As the world nears the Christmas holidays, the Boxing world will not be taking much of a hiatus as was the case in previous years. With the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) group of promoters staging two cards on Christmas night and New Year’s Day on Fox and Fox Sports Pay-Per-View here in the United States and will be largely alone in doing so, the weekend of December 17th and 18th of 2021 saw a focus on the Light-Heavyweight division, a world title elimination bout, and two rematches that depending on one’s perspective were anticipated for different reasons. While one of those rematches as well as it’s full undercard have already been covered by this observer here on The Boxing Truth®, the final weekend before Christmas saw other action throughout the sport that also deserves attention.
The first of these bouts took place in Tashkent, Uzbekistan,
where an elimination bout took place to determine the next mandatory challenger
in the World Boxing Association (WBA) Jr. Middleweight ratings between top
contenders Israil Madrimov and Michel Soro. Although this observer did not have an
opportunity to preview this bout in the days leading up to it, this fight as
much as any should serve as a reminder particularly to the sport’s detractors
as to just how global Boxing is as well as the benefits that yours truly has
frequently pointed out in recent years with regard to digital streaming
networks that have increased access on a global scale to much of what goes on
throughout the sport that would otherwise not be broadcast by traditional
networks as this bout was a late addition to the schedule of digital
subscription sports streaming network DAZN, that also broadcast the previously
covered Parker-Chisora rematch. As for
the fight itself, it was fought at a very tactical pace where both fighters
were able to execute their offense in spots. It was this pace that resulted in
several of the first eight rounds of this bout being very close and very
difficult to score.
While Soro tended to be more accurate with his offense,
it was Madrimov who seemed to land the harder punches, particularly when the
two fighters engaged in exchanges. Although the element of who lands the harder
blows is what some would consider as the determining factor in who ultimately
gains the upper hand in terms of the scoring of a fight, it is not necessarily
the case. When two fighters are able to essentially match each other punch for
punch as was the case in this bout, it creates a very challenging conundrum
where it will as I have said numerous times over the years, come down to what a
judge prefers in their own criteria in how they see a fight based on clean
punching, effective aggression, ring generalship, and defense. In this case,
after eight rounds I felt the fight was even as usually when one fighter seemed
as though they were starting to gain a slight advantage over the other, the
opposition would return offense to such degree where it left the impression
that this was an even fight.
In round nine however, all questions regarding the
potential scoring of the bout would come to an end, but an element of
controversy would emerge that left more questions than answers. As was the case
for the previous eight rounds, the two fighters continued to exchange and match
each other’s offense. It was in the closing seconds of the ninth round where
Madrimov would break through with a combination of hooks to the head of Soro
that appeared to have Soro legitimately stunned and backed against the ropes.
The controversy that emerged came when Madrimov pressed forward with his
opponent against the ropes and continued throwing punches, the bell appeared to
ring several times with no movement from Referee Salvador Salva, who perhaps
did not hear the bell due to the roar of the crowd in attendance, seconds later
he did jump in and signaled a stoppage of the fight ruling Madrimov the winner
by technical knockout.
Although it was clear that Soro was hurt in my eyes at
this stage in the bout, the fact that the bell rang several times before the
referee stepped in opens the question of whether or not the ruling of Salva of
a TKO in favor of Madrimov could possibly be challenged in an attempt to have
the result changed to a no contest simply because once the bell rang, the
action should have been halted and the blows Madrimov was able to land after
that were thus after the bell and would be considered illegal. While normally I tend to side with the referee
in instances like this as they are the closest person to the action and a
referee’s discretion could be the difference between a fight ending
appropriately or one that ends up having tragic circumstances, I do believe
that there might be some sort of challenge regarding the result of this fight
with both the WBA and the Federation of Professional Boxing of Uzbekistan who
regulated the bout. In the interest of full disclosure with the reader, it
needs to be noted that Salva only had twenty-one professional bouts under his
officiating record at the time this bout took place in a career as a referee
that began in 2016. Perhaps what will be difficult to argue in any potential
protest, despite the issue of the bell ringing and an apparent miscommunication
between the timekeeper and the referee is that Soro was not answering back with
punches when the fight was stopped and did have his hands down when Salva
stepped in and stopped the fight.
Even though some might point to Salva’s not hearing the
bell to end the round as well as only having twenty-one bouts officiated in five
years as a professional referee as inexperience particularly for a fight
between two top contenders to determine who gets an opportunity to fight for a
world title, Salva’s argument will like be that he saw a fighter in a
compromised state in taking punches with his hands down, who was also clearly
hurt when he decided to step in and stop the fight. Although it is a heartbreaking way to lose a
fight if you are in Soro’s position, if Salva does in fact have to give an
explanation for his stoppage of this bout and provides a similar one to the
example this observer has laid out, a protest by Soro and his team will not
likely succeed. The best case scenario for Soro, under the circumstances would
not be to protest the result of the fight, but rather to petition the WBA for a
rematch. particularly since both Jermell Charlo the WBC/WBA/IBF Jr.
Middleweight world champion and Brian Castano the WBO world champion appear to
be headed towards a rematch of their unification bout, which ended in a draw
earlier this year, in 2022. Whether or not the WBA would order an immediate
rematch remains to be seen.
The final weekend before Christmas 2021 was also
highlighted in part by two Light-Heavyweight bouts including a title defense by
undefeated unified WBC/IBF world champion Artur Beterbiev, who made the fifth
defense of his title at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Canada against longtime
top contender Marcus Browne. Although much of the focus of the
Light-Heavyweight division in recent times has centered around two central
figures in Beterbiev and undefeated WBA world champion Dmitry Bivol, Browne did
pose a serious test for Beterbiev as a former mandatory challenger in the WBA's
Light-Heavyweight ratings. In previewing this bout, I stated that the key to
the fight was whether or not Browne would be able to survive Beterbiev’s
pressure and be able to extend him into the middle and late rounds of the fight
in saying that at this stage we did not know how Beterbiev would respond to
being in such a situation as being taken into the deep waters of a fight and
whether or not he would be able to adapt.
An argument can be made that Browne was not only able to
answer that question, but also was able to get an additional question answered
of the champion who had scored knockouts in every one of his previous sixteen
bouts in his professional career. How would Beterbiev respond to adversity? As expected,
the champion began the fight by applying pressure on Browne and trying to walk
him down. Although the pressure was clear, Browne did for a time manage you use
his movement and combination punching to offset the tactics of Beterbiev. In
the fourth round, both fighters suffered cuts as a result of an accidental clash
of heads, but it was Beterbiev’s cut, a deep gash on the forehead that appeared
as though might be the cause of the fight being stopped due to the blood going
into the champion’s eyes and the bleeding of the wound being difficult for his
corner to control.
Despite being under circumstances where some fighters do
not respond well, Beterbiev became more aggressive and made it very difficult
for Browne to use his movement to gain space between himself and the champion.
In round seven, Beterbiev would score his first knockdown of the fight by
dropping Brown with a left hook to the body that appeared to cause a delayed reaction.
In the ninth round, the champion would bring an end to the fight by dropping
Browne for a second time with another left hook to the body that forced Browne
to take a knee and the ten count resulting in another knockout victory for
Beterbiev in what was an impressive performance under what had to be trying circumstances
due to the gash on his forehead. Even though the gash Beterbiev suffered was
frankly enough justification to stop the fight, due to the fact that it was
caused by an accidental head clash, if the fight had been stopped, the outcome
would have been determined by going to the scorecards for a technical decision.
Although no one should discredit the heart Marcus Browne
showed in this fight, his effectiveness gradually declined as the bout
progressed and if the bout had gone to the scorecards, it is likely that
Beterbiev would have retained his title with a decision win. While Beterbiev
and Bivol appear to be on a collision course, there is another potential
opponent that both champions should keep an eye on. This observer is referring
to undefeated former WBO Super-Middleweight world champion Gilberto Ramirez,
who returned to the ring on December 18th against Yuneski Gonzalez at
the AT&T Center in San Antonio, TX.
With so much of the recent times of the Light-Heavyweight
division focused on Bivol, Beterbiev, and the fact that both have been angling
for a potential fight with Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, the sport’s biggest star that
has been seeking the most lucrative fights possible in his career, or a potential
fight with each other, Ramirez has quietly emerged as a potential wild card
opponent for either of the three if the opportunity were available to him. In Yuneski
Gonzalez, Ramirez faced a solid boxer/puncher who showed immediately upon the
fight beginning that he was not a mere opponent for Ramirez to simply get some
work in before more lucrative fights in 2022. Gonzalez was more than willing to
engage in exchanges of punches with Ramirez from the outset and from my
perspective had particular success in landing his right hand as well as being
able to periodically back Ramirez against the ropes.
It did not take long before this fight evolved from a
Boxing match to an all-out brawl with both fighters standing and going toe to
toe, and punch for punch. While there were moments where Ramirez was able to
hurt Gonzalez and had him appearing as though he might be able to get a stoppage
early, Gonzalez kept fighting on and kept answering whatever Ramirez threw at
him. When it comes to fights that are fought like this, the primary question
that comes to mind beyond the subject of potential scoring of a bout is which
fighter will have enough left in them to go the distance if required to do
so. This was a case where as I watched
this fight, the idea of scoring did not come to mind simply due to the way the fight
was being fought and the high pace of the combat with both fighters throwing
seemingly every punch with fight ending intentions.
As the bout went on however, it did appear that Ramirez
was gradually getting the better of the exchanges and the question that formed
in my mind was whether or not Gonzalez would be able to go the distance. The
war of attrition continued on until the tenth round when Ramirez connected with
a barrage of punches on a fatigued Gonzalez along the ropes, which forced the
fight to be stopped.
Although Gilberto Ramirez had more difficulty than some
may have expected going into this fight, he did what he had to do in outlasting
a very “Game” Yuneski Gonzalez in what was a very grueling fight that might be
considered one of the best bouts of 2021 depending on one’s perspective. While Ramirez
remains a live opponent for either Bivol or Beterbiev going into 2022, he has
earned the opportunity to rest, despite his stating that he would like a bout
with Bivol in his next fight shortly after his victory over Gonzalez.
The final bout that took place on December 18th
featured YouTube star turned boxer Jake Paul in a rematch against former UFC World
Welterweight champion Tyron Woodley in a rematch of a bout the two had earlier
this year in Cleveland, OH. This rematch, which was fought at the Amalie Arena
in Tampa, FL, came out of necessity for Paul and United States cable network
Showtime to keep the pay-per-view date after original opponent Tommy Fury,
withdrew with what was described as a chest infection and a broken rib that he
suffered in training.
Even though this rematch came not necessarily out of
public demand as it did out of necessity in terms of the business aspects of
the sport, Paul’s status as a celebrity did succeed in selling out the near
20,000 seat arena, which were no doubt full of both his sizable YouTube
following as well as those who remain curious as to Paul’s legitimacy as a
boxer. It is a fact that Paul has yet to face someone with a legitimate Boxing
background and that fact alone has fueled much criticism in addition to his
being pushed as a pay-per-view headliner with only four professional bouts to
his credit going into what turned out to be an immediate rematch with Woodley.
The first encounter, which was won by Paul via eight round split decision had
the consensus that, despite Woodley being able to stun Paul in the fourth round
of that fight, he simply was not active enough over the course of the fight to
garner favor of the judges scoring the bout. Woodley did claim in the lead up
to this rematch that he would be more active this time around and for a period
of time, he did seem intent on keeping his word as he did try to pressure Paul
early. Unfortunately for those in
attendance at Amalie Arena and those watching via pay-per-view, this rematch
did not have much in the way of action throughout much of the first five rounds
of the bout as both fighters tried to engage each other, but more often than
not ended up in clinches, which did not produce much in the way of action.
This can be attributed to inexperience of both fighters
in terms of Boxing, but it should also be noted that many of the clinches seemed
to be initiated by Woodley. While clinching is not allowed in Boxing and is
normally separated by a referee officiating a bout, in the sport of Mixed
Martial Arts (MMA), where Woodley has primarily competed for most of his combat
sports career, fighters are allowed to fight while in a clinch. Perhaps Woodley
out of instinct tried to gain an advantage over Paul by way of clinching, and
thus forgetting that this bout was being fought under Boxing rules. This would
prove to be a moot point as Paul would bring a sudden end to the fight in round
six when he connected with a flush right hook to the jaw that knocked Woodley
out cold face first on the canvas.
Although Paul moved his record to 5-0, with 4 Knockouts
with his second victory over Tyron Woodley, criticism will likely remain again
based on the fact that he has not faced someone with a legitimate Boxing
background and the decision of Showtime to push him as a pay-per-view
attraction having not faced a legitimate boxer.
While the issue of the business of the sport and it’s flaws is a subject
to be discussed at a later time, it will be interesting if in 2022 those at
Showtime, who have struggled to draw consistently high buy rates for their
pay-per-view cards amid the consumer trend shifting more towards subscription-based
streaming, will insist that Paul fight against people with legitimate Boxing
backgrounds going forward if he is truly serious about wanting to be taken
seriously as a boxer. It will also be
interesting to see if Showtime’s parent company ViacomCBS chooses to use the
growth of it’s subscription streaming network Paramount+ as a pay-per-view
alternative in perhaps using Paul as a way to drive subscribers as many of his
followers are likely casual Boxing fans and would likely be more inclined to
subscribe to Paramount+ for the entertainment options the network has to offer
in addition to seeing Paul featured as part of the streaming platform’s sports
programming as opposed to paying inflated pay-per-view fees. For now, Paul has succeeded in scoring
another knockout and maintaining the curiosity that has followed he and his
brother Logan’s respective entries into the sport. It will be up to him to
prove that this is a legitimate Boxing career and not a novelty act that will eventually
wear off.
While this is usually where this observer shares some
closing thoughts on what has been an extremely active year, despite the
continued impacts of the ongoing global COVID-19 epidemic. As much as I would
like to close this column reflecting on some of the events that have taken
place, the Boxing calendar now turns to what the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC)
group of promoters will have to offer on Christmas night and a pay-per-view card
to take place on New Year’s Day in Hollywood, FL.
Although the choice to do Boxing cards over the holidays
is a curious one that will have debatable returns, it is important to keep in
mind that as of now, both cards are scheduled to take place as planned, but
with the impacts of the COVID-19’s latest variant Omicron beginning to lead to
cancellations in the National Football League (NFL), the National Hockey League
(NHL) and has already led to at least one Boxing-related postponement in the
scheduled Middleweight championship unification bout between world champions
Gennady Golovkin and Ryota Murata, which was scheduled to take place on December
29th in Tokyo, Japan being postponed due to COVID-19 related travel
restrictions in the country, the possibility of those two cards being
potentially impacted is at least that a possibility. While this observer takes
a pause for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, the reader can rest assured
that I will be keeping an eye on the developments of these two cards and if
they do indeed take place as scheduled, those events will be covered when our
schedule resumes in January 2022.
Happy Holidays.
“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”
The Boxing Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau
Denison All Rights Reserved.
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