SIMON COWELL NEEDED AS JUDGE?
Pittsburgh, PA– As important and relevant as the upcoming May 1 mega bout between Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Shane Mosley is – and in terms of quality, legacies and boxing history, it’s the most significant fight since at least Mosley-Oscar De La Hoya II – it also features two American boxing stars who could each conceivably retire within a year or two. It is also sandwiched between several important upcoming contests for American boxing’s under-30 crowd, some of whom have the opportunity to succeed older stars like Mosley, Mayweather, Bernard Hopkins, Roy Jones, Jr. and Evander Holyfield as the faces of the sport for the next decade or so.
WILL BERTO BE THE FIRST VOTED OFF?
Florida’s Andre Berto’s (25-0, 19 KOs, age 26) star can continue to rise or go into freefall this tonight when he faces Puerto Rico’s Carlos Quintana (27-2, 21 KOs), a man who knows something or two about making an “0” go – in defense of his WBC welterweight (147 lb.) title. Quintana surprised both Joel Julio and Paul Williams and handed them their first losses, rudely interrupting their treks toward stardom. The Puerto Rican southpaw technician has to feel confident if he studied fellow lefty Luis Collazo’s give-and-take nail biting loss to Berto in January 2009. However, Quintana can get roughed up and has never experienced speed the likes of Berto, so the Haitian-American deserves billing as the slight favorite. With Joshua Clottey and Miguel Cotto apparently beginning to fade and Antonio Margarito getting exposed as a fraud, and with Mosley, Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao possibly entering the final phases of their careers, the concept of Berto as the future of the welterweight division isn’t nearly as far-fetched now as it was just a couple of years ago.
AMERICA’S NEXT GREAT MIDDLE: PAVLIK OR WILLIAMS?
The boxing community unfortunately missed out on a potential American middleweight (160 lb.) classic last year between Youngstown’s Kelly Pavlik (36-1, 32 KOs, age 28) and South Carolina’s Williams (38-1, 27 KOs) due to Pavlik’s staph infection and animus between their promoters. Pavlik’s consolation? A nightmare matchup in Atlantic City April 17 against the fast and athletic Argentine Sergio Martinez (44-2-2, 24 KOs), in a bout it says here he will lose because of the southpaw challenger’s exponentially faster hands and feet. If he survives Martinez, we might get a Williams challenge, if the tall, wiry southpaw overwhelms Kermit Cintron in Los Angeles on May 8 as he should. Continuing to post wins might not be the only roadblock in their paths to the big-time; Williams lacks charisma, and questions have been raised about whether Pavlik has personal demons in light of all of his problems since winning the championship in September 2007.
ARREOLA: ONE TOUGH (INSERT EXPLETIVE HERE)!
California’s heavyweight (200+ lb.) contender Chris Arreola (28-1, 25 KOs, age 29) is lazy. Now that we’ve established that, let’s also remind ourselves that he’s a very skilled boxer for such a tough hombre and that he’s not unique in that he got dominated by one Vitali Klitschko. If Arreola defeats Poland’s Tomasz Adamek on April 24 in California in a terrific heavyweight match, he’s right back in contention to be the first Mexican-American heavyweight champ. His chances of beating Wladimir or Vitali Klitschko are minimal at best, but they won’t be around forever, and the more vulnerable David Haye holds the WBA crown. Arreola-Adamek should feature both sluggers getting hurt, but unless Arreola runs out of steam, he should outgun Adamek with his size and toughness. Then, should Arreola ever take the sport seriously and lose 25 pounds, he can become a force.
TWO NAMES THAT MIGHT BE OUR BEST: ANDRE. DAWSON.
As much ribbing as Oakland CA’s WBA super middleweight (168 lb.) champ Andre Ward (21-0, 13 KOs) has received for being moved slow, he’s still only 26. This year he’ll face dangerous puncher Allan Green (29-1, 20 KOs) of Tulsa on June 19 at home, followed by a showdown with buddy Michigan’s Andre Dirrell (19-1, 13 KOs) later this year. Ward should defeat both since he possesses superior discipline, focus and poise. Could Ward someday face Connecticut’s light heavyweight (175 lb.) champ Chad Dawson (29-0, 17 KOs, age 27), whose underappreciated resume includes impressive wins against Adamek and Glen Johnson (in the second bout)? Dawson has suggested a willingness to drop to 168 for the right challenge, and Ward won his 2004 Olympic gold as a light heavyweight (178 lbs. in amateurs).
RUMORS OF BOXING’S DEATH IN US GREATLY EXAGGERATED?
One could easily argue that Dawson, Williams, Ward and WBO junior welterweight (140 lb.) titlist Timothy Bradley (25-0, 11 KOs, age 26) belong on a current pound-for-pound top ten list, and soon we may add St. Louis’ WBC-IBF junior welterweight champ Devon Alexander (20-0, 13 KOs, age 23) to that list. Alexander and Bradley could soon square off; however, Bradley must survive a June 19 challenge by Argentine brawler Marcos Maidana, and then Alexander will defend his belts on August 7. And who knows – a few months and bouts can completely change the landscape, and several other young and talented American boxers will compete in the coming months:
April 30: California’s IBF junior lightweight (130 lb.) champ Robert Guerrero vs. Robert Arrieta
May 15: Kansas’ junior welterweight (140 lb.) Victor Ortiz vs. Nate Campbell
July 10: Houston’s lightweight (135 lb.) Juan Diaz vs. champ Juan Manuel Marquez
And the next American Idol is….
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Brian Gorman