SB Nation User Blog: Brickhaus

Who's the best American heavyweight?

Brickhaus — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 02:09:04 -0000

So, who is it?

Poll

Who is the best American heavyweight?

Eddie Chambers upsets Alexander Dimitrenko

Brickhaus — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 21:18:46 -0000

Eddie Chambers upsets Alexander Dimitrenko

The official scores were 117-109, 116-111 and 113-113, although by all accounts Chambers pretty much dominated the big Ukrainian, scoring two knockdowns. This puts Chambers higher up the rankings and one step closer to a big money fight.

Pacquiao-Cotto almost a done deal

Brickhaus — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 16:17:20 -0000

Pacquiao-Cotto almost a done deal

November 14, MGM Grand. Pacquiao rumored to be guaranteed $12 million, plus a percentage. Weight still isn't set in stone yet, but Cotto's trainer/nutritionist says he thinks Cotto could make 144 without too many problems. Humberto Soto and Vanes Martirosyan are being bandied about for the undercard.

Showtime negotiating super middleweight round robin tournament

Brickhaus — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 14:48:30 -0000

According to Rick Reeno, Showtime is currently in the process of setting up a major super middleweight tournament with most of the major players in the weight class. Evidently, this would work by Showtime signing each of the fighters to multi-fight deals, and then having a round-robin style tournament with multiple cards. The winners of the fights will be assigned points, and the four fighters with the most points would meet each other in semifinals and finals, hopefully with the end result of creating a lineal super middleweight champion.

The proposed matches are as follows:

Arthur Abraham Vs Jermain Taylor - October In Germany
Carl Froch Vs Andre Dirrell - October in the UK
Mikkel Kessler Vs Andre Ward - In November
Arthur Abraham vs Andre Dirrell - January 2010 in America
Mikkel Kessler Vs Carl Froch - March 2010 in Europe
Andre Ward Vs Jermain Taylor - April/May 2010 in America
Andre Dirrel Vs Andre Ward - September 2010 in America
Arthur Abraham Vs Carl Froch - November 2010
Mikkel Kessler VS Jermain Taylor - November 2010

Now obviously, there are a few stumbling blocks here. First, Lucian Bute is not included in the tournament as proposed, which would make it difficult to create a new lineal champ. He probably has the best resume at super middleweight over the last two years, and is the consensus #2 in the weight class. Second, Mikkel Kessler is still having his legal troubles with Mogens Palle, although according to the article, Palle would give Kessler a special dispensation to participate. Third, this means there's no Pavlik vs. Abraham, as Abraham will have permanently moved up to 168 in an effort to become a major player there. Fourth, it leaves Pavlik SOL, as the only decent potential opponents not participating would be Bute and Felix Sturm. Finally, even if it gets signed up, there are so many big promoters and big personalities involved that you'd have to anticipate a few hiccups along the way.

Still, if this is true, it's great news, and I'm thrilled that Showtime is trying to put something big together. They've already made quite an investment in the super middleweight division, and a tournament like this would take it from a good division with a lot of depth to a very strong division with one or two pound for pound level fighters.

Chambers-Dimitrenko weigh in. Chambers weighed in at 208, and you can ALMOST see abs.

Brickhaus — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:27:37 -0000

Chambers-Dimitrenko weigh in. Chambers weighed in at 208, and you can ALMOST see abs.

Project Prospect Midseason Top 50

Brickhaus — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:43:22 -0000

Project Prospect Midseason Top 50

DJ at 25 and Wade Davis at 36. They had Wade ranked at 49 and DJ at 75 (and Hellboy ranked at 44) in the offseason. A bit of an unorthodox list (as it notes at the bottom, it ranks guys based on floor more than ceiling), but at least someone is reanalysing these guys at midseason.

Some Random Rumors

Brickhaus — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:01:38 -0000

Sweet as sugar? Bonsu will be facing Aydin in a battle between two knockout artists.

View full size photo uploaded July 2, 2009

Some news and notes from around the boxing world this week...

According to BoxingScene, Jorge Linares is calling out Humberto Soto. It would be a great step-up fight if it were to happen, but I can't help but feel that Linares still hasn't built up enough of a name to make this a decent money fight. I have to imagine that Soto would be game either way, as I've never seen him back down from anyone, but Arum might prefer to save him for a fight with someone in the Top Rank stable. The fight wouldn't be until early next year, and if it does happen, there's a decent chance it could create a new lineage.
In a battle that could create a legitimate welterweight contender, Selcuk Aydin will be facing "Sugar" Jackson Bonsu in a WBC eliminator next weekend. Bonsu was last seen narrowly beating Carlos Baldomir and losing to Rafal Jackiewicz. Aydin's last fight was on US television, but he didn't exactly look dominant, and I still think his tiny little T-Rex arms will hurt him in the long run. The fact that this fight could create a top 10 contender is a testament to just how weak the welterweight division is after the top dogs.
Japanese megapromoter Akihito Honda is considering making a bout between Daisuke Naito and Edgar Sosa. Sosa, who has defended his belt 9 times since winning it from Brian Viloria, and who has become a big draw in Mexico, has expressed interest in moving up to flyweight after making one more defense. Naito is probably the second most popular boxer in Japan at the moment, and is a huge draw there. While this would be a great fight for the sport, I have to wonder how they would reconcile the money. If the fight's in Japan, it probably doesn't make any more for having a borderline pound for pound fighter as the opponent, since Sosa has no name recognition there. If the fight's in Mexico, there's the same problem going the other way. Plus, you wouldn't be able to broadcast live from one location to the other due to the time difference. Sounds better in concept than in execution.
The soap opera just continues with Mikkel Kessler. Later this week, his mandatory against Gusmyl Perdomo is supposed to go to a purse bid. The path of least resistance for him to get out of his contract with Mogens Palle was to take this fight, and then make the argument that the contract is over. However, it looks like Perdomo's handlers don't want him facing Kessler, and will try to make a fight with Denis Inkin instead, which leaves Kessler out on the lurch.
Vic Darchinyan heading to Golden Boy Promotions? Gary Shaw says that's hogwash.
In a sad story, former champ Rocky Lockridge is living homeless in Camden, NJ. Lockridge was involved in the 1988 fight of the year with Tony Lopez, and was one round away from beating Wilfredo Gomez in Puerto Rico.
According to Fightnews, Delvin Rodriguez-Isaac Hlatswayo II might be happening soon, this time on US soil. Most reports had Delvin winning the first fight in South Africa, which was originally scored a win for Hlatswayo, and then changed to a draw due to a scoring error.

Alexis Arguello: 1952-2009

Brickhaus — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:51:53 -0000

According to the Associated Press, Alexis Arguello was found dead in his home this morning, of an apparent suicide. Arguello was an extraordinary man who was able to succed both within and outside of the ring.

As a fighter, Arguello racked up a record of 82-8, with 65 knockouts, becoming world champion in three different weight classes. Arguello, a Hall of Famer, owns a number of significant wins, including wins over Ruben Olivares, Alfredo Escalera, Bobby Chacon, Rafael Limon, Jim Watt and Ray Mancini. Perhaps his most well known fight in the US, however, came when he was well past his prime and well above his best weight, in a junior welterweight battle with Aaron Pryor. Arguello had huge one punch power, and many of his best wins came when he was behind on all of the cards.

After his career as a boxer, Arguello became the mayor of Managua, the capital of Nicaragua. Recently, he had become the subject of controversy, with allegations of voting fraud and public graft.

Sauerland Event Video: Arthur Abraham-Mahir Oral, Full Fight

Brickhaus — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:59:04 -0000

Sauerland Event Video: Arthur Abraham-Mahir Oral, Full Fight

This is about as close to a masterclass as you'll see Abraham put on.

Action this weekend....

Brickhaus — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:28:26 -0000

Wilson-Nwodo ended with a photo finish. Wilson-Drozd involves two knockout artists, but only one of them has a beard. If Drozd can't fight in a controlled manner, don't be surprised if Dingaling can pull off the upset.

View full size photo uploaded July 1, 2009

It's the 4th of July weekend this weekend, so there's not a lot of action, and no fights televised in the US. There is one big one, but you'll need to find a stream to watch it...

On ZDF late Saturday afternoon, Eddie Chambers tries to claw his way back up the heavyweight rankings with a matchup against Alexander Dimitrenko. As a 6'7" rightie trained by Fritz Sdunek, Dimitrenko is somewhat of a very poor man's version of Vitali Klitschko. He's big and he can use his height, but he often doesn't get a full advantage out of his size. He has a little bit of pop, but he's not all that powerful. He moves decently for a big guy, but he can be a little robotic. He is a bit more forward-moving and aggressive than the current incarnation of Vitali Klitschko, and I could see him putting on a decent fight against the right opponent. To win this fight in Germany, Chambers will need to get out of his comfort zone a bit and just take the fight. If he can maintain a high workrate, occasionally fight on the inside, and remember to actually use his right hand, then Chambers could win. Hopefully he's well on his way to improving his stamina - reportedly, he's coming in at a career-low weight for this fight, somewhere in the 205 pound range. Still, you can't change a tiger's stripes, and I suspect Chambers will try to win a jabbing contest from the outside like he usually does, which is straight up a losing strategy for Chambers in this fight. Dimitrenko by UD, although Chambers will probably win 4 or 5 rounds.
On paper, Anselmo Moreno vs. Mahyar Monshipour looks like an immediate fight of the year candidate. Moreno is technically skilled and able to fight on the outside, but can be lured into a brawl, and Monshipour should be just the guy to do that. Monshipour originally retired after his 2006 fight of the year with Somsak Sithchatchawal, but he's earned this title shot with three straight recent victories. Still, there's a difference in class between the two fighters, and I expect Moreno to be able to win, even though the fight is on Monshipour's home soil.
Tomorrow night in Russia, Darnell "The Ding a Ling Man" Wilson faces off against 31-1 Grigory Drozd. Wilson had a good run a while back, knocking out what seemed like four solid opponents in a row, but the run really wasn't what it cracked up to be. Dale Brown was pretty close to shot and retired after the right. Daniel Judah moved down to 175 and has lost 2 of his last 3, albeit to top 10 guys (Yusef Mack and Glen Johnson). Concrete Davis IS shot, and has lost his last 5 in a row since facing Ding (although, to be fair, somewhere in the middle he did break his back in a bizarre training accident, where he was doing roadwork on railroad tracks in New Zealand and had to jump off of a bridge to not get run over by a train). Emmanuel Nwodo was recently destroyed by Matt Godfrey. Anyway, at this point Wilson has lost 3 of his last 4, which earned him another big fight. He looked absolutely horrible on the Contender, and he had problems with making weight. Drozd's lone loss is by knockout though, and we know Ding's strategy is to go headhunting, so anything can happen.
Souleymane M'Baye faces Colin Lynes in France. Not too long ago, M'Baye was a beltholder in the junior welterweight division and a solid contender. I don't think M'Baye is any worse now than he was before, yet he's nowhere near the top 10. I think this speaks well to how the weight class is getting stronger.
Alexander Alexeev faces Kendrick Releford on the Chambers-Dimitrenko undercard. Another soft touch for Alexeev, who looked like the next big thing at cruiserweight until he gassed out and was beaten into submission by Victor Ramirez a couple of fights ago. Releford is a bit tricky and is much better than his 20-12-2 record indicatesm, but he carries very little power.