It's Monday. Welcome back for another edition of Observe and Fight, The Boxing Observer's compilation of observations and random thoughts from the week that was in boxing. Get caught up on some of the most recent events you may have missed out on, including another Mayweather vs. Pacquiao update, a preview of Gennady Golovkin's return fight against Martin Murray on Saturday, a recap of Boxcino, and much more. Without further ado, check out the latest observations from the Boxing Observer, David Kassel.
Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao will happen in due time. Everyone just needs to relax. I know this fight has marinated for years and years, and we are closer than ever to the two finally meeting in the ring. The truth of the matter is that I was one of the people who, at the beginning of this year, was convinced this fight would never happen. Now, I'm singing a completely different tune. Everything that has gone on, and the major players involved who weren't involved before, are doing everything in their power to make this fight happen. People are going to pay big money for this fight. Everyone knows it. However, for those saying May 2nd is too close and the promotion doesn't have enough time, that may be true for an ordinary fight. This fight, though, is the biggest fight in boxing history. I wouldn't say that it's the two best fighters of all time, but in this day in age of social media and instant information, this fight will shatter records we may not see again for 50 years. It doesn't matter who breaks the story first, or when the official announcement is made, but fans need to stop worrying because, at this point, it seems only a large enough meteor touching down on Earth will prevent this fight from taking place.
The middleweight champion of the world makes his return to the ring on Saturday. Gennady Golovkin defends his title in Monte Carlo against the very formidable, former title challenger Martin Murray. Murray almost shocked Sergio Martinez in Argentina and is one of the top middleweights in the world. This is the toughest opponent Golovkin will have faced thus far in his career. Murray has never been down in his career, but his lack of power (only 12 KO's in 29 wins) will be his undoing. Golovkin has yet to be hurt in a fight and has one of the best chins in boxing. Unless an opponent can gain his respect by hurting him with power shots, Golovkin will continue to walk down his opponents and break their bodies down into submission. I predict a stoppage victory for Golovkin in the 8th round or later.
Arthur Abraham has a difficult rematch to contend with on Saturday against Paul Smith. Their first fight, back in September, was a unanimous decision victory for Abraham. Although I agreed with the decision, the scores were completely ridiculous in favor of the champion, Abraham. There was enough outcry, including those who felt Smith was the victor, for Abraham to listen to the fans and grant Smith a rematch. I think Abraham took Smith lightly the first time around, but I don't believe he will do it again. This time around, I feel Abraham will win a clear decision and set himself up for another huge payday.
If Abraham wins, he will fight Felix Sturm in an all-German superfight. Sturm just passed up an opportunity to face Hassan N'Dam for the vacant IBF middleweight title. Sturm, who is the former IBF champion, is nearing the end of his career and, like Abraham, should be looking to cash in on as many opportunities as he can in the ring. An Abraham vs. Sturm fight, in Germany, will easily pull in millions for both men as they are two of the most popular and successful German fighters of all time.
Boxcino returned with a bang this past Friday. Former Boxcino middleweight finalist Brandon Adams was clearly the most impressive as he broke down, and eventually stopped, the tough Alex Perez in the 5th round. However, the biggest surprise was late replacement John Thompson, who won a unanimous decision over Ricardo Pinell after taking the bout on just 24-hour notice. The dark horse amongst the 154lb participants is Ukranian Stanyslav Skorokhod. I'll be interested to see his improvement in the semifinals after stopping Michael Moore in the 4th round. Unfortunately, the Boxcino heavyweight quarterfinals take place this Friday night, but the fighters in the field are really nothing to get excited about.
Brian Rose was completely screwed by referee Ian John-Lewis against Carson Jones this past Saturday. Officially, the bout will go down as a 1st-round knockout victory for Jones; however, even Jones admitted he felt bad for Rose because the stoppage was extremely premature. It was so bad that Jones stated immediately after the fight that he would give Rose a rematch. I don't know if there was a "No Standing 8 count" rule, but Rose definitely deserved more of an opportunity to continue. Good for Carson Jones for being a true fighter and recognizing a poor call by the referee when he sees one. Also, I'm sure Jones will be fairly compensated for the rematch.
I was very impressed with David Sanchez's win over Juan Rosas. I see no reason whatsoever that Sanchez, the interim WBA 115lb. champion, shouldn't be pitted against the reigning champion, Kohei Kono, of Japan. I absolutely hate interim titles.
I'm glad CBS Sports Network wants to get in the boxing game. I know the network has aired the Collegiate Boxing National Championship in the past, but I do have one criticism. The quality of the production was not very strong. The three fights aired were marginal at best, and I didn't expect any Fight of the Year candidates, but it seemed as if the network just decided to throw any old thing on the air without worrying about the quality of the content. If CBS Sports Network wants to be a player in the boxing game, it needs to seriously consider if it is willing to put the proper protocols into place to make it worth watching.
Each week, I feature an email from a fan on Observe and Fight. This week's email comes to us from Jaxson T. regarding the future of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr...
"With Chavez Jr. signing with Al Haymon, and Bob Arum claiming he still has one more fight on Chavez's contract, how is Chavez going to get back in the ring if Haymon and Arum don't even speak to each other?"
As of now, Chavez Jr. is scheduled to fight Andrzej Fonfara on April 18th, and that fight is supposedly going to be a Haymon Boxing production. Top Rank is claiming it still has its hand on one last Chavez fight, but Chavez says Haymon is handling it. I wouldn't be surprised if the fight goes on as scheduled, but I'm truly not sure of the status of Chavez's contract. I would be very surprised if the fight with Fonfara doesn't happen, which, if Chavez wins, would setup a fight with Carl Froch for later in 2015. As for Haymon and Arum not speaking to each other, there is always someone who can make a fight happen as long as the money is right.
That's all I've got for this week. Email any questions or comments to dkassel@fighthype.com and I will answer them throughout the week. Your email may be featured in the next "Observe and Fight." Follow me on Twitter @BoxingObserver, and be sure to "Like" The Boxing Observer on Facebook.
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