Weekend Fights

The weekend has come and gone in a flash and the new Yankee Stadium hosted a night of old school fights... or at least that's how it was sold to us. Regarding last night's fisticuffs, you’ll find it interesting that I wasn’t disappointed while our resident Me thought last night sucked. Which brings me to a rule of thumb in boxing: Styles make fights.

I bring this up because when I see a boxing card and I have a good idea of how it’s going to play out. Simply put, some guys were just born to be put in a ring together. When I say that I think Ali and Frazier, I think Rafael Marquez and Israel Vazquez, I think Mickey Ward and Arturo Gatti, I think Hagler Hearns, I think Hagler and Leonard, I think Barrera and Morales. But we’re not always lucky enough to see the matchups we want to see or seeing the elite face the elite.

But that rule of thumb also has a variation: Styles also make fans.

Simply put, I like Miguel Cotto as a boxer though I’m not too fond of him as an individual. He’s not as warm as other Puerto Rican champions and he seems a bit on the arrogant side. He’s got a superb jab, he goes to the body and if he faces someone, odds are it’ll be a challenge. Hell, his tuneup fight after being demolished by Margarito was Joshua Clottey, which isn’t a slouch by any means though he kind of forgot to show up to the Pacquiao fight. He’s also willing to take risks and when he smells blood, he goes in for the kill. And then there’s the clincher for me, he doesn’t talk shit. You can think he’s an utter asshole on a personal level, granted, but he doesn’t talk one ounce of shit. And to me, that’s worth more than a gazillion hours of entertainment on HBO 24/7.

By the way, and to make this absolutely clear, that does not mean I think Floyd Mayweather Jr. is not a gentleman in the ring. Sure you could remember how he popped Gatti in the mouth while Arturo was talking to the ref in their fight, but it’s always been said in a fight… defend yourself at all times. But instead, let me remind you of his fight with Zab Judah where all hell broke loose. Who was the only person who kept their cool? Floyd. Who was the only one who behaved professionally? Floyd. So I’m clear that when it boils down, Floyd can be professional. I just don’t like him.

Now take that last paragraph, change the name of Floyd for Cotto, and I’m sure Me has a couple of choice words to offer about Cotto.

Last night though, it started out being about Cotto… but by the end of the night, there was another story that had much more weight. To be fair though, here’s my recap of the fight.

Rounds 1 and 2:

Cotto comes out, establishes his jab, and dominates. I see his footwork is better, I see that his defense at times looks modified and other times he looks as the same guy who got the shit knocked out of him twice. The point is that Emmanuel Steward is making a change, and I’m actually curious as to his next fight.

Round 3:

Cotto starts winning but by the end, Foreman tags him with a couple of rights.

Round 4:

Foreman wins and does so in pretty convincing fashion.

Round 5:

Cotto adjusts, throws counters and establishes his jab and hook. Stings Foreman with a couple of shots.

Round 6:

Another Cotto round

Round 7:

While moving laterally Yuri Foreman’s leg literally is swept from underneath him. Not by a person, not by a trip but by an old injury that basically had a boxer who depends on movement losing his most prized asset.

I can sum up rounds 8 and 9 by saying that a towel was thrown in and that I thought the fight had stopped more than once… but in Round 7, that’s where the real story began.

Yuri Foreman looked as if he’d just torn the ACL on his right knee or something that just looked painful to watch. He could barely stand up let alone move but he chose to go on. For close to three rounds this kid fought his ass off and by the way, he was still fighting to win. I’m sure a lot of people wanted the fight to be stopped and I myself was actually relieved when I saw the towel be thrown in. But that wasn’t the end of the fight. A towel was thrown in, but just in case you’re wondering, that doesn’t automatically stop a fight. It’s still up to the ref and the fighter… In this case, Arthur Mercante Jr. asked Yuri Foreman if he wanted to quit, Yuri said no, so the fight went on. Because Foreman was the champion he got the benefit of the doubt and he showed what a true heart of a champion is capable of. Sure he lost, sure he took more punishment than he had to, but that’s his right as a fighter. Some people call that being stupid, other call it bravery. What’s obvious though is that he probably made fans and believers out of many people last night. You see, it doesn’t take episodes of 24/7, a flashy persona, or even skill to get people’s attention. Sometimes you just need heart. And in that category, few people can compete with Yuri Foreman.

Cheers