The Way I See It: 01.06.09: Looking Out for 2010
Posted by Joe Roche on 01.06.2010
This week Joe Roche takes a departure from the national boxing scene and shares some insider information as he gives you five prospects that you may not know yet, but you will by the end of 2010.
It's been a crazy couple of weeks with the holidays and some family coming in from out of town here at TWISI Headquarters so I apologize ahead of time for the on again-off again schedule that I've been maintaining. However, with our entrance into the new year I have cleared my schedule and it's time to get back to what it is that I do – writing about boxing topics that interest me. This week I thought that I could talk about any number of huge items that have come up over the last two weeks – but seeing as the able bodies here at 411mania.com have covered the bases I thought I'd go in a different direction. This week I'd like to spend a moment of your time highlighting some fighters who I've had the pleasure of seeing up close and personal in 2009 – who I think you should be paying attention to in 2010 lest you miss the blossoming of the next great boxing stars. Many of the names that I will talk about should be familiar to those of you who follow my live boxing coverage because all of these guys are local fighters who I think are ready to break onto the national scene in the coming twelve months.
The Way I See It: "Hammerin'" Hank Lundy (16-0-1, 10 KO's): If I had to put money on which local boxing star will have a breakout year in 2010 then I'd have to put it down on Hank Lundy. The current UBC lightweight champion ended 2009 with an impressive Halloween first round KO of veteran Aldo Valtierra – a guy who does not go down in the first round even though he's been in the ring with some of the top fighters in his weight class. Lundy is a smaller fighter, standing only 5'6 but he's built like a brickhouse and throws vicious body shots to accompany his knockout power. I've seen Lundy win a fight with a body shot, and I wouldn't be surprised to see it happen again. In 2009 Lundy went 4-0 with 4 KO's including wins over Valtierra and the (at the time) unbeaten Jason Cintron. But apart from being a damned fine fighter Lundy brings another attribute to the table that could set him apart from some of the other fast risers on this list – namely that the man can talk like nobodies business. The first time I saw Lundy he had just finished beating Josh Beeman (who?) in Lincoln, Rhode Island and immediately after the win he called out everyone including Timothy Bradley as afraid of him. It wasn't that he called out the top dogs in the division that was surprising, but it was that Lundy has a way of making you feel like he's just joking around, getting people to laugh and have a good time, but he's also being 100% serious. It's a gift to be able to say the things that Lundy says without coming off as arrogant and boastful and I think that his personality will contribute to the rise that I see coming as a result of his boxing talents. Another thing that Lundy has working in his favor is that he can fight anywhere from 133 to 147 pounds which opens up a lot of possible match ups for him and should expand the potential that he'll book that "big" fight at some point in 2010. Lundy won't be wasting any time kicking off 2010 in style as he returns to the ring on January 22nd at The Roxy in Boston (a fight that I'll be covering live) against fellow undefeated Brad Solomon (9-0, 3 KO's) who is coming off his own career highlight victory on VERSUS against Ray Robinson (no, the other Ray Robinson). If Lundy can hand Solomon his first career loss then it should lead to higher profile fights for "Hammerin'" Hank as we head deeper into the New Year.
Edwin Rodriguez (13-0, 9 KO's): Admittedly singling out "La Bomba" doesn't put me in the minority in boxing circles – he's a star in the making and I think most people believe that 2010 should be his break out year. After spending part of 2009 recovering from surgery Edwin is looking to make a big impact in the coming months. I would be remiss to note that he is a local product of Worcester, Massachuestts (represent) and everyone in these parts follows his career closely. Rodriguez fought 5 times in 2009 although he would admit himself that some of those fights weren't of the caliber that he would've hoped heading into the year (again the surgery) however he still went through five individuals and kept his undefeated record in tact, including a very good fight against Darnell Boone over 8 dominant rounds. Rodriguez, like Lundy will head into 2010 with a full plate and a high profile bout right off the bat as "La Bomba" will be part of the January 30th Shane Mosley-Andre Berto undercard from the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Nevada where he'll take on Byron Tyson (9-1-2, 4 KO's). Rodriguez for those who do not know is one of a very talented group of American born middleweights right now that should make for some highly entertaining fights down the road. While Rodriguez doesn't have the same hype as some of the other members of that class (Daniel Jacobs, Shawn Porter) he's just as talented as any of those fighters, and his story is so inspirational and uplifting that I find it impossible to not root for the guy. I think his undercard appearance at the end of this month is only the beginning of big things in 2010 for Edwin Rodriguez. Demetrius Andrade (8-0, 6 KO's): I am unapologetic in my feelings towards Demetrius Andrade. From the moment he showed up at a press conference to announce his fight at the CES "School's In" card dressed in a shirt and tie I knew that Andrade was bound for greatness. He has something that the others on this list do not have – an Olympic pedigree which helps get him over on television and makes his fights feel more important then some of them may be otherwise. I've said it before and I'll say it again Andrade's final fight of 2009, an absolutely war with Chris Chatman was the best fight I saw all year and a fight that will help Andrade reach his fullest potential. "Boo Boo" is already lined up to be a part of the season premier of Friday Night Fights on January 15th in Laredo, Texas and I imagine that his appearance will only be the beginning of very big things in 2010 for the Providence, Rhode Island native. Andrade is a lightning quick, left handed junior middleweight which makes it incredibly difficult to find opponents for him but his resume speaks for itself and it's obvious that he has tried to get into the ring with top flight competition regardless of where he has to go to fight. The only person who can stand in the way of Demetrius Andrade it Demetrius Andrade – there are times when I've spoken to him, or I've been around him when I think that he might be a little too overconfident seeing as how he hasn't really accomplished anything on a professional level. However, there are other times when I've been around him where he strikes me as the exact opposite of that – he is a mystery wrapped in an enigma to be sure. If Andrade can continue to improve in the ring, and not let the hype that will surely build up around him dominant his consciousness then he's going to be make big waves in 2010.
Danny O'Connor (10-0, 3 KO's): It's a tough business but Danny O'Connor manages to be one of the nicest guys in boxing. I know that has nothing to do with whether or not he's going to have a break out 2010 but then again it can't hurt to be considered a funny, interesting and pleasant individual right? O'Connor has been called a young Paul Spadafora which is interesting when you take into account that I just called O'Connor one of the nicest guys that I've met in boxing – and regardless of what you think about Spadafora I think it's fair to state that he's probably not the nicest guy you could run into (especially if you're a female and have dated him). O'Connor is another fighter with some Olympic pedigree although unlike Andrade he did not appear in Beijing, he was still an alternate on the team, and as he told me before that experience has helped him in the early phase of his pro career when he doesn't learn who his opponent will be sometimes until a few days before the fight (this constant switcheroo has a tendency to fall away when you start making bigger money). As for O'Connor the fighter he may be the furthest from headline status in this particular group but there are nights when I'm convinced that his blinding speed, and movement makes him a better prospect then Andrade. O'Connor finished out 2009 with a very impressive one sided victory over James Hope at Twin Rivers, and he will open up 2010 in Boston on the same card as Hank Lundy against Darelle Sukerow (14-15-1, 5 KO's) who doesn't have much of a record to speak of – but has far more experience then anyone O'Connor has faced to date and should be a welcome challenge for the Framingham native. The bout at The Roxy should be the beginning of big things for O'Connor has Sukerow hasn't been in a ring since February 2008 (and before that it was July 2006) so his career has obviously tapered off since losing to Dmitriy Salita in 2005. I know that there were plans for O'Connor to come back in March to fight on St. Patrick's Day (or around St. Patrick's Day) so I expect that his full arsenal will be on display against Sukerow and we should see the explosive, talented and lightning quick O'Connor that I expect every boxing fan to take note of before 2010 is through.
Matt Remillard (20-0, 11 KO's): The "Sharp Shooter" is probably the name on this list most likely to break out first (have I said that four times already?). The current NABF featherweight champion is ranked #13 in the world by the WBC and is slated to face Rafael Lora on Jan. 29th at Mohegan Sun in a rematch from their first meeting where Remillard handed Lora his first professional loss (and captured the NABF featherweight title). Remillard has a long way to go before he gains worldwide recognition at featherweight but as the second highest ranked American on the WBC's standings it shouldn't be long before he's gaining momentum in this country. If Remillard is going to make "the leap" this year he'll have to do it at the expense of a host of Mexican fighters who seem to make up the entire featherweight division – but as his career has progressed he's become more technically sound, with better movement so that he isn't taking as many punches as he was in his younger days. Remillard is the one guy on this list that I haven't seen in person fight but I will catch him at the end of this month when he co-features a card headlined by Peter Manfredo Jr. and I am looking forward to that night very much. If Remillard can continue on his current pace then like the four other men mentioned in this column we should expect very big things out of him in 2010.
Could this list be much longer? Of course it could but I don't want to get into a situation where I'm just listing fighter who I know and nobody else is even aware of – this is a list of five local (to me) fighters who I expect will have much higher profiles at the end of 2010 then they do right now. There are some borderline candidates for this list as well, Jason "Big Six" Estrada will be a bigger star this year then he was last, especially based on the fact that he'll face Tomasz Adamek on February 6th in Newark. For those who don't know Estrada he is a tough opponent for Adamek and will throw a high volume of punches at the former cruiserweight champion. However I feel like Estrada is already highly regarded in most circles so he misses the list and would've likely been on a similar list had I done one when 2009 began – but I didn't so apologies to "Big Six."
One thing that I've loved about covering local fights, fighters and personalities is that I know there are fight fans all over the country with a similar list in their back pocket somewhere made up of the fighters that they've spent time watching over the course of 2009 – so I'm throwing this out there to the comment section, but give me some fighters to watch in 2010 that you think will be making "the leap" before we celebrate the end of the year twelve months from now.
The Way I See Bullet Points
- I was honestly going to do away with this section of the column for the New Year but then the most bizarre thing happened and I had to comment. Of course I'm talking about the pictures surfacing of Wladimir Klitschko the Ring Magazine heavyweight champion (among other things) chillaxin' (that's what the kids are saying these days right?) by the pool with Hayden Panettiere. Now for those of you who don't delight in the diminutive starlet like I do you may not realize that Wladimir Klitschko is a Russian cyborg sent to destroy the heavyweight boxing division and Hayden is a 4 foot tall eco-warrior who plays an indestructible teenager on NBC and has been rumored to be almost impossible to work with (also she takes a lot of pictures where she is licking stuff). I'm not going to pass any judgment on the "couple" because frankly I think it's about time the heavyweight champion got to put his hands all over a TV starlet, especially one that is two feet shorter, and 13 years younger – is there anyone out there who can blame Wladimir for his choice, what's the point of being the best heavyweight boxer in the world if you can't have some fun? What I do find amazing is that the gossip rags that reported this story seemed to focus on the fact that Klitschko speaks four languages, and has a PhD in sports science from Kiev University. Unfortunately nobody mentions his nickname because the idea of Claire from Heroes and Dr. Steelhammer joining forces seems like a nergasm waiting to happen right? But the real reason for this bullet point is this quote by Klitschko about his approach to women "I am a man. And men are still hunters nowadays, I much prefer to approach women than the other way round. It is best when they reject at first. A ‘no' is an excellent challenge. Then it starts to get fun! It is best for me if the women do not know me at all." – ladies and gentlemen you're world heavyweight champion!
- Obviously I am a mere speck on the boxing landscape but I wanted to take a moment to send my deepest condolences out to Miguel Cotto and his the entire Cotto family for the untimely passing of the family patriarch Miguel Cotto Sr. this past week. Anyone who saw HBO's 24/7 in the weeks leading up to the Pacquiao fight saw how important Miguel Cotto Sr. was to his son and the entire family and I know that this must be a very difficult time for the entire Cotto family in Puerto Rico. Again I would like to extend my heartfelt prayers and wishes from my family to theirs on this tragic occasion.
- In the interest of journalistic and humanistic integrity I will say that I have absolutely no desire to see Francois Botha and Evander Holyfield fight on February 20th. Frankly Holyfield is dangerously close to becoming a tragedy in boxing, and Botha was never much of anything to begin with. I'd also hate to slander an environment that I am not familiar with but the thought of a fight like this taking place in Uganda, for the WBF championship strikes me as raising a ton of warning flags. I know that this fight will eventually happen – and that's too bad but I just hope Holyfield makes a lot of money off the bout (won't happen) because I'd hate to see "The Real Deal" traveling the globe fighting has-beens, or never-were fighters for change on the subway.
- For those who don't know former undisputed heavyweight champion Mike Tyson will be the guest host of WWE Monday Night Raw next week (Jan. 11th). Tyson is hopefully never going to step into a boxing ring as an active participant again but he's always been a draw for the WWE and hell if the man is in need of a few bucks maybe he can sign up with Vince or better yet TNA who seem to have the checkbook out for anyone with a pulse. It'll be interesting to see Tyson at Raw on Monday because it's interesting to see Tyson anywhere.
Punching Out
That's it for me this week folks -- don't forget to check out our multiple twitter persona's and a super special reminder that if you want to play some Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 my Xbox Live gamertag is jdroche so check me out.
