Left-Hook Lounge: How Good is “GGG”?, Is Rios “Afraid” of Pacquiao?, & is Mike Perez a Heavyweight Threat?

11/05/201311/04/2013 Vivek Wallace

perez784 H. Barlow (Dallas, TX): Count me to the list of supporters behind GGG! I think the guy is amazing and I don’t see anyone at 160 or 168 who can stop him. Who do you think would give him the “most” trouble between 154 and 168?

Vivek W. (ESB): Before I get into GGG’s performance, I’d like to start by saying great effort by Curtis Stevens. I thought Stevens performed very well, although he hindered himself by only pressing in spurts. Easy to say from my living room couch, but the reality is that when he did move more and let his hands go, I thought he made the fight very interesting. He couldn’t sustain that effort, and most of that has to be credited to GGG. When you analyze GGG closer, you have to give him great absolute credit. One of the things that gave Curtis Stevens a problem all night was Golovkin’s ability to cut off the ring.

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Brandon Rios Media Workout Quotes

11/01/201310/31/2013 Top Rank

Manny Pacquiao vs Brandon Rios Presser OXNARD, CALIF (October 31, 2013) — Former world champion BRANDON “Bam Bam” RIOS (31-1-1, 22 KOs), of Oxnard, Calif., and reigning Trainer of the Year ROBERT GARCIA hosted their only U.S. Media Workout today at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy in Oxnard.

KEVIN HART, who stars as a savvy boxing promoter in the upcoming Warner Bros. Pictures movie “Grudge Match,” was also in attendance.

Rios is in deep training for his eagerly-anticipated welterweight collision with Fighter of the Decade, Congressman MANNY “Pacman” PACQUIAO (54-5-2, 38 KOs). Rios departs for Macau on November 11 to acclimate to the environment.

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Brandon Rios: “We Know He Can’t Take a Good Punch”

10/31/201310/31/2013 Vitali Shaposhnikov

When Brandon Rios and Manny Pacquiao signed their respecting contracts to face each other, the boxing community wasn’t sure whether this fight should count as a legitimate comeback for Manny Pacquiao. Brandon Rios is no Marquez after all. Boxing forums were buzzing with people’s dislike of this fight, calling it anything from a waste of time, to nothing more but a sparring session for Pacman.

Nonetheless, slowly but surely the boxing fans and the media cooled their jets, and began to get progressively interested in the outcome. Brandon Rios is a good, strong, young, and hungry for respect fighter, and we have seen him take a punch. With the fight getting closer, there is talk that it is not all that crazy, to think that Rios will end Pacquiao’s career come November 23, 2013.

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Brandon Rios / Robert Garcia Conf Call Transcript

10/30/201310/30/2013 Top Rank

From training camp at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy in Oxnard, California, we have former world champion Brandon “Bam Bam” Rios and his trainer, “Trainer of the Year” Robert Garcia, and Hall of Fame Promoter Bob Arum. They are here to discuss their upcoming historic battle against Manny Pacquiao and Freddie Roach, taking place Saturday, November 23 and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View® at 9:00 PM east coast and 6:00 PM west coast time. Brandon will be hosting his only U.S. media workout this Thursday at Robert Garcia’s gym – 1451 Pacific Ave., Oxnard, California, beginning at Noon PT. Joining Brandon at the workout will be Kevin Hart, who is starring in the upcoming Warner Bros. movie “Grudge Match” which will also be starring Sylvester Stallone and Robert DeNiro. Kevin will also be available for interviews at the workout, as will Bob Arum.

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If Successful Against Rios, Pacquiao Might Become Mayweather’s Worst Nightmare

10/29/201310/29/2013 Vitali Shaposhnikov

pac6 pac6 The Manny Pacquiao vs. Brandon Rios bout is fast-approaching, and boxing fans have focused their crosshairs on the topic at hand. While this fight is starting to gain more momentum in a snowball effect type of fashion, still there is much talk of the improbable bout between Mayweather Jr. vs. Bernard Hopkins.

It seems as though a shot at Mayweather Jr. is the only way to succeed in boxing, and every fighter that can see and feel the throne is aggressively attempting at securing that high profile fight.

Bernard Hopkins had suggested that he is the only one with enough ring experience and ring I.Q. to beat Mayweather Jr. His old school boxing knowledge would supposedly provide enough tricks and narrow down the learning curve to where Hopkins would be able to adjust and effectively deal with Floyd’s style.

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BoxNation lands Pacquiao vs. Rios

10/29/201310/29/2013 BoxNation

pac31 pac31 LONDON (29 Oct) – Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao’s return to the ring against the unyielding Brandon Rios on November 23rd will be brought to UK fight fans live and exclusive on BoxNation (Sky Ch.437/Virgin Ch.546).

The eagerly anticipated matchup which sees Pacquiao make his first return to the ring since his devastating knockout loss to Juan Manuel Marquez will pit him against one of boxing’s most relentless warriors in the shape of Rios, in a bout certain to produce fireworks.

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24/7 Pacquiao/Rios debuts November 9 on HBO, Face Off: Pacquiao/Rios Video

10/28/201310/28/2013 HBO Boxing

NEW YORK, Oct. 28, 2013 – HBO Sports’ groundbreaking “24/7” reality franchise, which has captured 17 Sports Emmy® Awards, returns in November for its 18th boxing installment with 24/7 PACQUIAO/RIOS, it was announced by Rick Bernstein, executive producer, HBO Sports. Debuting SATURDAY, NOV. 9 (12:15-12:45 a.m. ET/PT), the all-access series follows two elite fighters as they prepare for their intriguing welterweight showdown Nov. 23 from the Venetian Macao’s CotaiArena in Macau, China.

“The intensity and significance of the fight will be a great launching point for this all-new edition of ‘24/7’,” noted Bernstein. “We are eager to follow both teams, since there is so much new ground to cover, especially as both sides prepare for a fight taking place at an exciting international destination.”

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Freddie Roach: “I Don’t Think We Really Have To Turn the Clock Back”

07/31/201410/24/2013 Vitali Shaposhnikov

roach5 roach5 With the Manny Pacquiao vs. Brandon Rios fight approaching, boxing fans are starting to tune themselves to the topic of discussing whether Manny is still capable of performing on a similar level as he did a few years back. We all know that time happens to be one of the main enemies of athletes, but some are able to avoid its effects for longer than others.

The question that the boxing fans expect to have answered in the Rios fight, is how big of a chunk did time and the knockout loss to Marquez took out of Pacquiao?

According to Pacquiao’s mentor and head trainer Freddie Roach, these speculations and hypothesized scenarios about Pacquiao’s decline in the sport of boxing are unnecessary, and all that needs to happen is for Manny to put on an impressive performance:

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Brandon Rios’s Fire Is Burning Hot

08/01/201410/23/2013 Vitali Shaposhnikov

PacRios_Letterhead Boxing has a very diverse collection of characters willing to speak their mind, letting the boxing fans as well as the media know exactly what they think about the state of affairs around them. Brandon Rios has dedicated his time and efforts to progress in the sport of boxing, and he sure has gone far. With an impressive record of (31-1-1) with a 70% knockout rate, his only loss came in March of this year, when Rios had lost a close unanimous decision to Mike Alvarado.

Rios has a big heart and his commitment inside the ring is unquestioned. Still, most of the boxing community has already decided that Rios will add yet another loss to his record when he faces Manny Pacquiao on November 23, 2013.

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Koncz says Pacquiao training harder than he’s ever seen him

08/01/201410/23/2013 Bruce McDonald

Michael Koncz, the adviser for Manny Pacquiao (54-5-2, 38 KO’s), is very impressed with the way that Manny is training for his bout next month against Brandon Rios (31-1-1, 23 KO’s) on November 23 at the Cotai Arena, Venetian Resort, Macao, Macao S.A.R., China.

Koncz sees intensity in Pacquiao’s workouts that he’s never spotted before in the years that he’s been with him. Pacquiao, 34, is coming off of a bad knockout loss in his last fight against Juan Manuel Marquez last December and a lot of boxing fans think it’s not a good idea for him to be continuing his career after such a devastating KO.

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