*** The fighter with the most cumulative points becomes our Prizefighter of the Month. New point values are then assigned to each combatant in the top 5, which count towards the tally for Prizefighter of the Year. Those point values are:
1) Juan Urango - while there were plenty of positive performances to choose from this month my #1 has to go to the winner of what I thought was the best fight of August. Urango took a huge right hand from Randall Bailey, got up off the mat and came back to beat the crafty veteran in convincing fashion. I wasn't blown away by Urango during the fight, but he did what he had to do - showed a lot of heart, and came away with an impressive KO victory.
2) Tavoris Cloud - Loved the fight that Cloud put on in the Urango-Bailey undercard. Clinton Woods is not exactly a world beater, but he's an accomplished vet and Cloud was able to dictate the entire match from the opening bell right through the end of the 12th round. I was skeptical of Cloud heading into his fight with Woods but he displayed a lot of maturity, plus the hand speed and punching power that will make him a threat moving forward.
3) Roy Jones Jr. - People are talking about Roy Jones Jr. again. Sure I've watched Law & Order SVU episodes with less-damaged people then Jeff Lacy but RJJ still showed impressive speed and power while DOMINATING their fight in Biloxi, MS. If that wasn't enough, Roy now gets to fly to Australia and try for the one weight class title that has eluded him throughout his Hall of Fame career.
4) Issac Hlatshwayo - I would wager that less then 10% of our audience knew who Issac Hlatshwayo was before August 1st. Of course that number may only be 12% now, but you can't take away the fact that the man holds an alphabet title in what may very well be the best division in boxing. Issac also gets the plug because his name has been mentioned as a possible opponent for Andre Berto in December which would be a huge step up from the fights that Issac was getting before August 2009.
5) Abner Mares - My final slot goes to the guy who put on an absolute clinic at Fight Night at Club Nokia on versus/ringtv.com. Mares is probably too talented to have been fighting on that show but he looked crisp and fluid throughout his fight and he left me more impressed then any of the other Golden Boy "prospects" that has been showcased yet on the Fight Night Series.
F.J. Parlan
1. Devon Alexander - in terms of performance, it is arguable that he surpassed anybody in this list this month, making Junior Witter quit, as he makes his splashing presence in a very talented jr. welterweight division. He's also here by default, as Bradley looked impressive but didn't exactly win, and Diaz and Malignaggi were stuck in controversy.
2a. Juan Diaz - As controversial as the fight with Malignaggi was, Diaz came out with a technical win and I have to honor that, and he might have done enough to win that fight. It was also a good comeback fight for him. Now, he has to return to lightweight.
2b. Paulie Malignaggi - He earned the respect of the boxing world with a great performance despite a technical loss, now, he's due what he deserves.
3. Juan Urango - provided a good, rugged, and fun performance in a better fight. He's totally erased his last loss.
4. Roberto Guerrero - was at his very best of his career against Klassen.
5. Nonito Donaire - got injured (busted left hand) and was tremendously outweighed against a tough opponent, but pulled through in his first foray into the super flyweight class.
Michael Payne
1. Timothy Bradley - His fight with Campbell before hand looked like it could go either way, youth and speed vs experience. It may have been a no contest in the end but Bradley showed he is the real deal and i can see big things coming for him.
2. Roy Jones Jr. - I loved his fight against Lacy. I always thought he would win this one but didnt think he would be as good as he was, at times it looked like the Jones of old the way he was connecting with hook after hook.
3. Juan Urango - he showed real heart to come back to beat Bailey. Like you said he may not be the most majestic of fighters, but what a fight it was.
4. Tavoris Cloud - Woods may no longer be in the elite of the light heavy division but he was the hardest fight to date for Cloud. Cloud showed he can go twelve rounds and got stronger in the process winning comfortably in the end.
5. Devon Alexander - I would have liked to have put him further up the list because I think he has so much to offer, but I think one factor in his fight against Witter was that Witter was BAD. Having said that, it was a test for Alexander and he passed with flying colours.
Ali Shakoor
1. Tim Bradley: Keeps rolling along, and despite the result, showed that he was a better fighter than Nate Campbell until the stoppage. Likely the 2nd best 140 pounder in the world. Manny will never fight him, but it would make for a fun contest.
2. Paulie Malignaggi: Forget the result. He won that fight. He finally has his career back on track. His performance will likely get him a big money fight soon. His performance against Diaz, makes me think a tad better of Ricky Hatton for dominating such a good fighter.
3. Juan Urango: Showed a lot of guts to get off of canvas against a powerful guy. Great fight..great performance.
4. Devon Alexander: Totally outclassed a solid vet, and made him quit. There will be a lot of good fights available for him at his weight class.
5. Robert Guerrero: Looked the best he ever has against Klassen and won a belt. The unfortunate issue with his controversial injury stoppage last year is old, irrelevant, news now.
Ramon Aranda
1. Robert Guerrero - put on a career best performance against a tough opponent in Malcolm Klassen to pick up his 3rd title. Guerrero fought though yet another cut, proving he's got the will to win in a new weight class to boot.
2. Paulie Malignaggi - Sure he came away with the loss, but his performance against Diaz was nothing short of eye opening. Written off by most before the fight even began, he put on one of his best performances by outboxing and outhustling Diaz through at least half of the fight. Though this writer gave it to Diaz by a point, it could've gone either way and it's Malignaggi who actually came out with the most praise. A rematch or a high profile fight should hopefully follow.
3. Roy Jones - Granted, beating Jeff Lacy is nothing to brag about these days but what was most impressive was the manner in which he did it. Sure, it wasn't against a fighter in his prime but he at least keeps his name in the headlines by completely outclassing and outright humiliating Lacy in the process. He rarely took a clean shot and the sight of him jumping up in the air to throw uppercuts while holding Lacy got some giggles out of me.
4. Juan Urango - He was in a tough as nails fight with Randall Bailey and it looked like he could've been out of there. However, he bit down and marched forward as he slowly broke down Bailey before finishing off. It was a fight of the year candidate and one that showed what he's made of psychologically.
5. Nonito Donaire - Just kept on rolling in August as he continues to demonstrate that he's got the goods. It was by no means a pretty fight but dominated the contest against a guy who came in overweight and was at a clear size advantage.
Matt Knowles
1) Tim Bradley - although it ended up as a no contest, Bradley dominated former lightweight champ Nate Campbell in a great performance. Big Tim is now in line to face #1 contender Lamont Peterson at the end of this year.
2) Juan Urango - came back from a crushing knockdown to defeat Randall Bailey in a fight of the year candidate. His style is very rough around the edges, but is also all kinds of fun to watch.
3) Roy Jones - Superman once again turned back the clock and put forth an outstanding effort by stopping Jeff Lacy after 10 one-sided rounds. Roy may now face Danny Green in Australia later this year in what could be his absolute-final-without-question-swan-song.
4) Devon Alexander - made a splash onto the world scene by dethroning (now former) WBC champ Junior Witter in dominant fashion. Let's hope that Devon gets to defend his belt against some of the elite challengers at 140 in the near future.
5) Robert Guerrero - won his 3rd IBF belt by thoroughly out-working former champ Malcolm Klassen. The Ghost is now finally fulfilling his infinite potential, and under GBP's banner, may become a superstar in his native Bay Area and beyond!
- - - - -
Here are the August 2009 results
Robert Guerrero becomes the 1st fighter to show up twice on the "411mania fiscal boxing calendar" with his honorable mention nod, giving him 4 points for the year .
Devon Alexander grabs the #5 slot for his title-winning performance over Junior Witter .
Paulie Malignaggi claims our #4 ranking for his spirited effort against Juan Diaz .
Roy Jones Jr. takes the #3 spot for his destruction of Jeff Lacy.
Timothy Bradley checks in at #2 for his domination of Nate Campbell .
And August 2009's Prizefighter of the Month goes to reigning 140-pound champ Juan Urango for his stirring come-from-behind TKO victory over Randall Bailey!
- - - - -
Here are the new year-to-date standings:
15 points Manny Pacquiao
15 points Miguel Cotto
15 points Eddie Chambers
15 points Juan Urango
12 points - Wladimir Klitschko
12 points Kermit Cintron
12 points Joseph Agbeko
12 points Timothy Bradley 9 points Amir Khan
9 points Andre Ward
9 points Juan Manuel Lopez
9 points Roy Jones Jr.
6 points Derric Rossy
6 points Tomasz Adamek
6 points Andre Berto
6 points Arthur Abraham
6 points Paulie Malignaggi
4 points Robert Guerrero 3 points Joshua Clottey
3 points Chad Dawson
3 points Toshiaki Nishioka
3 points Devon Alexander
1 point Alfonso Gomez
1 point Marcos Maidana
1 point Jorge Arce
1 point Miguel Vasquez
- - - - - That's all for this month, enjoy the September fight schedule!!!
