Inside the Ropes 11.02.09: Dawson-Johnson II, Mayweather's Radio Interview, Agbeko-Perez

Posted by Ramon Aranda on 11.02.2009

Thoughts on this weekend's matchup between Chad Dawson and Glen Johnson, including last weekend's excellent scrap between Joseph Agbeko vs. Yonnhy Perez. Plus, did you guys hear Mayweather getting blasted on satellite radio? Check it all out on this week's Inside the Ropes.


Time to do it again!

On Saturday night, Chad Dawson will take on Glen Johnson in a rematch of their April 2008 light heavyweight contest that Dawson won via close unanimous decision. I recall watching that fight after the Cotto-Gomez fight on a day where we had a nice little BBQ at the house. It was a fun night of boxing that was highlighted by Dawson-Johnson and although I was a bit on the tipsy side by then, I thoroughly enjoyed the bout. At the time, I felt that Johnson deserved the nod and apparently I wasn't the only one but one thing was certain – they simply had to do it again. Since then, we've had to wait and wait while Dawson made Tarver look his age in two follow up fights while Johnson was busy avenging a previous blemish on his record. After over a year, it appeared that the two would never meet up, despite fans and media clamoring for it but luckily for us, they finally came to terms for round 2.

Dawson has seemingly been christened as the next ruler of the light heavyweight division once Hopkins steps aside while Johnson is likely getting his last major shot. To say they both have plenty to fight for in this clash would be an understatement. Having spoken to both of them on separate episodes of 3 More Rounds in October, they tell 411mania that neither of them wants to leave it up to the judges once again. Both are predicting knockouts and given the ferocity of their first bout, it's not entirely out of the question. There's already some uneasiness from some people about the rematch happening in Dawson's backyard of Hartford, Conn. But I think those fears are a little dumbfounded. If you recall, their first fight took place in Tampa, Florida – basically in Johnson's backyard and he's the one who ended up with the short end of the stick. That being said, I wouldn't really worry about any robberies though if I were either Johnson or Dawson, I'd be sure to never let up. During the first bout, Dawson controlled the first half, while Johnson made a huge stand in the second half making things very close. I'm sure this is in both of their minds and I expect that they'll get things going right from the start.

I'm still a little on the fence as to who may come away with the win here but I'm going to go on a limb here and pick the underdog Johnson to take a decision.

Mayweather Ripped Apart

If you guys haven't heard it by now, you absolutely must listen to the interview conducted on Shade 45 on XM/Sirius the other day. Basically the host called Floyd Mayweather while RA the Rugged Man, who was there to plug his new album, essentially took over. Long story short, Rugged Man completely blasted Mayweather for his refusal to take on the best in his division while arguing that Floyd has yet to prove just how good he can be. Needless to say, Mayweather wasn't exactly too thrilled with how things went down and often sounded frustrated and even confused. It was quite the interview, really and most people will probably tell you that Rugged Man demanded answers to the questions most of you have.

You might think to yourselves, well who the hell is Rugged Man? To be frank, I don't know a whole lot about him either but the man knew his stuff. Clearly a fan and historian of boxing, he put Floyd on the spot about his record and even told him that Paul Williams and Antonio Margarito would whoop his ass. If weight isn't an issue as Floyd referred to when talking about Juan Manuel Marquez, then why not move up to fight Chad Dawson? Just funny stuff to listen to and I encourage everyone to take a listen. As for those who already heard it, what are your thoughts?

Move over Brian Kenny, Rugged Man is here!

Agbeko-Perez

I was expecting a pretty good fight on Saturday as Joseph Agbeko was defending his crown against Yonnhy Perez but I didn't expect it to be as entertaining as it turned out to be. Easily a Fight of the Year candidate for 2009, which already has quite a few, the two engaged in a back and forth brawl that never let up for 12 exciting rounds. Perez came out strong from the onset and used some hard left hooks to get an early jump on the champion to compliment his high workrate. Agbeko seemed to settle down about midway and began landing his own power shots – not to mention headbutts that caused two large cuts above Perez' nose. It was one of those fights that really could've gone either way but given Perez' overall punch output and the fact that he managed to shake up Agbeko, I felt he deserved the nod. Perez did in fact end up with the win via unanimous decision though I think the scores were a bit too wide for my taste. The fight to me, was a lot closer than the judges had it and although our own Ryan Bates scored it 114-113 for Agbeko, he too admitted that it could've gone the other way. Case in point, the right man won and I want to congratulate Perez on a job well done.

As for Ryan, well "The Rhino" was one of three guest judges for Showtime's telecast and got himself plugged quite nicely throughout the show. Good stuff Ryan!

Random Thoughts

- Wasn't it surreal to see Mike Tyson standing next to Don King while being interviewed by Jim Gray? Talk about going back in time right? To make matters more interesting, the two seemed open to a Tyson comeback so long as King bankrolled Tyson's training. As he noted, Iron Mike needs a few extra vitamins and minerals along with some excessive cardio work. If George Foreman could do it at age 45, surely Mike can, eh? For his sake though, let's hope Tyson stays where he is right now. He seems happy and that's the most important thing.

- We're a little under two weeks away from Pacquiao vs. Cotto and I can hardly contain myself. I'll be arriving on Thursday afternoon and will be there for the weigh-in. Also, hope you guys RSVP'd for the Top Rank tweet up immediately after the weigh-in on Friday which will include yours truly and Ryan Bates. 3 More Rounds in the house indeed and we may even hold a special podcast during the meet and greet. We look forward to mingling with you listeners and fans. See you there!

- Don't forget to catch Ricky Hatton on Monday Night RAW next week. Should be nice seeing the "Hitman" in front of a raucous crowd again. $10 bucks says we hear "Hatton Wonderland" at some point throughout the evening. If we don't, I'd actually be kind of disappointed!

- Did you all catch those Twitter insults being thrown back and forth between Shane Mosley and Andre Berto this past week? Kind of comical in my opinion but enough is enough, sign the contract and get it on already!

- With the 35th anniversary of the Rumble in the Jungle, I re-watched it over the weekend. Still a helluva fight to this day and one of the biggest upsets in the sport.

- Speaking of Ali, I also caught the ESPN 30 on 30 special focused on the Ali-Holmes confrontation. It was an excellent piece but also a disturbing one to watch. Seeing Ali struggle with the speedbag was uncomfortable and those responsible for convincing him to take the fight should be ashamed of themselves. Truly despicable.

Until next time, see you at the fights!

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Don't forget you can also follow me via Twitter at 411Ramon.