but for casual fans looking for action, just watch the replay. I don't expect a knockout, but a decision and I think Winky will take the decision. He is the younger fighter and maybe faster considering that Hopkins is getting old. Nonetheless, expect a very technical fight much like playing chess. Winky Wright by unanimous decision.

Erik Morales vs. David Diaz, does Morales still have it?

First of all, I respect Erik Morales for his always exciting performance around the ring and his classic bouts with Marco Antonio Barrera and Manny Pacquiao. He is a great fighter who always gave his all inside the ring and is a very tough opponent to beat. His recent trilogy with Manny was one of the best. However, his loss has been accumulating lately and everyone seems to believe he is a washed-up fighter. His latest bout will be against WBC Lightweight champ David Diaz whom I should say that I haven't seen any of his fights, to be honest. But despite what the public thinks, I still think Morales still has it and I hope he wins this fight. It's true that he had a hard time making weight in superfeatherweight so lightweight should be good for him. If he boxes smart and don't brawl like he did with Manny Pacquiao then he will win this one (although Erik CAN brawl, it's best to be on the safe side). Don't get carried away Morales and Viva Mexico!

For more info, check out TopRank's website.

Cotto vs. Williams?

Photo courtesy of Eastsideboxing.com.

We all thought that Antonio Margarito and Miguel Cotto were destined to fight each other and both of their roads in boxing is bound to cross each other for sure. However, now that Antonio Margarito has been dethroned by Paul Williams, is that possible match-up no so far away? I don't think so. Paul Williams vs. Miguel Cotto might now be highly possible, but so is Margarito vs. Cotto. Everybody wants that fight and Margarito will be looking to redeem himself either with a rematch against Paul Williams or a new championship title shot with Miguel Cotto. I'll be expecting one of those match-ups to be announced...

UFC 75 will be on Spike TV!

UFC 75 entitled Champion vs. Champion is going to be shown on Spike TV this September 8 at 9 pm. As I mentioned on a previous article before, the venue is still in England and we might be getting a delayed telecast, but I don't think that's going to happen. I was expecting this to be a big pay-per-view material, but instead UFC gives all of its fans a treat by showing this on cable TV's Spike! I expect all UFC fans out there to be watching this since it's on Spike (and you better be) which has been the home network of the Ultimate Fighting Championships. Tons of info on Fighthype.com about the event (too much for me to summarize here) so feel free to check them out (tell them I sent you).

Paul Williams decisions Antonio Margarito!

Photo from Fightnews.com.
Antonio Margarito, the reigning WBO champ, has been dethroned! Paul Williams pulled of what I wasn't expecting, which was a win over Antonio Margarito. Both fighters were busy throughout the fight, but the judges saw Paul Williams being the better fighter and gave him the unanimous decision. Bad evening for me since all the fighters I was going for lost, but it is good to see that there is some very good competition on the lower weight classes. It turns out that Antonio Margarito won't be meeting Miguel Cotto, after all. Look forward for a highly possible match-up between Cotto and Williams.

Alfonso Gomez knocks out Gatti in the seventh, Kermit Cintron wins by knockout over Walter Matthysse on the second!

Photo from Fightnews.com.

It seems that Arturo Gatti should be considering retirement. After seven six rounds of fighting, Alfonso Gomez finally broke Gatti down and won by knockout on the seventh round! Considering that Gatti is way past his prime and have been having a very hardtime with his recent opponents, I don't think he should continue. Alfonso Gomez, on the other hand, has a lot in front of him after beating Arturo Gatti and he should be looking for bigger fights. Update: Fightnews.com says that Arturo Gatti is, in fact, hanging up his gloves as he told HBO after the fight.

In another fight this evening, Kermit Cintron demolishes Walter Matthysse in only two rounds! After knocking Matthysse out in the first round, he proceeded to knock him out on the second round eventually winning the fight.

Arturo Gatti vs. Alfonso Gomez and more! (Weigh-in and photo updates for the upcoming fights tonight)

Weigh-in and photo updates from HBO Boxing (Check them out for more photos):

• Gatti 146 lbs - Gomez 147 lbs

• Margarito 145 lbs - Williams 145 lbs

• Cintron 146 lbs - Matthysse 147 lbs

All fighters made weight, but what will really matter tonight, though, is how ready each fighter is and their weights when they go inside the ring.

On July 14 on HBO World Championship Boxing, long-time fan favorite and determined fighter, Arturo Gatti, will be facing The Contender's Alfonso Gomez. Gatti (40-8, 31 KO's) recently lost to Carlos Baldomir in their fight and is looking to bounce back against Alfonso Gomez, also a tough opponent. Alfonso Gomez (16-3-2, 7 KO's) recently fought in The Contender UK vs. USA and the way this guy fights is exciting. Both Gomez and Gatti are relentless fighters always on the offense and both of them also have good defense. Unfortunately, Gatti is past his prime and I don't think he has that same amazing footwork he had in his legendary trilogy with Micky Ward, while Alfonso Gomez is a hungry fighter looking to raise his status in the boxing world by defeating Gatti. I think it is safe to say that this fight will be an exciting one considering that Gatti is involved and Alfonso Gomez is also an offensive fighter. My prediction: because of more experience and more quality opponents, Gatti by a late round knockout, or unanimous decision if he runs out of gas.

Another fight on the same card will be Antonio Margarito (34-4, 24 KO's), current titleholder, against an undefeated Paul Williams (32-0, 24 KO's). I know that Antonio Margarito has been a very exciting fighter and has a lot of possible fights before him (Floyd Mayweather Jr., Miguel Cotto) he must face a difficult opposition in the form of Paul Williams first. Not much is known, in my case, for Paul Williams besides his undefeated record and his only good opponent has been Sharmba Mitchell whom he knocked out, this guy is untested and his true test will come when he fights Margarito. I tend to favor more experinced fighters than undefeated ones (except in their line-up and quality of past opponents) so my prediction is going to be Antonio Margarito by late round knockout or unanimous decision.

Kermit Cintron (27-1, 25 KO's) will also be fighting Walter Matthysse (26-1, 25 KO's). According to HBO, "these fighters are known for their impressive knockout power and heavy hitting styles" so look for an explosive fight and a knockout on this one. (Picture taken from BoxingScene.com)

Fernando Vargas vs. Ricardo Mayorga on Sept. 8

So both these guys dubbed "Boxing's Bad Boys" have agreed to fight each other on September 8 at the Staples Center in LA. Both fighters are going to be fighting at the 162 lb division and Don King is promoting it. This has got to be one of the most bizarre match-up I have ever seen so far. Both these guys have been showing a lot of sh*t-talking and no backing it up in the ring. Vargas lost to Shane Mosley twice and Ricardo Mayorga was famous for being defeated by Oscar De La Hoya when he wasn't in his prime. Sure they were good fighters once, but that was before they faced the best. There's going to be a lot of press conference brawls between these guys as we have seen in their history and maybe that's going to be the part that I will enjoy the most. Fightnews.com already has the latest about their first presscon (or brawl) which was a very big disaster. The trash talking was started by Mayorga and finished by Vargas via a right hand to the face. Nonetheless, I think it's going to be an interesting fight considering these guys are brawlers in the ring, but they never really back up all their talk. Either way, I still want to see the results and I see Vargas winning by an early round KO since he has the better defense (lasted longer against Felix Trinidad and Oscar De La Hoya). More on Boxinginsider.com. (Photo courtesy of Fightnews.com.)

Update: More info and more pics of the press conference brawl here.

Vic Darchinyan moving up to superflyweight?

Former flyweight champ Vic "Raging Bull" Darchinyan is now back on Australia after his loss, Fightnews.com says, and he says he might be moving up to superflyweight because he "weighs too much". I don't know if that's true or not, but Nonito Donaire moved down to Vic's division and then beat him, and now Vic is moving up? This is a risky move for him since he might lose his power and speed which helped him rule the flyweight division and now his moving up to Nonito's territory. Maybe they will make the rematch at superflyweight which might be an advantage for Nonito Donaire. If what Vic Darchinyan says is true, then it'll be interesting to see what his performance will be. (Photo from doghouseboxing.com.)

Savant Young loses to Ryan Schultz by decision!

I got home late yesterday and I only caught about 30 minutes of IFL Battlegrounds which airs every Monday here on my local channel. The show pits one MMA team against another and who ever wins move closer to the finals. Last night was Tokyo Sabers against the, I think it was the Portland Wolfpacks, and the last fight was Savant Young against Ryan Schultz. Both fighters were cautious and the crowd ended up booing them. Schultz got Young with a vicious hook before backing up and Savant answers with a punch of his own that missed. The second round found the two fighters on the ground, but neither of them could break each other's defenses and ended up standing again and being cautious which brought them more boos from the crowd. Third round brought an exciting turnaround as Schultz dominated Savant Young on the ground, but Savant wouldn't be submitted. The fight went to the judges with Schultz decisioning Young.

Klitschko TKO's Brewster out in the sixth!

Wladimir got his revenge on the rematch when Brewster's corner stopped the fight during the sixth round. This means that a trilogy is possible between both fighters. I don't follow the heavyweight division much these days and maybe the next rematch of this fight might be worth watching. More info on HBO Boxing...

Nonito Donaire knocks Vic Darchinyan out on the fifth!

It turns out that Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire (18-1, 11 KO's) really lives up to his ring name when he knocked out the heavily favored Vic "Raging Bull" Darchinyan now 28-1, with 22 KO's! I was really hoping for Nonito to win this fight since he is my countryman, but my prediction was for Vic and now he has exceeded expectations! Turns out that the Philippines now has a legitimate World Champion (Manny only has the International Super Featherweight title). Nonito Donaire avenged his brother's knock out at the hands of Darchinyan with a fifth round knockout of the now former champ and he also schooled him with his boxing skills. The knockout punch was a left hook. Good for Philippine boxing! More info at Philboxing.com.

Edit: Turns out that hours earlier before Nonito's win, Florante "The Little Pacquiao" Condes also won his match against Munammad Rachman becoming the new IBF Miniflyweight Champ.

UFC 73: Stacked Results!

Before the results, let me list my prediction of fighters to win on the main card (sorry, it doesn't include preliminary):

Antonio Nogueira by submission. (Antonio is a master of jiu-jitsu and he won't be submitted to either.)

Anderson Silva by unanimous decision. (No comments here, hard to predict the outcome.)

Sean Sherk by decision. (Hermes Franca is a very tough opponent and I don't think he'll be knocked out.)

Rashad Evans by split decision. (It takes a lot to knock Ortiz down.)

(Forgot about Kenny Florian, but I was going to pick him anyway.)

Now for the REAL results on tonights fights:

Noguiera wins by unanimous decision! (Good start, but his performance might not be good enough otherwise there would have been a submission.)

Sean Sherk wins by unanimous decision over Franca. (See? Franca is a tough opponent.)

Tito Ortiz and Rashad Evans had a draw! (Not enough training for both of them or their scared of each other.)

Anderson Silva TKO's Nate Marquardt! (Better performance than expected!)

Kenny Florian TKO's Alvin Robinson. (Well, Kenny Florian is a good fighter.)

Now let's all look forward to UFC 74!

Fight results were taken at: OnlyUFC.com, check there for more detailed results including the preliminaries.

Vic Darchinyan vs. Nonito Donaire Jr., will Nonito get his revenge?

Vic Darchinyan defeated Glenn Donaire via a technical knockout due to a broken jaw which Glenn claims it was because Darchinyan elbowed him. Now little bro is out for revenge against Darchinyan! Does he have a chance? Judging by his record alone, I don't think so, but his brother Glenn's performance against Darchinyan wasn't all that good. Glenn was the one who told the referee to stop the fight because of his injury which means that he doesn't have heart. Glenn was clearly overcome by Vic's power. Now if Nonito has heart and boxing skills, I think he has a chance. Vic isn't very good when it comes to skills, but he is strong and fast. Although Nonito is my countryman, Vic Darchinyan has a higher percentage of winning, but I do hope Nonito wins and brings the Philippines its true first legitimate World Champion. More at Maxboxing.com. (Picture from Eastsideboxing.com)

Floyd Mayweather Jr., Miguel Cotto, Manny Pacquiao, Randy Couture, and Quniton Jackson, nominees for ESPY Best Fighter Award

You got that right, according to MMA-News.org, it's "best fighter" now and not "best boxer". ESPN's yearly award for the best athletes of the previous year has changed its category to include mixed martial arts fighters for the first time. Randy Couture and Quinton Rampage are the first MMA fighters nominated along with boxers Manny Pacquiao, Miguel Cotto, and Floyd Mayweather Jr. Proof that MMA is mainstream and both Couture and Jackson have a chance at winning the award becoming the first MMA fighters to do so. Couture got nominated because of his victorious comeback fight with UFC heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia. Jackson, as every UFC or MMA fan for that matter already know, got nominated because of his first round knockout of Chuck Liddell when nobody was able to do so. Mayweather because of his fight with Oscar, Pacquiao because all of his fights are exciting, as is the case with Cotto. It's going to be interesting if an MMA fighter wins the award. For more info and the ESPY awards ceremony schedule go to MMA-News.org.

Wladimir Klitschko vs. Lamon Brewster Rematch

Although I don't follow the heavyweight division all that much these days, I'm hoping that this match will be well worth watching. Brewster knocked out Klitschko on the fifth during their last fight which was on April 10, 2004 and now, Wladimir is looking for revenge. Since Wladimir's defeat he has been on a winning streak, but will he be able to keep it? If he trained well as his trainer, Emmanuel Steward, is saying, then he might or Brewster might win again although I don't see an early round knockout. The fight is scheduled on July 7 on HBO WCB.

Ultimate Fighter 5 Finale main bouts!

Sorry for forgeting, but this article was supposed to be here yesterday. On the Ultimate Fighter 5 finale, BJ Penn stops Jens Pulver at the second round via a rear-naked choke. BJ Penn dominated Pulver throughout the rounds, Pulver came out strong evading two attempts by Penn to submit him, but eventually gets choked out. Nate Diaz wins against Manvel Gambaryan due to Gambaryan not being able to continue because of a dislocated shoulder on round 2. For more on the fight, click here.

Felix "Tito" Trinidad is coming back!

It seems that after a long two years off from boxing, Felix "Tito" Trinidad is coming back! Fightnews.com says that his dad has confirmed his comeback and his prospective opponent will be Roy Jones Jr. who also expressed interest in fighting him (more here). Now, Tito during his prime, was a very tough and strong boxer with explosive punches, although lacking in boxing skills as shown by Bernard Hopkins. However, after a long layoff from boxing, does he still have it? I think he might still have punching power, but I also think it is not going to be what it used to be. What he might lack in power, I hope he makes up for with skills or with just harder training. This does not realy count as good news, but I think it will be good for boxing. It will generate some interest, but let's just leave it at that.

Golden Boy Promotions' and Top Rank's settlement over Manny Pacquiao

Finally the war is over. I first thought that this was going to be bad for Pacquiao, but now, it only made a lot of fights possible for him. On October 6 Manny Pacquiao fights and he fights Marco Antonio Barrera! Although he already beat him during their first fight via an 11th round TKO, Pacquiao says Barrera is still going to be dangerous. Fans are still going to want to see this fight though and that includes me. Although I believe most will favor the PacMan, Barrera will come out strong seeking for revenge. The fight venue will be at Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas.

Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez is also now a possibility and I would like to see the new and improved PacMan get another fight with the guy that he knocked out 3 times and then had a draw with.

Besides all these, imagine all the possible fights with both Top Rank's and Golden Boy Promotion's talent-rich roster of fighters and you'll know what I mean! It might just be a good year for boxing after all, with UFC also buying out Pride and making superfights, boxng fans also have their own version. Hopefully it will all come out good. To see more of this news and some possible match-ups visit this site.

Evander Holyfield wins against Lou Savarese!

Old-timer, 44 year old Evander Holyfield still has it in him as he won via unanimous decision over opponent Lou Savarese! He knocked him out two times! I think this guy really is serious on going for the championship again. Although he wasn't what he used to be, I think he might still have one last fight in him, just like Rocky VI. More info here.

UFC 75: Jackson vs. Henderson!

Yup, that's right. UFC 75 is going to be a mega fight between two reigning champs in two different MMA organizations (although UFC acquired Pride). Quinton Jackson is the current UFC light heavyweight champ and Dan Henderson is the current Pride 83 kg and 93 kg champ (you do the conversion, I suck at math). This is going to be a greatly anticipated fight and I am willing to put this here before UFC 74's Couture vs. Gonzaga. The event is going to be in London on Sept. 8 at the O2. Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic from Pride will also be fighting against Cheick Kongo. For more info, go here.

UFC 73 really is stacked!

I just went to Sacramento this summer to visit my uncle who is an avid UFC fan. We had to leave early because we still had to visit my cousin in Long Beach, now that I'm here in Las Vegas, I find out that UFC 73 was going to be in Sacramento. What the f%$k!? If I knew that when I was there then I would've stayed! Now my uncle gets to watch it all by himself!

Anyway, since I can't go there due to appointment restraints, I'm just going to have to talk about it. UFC 73: Stacked really is stacked as the name suggests. Although the fight I'm most looking forward to is between former Pride fighters Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Heath Herring, Anderson Silva vs. Nathan Marquadt will be a good one. Both guys have a lot of experience and fought against good oppositions. Current UFC and Cage Rage middleweight champ Silva defeated Rich Franklin, Carlos Newton, Hayato Sakurai, and Jeremy Horn while Nathan is a seven-time world champion for King of Pancrase middleweight division. Although both have tons of fights under their belt, I'm leaning towards a win for Silva.

Another fight is between Sean Sherk who defeated Kenny Florian to win the UFC lightweight title and Hermes Franca former WEC and AFC Lightweight champion. Both fighters have fought fairly good opponents and also have many years of experience. Although I would say that Sherk has the most experience and is older than Franca by a year, but I doubt that would make a difference. Sherk has fought and won against Nick Diaz, but lost against Georges St. Pierre and Matt Hughes. Franca has fought and won against Nathan Diaz (brother of Nick Diaz) and Ryan Schultz. I think Sherk will come out as the victor in this one as he is the more experienced guy who fought higher quality opponents.

Tito Ortiz will be fighting again versus Rashad Evans, TUF 2 heavyweight winner. I think Tito is starting to go down on his career already having a dissappointing performance against Chuck Liddell. The way he fights just doesn't excite me. He relies too much on striking and is not even good at it looking at the way Chuck Liddell beat him. Rashad Evans seems an "OK" fighter, but that's all I see in him. He's just an average fighter, but with a good determination rose up the ranks. I think Tito will take this fight because he has way more fight experiences with quality opponents while Evans only has Sean Salmon.

As for the Nogueira vs. Heath Herring? I'm definitely going for Nogueira. I've seen him fight strong opposition in Pride and the guy is a genius when it comes to jiu-jitsu and already has a win against Heath Herring. Herring has lost to him twice and also have losses against Fedor Emelianenko, Vitor Belfort, and Mirko Filipovic. I just want to see how Nogueira performs in the UFC for this fight seeing as he's new to the organizaton.

Overall, this event is filled with exciting match-ups and will be worth your money. We're starting to see Pride fighters in the UFC and I'll be looking forward to the Chuck Liddell-Wanderlei Silva if it ever happens and Fedor Emelianenko, too. For more info, go here.

Boxing provides a second chance for pugilists to become scholars

I recently heard from the Philippine news that Manny Pacquiao was going back to college. Wow, I said to myself, he's finally putting his hard-earned cash to good use instead of wasting it all on politics or gambling. That got me thinking, boxers get into the sport because of poverty early on in their life and instead of going to school, they train. They become successful, earn a lot of money (more than enough to pay for education), spend it all on some blings, girls, alcohol, or any other vices and then go broke.

Some people are born smart, but most of us need to go to school to be smart. The world is harsh and it doesn't take pity on anybody. A boxer might take a lot of punch, but out in the world, things are not just like boxing. If you don't know how to carry yourself in the real world then people are going to take advantage of you.

I've heard about how MMA guys have college degrees and good jobs before going into the sport and that's what I like about that sport. They are already well-off and not living off on MMA alone. Boxer's, on the other hand, do it backwards. Since they start off from poverty and can't go to school early in their life, they start off with boxing first. However, when they become successful, I believe they should go back to school: the thing that they were denied when they were young.

I know this doesn't apply to all boxers out there (Juan Diaz, for example, who goes to college), but that is what boxing is famous for: an escape from poverty. Lots of young minds are attracted to the sport because of its promise to take you out of the slums when you get good enough even without education. Most boxing stars come from poor countries (Manny Pacquiao and Erik Morales, for example) But you can't go long without education. (I, myself, don't like school, but it is necessary.)

Your boxing career won't last forever and you must capitalize on it while you can. It is a dangerous sport where one can get a lot of damage, short and long term. It's gonna be hard on your body and if one can't go on anymore, education can open new doors.

Ricky Hatton knocks Jose Luis Castillo out in the 4th round!

I was expecting too much from Castillo as he got knocked out by the visibly faster and younger Ricky Hatton during the 4th round. The punch that knocked him out was a left hook body punch by Ricky Hatton. Both fighters made a good performance, but Hatton was the better man when he stepped on the ring. Castillo could have done more, in my opinion, but I think he just gave up. Ricky Hatton, on the other hand, really did his homework and overcame Castillo. More info at Fightnews.com. More photos here.

Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton vs. Jose Luis Castillo this Saturday!

On the aftermath of UFC 72 comes HBO Boxing's pay-per-view event slated for June 23, 2007 between undefeated Ricky Hatton and hard-punching, iron-chinned, Jose Luis Castillo. Unlike Pretty Boy Floyd, Ricky Hatton has expressed his desire to fight the current top boxers in his division and plans on establishing a legacy. The current guy on his list is Jose Luis Castillo who, in my opinion, has an outstanding chin and will be very hard to knock out. Although his last fights were against questionable opposition, Juan Urango included, this will be the hardest fight for him since Kostya Tszyu.
Jose Luis Castillo, on the other hand, has had a lot of tough fights. His first war with Diego Corrales was Fight of the Year for 2005 with Pacquiao versus Morales close behind. I thought he would've won his fight with Diego if he hadn't ran out of gas on the last minute. Although he lost by TKO, Diego wasn't able to put him on the canvas. Castillo on the other hand did it twice. This square-jawed fighter will be very hard for Hatton because he is a pressure fighter and is not afraid to go toe-to-toe with anyone.
My predictions? Jose Luis Castillo is an old fighter while Ricky Hatton is a younger one. I don't see any reason Hatton can knock this guy out, but Castillo might knock Hatton out. Either way, it's going to be a hard fight and I see Jose Luis Castillo coming out by a late round knockout or a decision if he plays his cards right (body punches and make weight!). Otherwise, the younger Hatton might overcome him. More info here.

Rich Franklin decisions Yushin Okami at UFC 72!

Yushin Okami lost via unanimous decision to his opponent Rich Franklin on UFC 72's main event. Rich kept attacking Okami during the first two rounds and during the third he was caught in an armlock by Okami. He escaped the armlock and fought Okami to a unanimous decision. Although Rich won, I would have preferred a knockout win, but his performance was good. I, myself, am Asian and would have been happy if Okami won, but you can't deny the fact that Franklin had better opponents than him. On the co-main event, Forrest Griffin wins by unanimous decision over his opponent Hector Ramirez. Tyson Griffin wins by split decision over Clay Guida, Stevie Lynch and Colin Robinson both lost via knockouts. More info here.

UFC 72 coming up this Saturday

So UFC 72, the third UFC event to happen in England, takes place tomorrow. The main card is Rich Franklin versus Yushin Okami. I never really paid much attention to these fighters, but according to what I read from Wikipedia.org, he has a win against Ken Shamrock and he won his last fight against Jason MacDonald. Yushin Okami, on the other hand, is a newcomer to the Ultimate Fighting Championship and is currently undefeated in the organization. Seeing as I don't know much about these fighters, my prediction might be off. But I'm leaning towards Rich Franklin in this fight because he has more experience and had tougher opponents. For more info about the fight and the undercards, visit this site.

Boxing's woes, MMA's gains (Part Two)

It's hard to teach an old dog new tricks and maybe that is true for boxing. But old things also have a lot of rich history that new things can learn from.

MMA maybe gaining in popularity, but it's a fairly new sport while boxing was there even before my great grandfather was born. It has also made its contribution in history with popular historic figures like Muhammad Ali. We have come to know some historic bouts from the sport like the Ali-Frazier, Gatti-Ward, Hagler-Hearns, and other famous trilogies. We have also come to know the bad boys in boxing like Oscar De La Hoya and Mike Tyson who is now a house hold name despite his infamous acts outside the ring. MMA still doesn't have those. On the other side, mixed martial arts is more on the modern side and is now attracting modern fans while boxing is stuck in its past. Boxing fans compare modern fighters to past fighters while UFC and other organizations are making their own history with their current line-up of modern fighters that their fans can't compare to anybody in the past.

One thing that boxing also lacks is media distribution. While UFC, Pride, and King of the Cage have fight DVD's that fans can own and watch when they want, boxing only has pay-per-views and your good ol' VCR to record those. Alas, VHS tapes can be bulky and some of us are too lazy to record it. There are some websites that do sell boxing fight DVD's, but they are limited and it would be better if there was an official boxing DVD seller like maybe HBO or something? Or each promoter could sell the fights they have promoted on DVD's.

Bottomline: it would greatly help if boxing, like MMA, catered to the younger generation and stopped looking at what has already passed. Take advantage of what is popular to the fans and what the fans like and maybe it'll gain more. Follow mixed martial arts' example of promotion. This is my take on this matter. Please feel free to post opinions.

Miguel Cotto TKO's Zab Judah!

As expected, Miguel Cotto dominated Zab Judah in the later rounds with the referee eventually stopping the fight at the eleventh round. Zab Judah came out strong during the early rounds and Cotto was penalized for low blows, but he eventually took control on the late rounds slowly breaking Zab's body down. Zab was good, only Cotto was better. This fight opens up an opportunity for Miguel Cotto to fight whoever wins the Antonio Margarito versus Paul Williams WBO Championship bout. My prediction for the Margarito bout would be a win by Margarito over the undefeated Paul Williams maybe via decision. That would make a great match-up possible between Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito. More info at : http://www.boxingscene.com/index.php?m=show&id=9008.

Manny's brother KO'd by Humberto Soto on the seventh!

Lot's of exciting fights this week including the just finished Cotto-Judah fight with Miguel Cotto coming out the victor. While some of you were watching this fight, Manny "Pac Man" Pacquiao's brother, Bobby Pacquiao, fought against a prospective opponent for Manny in the form of Humberto Soto. Bobby fought valiantly, but he couldn't win against Soto who knocked him out in the seventh. In my opinion, there is no doubt now that Humberto Soto is Manny's next opponent with their promoter, Top Rank, setting up a "brother's revenge" kind of event and I'm sure people are going to want to watch this well-staged event by Bob Arum, Top Rank's top guy. More on this story at: http://philboxing.com/news/story-11143.html.

Boxing World Cup in Sacramento, California instead of the Philippines?

First of all, let me just say that I might be a bit biased since I am Filipino. However, it is a shame that the Philippines couldn't host the Boxing World Cup between them and Mexico. That would have been a great way to promote boxing to my country and maybe the rest of Asia, but due to a lot of financial problems we have not been able to host quite a significant event for boxing and a foreign country is instead hosting it. My wish now is that for my country to win most of the 7 bouts of the event in order to win the World Cup--sorry, Mexico. Although, I would be contented if Ray "Boom Boom" Bautista and Gerry Penalosa win their respective world title bouts against Daniel Ponce de Leon and Jhonny Gonzalez. That would mean great renewed interest in Philippine boxing besides Manny Pacquiao. The other bouts will be Filipino Bert Batawang against Mexican Francisco Rosas,Z Gorrez against a soon to be announced Mexican opponent, AJ Banal against another unknown Mexican opponent, and Philippine Bantam Weight Champ Michael Domingo against Miguel Roman. I wish the best for both countries and I hope nothing controversial will happen on this event. More news here: http://philboxing.com/news/story-11112.html.

The most exciting boxer is...Manny Pacquiao!

If pound for pound rankings were based on determination and fight quality this guy would be on the very top. I'm still going to place him on top of my P4P list since I don't judge by skill but by how a boxer performs in the ring. Manny "PacMan" Pacquiao's fights are worth every penny and everytime he fights, I buy. I would reccommend any casual fans to buy his fights. This guy has an enormous heart which is matched only by his monstrous stamina and explosive punching power. This guy ducks nobody and is relentless during his fights. His most defining fight is the trilogy with Erik "El Terrible" Morales an equally excellent boxer. Although he lost to him in their first fight via decision, he knocked the guy out in the next two. The only problem about his style is his defense. He has too much offense but his defense lacks a lot. Though his offense makes up for it, if he learns how to defend and box, he'd be almost unstoppable. Almost everybody know this fighter, but if you want to know more you can check this website out and its forums: http://www.mannypacquiao.ph. I have my eye on him and I will be posting some news about him from time to time. More recently, he just ran for congressman in his country and lost but, I'm not worried about that since boxing is his expertise---not politics. He is currently considering possible opponents to fight some of whom are: Joan Guzman, undefeated Edwin Valero, and WBC Superfeatherweight Champion Juan Manuel Marquez. I don't consider Marco Antonio Barrera a good opponent since he already beat him via technical knockout. Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank are also having a fight for promotional rights to him. He has a hectic life outside the ring, but hopefully it will all clear up before his next fight.

Boxing's woes, MMA's gains (Part One)

I have been following MMA for a while now along with boxing and I have noticed a few differences between the two. While UFC is enjoying a lot of success, boxing has been declining lately. I think one of the many reasons for the decline is the numerous number of alphabet organizations that plague the sport. WBC, IBF, IBO, WBA, etc. Imagine having 3 or more world champs in one weight class all claiming to be the best. That's bogus, unless all the belts are unified! And it's hard to get those good match-ups nowadays because of the promoters' and organizations' conflicts.
Meanwhile, UFC is buying out the other MMA organizations like PrideFC and unifying them under its banner. Thus, creating dream match-ups like Liddell vs. Jackson or now that that's done with, Liddell vs. Silva that otherwise wouldn't be possible. And did I mention that they only have one champ in each division? Also, boxing isn't so nice to its fighters with all the fees they have them pay to them while MMA fighters have college degrees and such so they don't depend on the sport too much unlike boxers.
While all these things bring down the sweet science, there are also good things to it that MMA doesn't or not yet has. Watch out for Part 2 of this post.

Miguel Cotto vs. Zab Judah

So the fight dubbed as "X-PLOSIVE!" is coming up this 9th of June on HBO Pay-per-view. WBA Welterweight Champion Miguel Cotto will defend his title against Zab "Super" Judah. The question is: Should I buy the fight? I have seen Cotto's fights and, to me, he is a very exciting fighter. In fact, he knocked out once undefeated Carlos Quintana in just five rounds in their fight for the WBA championship belt. I might just buy it for him, but I'm not sure about Judah. His last fight against Mayweather was just a big disaster and I hope he won't do it at this fight. During the last press conference for this fight, both fighters promised to win, but there's only one winner and we wouldn't like any draws. My prediction for this fight is a win by Cotto either by knockout or decision, but the knockout has a higher possibility. I'll be keeping my eyes and ears on this fight.

More info from HBO's website here: http://www.hbo.com/boxing/events/2007/0609_cotto_judah/news/announcement.html

UFC: 71 Chuck Liddell tastes the canvas!

Former UFC Light Heavyweight champion Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell tastes the canvas in his second meeting with the now new UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. I was going for Quinton Jackson, but I never knew he could do it so quickly. You can't just go in the octagon and expect to knock out The Iceman, the guy who has been on a winning streak and the champion, in just one round, but Rampage pulled it off!! Kudos to Jackson for winning this fight which opens up a lot of opportunities for him in UFC.

Watch their fight here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=9dG8bOHuEcE

Watch MMA on your local channel.

So there's this new mixed martial arts show on my local channel every monday. The show is called IFL Battlegrounds and it's two hours long or so. It's a team-based MMA competition where they faced other teams in a bracket-like format leading up to the championships. Each team is headed and coached by a professional MMA fighter like Ken Shamrock and Bas Rutten, for example. They also do coach superfights like the Jeremy Horn versus Matt Lindland fight I saw and it's on local TV. I think this is a very good move for the sport to reach to more audiences and get more fans who don't want to pay or subscribe to cable to watch fights. There's hardly any fight sport now on local television and I think that boxing should be considering this. So far, the only boxing I have seen on local TV is on the spanish channel called Telemundo or maybe it's not local, you be the judge. Tell me if I missed something. Here's their website if you want to check it out and also see what channel they are in your area: http://www.ifl.tv.

The World Awaits.....no more

A lot of people said that the De la Hoya-Mayweather superfight was going to save boxing. Did it? I don't think so. The fight was not that great and I think that it could have been better. How? Floyd Mayweather could have fought De la Hoya head on and not just run around blocking punches and counter-punching. He knows that people think he's a very skilled fighter, but they also think he's boring. I'm sad to say that includes myself. As for De La Hoya, he could have used his jab which was very effective against Mayweather. Nobody knows why he just stopped using it and that includes De La Hoya himself. I mean what the hell is with that? He doesn't know himself?? That's what he said during the interview and I don't believe it. The fight was also plagued with controversial decisions with some people saying De La Hoya should have won. The undercard with Ray "Boom Boom" Bautista winning a unanimous decision against Sergio Manuel Medina was way better than the main event. If this is the fight to save boxing, then boxing will continue to lose its fans.