Thursday, July 28, 2022

A New Chapter Is About To Begin In The Career Of Danny Garcia

 

There are numerous stories of fighters seeking a fresh start in a new weight class. It is indeed true that for most fighters who are not natural Heavyweights that there might be options in multiple divisions both up and down the weight scale based not only on a fighter’s physical comfort in terms of being able to compete effectively at a given weight, but also the various opportunities both to fight for world championships and the economic benefits those opportunities carry with them. 

 

In the case of former two-division world champion Danny Garcia, after being a world champion in both the 140lb. Jr. Welterweight and 147lb. Welterweight divisions, a new chapter in his career now looms as he sets his sights on the 154lb. Jr. Middleweight division. The move up in weight follows his loss in December 2020 to undefeated unified Welterweight world champion Errol Spence in a failed attempt to regain a portion of the Welterweight world championship he once held. Garcia, who lost that fight to Spence via twelve round unanimous decision will not only be moving up in weight, but will be doing so after a nineteen month absence from active competition. 

 

Garcia’s return to the ring will take place on Saturday, July 30th as he will face Jose Benavidez at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. The fight, which can be seen here in the United States on premium cable network Showtime has two questions that surround it and both center squarely on Garcia. 

 

Two questions that will likely be in the minds of most knowledgeable Boxing fans. How will Garcia look after nearly two years out of the ring, and how will he respond to fighting at 154lbs. The latter of the two questions might have some questioning what this observer means by how he will respond. 

 

It is important to keep in mind that Danny Garcia began his career as a 140lb. Jr. Welterweight. While it is not uncommon as a fighter progresses in their career to see that fighter move up in weight, the obvious question that will follow them from division to division is how they will respond to not only facing fighters who are theoretically bigger and naturally stronger than them, but how their body responds to taking punches from fighters with those theoretical advantages.  

 

In Jose Benavidez, Garcia will face a veteran of twenty-nine professional fights with his only loss coming against WBO Welterweight world champion Terence Crawford in October 2018. Benevidez last fought in November of last year when he fought to a ten round majority draw against Francisco Torres. Despite his status as a former world title challenger, there are some that will likely view Garcia as a favorite over Benevidez. This will likely be due to Garcia’s higher profile, but the one thing that Benavidez has over Garcia is he has fought at 154lbs. before and has been a bit more active recently than his opponent. 

 

At his best, Danny Garcia is a very compact puncher and has the ability to catch opponents in the midst of exchanges. This presents an interesting task for his opponents to combat.   The challenge for Benavidez will be to avoid getting into exchanges with Garcia. A way this could be accomplished is by trying to box Garcia. Fighters such as Errol Spence and Shawn Porter were able to outwork Garcia by strategically picking their spots, but by also using movement to evade Garcia’s offense.  

 

In contrast to Benavidez, Garcia must show that the move up in weight will not negatively affect him and must do so early in the fight. He must also avoid going into a defensive shell and allowing his opponent the opportunity to try and outwork him as the fight progresses. Garcia has twenty-one knockouts in his thirty-six career wins and even though he may not be known as a fighter with punching power, when he has caught his opponents with power shots and has been able to score knockouts, the results have been devastating. A question that will also be answered in this fight will be whether Garcia will have the punching power at 154lbs. as he did in the 147lb. Welterweight and 140lb. Jr. Welterweight divisions. 

 

While it is tempting to talk about what may be ahead for Garcia should he win this fight now as a Jr. Middleweight, it is probably best to see how he fares in this first testing of the waters at 154lbs. before thinking too far ahead. Although the focus will be on Garcia, this could be a big opportunity for Benavidez to score a victory over a marquee name in the sport. Despite the spotlight being on Garcia, it is important to keep in mind that Benavidez'’ only loss came in a world championship fight where, despite coming out on the short end, he did give a good account of himself in defeat. Boxing is a sport of opportunity and if Garcia for whatever reason is not at his best, and/or does not respond well to fighting at Jr. Middleweight, the conditions could be right for what would be viewed as an upset if Benevidez were to score a victory in this fight. 

 

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.” 

 

Garcia vs. Benavidez takes place on Saturday, July 30th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. In the United States, the fight can be seen on premium cable network Showtime across cable/satellite teleco providers as well as streamed on the Showtime and Showtime Anytime streaming apps on mobile, tablet, and connected streaming devices/Smart TVs beginning at 9PM ET/6PM PT. For more information about Showtime including schedules and list of compatible streaming devices/Smart TVs please visit: www.SHO.com. For more information about the Garcia vs. Benavidez card please visit: www.PremierBoxingChampions.com. 

 

*Check your local listings internationally. 

 

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved. 

 

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison  

 

 

Wednesday, July 27, 2022

Jason Moloney Eyeing Another Aussie Outing

Press Release: July 27, 2022 By Team Moloney –  Jason Moloney is hoping for a return to action in the coming months, as he continues his push towards a third world title attempt in 2022.
Credit: DiBella Entertainment
 
Moloney sits high in all of the world sanctioning bodies, and currently holds the WBC Silver and WBO international titles in the 118-pound division.
 
With a world title fight between lineal champion, and former Moloney foe Naoya Inoue being in negotiations to fight WBO world champion Paul Butler for all the belts, Moloney is left with a waiting game, as he waits to challenge the winner.
 
Moloney, who is promoted by Bob Arum's legendary Top Rank Promotions and is managed by Australian boxing architech Tony Tolj, discussed his ideals in the interim whilst he waits for the 118 world title picture to get cleared up.
 
'Mayhem' stated, "I want to become world champion, and I want to stay active, so something has got to give at the moment. If Inoue fights Butler, I just want to fight as I've always done, so I would love to feature on the second Haney vs Kambosos Jr card in Australia and continue pushing for that world title shot.
 
"I still have points to prove to myself and to the boxing world, and I know for a fact the Jason Moloney that boxed Naoya Inoue has improved so much since. Im in the gym always learning and improving, I wouldn't take anything away from Inoue, but I can tell you, that I've improved since and I'm ready to come of age and become a world champion and the next available opportunity.
 
"If Inoue and Butler don't fight, I'll fight Butler, simple. I'll travel to the UK to fight him, and I'll win. I'm not about games I come to fight." 
 
With Haney and Kambosos Jr rumored to take place in the final third of the year in Australia, Moloney opened up about his desires to feature on that card in a prominent fashion.
 
The Melbourne native said, "I'd love to fight on that card in my home town in some form against a big name. I've put on some good performances since the Inoue fight that I hope the officials at Top Rank have enjoyed, so I hope that puts me in line to fight quite high up the card.
 
"I've been positioned very well and I hold WBC and WBO titles currently and I'd want to defend them against a challenger that wants to fight because when a fighter stands and trades with me, I show how explosive I can be, and that's what I hope people watching enjoy to see."

Material Courtesy of: Team Moloney/Photo Courtesy of: DiBelka Entertainment Used with permission. 
 


The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.

Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Dogboe Takes One Step Closer To Another World Title With Win Over Gonzalez

 

There are times in the sport of Boxing where what appears to be a close fight on paper does not materialize once the fighters get in the ring. By the same token, there are also times when what appears on paper prior to an encounter seems to match up perfectly once the fight starts. The latter is precisely what occurred when former WBO Jr. Featherweight world champion Isaac Dogboe met former world title challenger Joet Gonzalez in a Featherweight bout on July 23rd at the Grand Casino in Hinckley, MN.


 

A fight that was billed as an elimination bout for the right to challenge recently crowned WBC Featherweight world champion Rey Vargas that this observer in the days prior to the bout referred to as a “Crossroads Fight” for both fighters. This was due to both Dogboe and Gonzalez suffering some setbacks in the recent past. While a loss for either fighter would not signal the end of the road at least in the eyes of yours truly, the fighter who would come out on the short end would at least appear to be out of contention for a period of time. 

 

In previewing this bout, I did my best to point out the similarities between the two fighters both in terms of style as well as the setbacks both Dogboe and Gonzalez had suffered prior to this fight. It would be those similarities in style between the two boxer/punchers that would manifest inside the ring. The first three rounds were largely dictated by Dogboe and his ability to attack Gonzalez in offensive spurts, which were focused on Gonzalez’ body. Despite having a height and reach advantage, Gonzalez was ineffective at this stage in the fight simply because he appeared reluctant to let his hands go. 



This allowed Dogboe to pick his spots to throw and land punches in short, compact combinations and evade Gonzalez’ reach by moving out at angles. In round four Gonzalez landed a flush overhand right to the head of Dogboe that had the former world champion stunned. Dogboe was able to survive, but it would be this moment that would somewhat change the dynamic of how the fight was fought during the second half of the bout. 


Gonzalez began to apply consistent pressure on Dogboe and did find success in being able to back him up against the ropes. While Dogboe ‘s activity did not seem to decrease significantly down the stretch, the pressure of Gonzalez as well as seeming to land the harder punches whenever he did throw resulted in an extremely close fight at the conclusion of the scheduled ten round bout. 


 

At the end of the fight, I was not surprised to see the appearance of what could be a closely scored fight that could go either way. As readers may recall in previewing this bout I eluded to the possibility of a close fight and perhaps even the possibility of the fight being scored a draw based largely on the styles of Dogboe and Gonzalez. 


Although I felt Isaac Dogboe did enough to win the fight largely based on the success he had in the first three rounds as well as being able to win a few close rounds down the stretch in my view, I felt the fight could go either way based on Gonzalez’ harder punches and how that element can leave an impression on three official judges scoring a fight. It was no surprise to see a split decision rendered with all three judges turning in scores of 96-94 or six rounds to four. Two of those three official scorecards were in favor of Isaac Dogboe giving him a hard fought split decision victory.  


 

While not necessarily the statement-making performance that he was likely looking for, it was still a hard fought victory for Dogboe. Even though the fight was close and competitive and that would give the impression that circumstances might warrant a rematch, it is more likely that Dogboe will try to secure the opportunity he has earned by trying to get a fight with WBC Featherweight world champion Rey Vargas. As to when that fight could take place will likely depend on how quickly a negotiation between the respective representatives can take place and how quickly they can come to an agreement on the terms to sign the bout. Of course, when there are different promoters and networks involved, unfortunately, things are not always as simple as getting respective sides to the negotiating table. Hopefully, for Isaac Dogboe, the politics that be in the sport of Boxing will not result in his waiting a long period of time for the opportunity he has earned to attempt to become a two-division world champion. 


 

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.” 


 

The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved. 


 

Follow Beau Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison