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Posted on 11/10/2016

Is Canelo Too Much Of A Fighter At Heart To Not Face Golovkin?
By: Sean Crose

Okay, not to get overtly political here, but if a reality television star can win the White House (for better or for worse), then most certainly Canelo Alvarez can meet Gennady Golovkin in the ring in the not too distant future. Right?

Right??????????

Photo Credit: Hogan Photos/Golden Boy Promotions

Truth be told, it wasn’t long ago that I seriously wondered if the red haired Mexican superstar would ever face the Kazakh terror in the ring for middleweight supremacy. This is an era of “I’m happy with what I have,” after all. Adonis Stevenson, for instance, certainly doesn’t seem interested in light heavyweight supremacy. Even worse, Billy Joe Saunders has yet to show any real interest in fighting anyone who might be a conceivable threat. Perhaps, I thought, Canelo would be happy to star in relatively small scale pay per view cards, count his money and eventually retire content in his lack of legacy and true stardom.

There was always something that bugged me about that scenario, however, something that never seemed quite right. Canelo, you see, has always struck me as a fighter. Not just an athlete. Not just a man with a popular fan base. A fighter. Someone who doesn’t walk away from a challenge. And indeed, I still feel that’s who he is.

And that’s why I feel Canelo-GGG will probably happen in 2017.

Yet there’s something else in play here – and that’s the potential of Floyd-Manny, Part Two. Were that fight to be made before Canelo were to sign to fight GGG, the Mexican star’s stock would drop even more than it has recently. And that’ something I seriously don’t think Canelo wants to have happen.

Let’s get something straight, however:

Canelo has never shown enormous interest in facing Golovkin. He fought for the middleweight title because he wanted to face then current champ Miguel Cotto, plain and simple. When Canelo embraced the middleweight championship, however, he also embraced the “GGG problem.” Had Canelo said a year ago, before the Cotto bout even went down, that he was really just interested in a dream fight wight Cotto, and that a showdown with Golovkin would certainly happen at one point in the future, he’d have saved himself some PR damage.

The man didn’t do that, though, and now he’s in the unfortunate position to have to fight an absolute ring assassin in order to save his dignity. It’s hard not to feel a sense of empathy for the guy. Still, he’s a professional fighter…and a popular, wealthy one at that.

He’s also someone I suspect will only avoid the likes of one Gennady Golovkin for just so long.

Posted on 09/17/2016

HBO PPV Undercard Results: De La Hoya and Diaz Win Easily,
By: William Holmes

Golden Boy Promotions and HBO put on a four fight pay per view card tonight live from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the home of the Dallas Cowboys.

Diego De La Hoya (15-0) , the nephew of Oscar De La Hoya, opened up the card in the division against Luis Orlando Del Valle (22-2) in the super bantamweight division. This bout was for the WBC Youth Super Bantamweight Championship.

De La Hoya was seven years younger than Del Valle and was taking a big step up in competition. De La Hoya was looking for his straight right counter early in the first round but was able to find range with his jab. Del Valle was knocked stumbling backwards into the corner in the middle of the round from a three punch combination, and the few punches he landed didn’t phase De La Hoya.

The second and third rounds were similar in that Del Valle would start off strong and De La Hoya would finish the roung strong. Del Valle showed he was willing to exchange with De La Hoya and held his own during their exchanges, but by the end of the third round it was De La Hoya who was winning the exchanges more frequently.

De La Hoya was tagged early in the fourth round with a sharp right cross, but he fired back with digging body shots. De La Hoya remained the aggressor for the remainder of the fourth and looked like he hurt Del Valle several times. De La Hoya also had control during the fifth round and was able to pop shot Del Valle at a safe range.

Del Valle was hit hard with a straight right counter in the first minute of the sixth round, and he remained tentative for the remainder. By the seventh round Del Valle’s right eye was showing signs of swelling. De La Hoya punished Del Valle to the body and to the head and was physically imposing his will.

Neither boxer stepped on the gas pedal in the eighth and ninth rounds, but De La Hoya was in clear control and landed the higher number of punches.

Del Valle needed a knockout in the final round to win the bout, but that knockout never came.

Diego De La Hoya remained undefeated with decision victory with scores of 100-90, 99-91, and 99-91.

Joseph Diaz Jr. (21-0) and Andrew Cancio (17-3-2) was the next bout of the night in the featherweight division.

Joseph Diaz was a member of the 2012 United States Olympic team and was four years younger than Cancio.

Diaz, a southpaw, stuck to the body in the opening two rounds and was looked very comfortable in the ring. He was able to avoid the punches of Cancio with solid upper body movement and kept his head an elusive target.

Cancio was able to get within striking range in the third round, but took a pounding from Diaz when he got in tight and got his nose busted in the process. Cancio was unable to handle the hand speed of Diaz.

Cancio was able to briefly trap Diaz in the corner in the opening minute of the fourth round and landed some solid body shots, but Diaz took control in the final two minutes and had the head of Cancio snapping backwards from several crisp punches.

Diaz really turned up the pressure in the fifth round and pounded Cancio throughout with combinations at will. Cancio looked outclassed and bewildered, and was simply out of his league.

Diaz’s dominance inside the ring wasn’t impressing the crowd as a wave broke out at the stadium in the sixth round, but at this point it was even clear to the regular fans in attendance that Cancio stood no shot.

Cancio corner was thinking about stopping the fight before the start of the seventh round but they sent him back into the ring. But this round was no different from the previous rounds and he was a punching bag for the talented Diaz.

Diaz’s offensive output dipped in the eighth round, but he still landed at a higher clip and the harder punches. Cancio’s corner repeatedly asked him if he wanted them to stop the fight, but Cancio refused and went back out for the ninth round. Hwoever, in the middle of the round Cancio’s corner wisely decided to stop the fight.

Joseph Diaz impressed with a TKO victory at 2:27 of the ninth round.

Gabriel Rosado (23-9) and Willie Monroe Jr. (20-2) met in the final bout of the televised undercard in the middleweight division.

Rosado looked like the taller fighter, but he was standing straight up while Monroe was boxing with his knees slightly bent. Monroe was able to stay out of Rosado’s range for most of the first round and boxed Rosado effectively by landing the higher number of punches, but none of them could be considered power shots.

Neither Monroe nor Rosado took many risks in the second or third round, but Monroe was landing more punches than Rosado and fought very defensively. The fans started to boo and whistle the lack of action in the third round.

The wave started again in the fourth round, and Monroe continued to safely outbox Rosado. Rosado complained to the referee in the fifth round from an apparent backhand landed by Monroe, but offered little offense after the complaint.

Monroe was sharp in the sixth round and landed several straight left crosses and quick counter jabs. Monroe was able to continue to stay out of the range of Rosado in the seventh round as Rosado was mainly landing at air when he threw punches, but he was pressing the pace and that could have factored in his favor in the eyes of the judges.

Rosado was able to land a few flurries at the end of the eighth round and may have stolen it. It was his most effective offensive output at this stage of the bout.

A cut opened up near the back of the head of Rosado in the ninth round and the referee briefly stopped it to get it attended to, but afterwards both boxers finally threw power shots and both landed heavy shots. Rosado may have scored a knockdown at the end of the round, but the referee ruled it a slip.

Rosado was pressing forward more in the tenth round, but he was not able to land any punches of note while Monroe side stepped him and pop shotted him from the outside.

Rosado needed at least a knockdown in the final two rounds in order to win the bout,but a headbutt in the eleventh round badly swelled and cut the left eye of Rosado and made it much more difficult. Rosado ended the fight better than he started, but it was too little too late.

The judges scored the bout 116-112, 118-110, 117-111 for Willie Monroe Jr.

Posted on 09/16/2016

HBO PPV World Championship Boxing Preview: Canelo vs. Smith, Monroe vs. Rosado
By: William Holmes

On Saturday night AT&T Stadium, the home of the Dallas Cowboys, in Arlington, Texas will be the host site for HBO’s next pay per view offering.

Golden Boy Promotions will pit their superstar, Canelo Alvarez, against British boxer and WBO Junior middleweight champion Liam “Beefy” Smith. Most fight fans were hoping that Canelo would face Gennady Golovkin instead of Liam Smith, and view this fight as mismatch for Canelo.

Two former opponents for Gennady Golovkin, Gabriel Rosado and Willie Monroe Jr., will be fighting in the co-main event of the night. Highly rated prospects Joseph Diaz and Diego De La Hoya will fight on the televised portion of the undercard in matchups that they should win.

Photo Credit: Hogan Photos/Golden Boy Promotions

The following is a preview of the main event and co-main event of the night.

Gabriel Rosado (23-9) vs. Willie Monroe Jr. (20-2); Middleweights

The co-main event of the night will be between two boxers that were stopped by Gennady Golovkin, but remain top contenders in the middleweight division.

Monroe is twenty nine years old and Rosado is thirty, so both boxers are in the middle of their prime years. Rosado will be about an inch and half taller than Monroe, but he will be giving up about two and a half inches in reach.

Rosado has the clear edge in power. Rosado has stopped thirteen of his opponents while Monroe has only stopped six. Monroe has the edge in amateur experience as he won the New York Golden Gloves and reached the finals in the Golden Gloves in 2007. Monroe is also the son of Willie Monroe and the great nephew of Willie the Worm Monroe. Rosado does not have any notable accolades as an amateur to mention.

Monroe has been slightly more active than Rosado in recent years. Monroe fought once in 2016, twice in 2015, and three times in 2014. Rosado has fought once in 2016, once in 2015, and two times in 2014.

Rosado’s record can be deceiving. He does have nine losses on his record and has only gone 2-3 in his past five fights, but his losses have come against some of the biggest names in boxing. He has defeated the likes of Joshua Clottey, Antonio Guiterrez, Charles Whittaker, Sechew Powell, Jesus Soto Karass, Ayi Bruce, and saul Roman. His losses have come to Gennady Golovkin, Peter Quillin, Jermell Charlo, David Lemieux, Alfredo Angulo, Fernando Guerrero, and Derek Ennis.

Rosado is a warrior, but he has been stopped four times in his career. He was able to capture the middleweight crown in Big Knockout Boxing (BKB) outside of his normal career of boxing.

Monroe has defeated the likes John Thompson, Brian Vera, Brandon Adams, Vitaliy Kopylenko, Donatas Bondorovas, and won the Boxcino tournament in 2014. His losses were to Darnell Boone and Gennady Golovkin.

Rosado is a live dog in every fight he enters into, and this Saturday is no different. He would be a bigger underdog if Willie Monroe was known for his power, but he’s not and Rosado can box. This should be a very competitive fight, but this writer sees Monroe winning a decision victory.

Liam Smith (23-0-1) vs. Canelo Alvarez (47-1-1); WBO Junior Middleweight Title

Canelo Alvarez holds the WBC World Middleweight Title but will bumping down to the junior middleweight division to face Liam Smith for his WBO Junior Middleweight Title. An argument could be made that even though Canelo holds a legitimate middleweight title, he has never faced an actual true middleweight, and has only faced blown up junior middleweights and welterweights.

Liam Smith has already gone on the record to state that there will be no fight if Canelo cannot make the 154 pound weight limit. However, there is little reason to believe that Canelo won’t make weight.

Saturday will be Canelo’s 50th fight as a professional, and that’s an impressive feat for someone who is only twenty six years old. Smith is two years older than Canelo, and will have a slight height advantage.

Even though Canelo has nearly double the number of fights of Smith and is two years younger, Smith has been more active than Canelo in the past two years. Smith fought four times in 2015 and twice in 2014, while Canelo has averaged two fights a year since 2012. It should also be noted that Smith has never fought outside of the United Kingdom.

Neither boxer has an overly impressive amateur background. Smith was a two time winner of the ABA Championships as an amateur and Canelo won the Junior Mexican National Boxing Championships as a young teenager, but neither competed in the Olympics or won any medals at an amateur world championship.

Canelo’s only loss in his career was to Floyd Mayweather Jr. His list of defeated opponents is impressive, and he has defeated the likes of Amir Khan, Miguel Cotto, James Kirkland, Erislandy Lara, Alfredo Angulo, Austin Trout, Shane Mosley, and Alfonso Gomez.

Smith has never been in the ring with someone of Canelo’s talent. Smith has defeated the likes of Pregrad Radosevic, Jimmy Kelly, John Thompson, and Zoltan Zera.

The one major positive that jumps out at you when looking at Smith’s resume is that he has stopped his past eight opponents. Canelo has stop three of his past five opponents. However, Smith only has thirteen knockouts on his record while Canelo has thirty three.

Again, this will be the first time that Smith has fought outside of the United Kingdom and this fight will be held in Texas which has a large population of Mexican boxing fans. The fans will be hostile towards Smith, which is something he is not used to, and Canelo is the type of high quality opponent that Smith has never seen before.

The stars are aligned for an easy Canelo victory.

Posted on 08/30/2016

Can Canelo Repair His Reputation?
By: Sean Crose

Things are good yet not so good for Canelo Alvarez. The middleweight/junior middleweight/155 lb weight superstar and (to some, at least) lineal middleweight champ is rich, famous and about to fight yet another world titlist, Liam Smith, in front of an enormous crowd at Dallas’ AT&T Stadium in September. On the other hand, Canelo now has been labeled by many as being a duck…and being labeled a duck is never, not under any circumstances, a good thing for a fighter’s reputation. What’s more, some of Canelo’s comments to the press – and let’s be fair here, his English isn’t great when he speaks to the English speaking media – have only served to alienate him further from some fans.

Still, are things meant to terminally be this rough for the Mexican icon? Or will he someday redeem himself in the eyes of his detractors (let’s face it, the man was until very recently one of the few fighters in the modern era who didn’t seem afraid to face a real challenge)? That may actually all depend on two things: whether or not Canelo faces middleweight terror Gennady Golovkin before the Kazakh warrior begins to age significantly and whether or not Canelo will somehow manage to avoid being beaten before such a fight actually materializes.

To be sure, there are some who feel Canelo just isn’t talented or skilled enough to pick up the mantle left by Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, respectively. And make no mistake about it, Floyd and Manny are no longer kings of the ring. Even if they were to fight again, it would be more of a novelty than a snapshot of an era. Is Canelo near either man’s caliber, though? While only someone clouded by bias would claim the red headed star isn’t very, VERY good at what he does, there are some legitimate questions regarding the true quality of Canelo’s ring performances.

For instance, in his two biggest twins, Canelo bested an aged Miguel Cotto, and destroyed a known welterweight in Amir Khan. Impressive feats, sure, but how impressive when one looks at the whole picture? What’s more, few will give a win over the game, but widely unknown Smith a whole lot of props. Not when guys like GGG and any number of quality junior middleweights are – figuratively speaking – just a phone call away.

The truth is that Canelo can only completely and thoroughly re-establish his reputation by facing GGG in a timely manner. Even if he were to move on to best top level competition other than Golovkin, the letters GGG would hang over his reputation for as long as Canelo walked the earth. Which would be something no popular fighter would want to have happen.

Posted on 06/23/2016

Canelo-GGG: The Art Of Marination
By: Sean Crose

The much anticipated super fight between Saul Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin has been pushed back to 2017 – if not longer. Reports of this development – which has infuriated boxing fans – arrived yesterday and the fight world has been abuzz since. Team Golovkin has made it clear that it’s not really happy with this latest calendar retreat by team Canelo, but nonetheless seems to be taking it in stride.

Give team Canelo this – it’s honest. Golden Boy, which promotes Canelo, apparently made it clear to team Golovkin that it wants this fight to marinate more – a lot more – in order to make it as popular and as financially successful as possible. Whatever Golden Boy honcho Oscar De La Hoya has said about pleasing the fans, it looks like he may literally have been referring to fans of other sports rather than boxing – the kind that nonetheless will cough up good money to watch a big fight on pay per view because it’s the thing to do that weekend.

F. Scott Fitzgerald once claimed that action is character. And he was right. It’s our actions that define us. And De La Hoya’s actions make it clear that, despite what he may indicate, he doesn’t care about pleasing boxing’s fan base. If he did, Canelo-GGG would go down in the fall, or next spring at the latest. At the moment people are asking aloud if the fight will go down at all. I suspect it will, when the deck is stacked as much in Canelo’s favor as possible. The fact that Golovkin, whose no kid, may start showing signs of wear and tear in the near future would, I assume, please team Canelo.

Still, it’s good to keep in mind that boxing is a business. It’s should be more sport than business, but it’s still a business and team Canelo has mouths to feed, mortgages to pay, etc. Golden Boy Promotions undoubtedly employs more than a handful of people, after all. That line of thinking – and empathy – only goes so far, however, when you realize that Golden Boy is in the combat sport business, and it’s not giving combat sport fans the fight they want when they want it.

Pleasing the customer clearly has no place in the business of modern boxing.

With that in mind, it’s been suggested that boxing fans look to the bright side, and that honestly doesn’t seem like a bad suggestion. The bright side, of course, is the fact that there’s good fights being made out there. Interesting fights that are actually relevant. Thurman-Porter, Fury-Klitshcko II,Crawford-Postol, Kovalev-Ward…with matches like this around the corner it’s hard to say boxing is having a terrible year.

And while it’s true none of these fights may attract casual fans to the sport, people like The Sweet Science’s Frank Lotierzo make clear that Canelo-GGG might not be that competitive a fight anyway. By virtue of the eye test, it might simply be all GGG.

Perhaps fans should just let Oscar and Canelo do their thing – which might be to draw in casual fans without taking too much of a risk. Let team Canelo stick to its side of the street while fans stick to theirs. There’s good fights out there, after all. Besides, team Canelo may end up being too smart by half. Using the same tactics Floyd Mayweather was accused of can work if you’re the insanely talented Floyd Mayweather. When your talent level indicates high quality rather than greatness, however, chances are you may end up less like Floyd and more like Adonis Stevenson.

Remember him?