Golden Boy’s Richard Schaefer & Oscar De La Hoya
CARD LIKE EARLY “TV KO” HBO PAY PER VIEW
San Francisco, CA– If you paid $60 bucks for the Canelo Alvarez-Alfredo Angulo card on Pay Per View, then I have to tell you that you got played and that I told you so earlier in the week on radio and in print that buying this was out of the question. I’m not saying that Alvarez and Angulo aren’t world class fighters for they are. But to ask that kind of money for a semi-main that saw #2 world ranked 122 lb. fighter and WBC champ Leo Santa Cruz pitch a shutout over a former 115 lb. titleholder Christian Mijares. The outcome was so easy to forecast that you could have mailed in the scorecards last week.
AND THE BOXING “CHALKBOARD’ ROLLED ON
But it might not have taken you until the third fight of four you realized you’d been hustled by Golden Boy Promotions. But one could see soon after the opening bell that Mijares had no chance to win here sans a loaded handgun. Another bout featuring native Venezuelan and Japanese resident Jorge Linares (36-3, 23 KOs) facing Japan native Nihito Arakawa (24-4-1, 16 KOs) was easy to predict. Arakawa was about as competitive with Linares as a Volkswagon would be with at the Indianapolis 500.
SCORING TOO CLOSE ON CANELO’S BROTHER LOSS
Last minute sub Sergio “Yeyo” Thompson (29-3, 26 KOs) won a winner (UD 10) over Ricardo Alvarez (23-3-3, 13 KOs), Cabelo’s older brother who was given an 8 count in round 3 when he all but went through the ropes courtesy of a punch from the upstart Thompson. Alvarez would hit the deck in round 8 after being cracked with a right hand. Still, the scores read 97-91, 95-93, 95-93, all for Thompson. But truth be told, the fight wasn’t as close as the 97-91 score.
MAIN EVENT WAS ONE-SIDED ROUT
The top earner on the card, ex-154 lb. king (WBC/WBA) champ Saul “Canelo” Alvarez beat on Alfredo Angulo like he were playing a set of Mexican bongo drums. Having not given Angulo a single round, I didn’t think too much of referee Tony Weeks stopping the fight after a nasty uppercut lifted Angulo’s head much like he had been shot with a rifle from the infamous Grassy Knoll.
DIFFERENT WAYS TO LOOK AT ENDING
First of all, trainer Virgil Hunter is not all that brave and I don’t mean that in a bad way. He will pull the plug on his pug if he is taking too much of a licking. Referee Weeks did not know that and the ringside MD had talked to Weeks in between rounds. Bad stop or not, and I say no, the only chance Angulo (22-4, 18 KOs) had of beating Canelo had the fight continued would have had to involve Alvarez (43-1-1, 31 KOs) suffering a Heart Attack. Lastly, there is NO Merit to the rumor this card paid for promoter Oscar De La Hoya’s extended rehabilitation for his penchant for Colombian Dust and booze.
CARD WAS LAME LIKE EARLY “TV KO” HBO PAY PER VIEW II
Yeah, but TV KO only charged $19.95!
Pedro Fernandez