2014/2015 Reviews & Previews: Ward, Broner, Maidana, Marquez, Thurman, Danny Garcia, & Kell Brook

12/30/2014 Vivek Wallace

(Note: As part of a week long breakdown, boxing scribe Vivek “Vito” Wallace analyzes where today’s top fighters stand, and whether or not 2015 could be the year many of them fall. This week long analysis will cover over 30 fighters from around the world)

ANDRE WARD

Throughout Boxing history we’ve seen drugs, alcohol, crime, and a host of other demons strip precious time away from distracted talents which they could never get back. In the case of Andre Ward, 2014 proved that even for a focused “Son of God” the ills of the sport can be far too much of a cross to bear. For Ward, a stiff game of politics has been more of a test outside the ring than his incredible talent ever allowed inside of it.

continue

Broner would get stopped by Maidana in rematch, says Robert Garcia

10/16/201410/16/2014 Jeff Sorby

Adrien Broner (29-1, 22 KOs) said on his Twitter yesterday that he wants to avenge his loss to former two division world champion Marcos Maidana before he looks to fight the other big names like Manny Pacquiao, Lucas Matthysse and Juan Manuel Marquez. Maidana’s trainer Robert Garcia says he’d like to see Maidana fight Broner again, because he feels that Maidana would knock Broner unconscious if that fight were to happen.

“It’s always fun to hear something Broner says,” Garcia said via Fighthype.com. “He’s one that I actually like to see him fight. That’s up to his managers. We could do it. That’s no problem with me. In the rematch, I think Maidana knocks him out cold.”

continue

Canelo: Mayweather ran from Maidana the entire night

09/24/2014 Rob Smith

Former WBA/WBC junior middleweight champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez wasn’t too impressed with WBA/WBC welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr’s recent win over Marcos Maidana earlier this month on September 13th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

While some boxing fans feel that Mayweather did an excellent job of neutralizing Maidana’s power by using movement and tactical clinching to stop the Argentinian from hammering him with his big shots, Canelo felt that all Mayweather did was run and he didn’t take any risks by standing in the pocket to slug with the stronger fighter.

continue

Left-Hook Lounge Mailbag: Floyd Mayweather, Marcos Maidana, Timothy Bradley, and more!

09/16/2014 Vivek Wallace

Layton F. (Brooklyn, NY): I never thought I’d see the day, but to me, Floyd Mayweather looked old and out of sorts. I just didn’t think he looked the same. Is it safe to say that he’s no longer the guy he was?

Vivek W. (ESB): The old adage has it that “time waits for no man”! Oddly, we’ve seen Floyd Mayweather dominate for so long that we’ve grown accustomed to the notion that he’s some blind exception to the rule, and unfortunately, this is not the case. While there were some points that just didn’t quite seem normal for him, statistically, we see the same level of success. From day one, Mayweather’s statistics have been mid to high 50 percentile (or greater) in offensive connection rates; all while holding the opponent down to a very low 20 percentile connection rate in exchange. Has he been touched a bit more lately? Certainly seems that way, but again, all percentages remain intact, so is he truly “slippin” (as Steven A. Smith of ESPN went on record to say)?

continue

Atlas: Mayweather did just enough to win

09/15/2014 Rob Smith

ESPN commentator Teddy Atlas feels that WBA/WBC welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr (47-0, 26 KOs) did just enough to win last Saturday night in his 12 round unanimous decision victory over Marcos Maidana (35-5, 31 KOs) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Atlas thinks Mayweather played it safe too much by holding, running and throwing pot shots instead of standing and trading with the hard hitting Maidana. Atlas thinks that if a prime Sugar Ray Leonard was in the ring with Maidana last Saturday night, he would have knocked him out with his combinations and power punching.

continue

The Calm after the “Mayhem”

09/15/201609/15/2014 Michael Montero

On Saturday night Floyd Mayweather did what he was supposed to do earlier this May – dominate Marcos Maidana. The rematch billed “Mayhem” turned out to be anything but, as boxing’s pound for pound king pitched a near shutout in front of 16,144 fans at the MGM Grand Las Vegas.

Mayweather, clearly more focused this time around, kept the match in the center of the ring and moved or held to avoid taking punishment from his slower, plodding opponent. Other than a flush right hand Maidana landed at the very end of the third round and a bizarre hand biting incident in the eighth, this was pretty much a glorified sparring session. Punch stats tell the story, as the Argentinian slugger threw more, but landed at less than half the rate than Floyd did. Marcos landed just 17% of his jabs (41-237) and 26% of his power punches (87-335), while “Money” landed 43% of his jabs (64-149) and an astonishing 58% of his power shots (102-177). It was target practice, and Floyd’s holding and mauling tactics quelled “Chino’s” attack. Compare that to the first bout, where Maidana threw almost as many power punches (540) as he did total punches (572) in the rematch.

continue

“My Fingers Was Numb!” Mayweather Survives Alleged Nom, Dances to UD in Maidana Rematch

09/15/201409/14/2014 Christopher Lettera

(Photo credit: Stephanie Trapp/Mayweather Promotions) Fortify your stomach and think back for a moment on what visceral terror you have seen in this our great and noble sport of boxing. I’m not talking about a sustained beating so much as I’m referencing those singularly weird, graphic manifestations of brutality that years later you can’t shake, even if the fight itself wasn’t particularly noteworthy in the long run.

I’m thinking of that soft-ball sized hematoma that Holyfield head-butted into existence on Hasim Rahman’s forehead back in 02. Or that pearly-white segment of Vitali Klitschko’s skull I swear I can see in photos of that canyon-deep cut he endured against Lewis.

continue

Mayweather unsure who he’ll fight next in May 2015

09/14/2014 Kevin Chittenden

(Photo credit: Stephanie Trapp/Mayweather Promotions) WBA welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr (47-0, 26 KOs) said before last night that Marcos Maidana (35-5, 31 KOs) would be his 47th victim and that’s exactly what happened with Mayweather using superb footwork to box his way to a 12 round unanimous decision at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

There may not have been as much toe-to-toe action as there was in their first fight in May of this year, but the fight was still quite exciting to watch from start to finish.

After the bout was over, Mayweather was asked repeatedly by media members whether he’ll be fighting Manny Pacquiao or Amir Khan next, but Mayweather didn’t have a clear answer at the time. He says he still needs to think about what direction he wants to go in for his fight in May of 2015.

continue

Maidana: I did enough to win; I didn’t bite him

09/14/2014 Jeff Sorby

(Photo credit: Stephanie Trapp: Mayweather Promotions) Marcos Maidana (35-5, 31 KOs) believes he was robbed last night in his 12 round unanimous decision loss to WBA/WBC welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr (47-0, 26 KOs) in their rematch.

Maidana says he outworked Mayweather by throwing many more punches than him, and he forced the fight with his aggression. The only thing that Maidana feels Mayweather did well was run from him for 12 rounds. Maidana gives Mayweather full credit for his running, but that’s it. Maidana also denies biting Mayweather on the hand in the 8th round. He says that didn’t happen.

continue

Floyd Mayweather Remains Perfect In Rematch With Marcos Maidana on SHOWTIME PPV

09/14/201409/14/2014 Showtime Boxing

After 24 rounds of boxing with Marcos Maidana, Floyd Mayweather is still the undisputed pound-for-pound champion.

Mayweather (47-0, 26 KOs) successfully defended his WBC and WBA Welterweight and WBC Super Welterweight World Championships with a unanimous 12-round decision victory in a rematch with Argentine slugger Maidana (35-5, 31 KOs) on Saturday in front of 16,144 fans at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, live on SHOWTIME PPV®.

“Money” strategically fought the fight that he wanted, effectively avoiding the looping punches against the ropes that “El Chino” was able to land in their first bout and pivoting back to his domain – the center of the ring.

continue