Round by Round – Weekly Boxing Notes

By Dave "Large" Larzelere

Ultraviolent Viddies
Tomorrow night Israel Vasquez and Rafael Marquez square off at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA in one of the most anticipated fights of the young year.

Someone once said, Jerry Izenberg I believe, that in the Thrilla in Manila, Ali and Frazier weren’t fighting for the heavyweight championship of the world, but for the heavyweight championship of each other. I think similar sentiments could be echoed for tomorrow night’s bout. Although The Ring and WBC super bantamweight titles are on the line, what’s primarily at stake is the rubber match of a boxing trilogy that is almost certainly destined to join the great fistic three-peats of all time.

The first two Vasquez/Marquez bouts were in 2007, both of them head-snapping, jaw-dropping FOY candidates (in fact, I gave my personal FOY award to Vasquez/Marquez II in an interview at Jarry Park). Marquez won the first fight when Vasquez was forced to retire because of a nose injury that interfered with his breathing. In the rematch, Vasquez stopped Marquez in the sixth. The third meeting promises to be just as much of a rock-em-sock-em robotic display as their previous encounters, so if you’re looking to erase the image of Klitschko and Ibragimov pawing at each other like two kittens at play, well, this fight is guaranteed to turn the trick.

To whet your appetite, peruse below, and then go call the cable lady and order yourself some Showtime:



Only If You Promise Not to Bite My Other Ear
Rumors have been swirling for months that a third Holyfield/Tyson fight was in the works, and though most people dismissed such talk as rubbish, it seems now that there was some truth behind it all.

Evander Holyfield came out in a recent interview and said that Tyson’s people indeed had contacted him to ask if he would consent to a third fight. Holyfield said he would take the bout only if Tyson got into proper condition. According to The Real(ly Old) Deal, this conversation was months ago and he hasn’t heard anything about it since.

Holyfield is 45, showing clear effects of his many wars in the ring, and missing part of an ear. Tyson is 41, miserable, broke, utterly lost in the world, and missing most of his mind. At this point, I’d say it’s even odds.

The Baby Bull and The Wrath of Khan
I realize that with bouts like Pacquiao/Marquez and Calzaghe/Hopkins on the not-too-distant horizon, it may seem premature to bring this up, but nevertheless I must say I am incredibly excited at the prospect of a lightweight title fight between Juan “The Baby Bull” Diaz and British wunderkind Amir Khan later this year.

Of course, both young stars have bouts to win before that can happen, with Khan facing Martin Kristjansen of Denmark on April 5th in a WBO title eliminator, and Diaz facing none other than The Galaxxy Warrior, Nate Campbell, on March 8th in Cancun. True to form, Mr. Galaxxy came up with some interstellar analysis of Diaz recently, saying, “Juan Diaz is not a demigod. A demigod is half mortal, half god and I just don’t see that.” Now I appreciate Nate clearing up for us exactly what constitutes a “demigod” and I agree with him – Diaz does not fit the definition. Then again, he ain’t no Ricky Quiles either, and my money has him stopping Campbell in seven or less.

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.