Fight Lover's Forum 11.12.09: A Look At 5 Fighters From Last Weekend's Action

Posted by A. Shakoor on 11.12.2009

Take a look as I breakdown a few fighters from a full weekend of boxing last week. Also, I'm throwing in the proper film quotes in the spirit of the upcoming Oscars races. Boxing and Movies--Fun Times.

This week in Fight Lover's Forum I wanna give my thoughts about a few fighters from this past weekend's action. We saw one fighter continue to make a joke out of his career. A brash big mouth made history in slaying a giant. Another climbed back to the top of the rankings in his division. One young stud continues to tease and frustrate us with his talent. And another aging ex-champ may have had has last moment in the sun. In the spirit of the upcoming Oscar campaigns, I'm adding in some applicable quotes from some of my favorite films.

ZAB JUDAH
"Don't make a joke of your life" Dorothy Boyd- Jerry Maguire.

I'm so sick and tired of this knucklehead. Judah is a former undisputed champ at 147, and two time champ at 140. He's 32 years old. With his resume, and at this point in his career you'd think that he'd try to become a major player at junior welterweight or welterweight. In 2006, Judah gave Mayweather all he could handle for the first half of the fight, and in 2007 he battled Miguel Cotto in one of the best fights of that year. A year later, Judah fought competitively against Joshua Clottey and lost a technical decision after suffering a cut over his eye due to a clash of heads. Since that time, he's been flailing.

Understandably, he fought a keep busy, confidence builder after the loss to Clottey, and defeated "just a guy", Ernest Johnson in November of 2008. Considering how Judah had been getting physically overwhelmed by upper-echelon welterweights, and only weighed 143 against Clottey, I applauded when Judah announced plans to move down to the super-deep, junior welterweight division. This makes a lot of sense. Even if he can't get all the way down to 140, he could fight big name fighters at a catchweight in the low 140's. I have sympathy for his predicament. The late Arturo Gatti faced a similar dilemma of being too physically small for elite welterweights, but just too naturally big to fit comfortable at 140 and under. If Judah wants it bad enough, he can get himself a sold fight. Instead, he's just bullshitting around.

Zab Judah had a prime spot on the undercard of the Mayweather v. Marquez fight. He was supposed to face the solid Antonio Diaz, who was on a 7 fight winning streak. With a pay per view showcase, Judah had a chance to pull out an impressive victory and maybe set himself up for a fight with somebody like Paulie Malignaggi, or Ricky Hatton. Judah pulled out of the fight for reasons known only to Zab Judah. Diaz got screwed; screwed much like the original Judah opponent, Matthew Hatton. Matthew Hatton had agreed in principal to fight Judah at welterweight, and then Judah wanted the fight at a lower weight. Okay, so who did Judah decide to fight after turning down two solid opponents, and a spot on a major pay per view? He had the audacity to fight some guy name Ubaldo Herdandez (22-19-2) last Friday at junior welterweight. Only the fight wasn't really at junior welterweight, because both fighters weighed 145. I'm sure Matthew Hatton wasn't too impressed.

Nobody was impressed.. The atrocity was the "main event" of perhaps the worst pay per view card of the year. Judah scored a 2nd round knockout but nobody cares. How can we care about Judah's once promising career if he doesn't care about it himself? Don't make a joke of your life Zab. Quit wasting our time. I won't write another letter about Zab Judah unless he does something that matters.

DAVID HAYE
"I will not apologize for who I am. I will not apologize for what I need. I will not apologize for what I WANT!" Frank T.J. Mackey- Magnolia

Love David Haye or hate him, he is the WBA heavyweight champion of the world. He did what he set out to do, though, not in the manner that he predicted. After announcing his presence in the heavyweight division by talking loud and insulting the classy Klitschko brothers, many of us were a little excited to have some energy and juice in the heavyweight ranks. However, after fights with both brothers fell apart because of David Haye created reasons, he quickly became an absolute bore. I figured he was scared of them, and after he signed on to fight Nikolai Valuev(perhaps the least talented heavyweight champion in history), I figured he'd get knocked out. Haye was badly stunned in his last fight at heavyweight against the washed up, unimpressive, Monte Barrett. I thought Haye would get brave against Valuev, and get caught for the KO inside of 4 rounds, due to his terrible chin. I was wrong.

However, if you check out the predictions column for Haye v. Valuev, you'll see that I had one alternate prediction: "But if Haye studies Morrison v. Foreman, and just hits and runs all night, he can win a decision." I got a chance to watch the fight on youtube and that's essentially what we got. I do however, give Haye credit for throwing some combinations throughout, and going for the KO in the final round. He's the champ now.
I'm glad he's the champ. He's a breath of fresh air for a stale division. He talks great smack, he's handsome, he can knock anyone out, and he can be knocked out by anyone. This should be an exciting reign no matter how long it lasts. The above cited movie quote--from the most ambitious and underrated film I know–applies to both Haye and me as a fan. Haye needs the title and the acclaim that goes with it. He won't apologize for being an arrogant, offensive, flake. He marketed himself into an ideal title shot-and won. I need some new blood in boxing's most storied division. I've been bitching about the status of the heavyweights since I started on this site. I won't apologize for being bored with the Eastern European dominance. I hope David Haye represents the next wave and the dawn of a new era. I hope that beard of his can at least take him past the Ruiz fight. I NEED a reason to care about the heavyweight division again.

ALFREDO ANGULO
"I had to get it on. He was making a move. I had to get it on." Waingro- Heat

Maybe that's what Alfredo Angulo was thinking Saturday night when he gave Harry Joe Yorgey one of the most vicious beating we've ever seen on an HBO broadcast. I'm not blaming him. It was what it was, and it was brutal. Angulo's 3rd round KO of Yorgey will be played on highlight films in slow motion for eternity. It was one of those frightening moments when the fighter was already out cold before getting blasted with another blow on the way down. It's a true knockout of the year candidate.
Referee Johnny Callas had a pretty bad night. He failed to warn Angulo for a late hit while Yorgey was floored in round 2; let alone take a point away. I guess Angulo thought Yorgey was "making a move" *eyeroll*. Overall, Callas had a poor grasp of how to handle the fight, when to break the fighters up, and he likely let the fight last too long before the savage conclusion. I know it's a tough judgement call when a fighter is taking a beating, and attempting to fight back. We've all seen fighters like the deceased warriors, Arturo Gatti and Diego Corrales, fight back from the brink. But in this case Yorgey seemed physically overmatched in strength and talent. I think I'd like to see a referee error against giving a fighter the benefit of the doubt. There aren't too many Arturos or Diegos in history.
Johnny Callas needs to be sent back to the amateurs, because he is not ready for primetime. Harry Joe needs to take some time off and undergo a great deal of medical testing.
I can't wait to see Alfredo Angulo in the ring again. He put on an outstanding performance, and will be a force for anybody at 154. His combination of nastiness, strength, and skill will make for great fights. Perhaps Angulo didn't have to pull the trigger on that last punch. But then again, we shouldn't question a fighter's instincts in a situation like that. It's not his job to protect his opponent, and he needed to close the show for certain. He "had to get it on". The slow motion image of his KO will be one for the ages.

CHAD DAWSON
"F**k you, you don't owe it to yourself man, you owe it to me. Cuz tomorrow I'm gonna wake up and I'll be 50, and I'll still be doin' this shit. And that's all right. That's fine. I mean, you're sittin' on a winnin' lottery ticket. And you're too much of a pussy to cash it in, and that's bullshit. 'Cause I'd do fu*kin' anything to have what you got. So would any of these fu*kin' guys." Chuckie- Good Will Huntinig

That great quote applies to "Bad" Chad Dawson in every sense. His "winnin' lottery ticket" is his talent. Dawson has exceptional talent. His hand-speed, footwork, and general athleticism are simply awesome. Fight fans like me tend to be hard on boxers like Chad Dawson. He seems to be pretty media savvy, so I'm sure he knows why. After his near route of Johnson(ignore those bogus 115-113 scorecards), Dawson explained to Max Kellerman that he hoped that some of the critics will see that he didn't tire down the stretch. Well, yeah, but, how about taking that talent to the next level? You're a prime 27 year-old Chad, and you're not supposed to tire down the stretch, so no extra credit for that.
After a closely contested first bout, Dawson clearly outclassed Johnson this second time around. It would be stretching it to find three rounds to give to the aging Johnson, who constantly got beat to the punch, and couldn't land anything of note. Dawson was able to tag Johnson rather easily when he put his combinations together. Johnson is known for having a great chin, but Dawson really could have put on one hell of a show in front of his hometown fans by putting a little more pop and aggression into his punches. Maybe he could have gotten a TKO, or at least beaten up the old man a little bit. A few thousand people paid good money to see their hometown guy prove that he's the best light heavyweight in the world–in entertaining fashion. What we really got was a glorified sparring session. It's telling, when your hometown crowd boos you while you're clearly winning the contest.
Chad Dawson may not be the best light heavyweight in the world. I think Bernard Hopkins could beat him, and Joe Calzaghe would outwork if he chose to come out of retirement to prove it. But most importantly, Dawson needs to just keep improving. Any talk of going to heavyweight is laughably premature. The thought of dropping down to 168 seems unlikely to me, and I can't envision him scaling down 7 pounds comfortably. He was a solid 175 Saturday night, and he's only 27, so his body is still filling out. Max Kellerman was right when he mentioned that there's nothing wrong with sitting at a division and cleaning it out. If Dawson can reach his potential as one of the most explosive, dynamic, fighters in the world, other fighters will come to him for paydays. But first things first. He needs to cash in that lottery ticket, and live up to his potential. Will Hunting did it. How you like them apples?

GLEN JOHNSON
"I'm too old for this shit" Roger Murtaugh- Lethal Weapon

That's what it looked like Glen Johnson was thinking Saturday night as he simply couldn't deal with Dawson's speed and talent. He looked tired, slow, and just old. Johnson has noting to be ashamed about. In 2004, he was voted the Boxing Writer's Association Fighter of the Year. He's had a Hall of Fame career, and there really aren't any big fights out there available for him anymore. At 40, he's too old for this shit, and he should retire home with his family. It's been a pleasure watching him fight.

Thanks for reading this week. Feel free to light up the comments section with your thoughts about last weekend's fights, and add in some of your favorite movie quotes. See ya.