Boxing Articles Magazine by jamie hooper

Is Audley Boxingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Brent?

Boxing Articles

Magazine

Free Issue No 1 March 2011

Does McCloskey Have a Chance?

Guest writers wanted If you are looking for a new way to get your wri ng no ced, this online magazine maybe just what your looking for. Its completely free and will be read by boxing fans world wide. Submit your ar cles for considera on to: editors@boxing-ar cles.com

Contents ⇒

“He who dares” - A look at Chisora’s tle shot -

⇒

Pugilism or Poli cs -

⇒

Audley Harrison: Boxings David Brent -

⇒

Lucian Bute: Canada’s Greatest -

⇒

Khan Vs McCloskey: Does McCloskey have a chance– JSG

⇒

Histoy : Jeﬀ Fenech -

⇒

Golden Boy’s Golden Boy -

Jasveer Singh Gill

Elliot Millward Jamie Hooper

Cain Bradley

Armando Paz Jasveer Singh Gill

Welcome Editorial I am always exploring new ways to present and promote the work on Boxing-Ar cles.com. This Emagazine will present highlights of the ar cles on the site plus extra material and features.

The magazine will be published at irregular intervals . Once a good amount of varied material has been gathered the magazine will be compiled.

The magazine will be published on the main site and also distributed through our ever growing mail list.

Enjoy

Jamie Hooper Editor

up stepped Chisora, living up to the “he who dares wins” philosophy

For those of you that don’t know, the moniker ‘Del Boy’ refers to the star of famous Bri sh comedy Only Fools and Horses.

The same man that David Haye pulled out of a ﬁght against was stuck for opponents just recently. A proposed bout against Russian prospect Alexander Povetkin collapsed when Povetkin did not even bother to a>end their press conference, whilst the likes of Haye, Samuel Peter and Nikolai Valuev could not be persuaded to sign a contract to ﬁght Wladimir Klitschko any me soon.

So up stepped Chisora, living up to the “he who dares wins” philosophy that his ‘Del Boy’ alias refers to. The TV show revolved around the Coming off a brilliant stoppage victolife of Derek ‘Del Boy’ Tro>er, a rogue hustler from the tough streets ry of Sam Sexton to take the Comof South London who plied his trade monwealth tle, Chisora has defiby selling anything he could get hold nitely looked like a very capable boxer. Just 14 fights into his career he of, living by the premise that he could get rich quick, with one of his has won the Bri sh tle and defeatmany mo>o’s being “he who dares ed former world tle challenger Danny Williams, also knocking out wins.” nine of his opponents. Dereck Chisora uses the nickname ‘Del Boy’ himself and it could not be Does this make him a worthy conmore apt tle for the north London- tender to fight for the IBF, WBO and the IBO interna onal heavyweight er. Chisora has taken an almighty gamble at making himself an over- tles? In the modern day heavynight millionaire by taking on the weight division it seems so. Whether man who has held the heavyweight Chisora is ready for a fight of this cal tle for over six years now: Wladimir ibre is another ma>er however. Klitschko.

press conference before their fight. Thus far Chisora has also Wladimir Klitschko himself has shown a solid chin, although he praised Chisora’s bravery for tak- has never faced anyone with the ing up the challenge so early in power that Wladimir Klitschko his career, but is courage enough has. He has though, shown conto defeat the huge Ukranian? siderable power of his own and Perhaps not, but Chisora posWladimir has previously shown a sesses a lot more then just cour- vulnerable chin. age. Klitschko can not but help to unAlthough lacking refined techderes mate Chisora, since no nical skill, Chisora has quali es that make him a difficult oppo- one has yet seen the true measnent for anyone. A fighter with a ure of what he is capable of. If fierce style, Chisora likes to press Chisora can avoid freezing on the his opponents and get on the in- night, as so many fighters have side where he can unleash big done when given their big ophooks and uppercuts. He has already stated he is looking to turn portunity, he may be able to pull this into an ugly fight and this is off the ul mate underdog upset. a man who only last year was And then everyone would know suspended for four months aFer who ‘Del Boy’ is. bi ng Paul Butlin on the ear. Chisora also knows how to rile opponents, memorably plan ng a forced kiss on Carl Baker during a

Wri en by: Jasveer Singh Gill

Boxing: Pugilism or poli cs world today and two all me greats, Mayweather and Pacquiao. Without matches such as these being made people become disenchanted with boxing and oFen stop following the sport. The ques on that is repeatedly asked is, why aren’t these fights happenIn recent mes the popularity of the ing? The answer given to these people is sport of boxing has decreased due to most probably ‘boxing poli cs’. But what many factors such as the rise of other reasons come under this term ‘boxing combat sports e.g. MMA, the number of poli cs’? ’world champions’ in each division and super fights not happening. The only In many cases it comes down to cold way that the sport can get back to being hard cash, boxers have to earn a living as popular as it has been in the past is and the best want to maximize their powith the best boxers in their weight divi- ten al financially. This is understandable sions figh ng each other. There are due to the nature of the sport and its many reasons why this some mes does dangers but with the money these fightnot happen, many different things can ers would make out of super fights many block the best fighters geGng in the ring people would believe they are being but oFen cited as the reason these su- greedy. per fights don’t happen is ‘boxing poliAnother issue in making a fight is the cs’. promoters nego a ng. OFen each proThere are many examples of these super moter thinks that their fighter is the bigfights that all boxing fans want to see ger draw, par cularly if they are both but two of the biggest that are s ll on- world champions and will try to gain going are David Haye vs. Wladimir more from the purse or the TV rights Klitschko and Floyd Mayweather vs. etc. This sort of financial wrangling can Manny Pacquiao. With the heavyweight easily lead to a fight being scrapped. Aldivision tradi onally the most glamorso with promoters they oFen like to ous weight division in boxing it is a trav- keep fights, ‘in house’, so they can make esty that two of the top three fighters more money, especially with big promohave not yet fought each other and s ll ons companies such as Top Rank and cannot be successful in nego a ons. Golden Boy Promo ons. One example of The biggest fight that hasn’t been made an ‘in house’ fight was the clash beand we may never see is between the tween Manny Pacquiao and Miguel top two pound for pound fighters in the

One more obstacle which oFen has to be overcome for a super fight to be made is with the boxing organiza ons such as the WBC, WBA and WBO, who all usually have different boxers ranked in their rankings and will oFen strip world champions of their belts if they want to try and unify their division by figh ng another world champion.

out of super ﬁghts many people would believe they are being greedy

Another issue in making a fight is the promoters nego a ng. OFen each promoter thinks that their fighter is the bigger draw, par cularly if they are both world champions and will try to gain more from the purse or the TV rights etc. This sort of fiWith all of these things oFen de-railing nancial wrangling can easily lead to a fight possible super fights it is easy to see why being scrapped. Also with promoters they many casual boxing fans become disenoFen like to keep fights, ‘in house’, so they chanted with the sport but there are also many examples of posi ve matches being can make more money, especially with big made in the sport. With fights such as Ser- promo ons companies such as Top Rank gio Mar nez vs. Paul Williams and Juan and Golden Boy Manuel Marquez vs. Michael Katsidis being made alongside the top names in the 140lb division figh ng each other and the ongoing Super Six super-middle tournament which contains most of the top names in the 168lb division. Although there are many posi ve aspects to the sport and many great fights being made, the sport desperately needs super fights such as Mayweather vs. Pacquiao and Haye vs. Klitschko to be made to capture the imagina on of the public and regain the popularity that the great sport of boxing once had. In many cases it comes down to cold hard cash, boxers have to earn a living and the best want to maximize their poten al financially. This is understandable due to the nature of the sport and its dangers but with the money these fighters would make

Wri en by: Elliot Millward

Craig Watson added the Bri sh welterweight tle to the trophy cabinet last week and ‘The Hitman’ insists Foster Jr’s belt is going nowhere, He said: “Steve showed he was world class knocking out Levan Kirakosyan to win the tle last year, and by taking that fight proved he would take on anyone. “Fega lli is the mandatory contender and there were no complaints when he was told he had to fight the leading contender before looking at a voluntary defence. RICKY HATTON is backing Stephen Foster Jnr to con nue Ha>on Promo ons magnificent winning run. Salford’s Foster Jr makes the first defence of his European super-featherweight tle against Ermano Fega lli in the Premier Suite at Bolton’s Reebok Arena on Saturday night (26th February). Ha>on Promo ons are currently the most successful promo onal ouMit in Britain with a stack of champions and young talent burs ng through.

“The European tle is bringing him overdue recogni on, but he can go even further in the future.” An obvious target is Scotland’s WBO champion Ricky Burns, but Japanese duo, WBC tle holder Takahiro Aoh and WBA king Takashi Uchiyama are also targets

Foster Jr is ranked 11 by the WBC djo Sassou who recently extendand 10 by the WBA and expects ed Sco> Quigg to rise even higher if he overTickets for’ Night of Champions’ comes the Fega lli factor. £35, £55 (Ringside) and £75 VIP Ha>on added: “It is all pre>y sur- Ringside, real because Steve has been a www.brandha>on.com 0844 847 close friend for years and we travelled around together as am- 2500 / 0161 775 7500 ateurs. “Fast forward a few years and I have serious hopes about promo ng him in a world tle fight. “I am so proud of all the lads I promote and Steve is no excep on.” In the chief support unbeaten St Helens fighter Craig Lyon makes the first defence of his English bantamweight crown against Barnsley’s Josh Wale. Former WBC super-middleweight champion Robin Reid makes a ring return on the bill when he boxes Jamie Ambler over four rounds. Unbeaten Bri sh Olympian Joe Murray faces his toughest test so far against Frenchman Daniel Ko-

Audley Harrison: Boxing’s David Brent

other boxing fan in the world thought that Audley Harrison was no longer a relevant name in the heavyweight division, again I was wrong. 2010 was to be a remarkable bounce back year for Audley culminating in his dream crack at world title. Winning Prizefighter put him back in the The similari es between Harrison domestic mix, but his next fight and Brent are not obvious at ﬁrst , would catapult him to the world stage. Winning his rematch with let me explain…... Sprott got him the EBU belt which In the early days I was one of his few has always been an excellent stepping stone to a world title shot. backers. I liked his skills, he had good hand speed, good shot selection, all he needed (I thought at the As a massive fan of boxing and as a massive fan of ‘The Office’ the partime) was some hard gym work to allels between Audley Harrison and get him ready for the world stage. David Brett were amusingly apparThere were glimpses of the fighter he ent. Ricky Gervias said if you take a could have been, in the second fight normal guy and take away selfawareness and add delusions of granwith Williams and in the first two rounds of his fight with Sprott. His deur you basically have David Brent progress was brought to an abrupt holt with a devastating knock out in .I think if you take a boxer and remove self-awareness and add deluthat same fight with Sprott. sions of grandeur you basically have Audley Harrison. At this stage I was still one of the very few writers that weren’t writing Brents ways eventually got him Audley off. I was wrong. He staged a sacked. Harrisons ways got him comeback that was ended by a defeat stopped inside three rounds by David Haye. from the then little known Martin Rogan, by this time me and every

Unlike David Brent, Harrison had so just yet. One more crack at his much conviction in his deluded self- dream. I wish him all the luck in the belief that he actually made some world. writers believe he had a chance. Which did wonders for selling tickets and bringing in TV money. Harrison’s delusions didn’t get him a world title but they certainly helped his retirement fund. Audley is not hanging up his gloves

“If you want the rainbow you have to put up with the rain” Dolly Parton

And people say she's just a big pair of tits.

Adver se here

Lucian Bute: Canada’s Greatest By: Cain Bradley

Jimmy Mclarnin. Sam Langford. Tommy Burns. Three of the most famous Canadian boxers ever. Two current boxers are primed to be the greatest Canadian Boxers ever. Weighing in within 7 pounds of each other a ﬁght between them would solidify their posi ons as great Canadian boxers. One was born in Hai and leF in 1986 for a be>er educa on and life. The other an amateur stand-out emigrated to Canada to launch his pro career. Lucian Bute was born in Perchea, Romania. 2 Years, 242 days later Jean Pascal was born in Port-au-Prince, Hai . Jean Pascal would leave Hai at 4, se>ling in Laval, Quebec just outside of Montreal. Lucian was the ﬁrst to enter a boxing gym. Aged 14 Bute ac-

companied a friend to a boxing gym and he 'fell in love with the sport'. Pascal was a keen hockey player when he was younger but when his brother won the Golden Gloves in 1996 Jean Pascal followed his brother to Club Champions St-Michel twice a week. Lucian Bute was the first to emerge on the world stage with a bronze in the 1999 world championships. Two years later both would experience their first major tournament gold medal. Lucian Bute and Jean Pascal would both take gold medals in the Francophone games held in O>awa. In 2002 aFer 260 bouts as an amateur Lucian Bute would turn professional.With offers on his plate from promoters in Germany, Canada and USA, Bute rung his friend Adrian Diaconu promoted by Canadian promoter Interbox and eventually decided that was the best op on for him.

Meanwhile Jean Pascal would be in London boos ng his creden als with a gold medal in the Commonwealth games. In 2003 Lucian Bute made his professional debut with a TKO. He followed this up with four stoppage victories before the summer of 2004. Meanwhile Jean Pascal was preparing for the Summer Olympics in Athens. Drawn in the side of the draw with top operators such as Andre Dirrell (Super six contestant and Olympic Bronze medallist), Marian Simion (World bronze, silver and gold medallist) , Gennady Golovkin (World champion and Olympic silver medallist), Karoly Balzsay (World Champion) and Yordannis Despaigne (Twice World bronze medallist). He would be knocked out in the ﬁrst round against Yordannis Despaigne losing 36-24. He would turn pro in 2005, signing an agreement with the other promoter in Canada - GYM!

Jean Pascal would have 5 fights in 2006 taking the WBA NABO tle against Jermain Mackey in his last fight of the year. Jean Pascal's 2007 would also be unbeaten with five fights against lesser opposi on all going his way.

Butes 2007 would be a big one. AFer a rou ne win against Tatevosyan, Lucian Bute would get an IBF eliminator set up for the summer of 2007. The Cameroonian Sakio Bika was to be his opponent. Lucian Bute would use his boxing skills to win a big unanimous up next. Up next would be IBF champion Alejandro Berrio. The fight, the first world tle fight in Quebec for five years, was edged by Bute with his vicious counters. He would proceed to brutally knockout Berrio in the 11th round. AFer 2 straight leFs Lucian Bute leF Berrio slumped in the corner bringing his first world tle They would both end 2005 unbeaten back to Canada. 2008 would be a big year for both boxers with Pascal aim- Lucian Bute with 15 fights - and Jean Pascal with 10 fights - and hold- ing for a world tle and Bute aiming to prove himself world class. ing a tle belt. Jean Pascal held the Canadian and Quebec Super Middleweight tles while Lucian Bute held NABA + NABF tles. Lucian Bute's 18th fight would be against James Toney. Not the incredibly talented one, the one famous for having his name! Lucian Bute became the first man to stop him in the eight round.

Jean Pascal would start 2008 against Omar Pi>man, a fighter who's biggest fight was against MMA fighter Chris 'Lights out' Lytle. Pascal would dominate with his speed but got caught in the eight round. He survived and won a unanimous decision. Lucian Bute would make the first defense of his IBf belt in February against former world champion, William Joppy. Joppy was a shadow of his former self in his late thir es and Bute dominated winning all rounds before the ref stepped in stopping it in the tenth. Both were rela vely quiet with only a fight each leF that year. Bute fought in October against Libradro Andrade. A tough Mexican who had never been stopped would be Bute's toughest test yet. Lucian Bute would dominate the fight for 10 rounds. In the 11th round through lack of stamina or will, Andrade begun to dominate. In the 12th round Andrade would beat Bute from pillar to post but Bute would only go down when ten seconds remained. Lucian Bute was struggling to beat the count, when at six the ref inexplicably stopped coun ng to tell Andrade to get to a neutral counter. Restar ng the count a six meant Bute could stagger to his feet using the ring ropes. The bell rung to signify the end of the fight and that Bute had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

To end 2008 Jean Pascal would get a shot at the vacant WBC tle against Carl Froch. Going into the December fight both would promise a 'war' and they would duly deliver. Only the final fight in the trilogy (I ignore the fourth) between Israel Vasquez and Rafael Marquez could pip them to the Ring fight of the year. The two would trade punches back and forth in an all-out war. Carl Froch would eventually get the win with a unanimous decision however Pascal had proved himself an incredible fighter, with great determina on, a good chin however a lack of stamina may have took the fight away from him in the last rounds.

2009 would see Jean Pascal move up 7 pound to the light heavyweight division. Lucian Bute would fight first against Fulgencio Zuniga, a talented fighter but seemed to lack that something special to win a world tle. Lucian Bute would hurt him early and he would win the fight by knockout in the fourth round.

Edison Miranda in the meanwhile would beat S eglitz in a number 1 contenders bout for his chance in a rematch against Bute. Jean Pascal would start his year in April against Pablo Nievas. He would easily defeat him and by the me 2009 ended he'd have fought three more mes, become WBC light-heavyweight champion and defeated Bute's stablemate Adrian Diaconu with two unanimous decisions. In the Bute - Andrade rematch Bute would take control and with a big body-shot he would finish Andrade in the 4th round. Last year Lucian Bute would begin by bea ng one of his best compe tors outside the Super six, which he was over-looked for despite being a tle holder, in Edison Miranda. In August that year Jean Pascal would a>empt to unify the tles in a fight between the number 1 & 2 light-heavyweights in the world. Chad Dawson would enter as favorite but Jean Pascal would use his movement and quick punches to win a wide decision. Lucian Bute would end his year with a bout against Jesse Brinkley. Lucian Bute was a level above Jesse Brinkley and it showed with a domina on which ended in a knockout. The most recent fight for either of them was Jean Pascal's fight with Bernard Hopkins. In his fight against the wily veteran, Pascal would knock Hopkins down twice but could s ll, only and in most people's eyes,

luckily get a draw. 2011 looks like being a be>er year for Pascal as a number of Bute's opponents are busy in the super six. Jean Pascal is likely to rematch Chad Dawson or Bernard Hopkins. Lucian Bute will fight Magee in his first fight of the year in a fight that will hardly prove his spot as the best super middleweight in the world. Bute is in dire need of a big name player to fire him into the upper echelons of world boxing. Jean Pascal would provide that. A fight in late 2011 or early 2012 would not be unlikely probably at a catchweight of around 170 with neither prepared to fully jump to the other's weight. The winner of this could take on the Super six winner in a fight which would doubtless launch the overall winner into the pound for pound top ten. Many Canadians believe that a fight between Pascal and Bute would pack out some of the bigger stadiums in the country. As well as this the rivalry between the two promo ng companies, GYM and Interbox, is tasty and a fight between two these two would be enjoyable. Lucian Bute is a southpaw, but Jean Pascal has dealt with a world class southpaw in Dawson. Bute is an a>acking fighter but Pascal will not back away from a fight as the Froch fight proved.

Lucian Bute is likely to try and knock him out or crunch him with a digging body shot. I can't see Bute knocking Pascal out however a body shot is enough to slow anyone down. A big thing during the fight might be Jean Pascal who gets worse at the end of a fight and Bute could expose this winning rounds late. The final factor in this fight is Lucian Bute's opposi on. Jean Pascal has had bigger fights and Lucian Bute might struggle with the higher class and the pressure. Overall I think in a slug fest Bute wins with a body shot or a decision won through the late rounds in which he takes the majority of!

Khan Vs McCloskey: Fight Brief Amir Khan

Paul McCloskey

Bolton UK, 1986-12-08 / age 24

Derry, NI,1979-08-03 / age 31

5′ 10″ , Reach 71”

5′ 8½″

24(17KO) - 1(1) - 0

22(12KO) - 0(0) - 0

Speed

Power

Defence

Intelligence

Stamina

Ability

What chance does McCloskey have against Khan? When Paul McCloskey was chosen as Amir Khan’s next opponent opinion was massively divided about what sort of compe on he would provide for Khan. According to whom you ask the fight will be either a quick blow-out in Khan’s favour, or the toughest test of his career to date. To some, McCloskey is a genuine contender with enough ability to cause an upset, to others he is a handpicked opponent with a decent record that will be nothing more than a tune up fight for Khan. As usual, the truth is somewhere in between. When looking at McCloskey’s chances to cause an upset the first thing that most boxing pundits would note is the massive step up in compe on this is for him. This is not to say that he has not fought decent opposi on however, as with names such as Colin Lynes (former Bri sh and European champion), Guiseppe Lauri (former European champion and holder of versions of the WBO, WBC and IBF tles) and Cesar Bazan (former lightweight world champion and opponent of Miguel Co>o and Jose Luis Cas llo) it is clear that McCloskey has not taken an easy route to a world tle shot. McCloskey has also beaten most of the top Bri sh contenders in the likes of Barry Morrison, Nigel Wright and Dean Harrison, which alongside his two defences of his European tle prove he is at least worthy of figh ng on the world stage. It is obvious though that Khan has fought at a more elite level. Names such as Paulie Malignaggi, Andriy Kotelnik and Marcos

Maidana have been in and around the light -welterweight top 10 for a few years now and Khan beat them all. The step up for McCloskey is undoubtedly massive and leaves fans wondering if he will not be unlike a certain Dimitry Salita, who had also built up a nice looking record only to be found severely wan ng at world class level against Khan. Salita was bewildered by everything in the build up to the fight. He was taken aback by the ferocity of the crowd, the razzmatazz of the pre-fight build up and most poignantly by Khan’s speed and power, which was of an ilk he had not previously encountered. Having fought in front of notoriously rowdy Irish crowds and been in the spotlight before for his Bri sh and European tle bouts, nerves should not be too much of a factor for McCloskey. At 31 years old, this is the perfect me for McCloskey to start figh ng at world level.

of the Bri sh light-welterweights (without men oning Ajose Olusegun which would However, there is no doubt McCloskey require a whole new ar cle). It was has never fought anyone that even comes thought Khan’s super-fast-tracked career close to matching Khan’s speed and box- had bypassed the Bri sh scene but this ing ability. McCloskey will be jumping in bout gives hope we could see him one at the deep end with this one, but he ac- day face other Bri sh contenders such as tually does have enough skill himself to John Murray or Kel Brook. allow us to believe he will be able to surThe fight is highly intriguing. You have the vive in deep water. young, interna onally recognised champiFirstly, McCloskey is a southpaw. Khan has on that has been highly touted since the not faced many southpaw fighters and age of 17 facing a man that has fought his none at the level that McCloskey is at. way up the rankings to get an opportunity Figh ng a southpaw is always tricky for an at the age of 31. orthodox boxer but Freddie Roach is certain to prepare Khan properly for this, yet Neither fighter has faced an opponent his stubborn display against Maidana like the other yet. Khan is facing a power(where he decided to brawl to prove a ful yet skilful southpaw, McCloskey is point about his chin which nearly cost figh ng someone of genuine world class him the fight) showed Khan can s ll some mes try to please the crowd rather caliber with super quick hands. Combine this with a feisty Bri sh crowd and whatthan s cking to a game-plan. ever the result, you can bet it will not be McCloskey is also quite skilled and powerboring. ful. He has shown true one-punch K.O ability with either hand and has proven adept at figh ng on the inside. He has beaten most opponents with pulverising hooks and uppercuts from that posi on whilst also shown he is great at slipping punches on the inside too. If there is anyway McCloskey can beat Khan it is by keeping the fight on the inside, otherwise Khan – with his superior reach and speed – will pick of McCloskey all night. McCloskey does also keep his hands quite low so there is a possibility he could eat Khan’s superb jab all day. However the fight goes, it is good to see Khan figh ng someone seen as the best

History

Jeﬀ Fenech: What Boxing History Never Recorded

If there were adjec ves to describe the figh ng style of Australian Boxing champion Jeff Fenech there all would be synonymous with aggression as: swarmer, inside figh ng, brawler, stalker etc. Fenech in many ways was like the old school fighter he grew up admiring; Roberto Duran. The ideal was simply to take the heart away from the opponent by physically imposing your will with non stop aggression, while ea ng their best punches and convincing them that you were impervious to being hurt. The fighter who would be known as the “Marrickville Mauler” would bum rush his opponent as soon the bell would ring for each round. Things simply couldn’t be fast enough for Fenech and that would be consistent with his career. AFer a disappoin ng and controversial semi-finals loss in the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, it was the inten on of Fenech and his handlers to make him the fastest professional fighter to win a world tle.

In 1985, at the age of 20; Fenech had achieved his first goal by bea ng Satoshi Shingaki of Japan in his 7th professional fight, and being the IBF Bantamweight champion only six months into his figh ng career, a record. The contest was a one sided affair that showed both the grit and determina on of the young Aussie. That was only the beginning as Fenech would beat Shingaki again, and than capture the Super Bantam tle in stunning fashion. AFer tes ng the canvas for the first me in his career in the first round, he would come back with a fury and stop Samart Payakaroon for the WBC Super Bantam tle. There seem nothing to stop the Fenech juggernaut when he won the vacant WBC Featherweight tle against Victor Callejas. It was another brawl fest as Fenech consistently fought shoulder to shoulder with Callejas in the ropes and in the middle of the ring. Most surprisingly, aFer the fight, Fenech claimed he won the fight with only one hand as he injured his right hand in training and had broke again in the second round of the fight. The son of Maltase immigrants was now coming closer to his big dream of being a champion of 5 different weight classes while being undefeated.

Unfortunately, his hands were so problema c that he took the en re year of 1990 off and played professional Rugby instead. AFer only 24 professional fights the future of Fenech was uncertain. Feeling his hands were recovered and missing the spotlight he would return to the ring. The second fight of his comeback would finally bring him to the United States against Super Featherweight champion Azumah Nelson. Fenech had his eye on the Ghanan fighter for a while and the fight in Las Vegas would have great publicity for several reasons. The fight would be the undercard for the Tyson vs. Ruddock rematch and Fenech was aiming to be the first boxer to be world champion in four different weight classes while being undefeated. At the me, only Duran, Leonard, and Hearns accomplished the feat, but had loss their zero before being a quadruple champion. It was an opportunity to prove naysayers wrong who felt that Fenech was just a product of figh ng in his sheltered home. They point to the one sided scores in fights that were much closer as the fight with Mexican Mario Mar nez who dropped Fenech in Round 6 and won most of the late rounds due to Fenech’s injured hands. In addi on, some thought the Marrickville Mauler was given impunity by referees aFer employing dirty tac cs as pushing, elbowing, tackling, and hiGng aFer bell. In their view, in a neutral country he wouldn’t be able to get hometown cooking and his lack of skill

would be more apparent. Dr. Bernie Pacheco felt that Fenech was made to order for Azumah Nelson as he was a sta onary fighter and only guys like Pernell Whitaker who had great movement could beat Nelson. AFerall, Nelson had beaten brawler and swarmer types before as Wilfredo Gomez, The only other fighter besides Sweet Pea to beat Nelson was legendary Mexican fighter Salvador Sanchez and that was in itself was a classic; with a young Nelson in 1982 with only 14 professional fights under his belt giving Sanchez almost all he can handle un l being stopped in the 14th round. When the day of June 28, 1991 came all the cynics and cri cs would be proven wrong. In front of a star studded crowd that included Clint Eastwood, Bruce Willis, Demi Moore, Thomas Hearns, Julio Cesar Chavez, and Michael Jordan the Aussie would gradually take control of the fight. The quest for being the first undefeated fighter to win four different weight classes didn’t start off well. Nelson was able to counter well and beat Fenech to the punch for most of the first two rounds. When Fenech would go to the body Nelson would counter with hooks to the head. But by Round 3, Fenech was able to land his right cross and short punches. Most importantly, he was able to corner Nelson on the ropes and punish him with body shots and hooks to the face.

The ac on in Round 4 was more or less the same with both fighters in the same loca on on the ropes trading their best ar llery. There were moments that Nelson looked his age of nearly 33, but the reality was it was more of a case of a fighter pressing the ac on and being hungrier. There would be no decrease of the pace as the rounds con nued. There seem to be urgency in Fenech in trying to stop the great Azumah Nelson. The dream of being a four weight class champion undefeated seemed to be inevitable aFer most observers thinking Nelson would need either a knockout or mul ple knockdowns to retain his tle aFer 10 rounds. The unofficial point lead didn’t give away to complacency as Fenech s ll went looking for a knockout. He even gave Nelson a rugby tackle and threw him on the canvas at the end of Round 10 which probably didn’t win him any points with the fans or the judges. When the opening bell of Round 12 came it would be ideal for a fighter way ahead in the cards to simply protect themselves and not take major risks. We remember how the great Roberto Duran simply mocked Sugar Ray Leonard and slipped and ducked punches to secure a thin lead in Round 15. Instead, Jeff Fenech would s ll come aFer Azumah Nelson with no led up in Round 12 and he would win the closing round to put icing on the cake for this 4th tle.

sion the highly emo onal Fenech showed great concern as this was an easy unanimous decision. The ﬁrst score was 115113 Fenech the next was 116-112 Nelson, and the ﬁnal score was 114-114 which made the bout a draw. AFer hearing of the score, Fenech was highly agitated and inconsolable. Even Don King tried to calm him down saying he had won many fans in America. The reality was that Fenech knew he was simply robbed. Dr. Pacheco who thought Nelson would win even scored it 117-111 Fenech. Most observers, had trouble giving Nelson 4 rounds let alone 6 rounds.

Nelson would later say that he was ill due to Malaria but never men oned it immediately aFer the fight. The impact of the fight on both Fenech and boxing history are much greater than some of the other notable ques onable draws in recent and past history. Even when Henry Armstrong was allegedly robbed against Ceferino Garcia on his quest for a 4th tle in a middleweight bout, the fight was much more compe ve. Garcia had closed strong enough to make case to retain his tle. The most preposterous draws in recent history as Lewis vs. Holyfield 1 or even Chavez vs. Whitaker didn’t have the same impact as the Fenech vs. Nelson bout. Lewis retained his tle and won the rematch. While given only a draw Whitaker retained his tle and was seen by the world as the first man to clearly have beatWhen Jimmy Lennon Jr. of Show me would read the infamous words Split Deci- en Chavez.

If Fenech had been given the decision he deserved he would have likely tried to go for a 5th tle at Lightweight. Of course, all of that would change when he met Nelson in the rematch and would suffer his first loss when he was knocked out in the 8th round and it be declared Ring Magazine’s upset of the year. Fenech never really was the same and his last try for a 4th tle against Philip Holiday for a Lightweight tle would end in a two round knockout loss. In 2008, in a sen mental but meaningless affair; he would win a unanimous decision against Azumah Nelson. In the future, only Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather Jr. would win tles in four different weight classes while being undefeated.

defeated, but it would never be recorded as it happened. When Fenech was inducted into the Interna onal Boxing Hall Of Fame in 2002, it seemed that some of the demons of the ﬁrst Nelson ﬁght were cast away, as he now a member of boxing immortality; and that is something no judge can’t take away.

The world of boxing seems to be a bit harsh on the young champions. Fighters like Mike Tyson, Wilfred Benitez, and Jeff Fenech usually hit their peak fast and are pass their prime before the age of 30. Fenech would turn his efforts instead to be a trainer. He would train fighters as notable as Vic Darchinyan, Sakio Biko, Nedal Hussein, and the final days of Mike Tyson’s career. Hussein would be remembered for dropping Manny Pacquiao with a s ff jab and almost knocking him out in Round 4 of their fight. Fenech felt the referee saved Pacquiao by giving a long count and allowing him to hold on while not separa ng their fighters. Hussein would elbow Pacquiao to get him off and than referee Carlos Padilla would take a point away from Hussein. Pacquiao would survive the round and eventually win by stoppage in the 10th round. Boxing history was suppose to record Jeff Fenech as the first fighter to win tles in four different weight classes while being un-

By: Armando Paz

Golden Boy’s Golden Boy: How Will Saul Alvarex Fair Golden Boy Promo ons have been nothing onal magic. but good for boxing. However, they have When these young fighters make a name not been so good for young boxers they for themselves with great showings as unpromote. dercard bouts Golden Boy CEO Richard Victor Or z, Alfred Angulo, Daniel Jacobs Schaefer has tended to want to try and cash and many other excellent boxing prospects straight in by making young prospects billhave all found that they were thrown in far topping fighters as quick as he can. too readily against opponents that they were actually far from ready to fight. Devas- Golden Boy Promo ons, with the ‘Golden ta ng defeats followed, making the road to Boy’ Oscar De La Hoya himself at the helm, have become one of boxing’s most powerthe top just a li>le bit longer for all three ful promo on companies. With names such fighters. as Bernard Hopkins, David Haye and Amir It is not just these three either. Juan ‘Baby Khan figh ng under their banner, it is clear Bull’ Diaz and Jorge Linares were both to see the firm have taken a firm grip on brought along as ‘the next big thing’ before boxing promo on. being dumped in against an opponent with too much power and experience for them. Yet De La Hoya’s biggest asset as a promotOthers, such as Abner Mares, James La Rosa er has so far also been his biggest downfall. and Craig McEwan, have all come very close to losing having taken a big step up in class once Golden Boy had worked their promo-

His popularity in the La n market has meant De La Hoya has been able to convince all the ho>est prospects from the La n quarters of North and Central America to sign with his promo on company. Conversely, this popularity means that he can build a big reputa on quickly for these ﬁghters, which has seen fans clamour for them to be tested, only for them to fail the tests. Victor Or z was famously beaten in a war of a>ri on by Marcos Maidana which famously led to him talking about the boxing game perhaps not being for him in his post -ﬁght interview. Alfred Angulo was badly overmatched by the ultra-powerful and experienced Kermit Cintron, geGng beaten via a unanimous decision. Daniel Jacobs was perhaps the only one that just simply may have been exposed against a less experienced but far more well rounded opponent in the Russian, Dmitry Pirog, whom brutally KO’d Jacobs in the 5th round.

Chavez’, as at this age and with so many fights already ‘Canelo’ (Spanish for cinnamon because of his red hair) should only get be>er. Alvarez is due to fight Ma>hew Ha>on in early March. Whilst Ha>on, unlike his more famous brother Ricky, may lack the power, speed or aggression that has previously seen other Golden Boy prospects gain what is usually their first loss, he does have a lot of experience and ring savvy. Ha>on is riding the best streak of his career and is desperately hungry to restore some glory to the family name, with his brother having re red aFer a spectacular KO loss to Manny Pacquiao and than geGng embroiled in a cocaine scandal.

The ferocious Alvarez has already come through tests just as stern as Ma>hew Ha>on in Lovemore N’Dou and Carlos Baldomir, so it would not be a surprise to see Perhaps it was not just that these proAlvarez stop him. However, going to win spects were not ready to fight at such a tles at such an early age could be a risk, level, it could have also been that Oscar De especially with names such as Miguel Co>o La Hoya and his team over es mate their ability to find ‘the next big thing’. A lot of and Manny Pacquiao being other tle holders in his light-middleweight division. promo ng had gone into the afore men oned names and in some cases – most In all truth Alvarez does look a special fightnotably with Juan Diaz and Victor Or z – er at this age, showing a type of ferocity the promo ng has worked as these fighters are s ll seen as viable and marketable op- and finishing ins nct which is very rare. ponents even though they have come off Nowadays fighters do not seem to have papoor performances. ence. They get some fame, win a tle and feel they can re re at the top before they This brings us to their latest young prodigy, hit 30. Boxing is pa ent game. It is a sciSaul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez. At just 20 years old ence which most get be>er at as they apwith already 35 wins (including 24 KO’s) proach 30. Rushing will get you nowhere even a loss would not dent the interest in fast. this prospect, dubbed the new ‘Julio Cesar

Golden Boy has shown a tendency to rush young ﬁghters and it would seem they are doing the same with Alvarez. Should he beat Ha>on in spectacular fashion then it would be easy for them to market him as boxing’s ‘next big thing’. Un l he loses of course, which would then be when Golden Boy wheel out another undefeated youngster and repeat the same scenario all over again.

Your ad here

Big Thanks to: Frank Maloney Promo ons Ha>on Promo ons

For access to events