Sunday March 28th 2010
By: Eric Kime
Detroit Fight City
Super Six World Boxing Classic Stage 2:
Andre "The Matrix" Dirrell VS. "King" Arthur Abraham
When I first heard that these two great fighters would be fighting locally I thought “What an unexpected treat to have a high profile fight in Michigan!” After a last minute change of venue the promoters of this tournament had little time to sell tickets and advertise the fight. Despite the rush to get it done the fight had a really good turnout. Detroit fight fans came out to support Flint, Michigan native and Olympic bronze medalist Andre “The Matrix” Dirrell ( 18-1, 13 KO’s), as he took on the most dangerous opponent of his professional career , “King” Arthur Abraham (31-0, 25 KO’s).
Abraham , who is regarded as the hardest hitting puncher in the 168 lbs. Super Middleweight weight class, is a formidable puncher who relentlessly stalks his opponents. He is also a huge star in Germany & Armenia. He is a former IBF World Middleweight Champion who has shown he is a very hardnosed fighter and has NEVER been knocked down. He is definitely fighting out of his hometown of Berlin, Germany but he brought out a large contingent of German and Armenian fans to help counter act the hometown crowd advantage of Dirrell. It would surely be a clash of styles as the slick boxing Dirrell will have to have an excellent game plan to avoid the hard charging and determined slugger Abraham.
Dirrell is coming off of a loss to Carl Froch (England, 26-0,20 KO’s), in a highly contested bout, in which he was edged out on the scorecards in what many say was a “hometown decision”. Abraham on the other hand is coming off an excellent knockout victory over former Middleweight Campion and American Olympian Jermain Taylor. This fight had the potential to be explosive!
As I sit ringside at the famous Joe Louis Arena, home of the Detroit Red Wings, waiting for the fight to begin, I look at both fighters. Dirrell seems to be full of a barely contained energy, while Abraham scowls from his corner looking fierce and determined. The crowd is definitely behind Dirrell, certainly hostile territory for the foreign fighter Abraham, but his contingent of Armenian fans are vocal as they wave their flags and chant his name.
Round by Round Analysis:
ROUND 1
The bell rings, round one begins. Dirrell circles Abraham jabbing and hooking making Arthur look slow, but Abraham's guard is high and tight, as he pressures Dirrell by constantly coming forward. Dirrell totally dominates round one with his jab and body work, while Abraham stays in a defensive posture through most of the round.
ROUND 2
Dirrell is still using his effective jab and lateral movement to keep Abraham off balance. Dirrell, relying on his hand speed, begins to open up with combinations to the head and body, scoring points with the judges, although the defense of Abraham is still tight. His foot speed is keeping him out of harms way, even though Abraham is not firing back very often and seems to be confused by the rhythm of Dirrell. Round two goes to Dirrell.
ROUND 3
Strong driving jabs from Dirrell score frequently and begin to frustrate the foreign fighter who has refused to open up with anything meaningful up to this point. Midway through the round Abraham buzzes Dirrell with a counter left but doesn’t follow up as Dirrel deftly moves out of harms way. Moments later Abraham finally opens up winging looping , wild punches. A few land flush getting the attention of Dirrell who seems to realize he is in a fight with a strong aggressive fighter. Despite this late attack the round still goes to Dirrell.
ROUND 4
Abraham starts the round out by coming forward with bad intentions as he is aware he has lost the first three rounds. He begins to walk Dirrell down, but eats many jabs from the quick fists of the Flint native in the process. Abraham is becoming visibly frustrated by his inability to land anything meaningful so he begins to maul the faster Dirrell in order to get his shots in. Dirrell doesn’t like these brute force tactics of the heavy handed Abraham so he FLOORS the former Middleweight Champion with a powerful left hook (pictured below). It seems to come out of nowhere. Abraham who has NEVER been knocked down before is surprised to say the least. It was certainly a more physical round but Dirrell wins it due to the knockdown.
ROUND 5
Abraham comes out of his corner looking to settle the score and redeem himself from the knockdown he suffered in the previous round. Dirrell is able to use his aggression against him and bullies the stronger fighter into a corner and begins to work him over with solid combinations. It is the most sustained attack of the fight for Dirrell so far and it seems to have surprised Abraham. Dirrell backs off and Abraham resumes his stalking tactics with no real effect. Dirrell controls most of the action with speed and short combinations and superior foot speed to avoid anything coming back at him. Abraham is clearly frustrated at this point as he stalks back to his corner at the sound of the bell.
ROUND 6
The round starts slower than previous rounds as both fighters are more wary of one another now. There is a momentary pause as Dirrell lands a borderline low blow. Action resumes with Abraham stalking and swinging wildly landing occasionally with punches that snap back the head of Dirrell. Dirrell goes back to his slick boxing and begins to control the action for the majority of the round using his excellent boxing skills. Using body shots, short jabs, more lateral movement, and effective combination punching. Abraham becomes a stalking target. Abrahams aggression mounts and he begins to throw wild haymakers, but hits mostly air. Dirrell wins another round.
ROUND 7
The round begins with Dirrell sliping in Abrahams corner, fight momentarily paused, as the corner men clean up the excessive water. Dirrell steps into Abrahams wheelhouse and shoeshine’s him but catches a powerful right cross in the process. This gets the Flint native's attention and he goes back to using his footwork to keep the action in his favor. Dirrell’s gameplan is working perfectly. He seems to knock Abraham down once again but it is ruled a slip.
ROUND 8
Midway through the round Abraham traps Dirrell in a corner and begins to unload. It is hard to tell if the combinations are effective because Dirrell is bobbing and weaving so much, though it does appear that Dirrell is slowing down from the pace of the fight and the constant pressure of Abraham. Dirrell comes out of the corner and lands some nice shots of his own. A cut appears on the right eyebrow of Abraham. A close round and the action seems to be really heating up as Abraham is closing the distance with more ease now, and his determination to win is growing.
ROUND 9
Boxing Dirrell, stalking Abraham. The theme of the fight continues, with Dirrell’s slick movement nullifying the vaunted power of Abraham. Dirrell lands a powerful left that opens the cut on Abraham's eyebrow further. Blood is really flowing out now. The ref calls a time out so the doctor can take a look at the cut. After a long and thorough examination the fight continues with a renewed sense of urgency for Abraham.
ROUND 10
Abraham knowing that he is far behind on the cards and that the fight could be stopped due to the cut on his eyebrow is desperate to get something going. He is relentlessly stalking Dirrell who is clearly running out of gas and feeling the deep rounds of the fight. Abraham seems tireless in his pursuit. Dirrell begins to mix it up with some combinations, but they don’t seem to have the pop they had earlier and Abraham walks through them. Finally his stalking pays off and he drops Dirrell. The knockdown is ruled a slip even though it occurred as Abraham landed a clean punch, but their feet were tangled as he went down. Despite it being ruled a slip you can see for the remainder of the round Dirrell is slower and a little shaky.
ROUND 11
Dirrell seems to have shaken off any cobwebs from the slip/trip, but Abraham is reinvigorated by the turn of events and the press of time to get things done. Although Dirrell doesn’t seem to be showing effects from the punch he is definitely breathing heavily and is much slower than he was in earlier rounds. The constant movement seems to have taxed his endurance. Dirrell is still boxing well and Abraham is getting very frustrated and knows he is running out of time. As dirrell moves around the ring he slips in Abraham’s corner again, while he is on one knee Abraham lines up a shot and blasts Dirrell right on the jaw. It is one of the more flagrant fouls I have ever seen. Dirrell slumps over on the floor and begins twitching like he is having a seizure. Doctors rush into the ring to attend to Dirrell as security guards move into the ring to protect Abraham from the enraged corner of Dirrell (pictured below). Referee Lawrence Cole calls a stop to the bout due to disqualification, awarding a victory to the still unconscious Andre Dirrell. It was to say the least an anti-climactic end to an excellent fight that had a chance of going either way at the end.
The official scorecards read 98-91, 97-92, & 97-92. ANDRE DIRRELL
Sunday March 14th, 2010
By: Eric Kime
Pacquiao VS. Clottey
There is very little to report from this fight I am sorry to say. I thought Joshua Clottey stood a good chance. He possess an incredible defense, has some impressive wins, and this may be the only shot he gets at a belt. I thought Maybe he'll go for it and upset Manny Pacquiao.
No sir that is not what happened. To sum it up I would say Clottey spent all 12 rounds taking and blocking shots. He got a few good punches to Manny, who has a skill for not even trying to block punches, but never sustained an attack on Manny. Manny spent all 12 rounds coming after Clottey with his fists of fury.
But I think this is one of the few times that only the numbers can truly do it justice. These are averages mind you. Not one good round here or one good round there. AVERAGES, over a 36 minute period.
Manny Pacquiao - 1231 Punches, 103/round, 34/minute, .569/second
Joshua Clottey - 396 Punches, 33/round, 11/minute
This was a record number of punches for Pacquiao. He averaged more punches per minute than Clottey did per 3 minute round. He averaged more than half a punch per second for 36 minutes! Are you kidding me? Who is ready for Pacquiao - Mosley?
In the time it took you to read this article you would have got hit by Manny Pacquiao at least 82 times.
Wednesday March 3rd, 2010
By: Eric Kime
Belt Holder Say What?
Tickets went on sale today for the “Sugar” Shane Mosely – Floyd “Money” Mayweather fight. Notice that I refer to it as Mosley – Mayweather instead of the officially billed Mayweather – Mosely. Because inspite of whatever agreements they may have, I out of due respect, still give the champion top billing.
These are two of the best fighters of their era and they've been circling eachother for years. I personally have wanted to see this fight for a long time but changes in weight classes, bigger money fights, unexpected losses (Mosley), and brief, premature retirements (Mayweather) have left the boxing fans around the world in suspense.
Even though many fight fans have wanted to see this fight, it still wouldn’t have happened. Mosley’s last scheduled opponent, Andre Berto, was forced to pull out of their January 30th bout due to the Earthquake in Haiti. But the entire world was ready for Mayweather - Pacquiao at the same time with negotiations falling apart over Mayweather’s inistance that Pacquio submit to a drug test. Now these two great champions can settle for the record, who is better.
The catalyst of this fight coming to fruition was Mosley brazenly interrupting Mayweather’s post-fight interview following his win over Juan Manuel-Marquez last September. Mosley wanted Mayweather to acknowledge that he is the reigning champion at 147lbs. and insisted that they fight instead of Mayweather pursuing a fight with Pacquio. This public attack during Mayweather’s interview infuriated the brash, Grand Rapids native, and finalized what will probably be the fight of the year.
Mayweather, who has never been defeated, has a boisterous persona to go along with his perfect record. He has no problem telling anyone who will listen that he is the greatest fighter who has ever lived. His skills are exemplary. Hand and foot speed coupled with tremendous defensive skills. He always comes into fights in great shape and never shows signs of fatigue. The only rubs on his boxing prowess is a general reluctance to take chances along with sometimes brittle hands. Though in recent years the problem of injuring his hand seems to be less of an issue. His personality rubs many people the wrong way, but he seems to enthrall his urban fans who find his nickname “Money” Mayweather and his constant talk of bling endearing.
Shane Mosley is an excellent boxer as well, he possess enough hand speed to throw any fighter out of their rythym along with devastating knockout power. He is coming off a knockout victory over feared and avoided Antonio Margaritto. Shane has almost as many knockouts as Mayweather has fights and has never really avoided anyone. He is known as a tireless pursuer and a risk taker. Mosley does tend to have problems against taller, rangier, fighters such as Vernon Forrest (RIP) and Ronald “Winky” Wright. These men along with Miguel Cotto are the only ones who have defeated Mosley. Although I personally think Mosley won the Cotto fight.
Floyd Mayweather will surely be the favorite entering the ring on May 1st in Las Vegas, being undefeated, younger, and faster. Don’t let those things fool you, Shane Mosley has plenty in both hands to make this a compelling fight. Mayweather won’t have the height, range, or natural aggression, to beat Mosley through exchanges. He will rely on defensive skills and the ability to frustrate Mosley.
Mosley will have to attempt to punch with power without using up all of his gas too early. Using his aggression and size to offset the speed and counterpunching of the challenger Mayweather may be his ticket.
I predict an excellent fight with Mosley slowly wearing down the defensive minded Mayweather until he is forced to exchange and lose. Mosley in a 10th round knockout of the previously undefeated Mayweather. I’ve been wrong before but I call ‘em like I see ‘em. Go if you can. I’ll be there.
By: Eric Kime
Saturday September 20th, 2009 - Floyd Mayweather vs. Juan Marquez
Boxing Trilogy - Part 1
Editors Note:
WJLH radio is proud to announce the addition of Eric Kime, our new boxing correspondent. Boxing writers are a dying breed, so when the opportunity came along to add someone with almost 3 decades of boxing knowledge, and a passion for reading, writing, and arithmetic, it was a no brainer. Eric Kime is pictured above next to Bert Sugar, who is in my opinion, the greatest boxing writer, magazine editor, and all around renaissance man, the University of Michigan has ever produced. Does this picture contain the passing of the proverbial boxing writers torch? Only the future holds the answer to questions like these. Ladies and Gentleman, Eric Kime.
When the Mayweather vs. Marquez fight was first announced many people scratched their heads wondering why would Floyd Mayweather come out of retirement to fight Juan Manuel Marquez? It didn’t make sense, there seemed to be nothing to gain in this endeavor. Then it became clear that this was some sort of set up for a mega fight between Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. It would be the retired pound for pound fighter against the reigninig pound for pound fighter, if Floyd could emerge victorious against Marquez, and Manny Pacquiao could defeat the larger stronger Miguel Cotto.
Manny, who took over the mantle in Floyd’s retirement, had embarrassed Floyd by knocking out two fighters that Floyd seemed to have trouble with. Floyd had gone the distance with Oscar De la Hoya and went deep into his fight with a very aggressive Ricky Hatton, while Manny had dispatched both opponents with relative ease. Knocking out Ricky Hatton in two rounds, and making De la Hoya quit on his stool, essentially sending two well respected fighters into retirement. It seemed Floyd’s plan was to lure Pacquiao into a fight by beating an opponent in Juan Manuel Marquez that had given Manny so much trouble. A fighter who had given as good as he had taken in his two fights with Manny. The best Manny had been able to do against Marquez was one controversial win and a draw.
For Floyd, a dominant victory over Marquez would not only send a message to Manny that he could easily defeat fighters that gave Manny trouble, but it would also re-establish him as a world class fighter worthy of high profile fights, after a nearly two year hiatus from the sport.
Most people believed that Floyd would perform well and still look crisp, considering he had retired in his prime and not due to old age or injury. As a matter of fact most people thought Marquez had very little chance in this fight. Marquez was smaller, slower, shorter, had less reach, and had never fought at the agreed upon weight before. It seemed a no brainer that Floyd would dominate the fight with ease.
Then the HBO hype machine kicked in. Announcing the fight would be Pay Per View and there would be a 24/7, four part documentary leading up to the fight. The show, which I enjoy watching, always seems to hook me into believing that the underdog has a chance. That if Marquez trained hard enough, if he and his family believed in him, and if he could drink enough of his own urine, that he could pull this fight off. Oh boy I was convinced he would be aggressive, even though he was historically, a slow starting counter puncher. I thought for sure that his lifelong trainer, Nacho Berenstein, was gonna turn him into an animal of such ferocity that no mere human could withstand his attack. For Floyd it seemed it would be the equivalent of being locked in a closet with a rabid wolverine, and I couldn’t wait to see the assault.
Then the opening bell rang, and the illusion was destroyed as it became clear the larger, faster, more skilled Floyd Mayweather was going to pot shot Marquez until either Marquez quit, or was soundly defeated on the scorecards. When two counter punchers meet and one is much faster than the other the outcome is predictable. Marquez’s only chance was the same as everyone else who has fought Mayweather, rough him up and throw lots of punches, he can’t possibly block them all. But alas, despite the aggressive blustering leading up to the fight, Marquez was awed by Mayweather’s speed and didn’t seem to interested in engaging him. So he seemed to be content to stand on the outside and absorb jabs from his faster foe. Also, as is Floyd’s way, he is content to soften you up with a few punches and an occasional flurry, if he feels maybe he didn’t do enough to win the round.
All in all a one sided, lack luster fight for the 13,116 in attendance at the MGM Grand Garden Center. This fight makes me want to see Floyd fight Shane Mosley more than I want to see him fight another small fighter in Manny Pacquiao. But that's just my own personal feelings. I know Mayweather/Pacquiao is exactly what my editor, and a lot of people at home, want to see. I'm here to bring it to you.