08.10.07 – By Vivek Wallace: Last Saturday night kicked off one of the best stretches of boxing in quite some time. Although the Pacquiao/Barerra rematch didn’t quite live up to the hype in the minds of some, to me personally it was hard not to tip your hat to one of the gutsiest warriors of our time in Barerra, as well as the man standing across from him (Pacquiao) who is suddenly viewed as a challenger to Floyd Mayweather Jr. for the sports Pound for Pound spot..
On the heels of that fight along with the heavyweight showdown between Peter and McCline, fight fans find themselves on the brink of a new wave of Boxing matches that are taking not only fight aficionado’s, but sports fans in general by storm.
In the upcoming weeks we get a chance to see an American Heavyweight (Evander Holyfield) go overseas to face Russian Sultan Ibragimov on his home turf which is something few American fighters do now days. Later, on the same evening of this fight will be the Lightweight Championship showdown between Julio and Juan Diaz. Two weeks later things really kick into high gear when we get a chance to see a fight that I personally see being a fight of the year candidate when Joe Calzaghe faces Mikkel Kessler (November 3rd/Cardiff, Wales/UK). Both fighters come into the ring undefeated (Calzaghe 43-0, 32KO’s/Kessler 39-0, 29KO’s), both are incredibly talented, and both know what it takes to dig deep to win, even when it appears the end is near. The fireworks in this fight may set off an alarm outside. This is one bonanza you don’t wanna miss.
Two weeks later (November 10th/Madison Square Garden/NYC) we get the opportunity to see another fight of the year candidate when Shane Mosley takes on young rising Puerto Rican sensation Miguel Cotto. This could be a classic tale of a pupil outperforming the professor. While Cotto comes in as one of the sports best ‘body-snatchers’, his opponent is far from a slouch, and is the only man to date to notch two victories over the ‘Goldenboy’, Oscar Dela Hoya.
When the smoke clears from the Cotto/Mosley fight, a fight that I see as nothing short of a ‘Headbangers Ball’ between wildman Ricardo Mayorga and Fernando Vargas (November 23rd/Staples Center/Los Angeles, CA) will take place. This is one of those classic slugfest that even the non-sport loving fans wouldn’t dare miss.
After Mayorga and Vargas whet the appetite of the masses, on December 8th in Las Vegas, fight fans will finally be ushered once again into the realm of the mega-fight stratosphere as Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Ricky Hatton put their undefeated records on the line in what is easily the years most highly anticipated bout. This fight has been long desired, and most thought it would never happen, but at long last, here we stand, only weeks away. There’s been a lot of jawing back and forth between the two, but soon, all the talk stops, and blows fly.
There’s never been a better time to be a fight fan than the present, and one can only hope that after January’s showdown between Roy Jones Jr. and Felix Trinidad (January 19th/Madison Square Garden/NYC), there will be plenty more matches of this caliber to keep fans right where they are…..dialed into the best sport on the planet.
Fighters to watch in ’08: Paul Williams, Andre Berto, Kermit Cintron, Chad Dawson, and Kelly Pavlik. The skies the limit and each of these guys have the potential to stand atop their respective divisions if the ‘stars’ align in the proper order.
(Got feedback? Write Vivek Wallace at vivexemail@yahoo.com or show some love at myspace.com/anonymouslyinvolved).