Follow-Up: DAZN's Three Upcoming Pay-Per-View Cards Now Available For Purchase

In a follow-up to the recent column discussing DAZN’s upcoming three pay-per-view Boxing cards, which will take place within a seven day period. All three events are now available to purchase on DAZN’s website. The first event, which will take place on Saturday, April 26th will be headlined by a long-awaited grudge match between sons of Hall of Fame rivals Nigel Benn and Chris Eubank, Sr., two-division world champion Chris Eubank, Jr. and Conor Benn, which will take place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England is available here in the United States for $24.99. This will be followed by back-to-back events on May 2nd and 3rd. First on May 2nd a tripleheader will take place outdoors in Times Square in New York City, NY featuring Ryan Garcia facing Rolando Romero, former two-division world champion Devin Haney facing former Jr. Welterweight world champion Jose Ramirez, and current WBO Jr. Welterweight world champion Teofimo Lopez defending his title against number one WBO contender Arnold Barboza for $59.99. On May 3rd, Super-Middleweight world champions Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and William Scull will meet in Saudi Arabia for the Undisputed Super-Middleweight championship of the world, which is also priced at $59.99. DAZN, however, is offering an option for both the May 2nd and 3rd events by offering consumers the option to either purchase both events separately at the aforementioned $59.99 per event or as a bundle for $89.99. All three events are available for purchase at DAZN.com We will have coverage of all three events in the coming weeks here on Stay tuned.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth.”

For more information about DAZN including schedules, list of compatible streaming devices, platforms, Smart TVs, availability around the world, to subscribe, and for region-specific pricing for select pay-per-view events please visit: www.DAZN.com. 

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Will DAZN's Three PPV Gamble Be Too Much For Boxing Fans?

Longtime readers know that one of the most consistent topics this observer has discussed over the many years that I have covered the sport of Boxing has been the pay-per-view model and more specifically, the increasing need for the sport, those who promote it, and networks that televise it to move away from a model that no longer benefits the sport and rarely offers value to consumers who support it. While I have at times been criticized for my stance that Boxing would be much better off in the long-term picture by adapting a reasonably priced subscription-based approach like what has already been established by digital streaming networks DAZN and ESPN+, my motivation has always been what will benefit the sport and help it grow and be more accessible to anyone who wants to see it regardless of economic scenarios one might find themselves in rather than any vested interests as I do not write or otherwise work for any other outlet or network outside of the one I own and operate here at The Boxing Truth®.

Even as my stance seems to have been increasingly validated as years have gone on as networks that have relied on the pay-per-view model have exited the sport since 2018, coincidentally the same year ESPN+ launched here in the United States and DAZN also entered the U.S. market, despite the sport being in the midst of a transition to being almost exclusively available via streaming, both in response to consumers looking to move away from traditional cable/satellite pay television, as well as general decline continuing in regard to pay-per-view buys, the model still remains more of an issue for the sport rather than a beneficial solution both for Boxing as well as consumers. Although I have been supportive of both DAZN and ESPN+ for each’s introduction of subscription-based alternatives to the model, I would not be objective if I said I have not also criticized both when they have ventured into pay-per-view, despite the evidence that it is not a profitable strategy for either in the now largely streaming-based era.

Many likely remember that when DAZN entered the U.S. market, the main pitch to consumers was pay-per-view quality Boxing events “Without The Pain of Pay-Per-View!" Their reasoning for eventually venturing into pay-per-view starting in 2022 was as a means to attract fighters and promoters who have insisted on the model to the negotiating table. It should also not be overlooked that at the time, much like many others businesses globally, DAZN was in the process of recovering from the effects of the global COVID-19 epidemic, so the move to what they insist is a “Selective/Sporadic" use of pay-per-view may have been seen and justified by some as a necessity.

As the pay-per-view model has continued to decline with the latest casualty being pay-per-view distributor InDemand preparing to cease operations by the end of 2025 ending 40 years as a primary pay-per-view distributor across cable/satellite providers in the United States and in recent years streaming via it's PPV.com platform, even as DAZN and platforms like Prime Video have continued doing periodic pay-per-view events, despite the evidence that it is not being embraced by consumers, one may be tempted to ask when will common sense enter the equation? More specifically, when will it no longer be ignored that things need to change as no doubt such stubbornness has to negatively impact the bottom line.

Perhaps the next example that will be used to illustrate the need to change will come in the coming weeks as DAZN will present three pay-per-view events in a span of one week.  First, on April 26, DAZN will air the highly anticipated grudge match between sons of Boxing legends Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn, two-time world champion Chris Eubank Jr. and Conor Benn, which will take place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, which will be available for $24.99 here in the United States.

While that price point on it's own is certainly budget-friendly and a throwback to a time where most Boxing pay-per-view cards were priced under $30 and were less frequent throughout the 1980’s and part of the 1990’s, one might wonder how consumer-friendly the price might be when one considers that on May 2nd and 3rd back to back pay-per-view cards will be held also on DAZN.

First on May 2nd, a card headlined by a triple header featuring Ryan Garcia facing Rolando Romero, Devin Haney facing Jose Ramirez, and WBO Jr. Welterweight world champion Teofimo Lopez defending his title against Arnold Barboza will take place outdoors in Times Square in New York City. This will be followed on May 3rd when Unified WBO/WBA/WBC Super-Middleweight world champion Saul “Canelo" Alvarez will be attempting to become a two-time Undisputed Super-Middleweight world champion when he faces undefeated IBF world champion William Scull in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Beyond the latter being the first time Alvarez has fought in the increasing hotbed of Boxing in Saudi Arabia and a significant shift in Alvarez not fighting on Cinco De Mayo weekend in Las Vegas, and the Times Square event bringing the overdue return of Hall of Fame broadcaster and longtime HBO play by play voice Jim Lampley to calling Boxing for the first time since HBO exited the sport in 2018, one would be justified in questioning if one or both of these events will be priced consumer-friendly considering that there will be a pay-per-view card just days before.

Although it should be pointed out that like any sporting event, some events will draw more eyes than others, the question here is will this gamble for DAZN be too much for Boxing fans given the state of economic conditions and whether these events will fit into one's budget. While it needs to be noted that all three of these cards are being promoted in part by the Riyadh Season group that has largely established Boxing’s footprint in Saudi Arabia and who has generally began to price their pay-per-view cards in a more consumer-friendly approach, the question that needs to be asked is how much is too much?

How much is too much not only in regard to the frequency of when these cards take place, how closely they are placed on the schedule to each other, and finally the price points to not only draw in the interest of the hardcore Boxing enthusiasts, but also the casual sports fan? For DAZN, the question should also be whether the value of a monthly or annual subscription to their network is going to be diminished by not only doing pay-per-view a bit more frequently than the pledge of “Selective/Sporadic?" Furthermore, is it a disservice to their network that is still growing to not include these events as part of a subscription to the network for existing subscribers? 

While price points for the May 3rd and 4th events have not been announced as of this writing, I do believe that if pay-per-view is going to continue to be used by networks/platforms that already have established subscription-based models that it should be used as a way to draw in consumers who may not be subscribed to try these networks. For existing subscribers, it should be either included with their subscriptions, which would be the more common sense approach, or should be offered to subscribers at a reduced price that should not exceed $30 regardless of who might be on the card. 

Under circumstances like this with three cards occuring within a week’s time, perhaps selling the three events as a package bundle with a budget-friendly price with a cap of under $60 should be something DAZN should consider. Unfortunately, numbers will continue to generally decline only with rare exceptions without adapting to the changing landscape. This includes folks who get on social media platforms and boast about how they will look for not so legal walk-arounds to access events that either do not fit within their budget or they simply have no interest in paying for.

Although I discourage such practices and pay the same fees as the average consumer to ply my trade, though I do sympathize with those who feel they have no other options to watch the sport they love, the way to reach those folks is not by continuing to rely on a model that consumers continue to reject and perhaps in spite of evidence continuing to resist change, which whether networks or promoters want to admit it or not will ultimately benefit them and the sport. Unfortunately until such realization occurs with networks having left the sport largely due to their over reliance on pay-per-view, with one network in ESPN perhaps either nearing an exit itself or a significant revamp in terms of their commitment to the spot by the end of 2025, it will be up to DAZN, who despite their growth, will have to make the decision as to how long they want to walk a tightrope by using a model that they were insisting on changing at the risk of alienating their subscribers not just here in the United States, but globally. At the risk of being unpopular, that is a gamble that may not be worth taking.

“And That’s The Boxing Truth." 

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Davis-Martin Preview

In April of last year two-division world champion Gervonta Davis squared off with top contender Ryan Garcia in a highly anticipated clash of undefeated rising stars of the sport of Boxing. The encounter, which was held at a catchweight, was won by Davis, who knocked Garcia out with a body shot in the seventh round.

Although per the catchweight stipulation and the fact that at the time Davis held Interim/Regular status in the World Boxing Association’s (WBA) Lightweight ratings, no world championship was on the line, it was nevertheless one of the biggest events on the Boxing calendar last year, despite the pay-per-view broadcast being riddled with problems resulting in significant refunds being issued to consumers.

The obvious flaws of the pay-per-view model and this observer’s long-standing criticisms on the subject notwithstanding, there is no dispute that the victory over Garcia was a milestone moment in Davis’ career. Like many other fighters in recent times however, Davis, who has long been aligned with the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) group of promoters, has seen his career stall as he has not been in the ring in active competition since. 

What has also become a recurring theme of yours truly recently has been the subject of how inactivity often does more harm to fighters than it serves as a benefit. Whether Davis will find his name on the list of fighters who are or were previously aligned with the struggling PBC promotional banner to have suffered setbacks upon returning to action following a lengthy hiatus remains to be seen as Davis, who was recently elevated to WBA World Lightweight champion, following former undisputed champion Devin Haney vacating the championship and moving up to the 140lb. Jr. Welterweight division at the end of last year, will defend his title on June 15th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV against undefeated WBA number two Lightweight contender Frank Martin in a fight that will headline a PBC on Prime Video Pay-Per-View card. 

This fight for Davis not only represents the second consecutive time that he will be facing an unbeaten opponent, but also presents a unique scenario that is rare and not good under any way one views the circumstances. In that like Davis, Martin, who is also aligned with the PBC, is also coming off of a layoff of nearly a year, whereas the champion will have been inactive for nearly fifteen months by the time this fight takes place. While this is a reflection of both the position the PBC is in having lost their longtime broadcast deal with the now defunct Showtime Sports, which ceased operations at the end of last year as part of a significant restructuring of its parent company Paramount Global, and the fact that since beginning their deal with Prime Video in March of this year, the PBC has only ran two events, both pay-per-view offerings, it is not often that two fighters find themselves in essentially the same position in terms of coming off of a lengthy stretch of inactivity. 

In this case, one might wonder what type of fight we might see given the circumstances of both fighters having to possibly deal with the elements of “Ring Rust." At his best, Gervonta Davis can be an explosive power puncher that is capable of ending a fight suddenly. Although he has also shown an ability to use his Boxing skills rather than power to win fights in his career, Davis has scored knockouts in twenty-seven of his twenty-nine career wins, registering a career knockout percentage of nearly 94%.

This would serve as at minimum a statistical indication that Davis will be the favorite going into this fight as well as having more experience than the challenger, who will enter the bout with eighteen wins, with twelve knockouts. Frank Martin has also shown an ability to get an opponent out of there if given an opportunity, but conventional wisdom might suggest that his best opportunity to win this fight will be by trying to box Davis as opposed to getting into a scenario where he has to trade punches with the champion. A task that might be easier said than done, but if Martin is able to find success by implementing such a strategy, he must not get complacent and remember that he needs to box for the full twelve round distance and not give Davis any openings. 

There have been times where previous opponents have had success by using lateral movement to try and box Davis. Thus far, no one has successfully made it to the finish line with that approach as more often than not Davis, who tends to apply pressure and walk his opponents down, has been able to catch them and knock them out. Only two fighters, German Meraz and Isaac Cruz have been able to take Davis the distance in his career. In the case of Cruz, he was able to have success by trying to back Davis up and by going to the body. There are also some who believe Cruz deserved the decision against Davis.

The fight plan for the champion going into this encounter is likely to be the same as virtually all his fights. Apply pressure from the opening bell, try to cut off the ring to limit Martin’s ability to move, and break him down with punching power. A danger that all fighters that become known for their power need to try to avoid is the temptation to become reliant strictly on that power. In that it becomes tempting for a fighter, who knows what they can do with their power if they can land solidly, simply tries to land a fight ending blow with every punch they throw, rather than looking for ways to set up opportunities to land those punches, or trying to win rounds in order to win a decision if needed. Fortunately for Davis, he has not seemed to fall into that trap thus far in his career, but the danger is always there and it will be interesting to see if he falls into such a scenario, particularly if Martin is able to find success and put rounds in the bank early. 

There simply is not much else to say as this fight approaches. Two fighters coming off significant inactivity, both unbeaten, with one's World Lightweight championship on the line. If both fighters manage to bring their best into the ring with them and the element of possible “Ring Rust" turns out to not be an issue for either fighter, this could be a fun fight to watch. 

“And That's The Boxing Truth." 

Davis vs. Martin takes place on Saturday, June 15th at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, NV. The fight as well as its full undercard can be seen on a pay-per-view basis on PBC  on Prime Video Pay-Per-View for $74.95. The card will begin at 5:30PM ET/2:30PM PT with free preliminary bouts before the main pay-per-view card begins at 8PM ET/5PM PT. 

Prime Video is available on mobile, tablet, and connected streaming devices/Smart TVs. To order Davis vs. Martin click the Premier Boxing Champions tab in the sports section within the Prime Video app on your device of choice or click the following link: Davis vs. Martin.

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Alvarez-Munguia Thoughts

Recent times in the sport of Boxing have been to some it up in a word, “Strange.” Strange in the sense that what has gone on prior to a scheduled bout outside the ring, has turned out to mean as much or more than the fights themselves when they finally take place inside the ring. By now, we are all familiar with the erratic behavior of one Ryan Garcia that occurred before and after his victory over Devin Haney on April 20th, which has taken yet another turn when it was revealed that the fighter, who had scored an impressive twelve round majority decision over Haney in Brooklyn, NY at the Barclays Center, tested positive for banned substances before and after the fight in tests conducted by the Voluntary Anti-Dopping Agency (VADA), which regularly oversees such procedures in combat sports. While the circumstances of Garcia will continue to play out for better or worse, which this observer stands by his previous comments before and after his bout with Haney, the Boxing world focused on what I personally believe to be one of the better fights that had been made thus far on the 2024 schedule when Undisputed Super-Middleweight world champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez made his sixth title defense against the dangerous undefeated top contender and former WBO Jr. Middleweight world champion Jaime Munguia on May 4th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV.

As much as I would like to tell the reader, both those who are knowledgable of the sport and follow both the fights themselves as well as the coverage yours truly has provided for nearly three decades, that the story of this encounter was simply one between two of the top stars in the sport meeting for the Undisputed Super-Middleweight championship of the world as the latest attraction for the sport during Cinco de Mayo weekend, unfortunately there is more to the story, that took place in the days prior to the fight. In the interest of honesty with the reader, in light of recent events in the sport like the one mentioned above that had taken place previously, I would prefer to discuss what happened in the ring on May 4th before discussing what happened beforehand, which cast a shadow over what at least on paper had the makings of a Fight of the Year candidate.

Of course, it is not often that the sport is treated to an encounter between two of the top stars of the sport. One, who has been arguably the sport’s top economic draw for several years, the other arguably a rising star that may ultimately occupy that position one day. Two fighters with significant fan followings and both who more often than not, give a Boxing fan their money’s worth whenever they compete.  

What stood out to this observer, though at the same time was not surprising was Munguia started this fight aggressively and appeared to try to execute a fight plan with an emphasis of working of his jab and trying to attack Alvarez with volume punching, throwing combinations and keeping Alvarez on the defensive. For a time, the challenger’s tactics appeared to be working, there was even one exchange during the early rounds where Munguia appeared to pop the head of the champion back with a crisp, but fast triple jab. 

After three rounds, I felt that Munguia’s approach was enough to win two of those rounds. I did question however,  whether the high pace in which Munguia was fighting would ultimately turn against him as the fight progressed. One of the trademarks of Saul Alvarez as his career has gone on is his ability to adjust his fight plan as a fight goes on. While Munguia established himself early, Alvarez, a precision counter puncher among the best in the sport, bided his time and waited for his opportunity to strike. 

Such an opportunity would emerge in round four when in the midst of an exchange, the champion would connect with a perfectly timed right uppercut to the head that dropped Munguia. Despite being knocked down for the first time in his career by a shot he did not see, Munguia showed his mettle by getting up, showing an ability to recover, and doing so while under heavy offensive fire from Alvarez.

It was the moment in the fight however, which signaled a turning point in the bout. For it was from that knockdown in the fourth round onward that Alvarez seized control of the fight.  He did this by established, despite Munguia's attempts to maintain a high pace and keep punches coming at Alvarez to the body and head, when Alvarez threw his punches whether it was a short combination where he took the lead, single punches, or counter punches, his punches were harder, did more damage, and dictated the end and flow of the fight. 

Round after round the pattern remained the same. Munguia often trying to bring the fight to Alvarez, the champion doing his best to deflect the challenger's punches either with his gloves, or head movement, and making the most out of the openings Munguia left him to throw and land crisp combinations, power punches, and counter punches. Although Munguia have it everything he had and never stopped trying to land the proverbial “Fight Turning" blow till the final bell, the outcome was academic as Alvarez would retain his undisputed championship via a convincing twelve round unanimous decision.

The sixth successful title defense for Alvarez was simply as dominant as he has been in his entire career, short of him getting a knockout victory. Although he was indeed forced to go the distance for the fifth consecutive time and this forced to box sixty rounds in the process over that stretch, the Undisputed Super-Middleweight champion of the world showed in this fight against a truly dangerous opponent that came to fight that he is far from done, despite some recent criticism that perhaps after sixty-four professional fights prior to this bout, that perhaps his inability to score knockouts in recent times may be a sign that there may be signs of decline in the thirty-three year old four-division world champion. For now, Alvarez has put a stop to those whispers. It would be nice if that were all that needed to be said. 

Unfortunately, the shadow that loomed over what should have been voted simply as two stars of the sport, both in their prime facing each other, must now be discussed. A sub-plot that emerged in the days before the fight centered around Oscar De La Hoya, the former world champion, Hall of Famer, who promotes Munguia and was the a longtime promoter of Alvarez, took his opportunity to fire back in response to Alvarez who had a highly publicized and ugly split with him in 2020. While Alvarez has made accusations in the years since his split from De La Hoya and his company Golden Boy Promotions, at a press conference days before the fight De La Hoya finally responded to his former client saying in essence that he feels Alvarez has forgotten who helped him reach the level he currently is at in the sport and saying his name should be spoken with respect. De La Hoya also addressed his struggles with alcoholism, something that Alvarez has to put it kindly, criticized him for publicly since their split . Alvarez in response got up from his position at a table on stage and proceeded to attempt to get to De La Hoya before being stopped by security that were in attendance.

While some will dismiss this as simply “Prefight Hype" and utter nonsense, much like the recent conduct of Ryan Garcia, also promoted by De La Hoya, and a former stablemate of Alvarez under trainer Eddy Reynoso, I have a simple question for the reader. Where is the responsibility and accountability to the sport.

The responsibility of those in the sport like Alvarez, Garcia, and De La Hoya to represent Boxing with conduct becoming of professionals, responsibility to not only represent the sport well and hopefully help in assisting to grow Boxing for future generations, and the accountability from those who oversee, sanction, and regulate the sport to ensure that not only Boxing as a sport is respected, but to hopefully ensure that failures to adhere to professional standards/conduct are met with disciplinary action.

In short, all three have failed to uphold such a standard recently. Although some may find humor in such conduct, it ultimately hurts a sport that already has too many flaws and things that can and should be criticized including, but not limited to an over use, abuse, and reliance on a dying model of pay-per-view. While the latter has been something yours truly has criticized frequently and will continue to do so as long as it continues to not benefit the sport or the fans who support it, if those who regulate, sanction, and oversee the seemingly have little interest in actually regulating and ensuring the sport is held in high regard, an approach that one often would not see in other organized sports, why bother regulating at all? Perhaps Boxing should now be viewed in the same vein as Professional Wrestling.

Although I as one who also spent several years covering that industry as well as Boxing and other combat sports am being sarcastic with the aforementioned statement, the bottom line is without adequate oversight to not only ensure rules and regulations are followed before, during, and after fights, and those in the sport conduct themselves as professionals as they are supposed to be, it mind as well be held in the same regard as an entertainment realm, which sadly, despite it's status as a form of live-action performance art and the physical risks performers take being well known, is still viewed by some as a joke.

Boxing deserves better. 

“And That's The Boxing Truth." 

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Garcia Shows Legitimacy In The Ring, But Should Concern Remain?

Prior to the encounter between undefeated two-division world champion Devin Haney and top Jr. Welterweight contender Ryan Garcia on April 20th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY, this observer expressed concern for Garcia's well-being due to his documented struggles with his mental health. A subject the fighter has been open about in the past, which I have praised him for, particularly during the times where, despite his success in the Boxing ring and his status as a celebrity in the social media age, he has put his health first as the main priority, even walking away from the sport for a time to address his struggles when he appeared to be on the brink of fighting for a world championship. 

My concern for Garcia was and is based on his erratic behavior, which has been shown to the world both in various press conferences to promote his bout with Devin Haney, but also in numerous posts that circulated online that were posted by the fighter himself that frankly should have raised concerns for anyone who views things objectively and with a level head. It was on this basis of simply observing things from a far that I spent the majority of a column released two days before the fight outright questioning whether it should take place and though I did briefly touch upon the fight itself, it should have been clear to the reader that I was thinking less about the fight and more about Garcia's long-term well-being.

This observer also went on to state for the record that I do not know Garcia and have never had an opportunity to meet him, despite covering many of his bouts in his career. My concern was and is merely based on what I had seen put out by the fighter himself and was not based on any background in mental health or in medicine, which yours truly does not have and am far from an expert on either subject. I did, however, state based on what I had seen in the lead up to the fight that perhaps Boxing should not be a priority currently for Garcia and those around him should voice their concern if they genuinely care for him and have his best interest at heart. Comments which I stand by.

Nevertheless, I would be lying to the reader if I said that in the days prior to this fight I felt excited or was filled with anticipation. Rather, I was hoping that what I had seen in the build up would not lead to yet another instance where the sport of Boxing would be subjected to ridicule and see calls for reform and accountability after another instance possibly occurring that could have been prevented. My concern seemed more justified on the day before the fight where Garcia showed up to the weigh-in drinking what appeared to be a bottle of beer while on the scale and subsequently weighed-in over the 140lb. Jr. Welterweight limit by three pounds resulting in Garcia no longer being eligible to win the WBC World Jr. Welterweight championship and paying Haney $1.5 Million in order to keep the fight on. 

Upon learning of this, I put out a statement on this observer’s respective social media platforms where I said in the midst of said statement “This will be a non-title bout now, but at the risk of sounding unprofessional should people really give a damn about a world championship not being on the line when the question should be whether this should be taking place at all. Not because a fighter missed weight, but because it's obvious to anyone with a level head, who is objective, that something is wrong here.” Comments, which I also stand by.

After a lifetime covering the sport, I have learned not to be surprised if a fight gets cancelled or postponed for any reason prior to two fighters actually getting in the ring. This has even at times included seeing scheduled main events of a card I was covering cancelled mere minutes before the two fighters were due to enter the ring. It certainly would not have surprised yours truly based on Garcia's behavior and also threatening the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) in the weeks prior due to them wanting Garcia to undergo a mental evaluation before licensing him to compete, to have been notified at some point during fight day that there had been a postponement, whether it be due to the commission mandating it or one of the fighters opting not to compete for whatever reason. In the interest of honesty with the reader, I will say for the record that I spent most of fight day, Saturday, April 20th keeping my phone nearby waiting for a potential text, which seems to be a preferred method of communication for many in present times or an email informing me of a change or cancellation of the bout. It would not have surprised me at all, especially in knowing that the NYSAC is regarded as one of the strictest athletic commissions in the United States.

Despite the previous statement, the fight would indeed move forward at Brooklyn's Barclays Center. Although both Haney and Garcia are highly skilled world-class boxers, who split their previous meetings as amateurs, my main focus was simply on whether Garcia's behavior, which was dismissed by some as merely promotional hype, would manifest itself negatively during the fight. As sad as it is to admit, when you have covered more than a few bizarre incidents in nearly three decades covering the sport, there are times when unfortunately you almost expect something bad to happen.

To my pleasant surprise, I am grateful that Haney-Garcia did not result in such an incident. Instead, the Boxing world was treated to what any fan should want to see. A highly competitive fight with twists and turns that kept one interested throughout. What stood out immediately was García attempting to impose his will on Haney and landing his signature weapon, a left hook that landed flush on Haney's jaw and staggered him in the opening round. While some might attribute this to him not making weight, García was able to establish that he was the stronger fighter and his perceived advantage when it came to punching power was not theory, but a statement of fact. It seemed that whenever he was able to land punches cleanly, he hurt Haney. 

What should not be overlooked is there was also a lot of rough housing that occurred throughout this fight by both fighters, which made Referee Harvey Dock a central figure throughout the bout. Despite the success he was able to have early on, there were two things that came to mind as I watched this fight that I did wonder about Garcia. First, even though it became clear as the fight progressed that his punches were harder and doing more damage, would it be enough to earn the nod of the three official judges in rounds where Haney appeared busier and García was not able to land attention grabbing power punches to leave an impression that he was winning rounds that might otherwise be viewed as close where Haney might have had the upper hand.  

Secondly, while both fighters did their share of rough housing, I wondered aloud whether from Haney's point of view, he was trying to either make Garcia make a mistake that he could try to exploit, and/or whether he was trying to give Garcia a test, perhaps trying to instigate Garcia into allowing his struggles outside the ring to get the better of him in the fight. Although it would be dishonest of me to say that the holding and grappling that took place throughout the fight did not make it at times ugly, Garcia managed to keep his composure for the most part. In round seven, Garcia would drop Haney for the first time in his career with a left hook to the head. Haney was badly hurt upon getting up from the knockdown and immediately held Garcia seemingly in a death grip looking to survive. In response while Referee Harvey Dock was in the midst of trying to separate the fighters, Garcia threw and landed a punch on the break, resulting in him losing a point following the knockdown.

Some may contend that Dock acted too quickly in deducting a point from Garcia for the deliberate foul. While Dock is the only one who can say why he opted to take a point from Garcia at what turned out to be a crucial moment in the fight, one should keep in mind that there were a lot of roughhouse tactics being used by both fighters in several rounds prior to Garcia being able to score the knockdown. It is logical to guess that perhaps Dock, having admonished both fighters before the seventh round, opted to deduct the point as a means of both showing the fighters he was serious as well as a means of establishing control as the referee.

What was indisputable however, was once Haney was knocked down, it became a different fight in that he was hurt and as most fighters do when they are in that position, the instinct to go into what is often referred to throughout combat sports as “Survival Mode" seemed to kick in. While this is understandable given that he was hurt, in this case it seemed as though he not only had trouble recovering from the knockdown, despite getting out of the round, but also did not seem to have an answer to stop the momentum Garcia was building. Subsequent knockdowns in rounds ten and eleven for Garcia giving him a total of three knockdowns in the fight, based largely on his left hook and the power advantage he had over Haney, not only minimized the point deduction in round seven following the first knockdown, but seemed to seal a victory for him at the conclusion of the twelve round bout in what should have been fairly lopsided fashion due to three knockdowns being scored by one fighter throughout. The competitiveness of the first half of the fight made the scoring of it narrow, which was perhaps also due in part to the point deduction against Garcia following the first knockdown.

It would ultimately turn out to be a moot point as Garcia’s rally over the second half of the fight and knockdowns in rounds ten and eleven resulted in him winning the fight on two official judges' scorecards for a majority decision victory. At least in terms of what happens inside of the Boxing ring, if one is objective, they would have to say this was the biggest win of Garcia’s career, despite his behavior and what are obvious signs of a person struggling with their mental health.

Although the latter was dismissed by Garcia and many after the fight as him “Fooling Everyone," the bottom line here is even though he did what he had to do inside the ring, despite the fact that he failed to make weight and thus blew an opportunity to be a world champion, his behavior should be a concern to anyone who legitimately cares for him and who will be around him long after his career is over and not the hanger on types that will be more than happy to enable such conduct and take whatever they can from him while they can. If this will be dismissed as nothing more than hype tactics and using the tools available to all of us including social media to make people concerned, perhaps like a lot of others of this generation, who tend to find humor in such conduct, Garcia should be advised on maturity.

The bottom line is he is talented as a fighter and does have a following that could help grow the sport and perhaps set himself up for other opportunities in and outside of Boxing once his career as a fighter is over. Garcia's talent is all the hype he should need and he should understand that per his position as a rising star in the sport as well as a public figure, there are responsibilities that come with that. One other thing he should keep in mind, while he has been open in the past about his struggles with mental health, something this observer has commended him for, it is not a subject to be taken lightly and definitely not something that should be treated as a joke, a card to play, or used for promotional purposes unless the goal is not promoting a fight, but rather raising awareness with the intent to help people.

Millions of folks around the world struggle every day with various mental health issues. The last thing it should be treated as is a game or a tool for manipulation. Garcia and those around him may not want to hear this, but if his behavior is and has been nothing more than attention ploys and a means of attempting to gain publicity and his talking about mental health struggles is not now or ever was legitimate, it makes it that much harder for those who are legitimately struggling and suffering to take the necessary step to seek help because there is still a stigma attached to the subject of mental health and he is in a position to at minimum help encourage folks to take that step. This may sound harsh, but if that is the case and all of his claims of dealing with mental health struggles were never legitimate, Garcia and those around him should be ashamed of themselves.

“And That's The Boxing Truth." 

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Haney-Garcia: Should It Go On?

It is often customary prior to what is viewed as a significant or “Major” fight on the Boxing calendar to fall into a seemingly endless cycle of hype surrounding what often becomes more of an event rather than simply an encounter between two world-class boxers. When it comes to the scheduled encounter between undefeated two-division world champion Devin Haney and top Jr. Welterweight contender Ryan García, who are to do battle for Haney's WBC Jr. Welterweight world championship on April 20th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY, this observer has been asking himself one question for the previous two months. Should the fight go on as planned? 

Before anyone jumps to conclusions, when I question if the fight should go on, it is not another in my long-standing criticisms regarding the pay-per-view model,  in which this will be slated as a DAZN Pay-Per-View offering in North America,  nor is it a concern similar to those that yours truly was very vocal in expressing during the global COVID-19 epidemic where I outright questioned whether due to health concerns, whether it was in the best interest of Boxing to resume under what were at that time, never before seen circumstances. A view that I also expressed regarding other sports as well during that time. Rather, when I ask the question of if a fight should go on, it is in this case, out of concern for the well-being of one of the combatants. I am referring to Ryan García. 

Under most circumstances when someone in my position in covering the sport voices concern for a fighter's well-being, most would probably associate such concern with citing eroding skills that often come with a long career inside the ring. In this case, I would not be doing my job nor the reader any justice if I said that my concern for García was not in relation to his mental health,  a subject he has been open about throughout his career. A major focal point in the lead up to this encounter with Haney has not been on anything related to the styles of the two fighters or what each brings to the battle inside the ring, but rather what can be described as erratic conduct of Garcia at press conferences as well as numerous online videos posted by the fighter himself. Out of respect for the reader, I will not discuss each instance, but Garcia's conduct in which he has ranted, made accusations, and even threatened to sue  the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC), to name a few, suggests to this observer, someone who has praised him before when he put his mental health first in taking time away from Boxing, that perhaps he might be struggling with something that might not be known to the public and it would then make one question whether Boxing should be a priority. 

At this point,  I feel it is important for me to state that I am not a mental health professional and I do not have a medical background, and there are surely folks who are more qualified than I on the subject of behavior and whether or not someone might be struggling with something that may be previously diagnosed that could likely share a more educated point of view than I could.  I am simply sharing my point of view having quietly observed the circumstances leading up to this fight. While some may dismiss Garcia's conduct as merely promotional tactics in an attempt to drum up interest in this fight, I simply do not see things with a similar view. As I have continued to observe things, I have kept repeating three words. I am concerned. 

Obviously,  I am not involved with Ryan Garcia's team and I will state for the record that I have never had an opportunity to meet Garcia, but in watching what has gone on, I wondered for a time whether the concern I have might be an overreaction in some way. As a noted historian, I decided to try to jog my memory to try and remember a circumstance where a fighter's struggles outside the ring were such a focal point prior to a bout that it ended up overshadowing the fight itself.  One such instance came to mind. On February 7, 1997 Heavyweight champions Lennox Lewis and Oliver McCall met for the vacant WBC world championship in the Heavyweight division. Both former champions at the time of what was a rematch of a world championship bout three years earlier where McCall scored a second round knockout of the then WBC champion Lewis to become a world champion in his own right.

Prior to the rematch, the main topic of discussion among many was not about the fight itself,  but centered around McCall, who was said to had prepared for the bout while undergoing drug rehabilitation treatment. This along with other troubles McCall was going through outside of the Boxing ring cast some uncertainty regarding what type of bout it would be, despite McCall's success in the first encounter as well as being an underrated fighter who was taken lightly prior to that first fight, despite having been in the ring with many of the top Heavyweights of the late 1980's and 1990's, where he held his own. 

Despite exiting his dressing room at the Las Vegas Hilton, jumping up the ring steps,  and appearing motivated, it was not long before McCall in the midst of the fight began to have what by all accounts seemed to be a breakdown where he refused to engage with Lewis and began crying. The bout would be halted in the fifth round when the late great Referee Mills Lane stopped the fight and the victory was awarded to Lewis beginning his second reign as a world champion. In response to what had occurred the Nevada State Athletic Commission withheld McCall's purse for the bout.

It was and remains one of the most bizarre events this observer has ever seen in his career covering the sport and to my knowledge, to this day, there has never been an explanation for what exactly happened that evening other than to say a man who was going through significant struggles in his life at the time had a breakdown. While as a society there is more known now about mental health as compared to when the Lewis-McCall rematch took place twenty-seven years ago, I will take it a step further by saying based on what I saw that night that there were likely signs that McCall should not have been in the ring and for whatever reason, they were likely ignored. 

With regard to Ryan García, I sincerely hope that those around him are not turning a blind eye to what may be occurring, despite the appearance that some including Oscar De La Hoya, his promoter, and a man who himself has had personal struggles,  have seemed to find humor in his fighter's conduct,  most notably at recent press conferences promoting this bout against champion Devin Haney. While it remains to be seen what the New York State Athletic Commission might do and whether they will license García, despite his threats towards the commission as well as his overall conduct,  this observer believes at least for García, Boxing might not be a priority right now and the last impression I have as this fight approaches is not one of a fighter who is prepared to fight for a world championship for the first time in his career. 

Assuming the fight is allowed to go on as scheduled,  what should one expect in terms of styles? While one should keep in mind the stance of yours truly that perhaps this fight should not go forward out of concern for Garcia's well-being, if we are to assume the fight will go on, this will be the first time that Haney and García will have met as professional boxers,  but they have faced each other three times as amateurs. In those bouts, which took place between 2014 and 2015, Haney emerged with two decision victories, while Garcia was victorious via decision in the second of those three bouts.

It goes without saying that there are differences between the amateur and professional ranks in Boxing and what happened in amateur bouts nearly a decade ago when two fighters were teenagers might not necessarily be an indication of what will happen ten years later as professionals. Both fighters have quick hands and while some might give an edge in power to Garcia based on his twenty knockouts in twenty-four professional victories compared to the champion's fifteen of thirty-one wins,  Haney is very crafty and has shown an ability to dominate world-class opposition by winning every round of a fight and of the two, it is the champion who has more accomplishments at the top level of the sport as a two-division world champion. 

The key will be, if the fight is allowed to go on, whether Garcia will be able to respond to not only the pressure of the event, but also a very crafty and slick opponent that will be in front of him. While the styles of the fighters and the circumstances were different,  the one time Garcia was involved in a fight similar to this in terms of atmosphere and hype,  García was knocked out by Gervonta Davis under circumstances where, despite being knocked down by a left hook to the body, there are some who felt that Garcia could have continued rather than allowing himself to be counted out while on one knee. Although Garcia himself is the only one who can say what happened in that fight, it might give an impression that he does not respond well to pressure and regardless of the view of this observer regarding this fight taking place given his well-being is being questioned, it is something to keep in mind if this fight does indeed happen. 

Usually, at the end of a column discussing an upcoming fight, readers are used to me giving a positive spin on things in hopes that Boxing will be benefited from what takes place rather than ridiculed. In this case,  I truly hope that all my concerns for one fighter's well-being turn out to be unfounded, despite how things would appear. It is also my hope that in the days that follow, we as a sport, and those of us who cover it are not talking about something that probably should have been prevented where the blame will fall squarely on those who were in positions to do something, but chose not to,  whether it be promoters, networks, family members,  or a state athletic commission,  who will be overseeing and sanctioning the bout. If a worse case scenario does indeed occur,  whatever that might be, it will be hard to defend all of the above and not say criticism, ridicule, mockery, and inevitable calls for reform and yes, accountability will not be deserved.

“And That's The Boxing Truth.”

Haney vs. Garcia takes place on Saturday, April 20th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. The fight can be seen in North America on DAZN Pay-Per-View beginning at 8PM ET/5?PM PT for $69.99 and will be available through the DAZN app as well as through traditional cable/satellite providers. For more information about DAZN including schedules, list of compatible streaming devices, platforms, Smart TVs, availability around the world, to subscribe and order this select pay-per-view event please visit: www.DAZN.com. 

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Schedule Resumption Notice

We would like to let our readers know that we will resume our regular schedule on Thursday, April 18th with a preview of the upcoming WBC Jr. Welterweight world championship bout between undefeated champion Devin Haney and top contender Ryan Garcia. 

Additional content regarding events and subjects that have taken place while we have been between rounds are being planned for an upcoming feature that we hope to schedule in the coming weeks. We again want to apologize for any inconvenience our absence has caused and we sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding during this time. In the interim until we resume, any additional content that is sent to us by promoters, networks, and others involved in the sport of Boxing will be made available here on the website as normal. Stay tuned.

"And That's The Boxing Truth." 

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Garcia Bounces Back With KO Win , But Do More Questions Remain?

The fight between Jr. Welterweight contender Ryan Garcia and contender Oscar Duarte on December 2nd should have represented a fresh start and the beginning of a new chapter in Garcia's career as he looked to bounce back from the first loss of his career earlier this year to Gervonta Davis. Instead, much of the attention prior to the bout, which took place at the Toyota Center in Houston, TX, did not center on the fight itself or what Duarte brought to the table as an opponent and possible threat to Garcia, but rather on what at best can be described as a contentious relationship between Garcia and his promoter Oscar De La Hoya and by extension his promotional company Golden Boy Promotions. 

It is true that this fight took place under a condition in which this observer cannot recall seeing before, or at least not in this form. In that the bout took place while the fighter Garcia, and the promoter De La Hoya, are engaged in a legal battle against each other in an effort by Garcia to break his existing contract with his promoter. The idea of a promoter and fighter being at odds however, is not a new concept. The idea that a fight promoted by a promoter currently battling the star attraction in said fight while litigation is ongoing is a bit different. 

At minimum, as this observer pointed out in previewing this fight, it had to create distractions for Garcia as well as a situation for De La Hoya, where the pressing question during fight week was not concerning the fight inside the Boxing ring, but concerned his feelings toward his fighter. The contention between the two going into fight week spilled over as both Garcia and De La Hoya traded verbal barbs during the pre-fight press conference and weigh-in.

Seeing the situation play out for the world to see, one would be logical to question why the fighter would agree to participate in a fight promoted by someone that he is trying to distance himself from and why the promoter would want to promote a fight with that fighter, while litigation is ongoing. Truly, something that could only happen in Boxing, or at least that's how it seems. One would also be justified in questioning why something like that would be done before a resolution has taken place between the parties as more than likely anything either fighter or promoter said prior to the bout actually taking place, would likely be used against each other or at least be attempted to in any upcoming legal proceedings.

While what I have described here dear reader, probably sounds more appropriate for a reality TV show, there was still the matter of actual battle inside the ring. The fight between Garcia and Durate took place before a capacity crowd. If nothing else, it demonstrated, despite Garcia's knockout loss to Davis and the very ugly saga between himself and De La Hoya, Garcia is still a rising star in the sport. 

As for the fight itself, under new trainer Derrick James, Garcia showed new elements of his skillset that has not been seen before. A more technical approach with an emphasis on using both his jab and lateral movement against the constant pressure of Duarte, who only knew one direction, forward. Perhaps in response to what happened to him when he was knocked out by Gervonta Davis, when forced to fight on the inside with Duarte where the possibility of being caught with a body shot, like the one that did him in against Davis, was increased, Garcia appeared to turn sideways, some may say partially turn his back. While such an approach borders on the line of legal and illegal, it was for better or worse an effective strategy. It did not, however, endear Garcia to the crowd in attendance, who frequently voiced their criticism via booing throughout the bout. Furthermore, it also created a scenario where Referee James Green frequently interjected himself throughout the fight to issue warnings, which were mostly pointed in the direction of Duarte for hitting Garcia in the back. 

Although I felt Garcia was doing enough to win most of the rounds as the fight progressed, the aggressiveness of Duarte was such that I felt it could sway opinion in his favor simply because of the perception that he was the fighter forcing the action. The question I was also pondering in my mind was whether the high pace in which the fight was fought would take a toll on Garcia later in the fight due not only to Duarte’s pressure and solid punches when he was able to connect, but more specifically the constant movement that he was having to do throughout. 

As the fight continued, I also felt that Duarte’s pressure was effective, but what was also noticeable was the lack of head movement as he came forward in that he was having to go through significant offense from Garcia before he could get on the inside, which he was unable to avoid. This flaw in Duarte’s defense would ultimately lead to his downfall in the eighth round when Garcia was able to catch him with a short left hook to the head, which wobbled his legs and subsequently led to a knockdown from a short flurry of blows. Although Duarte seemed to get up at the count of nine, he was in fact counted out by Referee James Green, giving Garcia an impressive and hard fought knockout win.

Ultimately, this fight did what it was designed to do if you were a member of both Garcia’s camp or his current promoter Golden Boy Promotions. Get Garcia back in the win column. The fact that Garcia was able to do so impressively is an added bonus. Inevitably, there will continue to be questions and criticism of Garcia. Questions such as is he truly recovered from the knockout at the hands of Davis, more so mentally than physically? Is Garcia listening to too many folks in terms of advising him on his career and is that influence at the root of his ongoing problems with Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions? And finally, will he be able to stay on track both inside the ring as well as out of it to stay a viable contender with the hope of eventually fighting for a world championship?

These are all interesting questions that this observer cannot answer. Much as has been the case for numerous young fighters throughout the history of the sport however, there is no shortage of people who are more than willing to tell a fighter what they want to hear and will also offer no shortage of ideas that may not truly have the fighter’s best interest at heart. For the fighter, especially one who has been open as Garcia has regarding struggles with his mental health, it can be difficult to tell the difference between those willing to tell them what they want to hear and those telling them what they need to hear. Even if the latter is not always easy to hear.

“And That's The Boxing Truth."

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The Rebuilding Of Ryan Garcia

It may seem like a cliche for some and a subject that gets discussed in several different variations, but for most fighters, a career can be divided into chapters or stages. If the premise of the opening of this column sounds familiar, dear reader, and sounds like something this observer has said before, it's because it is probably true. Nevertheless, for the purposes of this column, the stages that we will focus on are “The Rise" and “The Rebuild."

First, “The Rise." The rise of current Jr. Welterweight contender Ryan Garcia was one that did not see him win a world championship, but did see him placed on what seemingly was a fast-track towards that eventual goal. In some ways, it was a similar rise at least in terms of the popularity Garcia was able to garner as his longtime promoter Oscar De La Hoya enjoyed during his days as a young fighter before he went on to win many world championships in multiple divisions in what became a Hall of Fame career.

Perhaps because of the differences in eras and the advent of both social media platforms and video streaming sites like YouTube, Garcia’s popularity seemingly skyrocketed to the level of near superstar status before he became a contender as a Lightweight before eventually moving up to the Jr. Welterweight division. The difference in the way Garcia built his fan base notwithstanding, he did amass an impressive and undefeated record on his rise and also showed that he could get up when knocked down as he did in his 2021 battle against  former world title challenger Luke Campbell. A fight that Garcia got up off the canvas to score a knockout win, in what to that point was a career-defining moment for him.

While it may have appeared that Garcia's rise was smooth and without bumps in the road, he saw his progress stalled shortly after his victory over Campbell as he took time away from his career to address ongoing struggles with his mental health. A subject that he has been very open about and should be commended for. Nevertheless, the time away from active competition did stall the momentum he appeared to have built for himself. After a lopsided, but less than dominant performance over former world champion Emmanuel Tagoe in his first fight in over a year following his victory over Campbell, Garcia scored a knockout win over Javier Fortuna in July of last year, which set up what was a highly anticipated bout between himself and fellow undefeated star Gervonta Davis.

When the two met in April of this year, the fight was competitive for a time, but it would be Davis who would emerge victorious, dropping Garcia with a body shot in the seventh round where Garcia,on one knee, stayed down for the ten count. The defeat signaled the first loss of Garcia's career and thus ended the stage of his career known as “The Rise."

Now, dear reader, we come to a stage almost all fighters come to at some point in their careers. “The Rebuild.”

First, before we can talk about “The Rebuild," we need to talk about “The Defeat," or to be more specific, what led to it. Was Gervonta Davis simply the better fighter on that particular evening when he and Garcia shared the ring, or was there another reason for the outcome? 

For his part, Garcia has claimed that a rehydration clause in the contract for his fight with Davis in some way hindered his performance. This observer will not waste time trying to prove or disprove that claim because ultimately, the only one who really knows is Ryan Garcia himself. What I can say is having seen the knockout, Garcia was hit with what by all accounts appeared to be a perfectly placed body shot. 

As is the case when it comes to body punches, it is not always how hard the punch lands, but the position where it lands that often determines how much damage is done. Because the body is one of the more sensitive parts of the human anatomy, often when a punch lands to the body in a perfect spot, it causes a delayed reaction from the fighter on the receiving end and simply not only saps the fighter of whatever energy they might have as well as affect their ability to breathe, but more specifically, it takes the fighter's legs away from them where more often than not, it becomes very difficult for the fighter to get up from a knockdown resulting in a scenario like the one Garcia found himself in where he watched himself be counted out.

Obviously, there have been those who have taken a more cynical viewpoint of what happened to Garcia in that fight and feel that he quit when faced with an adverse circumstance. It should be pointed out however, that Garcia did get up off the canvas to knockout Luke Campbell, ironically with a body shot similar to the one that Davis knocked him out with. Whatever the case might be, if nothing else, the way those two fights ended should serve as an illustration to all fighters on the benefits of a consistent body attack as well as the obvious dangers taking body punches presents.

While the memories of what happened to him against Davis are likely to stay with him for a time, now Garcia must focus on the task of trying to bounce back. A process that is simply known as ”The Rebuild.” Step one in that process in terms of competition will take place on December 2nd in Houston, TX at the Toyota Center when Garcia returns to the ring and the Jr. Welterweight division when he faces contender Oscar Duarte in a twelve round bout that can be seen globally on digital subscription sports streaming network DAZN.

The question I have going into this fight centers on Garcia and whether or not he is prepared mentally. For any fighter looking to bounce back from a loss there is a mental block that the fighter has to deal with that is not always easy to overcome. In this case, Garcia is not only coming off of the first loss of his career, but also the first time he was knocked out. There are also the distractions that are a factor going into this fight. Shortly after his loss to Davis, Garcia cut his ties to trainer Joe Goosen and took on a different opponent in his promoter Oscar De La Hoya in an attempt to free himself from his promotional agreement.

Thus far, De La Hoya remains Garcia’s promoter, but the fact that there was and may still be an ongoing litigation between the two has to be at least on some level a distraction unless things have been resolved behind closed doors and simply not made public as of yet. At minimum, it suggests a less than friendly relationship between fighter and promoter. It was however, not long ago that Garcia was viewed as one of the hottest rising stars under De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions so one would think that it would be in the best interest of both to unite in an attempt to get Garcia back on track. 

In terms of his corner, Garcia will be working with his third trainer in a handful of fights by bringing in the highly regarded Derrick James, trainer of former unified Welterweight world champion Errol Spence among others. A criticism that some fighters deal with that ironically Oscar De La Hoya dealt with during his in ring career is by going to several different trainers over the course of a career, it can have a negative impact on a fighter’s style as well as strategies going into a fight. Although there was a mix of good and bad throughout De La Hoya’s career as he was guided by numerous trainers, many of whom are Hall of Famers, the counter argument is by opening yourself up to different philosophies that a new trainer/coach brings with them, it may allow a fighter to see things from a different perspective as well as improve in various areas in terms of technique. Whether or not the addition of James to his corner will be beneficial is something that remains to be seen, but it should also be noted that it is not uncommon for a fighter to switch trainers after suffering a loss.

Garcia's opponent on December 2nd in Oscar Duarte is a fighter with a respectable record of 26-1-1, with 21 Knockouts. A criticism that has surrounded this fight at least in the eyes of some is that Duarte has not defeated a notable fighter on his way to compiling that record. What Duarte does have going for him is he has been unbeaten since 2019 and his lone defeat to a fighter named Adrian Estrella was a ten round split decision loss. Since then, Duarte has run off eleven straight wins, all by knockout. While his resume might lack notable names, that is a statistic that should be viewed with a serious mindset by Garcia and those in his camp.

Garcia is coming off of a knockout loss and the fight plan for Duarte will likely center on trying to test Garcia early. It will be interesting to see if Duarte looks to establish an attack to the body of Garcia. Although sometimes all it takes is for one punch to land in a sensitive spot, the potential perception going forward could be that Garcia does not take body punches well and thus for any future opponents, the body could be an obvious target.

It would not be surprising to see Garcia approach this fight with caution and try to protect his body as much as possible, especially if it becomes clear early on in this fight that it is the intended target for Duarte. Conventional wisdom would suggest that Garcia’s claims of the knockout at the hands of Davis, which was fought at a catchweight of 136lbs., one pound over the 135lb. Lightweight limit and four pounds under the Jr. Welterweight limit where he had fought his previous two fights, was somehow attributed to the rehydration clause, which stipulated that neither fighter could not weigh more than ten pounds heavier than the 136lb. limit on the morning of the fight, is likely going to be tested here. Despite the caliber of competition going into this fight not being at the highest level, Duarte does have all the momentum in his favor and has demonstrated in previous fights that he does have power in both hands. 

While this may have the appearance of a bounce back or “Comeback Fight" for Garcia, who is currently rated number seven in the world in the Jr. Welterweight division by the World Boxing Council (WBC), this should be viewed as a dangerous fight. If he is not mentally and physically prepared, a loss in this bout could set his career back significantly, if not put his Boxing future in doubt.

“And That's The Boxing Truth." 

Garcia vs. Duarte takes place on Saturday, December 2nd at the Toyota Center in Houston, TX. The fight as well as its undercard can be seen globally on digital subscription sports streaming network DAZN beginning at 8PM ET/5PM PT.

(*U.S Times Only*)

(*Card and Start Time Subject To Change*)

For more information about DAZN including schedules, list of compatible streaming devices, platforms, Smart TVs, availability around the world, local start times in your area, and to subscribe please visit: www.DAZN.com. 

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Broner Dominates Determined Hutchinson In Return To The Ring

The ten round Welterweight bout between former four-division world champion Adrien Broner and largely unknown contender Bill Hutchinson on June 9th at Casino Miami in Miami, FL was not one with the type of anticipation leading up to it that there was suspense in not knowing who would emerge victorious. This was due largely to how little was known about Hutchinson, who is also a practicing attorney when not competing in the Boxing ring, but how little if any footage existed of him competing. This observer noted in previewing this bout that even I, a proud Boxing lifer who studies fight films on a daily basis as also a noted historian in addition to covering the sport, could not find any footage of Hutchinson's previous bouts in his career.

What Hutchinson did have going for him beyond being more active than Broner, who was coming off of a two and a half year layoff, was a respectable record of 20-2-4, with 9 Knockouts, but against opposition that could be described as lightly regarded. Nevertheless, the elements of both the unknown of what Hutchinson would bring with him into this fight, as well as questions of how Broner would look after a lengthy absence from active competition made this fight interesting.

While every statistical metric that one could use from the experience of Broner, to the caliber of opposition, to the overall difference in total fights between the two, pointed firmly in the direction that Broner would likely have the advantage, often when covering a fight where not much is known about one of the combatants, I approach things with an open mind. After all, when you have never seen a fighter compete before, you do not know what you might see once a fight is taking place and as such, you want to observe what said fighter has in his/her arsenal before forming an idea as to how the fight might be fought.

Despite a blueprint of sorts existing on how to attempt to fight Adrien Broner by applying pressure and keeping him in a defensive shell and unable to throw punches with consistency, Hutchinson began this fight by trying to box with a high caliber boxer and rather than sitting back in a defensive shell, it was Broner coming forward and bringing the fight to Hutchinson. A flush left hook to the body of Hutchinson in the first round had him badly hurt and against the ropes. 

Although it appeared that Hutchinson was on the verge of being knocked down, to his credit, he battled through and survived the round. It became clear rather quickly that Hutchinson had tremendous heart and the will of a lion, but did not have the fight plan or the ability to time Broner with counter punches. Despite occasionally landing flush punches on Broner, particularly with his right hand, the consistent ebb and flow of the fight was Broner coming forward, pushing Hutchinson back, and landing hard thudding punches to the head and body as he did so, round after round.

While no one can take anything away from the very "Game" Hutchinson, who displayed nothing but confidence in the weeks prior to this fight, after seeing four rounds of the scheduled ten round bout, I felt the fight should have been stopped. There is no disputing the heart Bill Hutchinson showed in this fight, but as it increasingly became clear that he was suffering a beating in a fight that he was numerically behind on the scorecards and keeping in mind that even though he was able to catch Broner flush occasionally, Broner kept coming forward, a clear indication that he did not have the punching power to suddenly turn the fight in his favor. Because of this, I felt the fight should have been stopped, if nothing else to protect Hutchinson for his future both in and out of the ring. The opinion of yours truly notwithstanding, Hutchinson continued to show his mettle until the final bell in dropping a ten round unanimous decision to Broner. 

In previewing this bout, I stated that this should be viewed as a fresh start for Adrien Broner after spending the last two and a half years having fights fall through and a well publicized split between himself, his former manager Al Haymon, and the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) group of promoters that had handled most of Broner 's career. This fight, which was the first for Broner under Hall of Fame promoter Don King did serve its purpose in getting Broner back in active competition again and he did get ten rounds of solid work against a determined opponent that can always say he went the distance with the former four-division world champion. As for what we saw from Broner inside the ring, he was more aggressive than has been the case previously in his career, was coming forward, and appeared to be more focused.

Whether or not the new aggression from Broner was a by-product of facing an opponent that due to his limited resume inside the ring, was a few levels below him, remains to be seen. While there is at least some talk of Broner possibly fighting the likes of Ryan Garcia or WBC Jr. Welterweight world champion Regis Prograis, each in the 140lb. Jr. Welterweight division, in the near future, the most important thing for Broner is to be as active as possible as it will only benefit him in the long run. As for the Boxing attorney Bill Hutchinson, this loss to a fight of the caliber of Adrien Broner should be a valuable learning experience for him as he moves on with his career in the Boxing ring and he can hold his head high in going ten hard rounds to the distance with a former world champion. Perhaps a move he might want to make would be to add a trainer to his team perhaps like a Freddie Roach, who specializes in training offensive-minded fighters. With the proper time to develop with the addition of a trainer like Roach who can teach fighters elements of technique and strategy at all stages of their career, Hutchinson might get another chance against a world ranked opponent. For now, Bill Hutchinson has earned the respect of the Boxing world for his performance in defeat to Adrien Broner and it will be interesting to see where he goes from here.

"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 

A Masterclass In The Art And Execution Of The Body Attack Taught By William Zepeda

With the Boxing world still talking about the event that was Gervonta Davis vs. Ryan Garcia and unfortunately the circumstances, which led to a pay-per-view crash for many on April 22, the month of April coincidentally would end with a bout that took place around the same weight neighborhood as that heavily hyped, but disappointing night for the sport one week prior.bA fight in Boxing's 135lb. Lightweight division that featured undefeated power puncher William Zepeda defend a regional championship recognized by the World Boxing Association (WBA) against veteran Jaime Arboleda at the College Park Center in Arlington, TX.

Although the bout between Davis and Garcia was technically a Jr. Welterweight bout, having taken place slightly above the 135lb. Lightweight division under a catchweight stipulation, often whenever a marquee fight like that does occur, other fighters in and around that weight will look to make a statement in an effort to make a strong case for themselves as being the next potential opponent for whomever the victor was. While perhaps not intended to be a direct follow up to what occured on April 22, Zepeda would do exactly that by systematically destroying Arboleda.

Zepeda, who entered the fight unbeaten in twenty-seven professional fights with twenty-three knockouts, is a volume puncher that applies constant pressure out of the southpaw stance and looks to overwhelm opponents with both activity and power shots. From the opening bell of this fight, Zepeda quickly applied pressure backing up Arboleda with a consistent body attack as well as landing a solid left hook to the head in the first round that seemed to stun the veteran of twenty-one professional fights.

Despite being very "Game" and appearing to respond well to Zepeda's attack in the opening round, Arboleda simply had no answer to combat or defend against a relentless body attack that Zepeda quickly administered. The effects of both the pressure Zepeda applied from the opening bell and the body attack quickly spelled doom for Arboleda as a left hook to the body would drop him in the second round. Showing his mettle, Arboleda got up from the knockdown and attempted to fight on, but Zepeda sensing his opponent was compromised, pressed forward with relentless body shots that ultimately would send the "Game," but overmatched Arboleda down to the canvas two more times, the last one seeing him grimace in pain as he was counted out.

Simply put, there is not much that one can say about a fight that lasted not even a round and a half. While Zepeda was in the ring with an opponent that he outclassed, he did demonstrate one crucial element that all fighters should study.

The effectiveness of a consistent body attack from the outset of a fight. It is indeed true that a single body punch that lands in just the right spot can end a fight instantly once it connects. What should be pointed out however, is many fighters neglect to implement a body attack on a consistent basis. Among the benefits of going to an opponent's body is because the body is one of the most sensitive parts of the human anatomy, it can do damage quickly as we saw in this fight when it is executed properly. What body shots can also do for a fighter's offenses is if an opponent uses a lot of lateral movement and/or defends against punches to the head well, the body is one part of a fighter's anatomy that does not move and over time if a fighter is consistent with an attack down stairs on an opponent, it will gradually take the opponent's ability to move laterally away as a fight progresses.

In this case, while the fight was too quick to truly appreciate what William Zepeda was able to do against Jaime Arboleda, what Zepeda essentially did was hold a masterclass on the art of implementing/executing a body attack. More importantly in terms of what may be ahead in his future, Zepeda, who is rated number three in the world in the WBA's Lightweight ratings likely put the rest of the division including undefeated Undisputed world champion Devin Haney and former multi-division world champion Vasyl Lomachenko, who will meet for Haney's Lightweight crown on May 20 in Las Vegas, NV, on notice.

"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 

Is It Time For Federal Regulators To Step In Following Yet Another Pay-Per-View Crash?

Readers may recall in the summer of 2021, it had been my intention to cover the heavily hyped Mayweather-Paul exhibition bout. Unfortunately, I would be prevented from doing so, not because of a lack of trying on my part, not because of a lack of my paying a fee to legally access the event, as all who cover Boxing should do when they are unable to attend events in person if they want to cover events, as fans who otherwise want to watch the event should do as well, but because of an issue that caused the servers of United States premium cable network Showtime's streaming app to crash resulting in the event being unwatchable for most consumers and those of us who intended to cover the event, yours truly included. 

Some may recall in the aftermath of what was a fiasco, I penned a column detailing my experience that evening. To be fair to Showtime, I did receive a refund and an apology from the network for my experience that evening, which I did appreciate despite being prevented from covering the event and no on demand access of the event being given, despite what I had been told by representatives of the network prior to the event. Fast forward nearly two years later and unfortunately for Boxing fans and those of us in the media who rely on technology to ply our trades were treated to a similar experience that was to be honest on a much more important scale for the sport and it's future. This observer is referring to the April 22 pay-per-view event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV that was hailed by some as one that would "Save Boxing." An event headlined by two of Boxing's unbeaten and highest rising stars Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia in a highly anticipated catchweight bout.

Unlike the Mayweather-Paul debacle, this event would involve the participation of another network in addition to Showtime. The digital subscription sports streaming network DAZN, one that has been marketed as an alternative to the status quo in Boxing including the pay-per-view model, of which longtime readers know that I am a staunch critic of. The network as of last year however, in a controversial, but in some ways understandable move due in part to the economic effects of the global COVID-19 epidemic, as well as a way to bring fighters and promoters, who insist on the pay-per-view model to the table, began to implement the use of pay-per-view on what they insist will be a sporadic basis all the while raising their standard subscription prices to $224 per year or $24.99 per month.

Before I go any further, it is important for me to state for the record and for any possible critics that, despite the fact that I do not currently work for any other media outlet or network besides the outlet that this observer owns and operates here at The Boxing Truth®️, I have been vocal in my support of a subscription-based streaming model for the sport of Boxing that networks like DAZN and ESPN+ offer that are of better value to consumers for the price of either a monthly or annual subscription as compared to the overpriced and under valued model that pay-per-view has become, particularly here in the United States. Nevertheless, I have also been critical of both networks for using the pay-per-view model even on an occasional basis and to take it a step further and be a little more specific, doing so at the same price points that often begin at $70 per event that is not economically reasonable for consumers, much less offering value for existing subscribers. Something that will continue as long as the use of pay-per-view exists in the sport and to be more specific, offers little value to consumers in the process as price points continue to increase to let's be honest, asinine degrees with little or no explanation, much less accountability.

As for the Davis-Garcia card, I chose to access the event through DAZN in thinking that since I as a longtime subscriber, who has covered the vast majority of their Boxing events since their launch in September 2018 here in the United States, would at least have on demand access to the event afterwards if there were any issues with the live broadcast or if I simply wanted to watch the event again, as is standard for all DAZN programming. Unfortunately for yours truly, who wanted to cover the event and in particular the main event as well as many others who are either longtime subscribers to the network or subscribed simply to access the event through DAZN, my experience with DAZN that evening would resemble my experience with Mayweather-Paul nearly two years ago.

Despite the involvement of two networks for this event, the broadcast in North America was produced and handled by Showtime and merely simulcast on DAZN. While that was not a red flag as to what was to follow over the course of the evening, I feel it important to point out due to this not being an in-house DAZN production, which in my experience is normally top notch. 

In fairness, the evening, much like virtually every event including the ones I have covered that have aired on DAZN seemed like it would be a smooth one as I was able to observe the opening bout of the card, featuring Middleweight Elijah Garcia scoring a ten round unanimous decision over Kevin Salgado to remain unbeaten. As the broadcast continued, the feed, would begin to become very glitchy and as was the case with Mayweather-Paul, resulting in app crashing making not just the broadcast inaccessible, but hard to even open the app on my streaming devices of choice, an Apple TV as well as Roku. In a scenario that mirrored my experience with Mayweather-Paul, once DAZN's app crashed on Apple TV, I attempted to switch over to Roku to see if I could get the app to open and subsequently restore my feed of the broadcast.

Unfortunately for yours truly, even when I did succeed in getting the app to open and clicking on the broadcast, the glitches including buffering, freezing, pixelation, and yes, app crashing continued for the remainder of the evening. Thus, making my task of covering the main event as well as other bouts on the card for subsequent material down the line for readers an impossible task, at least in terms of being able to do it live or so I thought. 

Based on my previous experience with DAZN, which to be honest, is significant due to the volume of the network's schedule year over year as well as often week to week in a given month, I assumed that an on demand replay of the event, which is standard for all DAZN programming including their select pay-per-view events for seven days in terms of the full broadcast before individual fights of each card are made available in the network's deep Boxing archives, would be made available either overnight or early on Sunday morning as I have also had to take advantage of from time to time when for whatever reason I have not been able to cover an event live.

To my surprise and disappointment, no on demand replay was made available by the network after the event and as of this writing, six days after the event, is still unavailable as is any single bout on the card in the network's archives. In the interest of full disclosure with the reader, I like many of you who also ordered the card through DAZN, have spent the last several days attempting to reach out to the network to inquire about not only if/when an on demand replay would be made available, which frankly would appease yours truly, or if a replay would not be available, a refund of the pay-per-view price, which in the interest of honesty with the reader was $67.99 (Applicable taxes and fees included) as was offered to existing DAZN subscribers, which I have been one since prior to the network's U.S. launch in 2018.

As of this writing, my attempts to reach DAZN, despite my status of being in Boxing media and having an established communication with the network dating back prior to the 2018 launch, has been unsuccessful beyond getting a reply from their support team expressively apologizing and saying they were investigating the matter. This process, which I have documented on this observer's respective social media platforms, not as a means of shaming either DAZN or Showtime, but more so as a way of showing folks that there are those of us in the sport that contrary to the belief of some, that are in the same position as the average consumer in that there is no special treatment for media members who are unable to travel to events to cover them in person. The inadvertent advocacy of yours truly, as well as many fans and even some fellow media members have also taken to social media to share their experience and their desire to be refunded for an event they as well as I could not see, has had one simple message comprised in a hashtag. #DoRightByConsumers. A hashtag that I first used in the aftermath of Mayweather-Paul.

(*Update to the previous statement to follow at the conclusion of this column.)

Much like that event, the issue here seems to be the same. Showtime's servers being inadequate and unable to hold up to the demand from a technological standpoint resulting in glitches, app crashes, and the event becoming inaccessible. Now, the reader is probably asking one simple question "Beau, if the issue you experienced was through DAZN's app, why would Showtime's servers ultimately be to blame here?"

The simple answer though I am not an expert in tech engineering is that the event was merely simulcast on DAZN in the United States and Canada, meaning it was a standard production of a Showtime Pay-Per-View event as opposed to a joint production between two networks that we have seen from time to time in the past. The only thing resembling DAZN on this simulcast feed was the simple presence of DAZN's logo, which was positioned in the top left hand corner of the screen shortly after the broadcast began. When I began to have those all too familiar issues that I have experienced in covering some previous Showtime Pay-Per-View Boxing cards purchased through the Showtime streaming app, I began to suspect seeing as it was only a simulcast made available to DAZN users here in the United States and Canada, there was no mention of DAZN at all  during periods where the feed was up, that somehow this was linked to Showtime's servers, meaning that the feed that DAZN was permitted to simulcast, was likely fed through a link to Showtime's servers as opposed to DAZN's in house engineering, which in my experience has been immaculate in the past. This in all likelihood created a scenario where once Showtime's servers started to experience problems and ultimately crash, due to the feed being linked to DAZN, it subsequently knocked the network offline in North America.

While some might think this is a conspiracy theory on the part of yours truly, akin to what one would see from various YouTubers and others who claim to be in Boxing media, it needs to be pointed out that outside of North America, DAZN was permitted to broadcast this same event in many countries in which it is available using a non-Showtime international feed as part of a standard DAZN subscription, which reported no issues with the broadcast and furthermore, on demand access to international subscribers to the network shortly after the event was made available. Although this should be viewed as a slap in the face to those of us in North America, it puts the blame more in the direction of Showtime as it is clear that their insistence that it be their production as opposed to truly working together with DAZN to not only bring this event, which saw two rival promoters the Premier Boxing Champions group of promoters (PBC), who promote Gervonta Davis and who have a broadcast deal with Showtime and Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions, who promote Ryan Garcia and who has a broadcast deal with DAZN come together to make the fight happen, not only accessible on both platforms as well as cable/satellite providers, but to ensure a smooth viewing experience for all. 

 It is indeed a sign of a network's selfishness in clearly putting their own interest above the interest of the sport and of the public/consumers who legally paid to access the event, even to their own detriment and that of its parent company Paramount Global. After another pay-per-view crash, the question is what now?

Well, despite the fact that I have yet to receive a refund from DAZN, I do believe that it is possible that a reason for lack of communication and resolution with customers and yes those of us who cover the sport, may be due to a potential legal battle that might be brewing between the two networks over the circumstances of what happened on April 22. Although this is purely speculation on my part at this point, just as an observer, I cannot see how a scenario of essentially "Forgive And Forget" could take place when potentially one network might be out millions of dollars due to the obvious server crash and said network clearly being prohibited from producing their own dedicated feed of the event at least in the North American market, despite a proven track record of reliability and dependability when it comes to streaming as compared to the network that insisted upon control. Even as there are some online touting that the event did between 1.2 and 1.4 million buys, which is unheard of in present day with regard to pay-per-view for all too obvious reasons, my question is what will those numbers look like once either refunds are issued or potential litigation due to lack of refunds is brought to both networks by consumers due to the crash of Showtime's servers, which has happened in the past.

(*Update to the previous statement to follow at the conclusion of this column.)

What can realistically be done moving forward? It is no secret and should not be to longtime readers that I as someone who truly cares about the sport and it's future in wanting to see it grow and become more accessible to all regardless of what one's economic standing might be, have been saying for years that the pay-per-view model either needs a significant revamp where it is made considerably more affordable for consumers, in addition to the frequency in which the model is used being reduced, or it needs to be done away with completely in favor of reasonably priced subscription-based options that put the consumer first. After this latest fiasco, perhaps the first line of action that a consumer might want to take at least as far as the United States is concerned would be to file a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission as well as to reach out to your respective state representatives both in Congress, as well as the United States Senate, who are the lawmakers and tell them not only of your experience with this event, but also to voice your wish to see lawmakers intervene via legislation that would hopefully address both the inadequate experience consumers have to incur when ordering these pay-per-view events as well as to address the issue of the ever increasing price points for these events in the United States, which more often than not, is considerably more expensive than what consumers are charged in other countries for pay-per-view access to the same events, if not offered as part of a subscription network like DAZN or for free in some cases internationally.

The bottom line is something needs to be done to not only benefit the sport of Boxing, but also and more importantly consumers, who do not resort to means of piracy, who do go about access to pay-per-view the right way, by legally paying for it, but unfortunately cannot be guaranteed a smooth experience for the price they paid, much less be given on demand access to these events, which given both the price that consumers continually are asked to shell out, as well as the technology in 2023 being available, should be standard with one's purchase of an event. At the end of the day, no matter what network executives might say in an attempt to spin things to suit their narratives, no matter what a promoter might say about criticizing price points of pay-per-view events, but at the same time not doing anything about it and charging those same price points for their events, no matter what fighters are led to believe that pay-per-view is the only way they can make additional money for their efforts in risking their lives every time they step into the ring, despite the increasing evidence that pay-per-view with only rare exceptions is a failing practice, something needs to change and perhaps the only way to drive that point home if you're in the position of a consumer will be to seek federal intervention by way of the respective lawmakers to force change. 

Unfortunately, without intervention and oversight to force the issue, there will be no accountability for these networks and promoters and unfortunately, in the end both the Boxing fan/consumers as well as the sport will continue to suffer because there will be no incentive to change even as inadequate technology and frankly selfishness/stupidity of some networks take revenue out of their own pockets by failing to deliver what they advertised to consumers. Sadly, both for the sport and the fans that support Boxing in good times and bad, the issues that led to this latest pay-per-view crash was not the first time it has happened and without some form of intervention and accountability, nothing will change.

"And That's The Boxing Truth."

(* UPDATE: As this column was being prepared for release, after several days of attempts to reach DAZN, communication between Beau Denison and DAZN did breakthrough on Thursday, April 27, 2023. In an email sent to Mr. Denison, he was informed that DAZN would be issuing refunds for the Gervonta Davis-Ryan Garcia pay-per-view event, which will take up to seven business days to process. Mr. Denison was also advised that customers who purchased the event via the DAZN website can contact their support team at www.DAZN.com for more information about obtaining a refund.

If however, customers purchased the event via the DAZN app on mobile/tablet, or connected streaming devices and Smart TVs, those customers will need to contact the platform in which they made the purchase including Google Play, Apple iTunes /Apple TV, Roku, and Amazon /Fire TV, which the network listed as examples of who to contact. If you purchased the event through the DAZN app on a platform that is not listed here, contact DAZN Support  for more information. DAZN also expressively apologized both to Mr. Denison as well as all customers and subscribers who experienced issues accessing the event.

There was no attempt by Mr. Denison to reach out to Showtime regarding the issues discussed in this column as he strictly dealt with DAZN in an attempt to cover the Davis-Garcia event. Customers who purchased the event through the Showtime app can contact the network at www.SHO.com for information obtaining refunds.

We here at The Boxing Truth®️ would like to again apologize to readers who were expecting post-fight coverage of Davis-Garcia as was originally planned as it was not in our control.)

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

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