Title Fights Scheduled (May 23-26)

Another week without any televised title fight. All title fights involve Japanese boxers with Japan not hosting. I often criticize the Japanese for staying home but much respect this time for laying their belts on the line abroad.

First up on May 23 in Monterrey, Mexico, Japan's Toshiaki Nishioka [33(20)-4(1)-3] will defend his WBC Super Bantamweight title against former bantamweight title holder Jhonny Gonzalez [40(34)-6(2)-0] of Mexico. Nishioka was an interim champ when he was scheduled to defend his title against Genaro Garcia last January. The then titleholder, Israel Vazquez, was stripped and declared "champion emeritus" by the WBC because of inactivity due to his eye injury. With that, the WBC then promoted the Nishioka-Garcia fight for the full title. Nishioka stopped Garcia in the 12th. With a patsy challenger gone, he now defends against an accomplished mandatory. Gonzales is in a 6-fight winning streak with 5 knockouts and a lopsided decision. His last loss was against Gerry Penalosa due to a perfectly placed hook to the liver. Gonzales' has every reason to dethrone Nishioka and take another division belt. The home crowd is an advantage but with Gonzales' resume, I don't think he needs it. I believe even if this is in Tokyo, Gonzales will still win easily.

On May 26 in Uttaradit, Thailand, Denkaosan Kaovichit [46(20)-1(1)-1] will defend his WBA Flyweight title against Japan's Hiroyuki Hisataka [17(6)-7(1)-1]. Kaovichit took the title from Takefumi Sakata five months ago via a second round stoppage. That was a rematch from a controversial draw late 2007. Hisataka also challenged for the same title during Sakata's reign but loss on a unanimous decision. I don't expect Hisataka to give Kaovichit any problems.

Also on May 26, for the first time ever, Shanghai, China will host and challenge for a world title. Japan's Daisuke Naito [34(22)-2(1)-3] will defend his WBC Flyweight title against China's Xiong Zhao Zhong [12(8)-1(0)-1]. It's commendable that the WBC is opening the doors for China but, I believe, they can do a better job in finding a more deserving challenger. Naito, although only fought once outside Japan, is a world class fighter. Xiong, on the other hand, is nowhere close to any existing world flyweight division ranking. In his 12 wins, only one opponent has a winning record who actually retired after two pro fights. This can be an accident waiting to happen and I don't think that's a good first step for China to enter the sweet science pro ranks.

My Predictions:
Gonzales by early knockout
Late KO or wide decision for Kaovichit.
Naito by mid fight stoppage.

Title Fight Results (May 16)

Italy's Giacobbe Fragomeni retained his WBC Cruiserweight title against Poland's Krzysztof Wlodarczyk via a controversial draw. I did not know until it was late Saturday that the fight was available online via streamit.it of www.opi2000.com for roughly $7 or 5 euros. According to reports, there were exciting exchanges that could've satisfied my boxing fix for the weekend. I could've had an opinion on the controversial call by the referee in the 11th round. I instead try to make the most out of the fuzzy videos in youtube which gave me a headache. Fragomeni seem to be more active early but Wlodarczyk took over sometime mid-fight. Anyway, hopefully somebody uploads a better copy soon because it sure looks like an action-packed bout. ESPN; Boxing Scene; Fight News

As for the other cruiserweight title fight, Argentina's Victor Emilio Ramirez also retained his WBO Cruiserweight title against Ali Ismailov via split decision. I also did not see this fight nor was it available online, as far as I know, so don't have an opinion either. Fight News

Prediction Results:
Add a notch in my draw column. I could've been right if Fragomeni's second knockdown in the 11th was called by the referee.
Ramirez the defending champ wins.

My record is up to 29-3-2. No changes in the tally.

Title Fights Scheduled (May 16)

It's a cruiserweight weekend as well as the David Haye scrap tourney (sort of). Two 200-lb. titleholders will be defending their titles for the first time. The same titles that Haye relinquished when he moved up to the heavyweight division.

First up on May 16 in Rome, Italy, Giacobbe Fragomeni [26(10)-1(1)-0] of Italy will defend his WBC Cruiserweight title against Poland's Krzysztof Wlodarczyk [41(31)-2(0)-0]. Fragomeni won what was a vacant title against Rudolf Kraj after Haye, as I mentioned, relinquished it. Fragomeni's only loss, incidentally, was against David Haye in an action-packed slugfest in '06 for the European title. The Italian kept moving forward in a Tyson-like manner but without the power. He was able to cut Haye above the left eyebrow with 2 good rights in the sixth. Unfortunately, Haye with blood flowing down his left brow stepped up his offense in the ninth and stopped Fragomeni under a salvo of heavy blows. Fragomeni is closing in to the end of his career so this is a great opportunity to cap his career defending a world title in front of his home crowd. That said, it's tough to bet against him. Wlodarczyk, on the other hand, is 12 years younger yet has more fights but not necessarily tougher fights. It's going to be difficult against the consistently attacking Fragomeni and his patience and skills against that type of pressure is one of the keys in winning this fight. Wlodarczyk's bread and butter is his right hook. This will be a problem for Fragomeni because based on his last fight against Kraj, the Italian is susceptible to right hooks. Wlodarczyk's last loss was against former titleholder Steve Cunningham on a majority decision. It was a rematch from a vacant IBF title fight where the Polish won via split. This is tough to call. Fragomeni's got home court, tough chin and a judge-friendly style to his advantage. Wlodarczyk's edge is his age, skills and power as well as the right hook to take Fragomeni out.

Also on May 16 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, another titleholder defending at home. Argentina's Victor Emilio Ramirez [14(12)-1(0)-0] will defend his WBO Cruiserweight title against Ali Ismailov [15(11)-1(1)-1] of the former Soviet Republic of Azerbaijan. As I mentioned, this title was also held then relinquished by David Haye. Ramirez won the interim title against Alexander Alexeev last January and was declared the full titleholder after Haye moved up. This fight was already twice postponed. First was because of television coverage issues. Then, after it was rescheduled to Apr 11, Ramirez was injured during training which prompted the second postponement. I'm not very familiar with both boxers specially Ismailov. I don't remember seeing them even on streaming videos. I can only go to what I read about them which is not much either. So this will be a crapshoot as far as my prediction is concern. I might get my fourth prediction setback on this one.

There are no TV coverage in the US. Hopefully, someone will be kind enough to stream from Rome and Buenos Aires. Please leave me a comment if you got something set up.

My Predictions:
I see Wlodarczyk stopping Fragomeni with his right hook in the late rounds.
If in doubt, I pick the defending champ and the homecourt edge. Ramirez by late stoppage.

Title Fight Result (May 9)

It looked like an off-night for Chad Dawson and Antonio Tarver was somewhat better compared to their first match, nevertheless, Dawson was still obviously far more superior than the 40-year old Tarver. A rematch wouldn't have happened if it wasn't stipulated in the original fight's contract and if Tarver didn't exercise it. But, hey, can't blame the old man for taking his last significant pay check. Dawson retains his IBF Light Heavyweight title that if not for Tarver's couple of good rounds, it's like practically watching the same fight where Bad Chad also won by unanimous decision. That breaks Tarver's rematch winning streak where he was 3 out of 3 in previous rematches against Eric Harding, Roy Jones Jr. and Glen Johnson. Dawson is one of my favorite boxers but I was a bit disappointed in his performance. I thought that he didn't impose his will as much as he can and seem to be too careful at times or too relaxed. He obviously has more power and skills but he didn't use it to his advantage the way I thought that he would. I was actually expecting a knockout even though no one's stopped Tarver before. Based on their first fight and the way Chad dominated, a knockout seem to be the logical expectation on this fight. Anyway, regardless, Chad is still the best 175 pounder out there in my opinion. Better than Bernard Hopkins since B-Hop is avoiding him anyway. So, what's next for Dawson? Looking at the other titleholders - Adrian Diaconu, Zsolt Erdei and Hugo Garay, they will not even think about unification because there's not enough money to earn in this division compared to how much they will be earning defending their titles at home. So the only attractive fight in the 175-lb. class is against Glen Johnson who he defeated last year by what I thought was a lot closer score than what the judges perceived. If that's not going to happen too, then Chad's got to move up to fight Tomasz Adamek again for Adamek's belts or move down where there are a few more financially attractive options in Carl Froch, Lucian Bute, Mikkel Kessler, Librado Andrade and Allan Green. ESPN; Boxing Scene; Fight News

Prediction Result:
This pick is one of the easiest and if I didn't pick Chad then I shouldn't be blogging boxing.

My record is up to 28-3 and a draw. No changes in the tally.

Title Fight Scheduled (May 9)

On May 9 in Las Vegas, NV, "Bad" Chad Dawson [27(17)-0(0)-0] will defend his IBF Light Heavyweight title again against Antonio Tarver [27(19)-5(0)-0]. This is a rematch from last October where Dawson simply outclassed Tarver in that wide unanimous decision win. If not for the rematch clause in their contract which Tarver exercised, this fight does not deserve to happen. This will be Tarver's last significant fight, or most probably his last fight, after a decent career highlighted by two wins against Roy Jones Jr. including a stoppage in the 2nd in 2004. Dawson is already a force to reckon with and I believe at this point in his career, Tarver does not deserve to be in the same ring with him. Unfortunately, Tarver needs to earn his last considerable paycheck. One thing not going for Dawson's career right now is that there are no noteworthy names in the 175-lb. class where other titleholders are either across the Atlantic or tries to remain in his hometown. The only worthy challenger in the mainland is the ageless Bernard Hopkins, but Hopkins avoids Dawson like his got swine flu. It's quite understandable. Hopkins doesn't want to end his career the way Pacquiao knocked Hatton down. The only way for Dawson to get meaningful fights is to move up to cruiserweight and challenge former victim and current Ring and IBF champ Tomasz Adamek. Dawson is one of my favorite active boxers and I look forward to this bout and his future battles. This fight might not be competitive but just watching Dawson make mince meat out of Tarver will be entertaining enough. Tarver will be sorry he exercised his rematch option. HBO will cover starting at 9:30 pm ET.

My Prediction:
Easy stoppage win for Bad Chad.

Title Fight Results (May 2)

It's roughly been 10 hours since the fight ended but my adrenaline is still at an all time high. It will take a Pacquiao left to send me back to earth. A knockout of the year type valium.

Anyway, so what else happened to other title fights? First up, Panama's Anselmo Moreno retained his WBA Bantamweight title against Wladimir Sidorenko of Ukraine and proved that their first fight was no fluke. I did not see the fight so can't comment any further. I tried but there were no streaming videos from Germany available. Other titleholders will be busy the next couple of months so his very likely next bout will be against the interim titleholder, Nehomar Cermeño of Venezuela. Boxing Scene; Fight News

In the main undercard of the EVENT, Mexico's Humberto Soto succesfully retained his WBC Super Featherweight title against the game and surprisingly slick Benoit Gaudet of Canada. Unfortunately, for the French Canadian, his slickness wasn't enough to avoid Soto's devastating uppercut which softened him up for the final knockdown in the ninth. When Gaudet went down in the first, I thought it will be over quick as Soto was simply in a different league. Gaudet adjusted and frustrated Soto in the mid rounds by moving and connecting occassional combinations. His mistake was he slugged it out and that made it easy for Soto to finish him off. Soto is still fresh from a TKO win against Antonio Davis exactly five weeks ago and he probably will take it easy for awhile. Boxing Scene; Fight News

As for the EVENT. The fight the boxing world has been eagerly waiting for. Are there still doubters? Well maybe the natural haters. But, for the pure fight fans - can anyone still doubt the validity of the pound for pound title bestowed on the whirlwind from the Philippines? I don't think so. Manny Pacquiao's total annihilation of the now former 140-lb. lineal champ was simply overwhelming. Ricky Hatton didn't see where the punches are coming from but definitely felt them. Hatton started strong and I thought Pacquiao was tight in the first 20 seconds. As expected, Hatton's mauling tactics was evident as he held Pac with his left while taking shots with his right. Pacquiao adjusted and from thereon, dominated like never before. You can already see the redness in Hatton's face even before the first knockdown. Every surge Hatton made was countered with dazzling accuracy. Hatton barely made the end of the first after the devastating knockdowns. You know that it'll be over soon. Hatton's probably thinking twice about coming back in in the second after experiencing firsthand what future hall of famers Dela Hoya, Barrera, Morales and Marquez experienced themselves. The crushing blow I thought could have dislocated Hatton's jaw. Knockout of the year so far. The British fans are now probably singing a different tune. Their chant will sound better if it says, "There's only one Manny Pacquiao". With the Ring Junior Welterweight belt securely wrapped around Pacquiao's waist, he is now only the second boxer ever to hold 6 division titles, of course with respect to old timers when there were fewer divisions. Pretty boy Floyd is probably shaking in his boots right now. If he hides behind another retirement plan again, then, bring on Mosley or bring on Cotto. What the heck bring on Pavlik and while he's at it bring on the Klitschko brothers at the same time. But seriously, I hope Floyd Mayweather Jr. secures a belt first in the 147-lb class before he meets Pacquiao. So that a record-breaking 7th is a distinct possibility. ESPN1; ESPN2; Boxing Scene; Fight News; Fox Sports

Prediction Results:
As expected, Moreno by stoppage.
Soto by KO but underestimated Gaudet.
Pacquiao's a beast.

My record is up to 27-3 and a draw.
Only change is the Philippines moving up and UK down.

As of May 3, 2009

Rank	Country	No. of Titles	Title Holders
1st	USA	11	Andre Berto - WBC147 Timothy Bradley - WBO140 Chad Dawson - IBF175 Vernon Forrest - WBC154 Steven Luevano - WBO126 Shane Mosley - WBA147 Kelly Pavlik - WBC160;WBO160;Ring160 Cory Spinks - IBF154 Brian Viloria - IBF108
2nd	Mexico	9	Cristobal Cruz - IBF126 Raul Garcia - IBF105 Juan Manuel Marquez - Ring135;WBA135;WBO135 Fernando Montiel - WBO118 Edgar Sosa - WBC108 Humberto Soto - WBC130 Israel Vazquez - Ring122
3rd	Puerto Rico	7	Ivan Calderon - WBO108;Ring108 Miguel Cotto - WBO147 Jose Lopez - WBO115 Juan Manuel Lopez - WBO122 Roman Martinez - WBO130 Daniel Santos - WBA154
4th	Ukraine	5	Sergiy Dzinziruk - WBO154 Vitali Klitschko - WBC200+ Wladimir Klitschko - IBF200+;WBO200+ Andreas Kotelnik - WBA140
5th (3 are tied)	Armenia	4	Arthur Abraham - IBF160 Vic Darchinyan - WBA115;WBC115;IBF115
5th (3 are tied)	Japan	4	Takahiro Aoh - WBC126 Hozumi Hasegawa - WBC118 Daisuke Naito - WBC112 Toshiaki Nishioka - WBC122
5th (3 are tied)	Panama	4	Celestino Caballero - WBA122;IBF122 Guillermo Jones - WBA200 Anselmo Moreno - WBA118
8th (2 are tied)	Argentina	3	Hugo Hernan Garay - WBA175 Omar Andres Narvaez - WBO112 Victor Emilio Ramirez - WBO200
8th (2 are tied)	Philippines	3	Nonito Donaire - IBF112 Donnie Nietes - WBO105 Manny Pacquiao - Ring140
10th (5 are tied)	Hungary	2	Karoly Balzsay - WBO168 Zsolt Erdei - WBO175
10th (5 are tied)	Poland	2	Tomasz Adamek - IBF200;Ring200
10th (5 are tied)	Romania	2	Lucian Bute - IBF168 Adrian Diaconu - WBC175
10th (5 are tied)	Thailand	2	Denkaosan Kaovichit - WBA112 Oleydong Sithsamerchai - WBC105
10th (5 are tied)	Venezuela	2	Jorge Linares - WBA130 Edwin Valero - WBC135
15th (11 are tied)	Colombia	1	Juan Urango - IBF140
15th (11 are tied)	Denmark	1	Mikkel Kessler - WBA168
15th (11 are tied)	Germany	1	Felix Sturm - WBA160
15th (11 are tied)	Ghana	1	Joseph Agbeko - IBF118
15th (11 are tied)	Indonesia	1	Chris John - WBA126
15th (11 are tied)	Italy	1	Giacobbe Fragomeni - WBC200
15th (11 are tied)	Nicaragua	1	Roman Gonzalez - WBA105
15th (11 are tied)	Russia	1	Nikolay Valuev - WBA200+(co)
15th (11 are tied)	South Africa	1	Malcolm Klassen - IBF130
15th (11 are tied)	UK	1	Carl Froch - WBC168
15th (11 are tied)	Uzbekistan	1	Ruslan Chagaev - WBA200+(co)

Title Fight Result (Apr. 30)

Thursday night's, or Wednesday's early morning, title fight was a good appetizer to start off the EVENT this weekend.

Panama's Celestino Caballero successfully defended his WBA Super Bantamweight and IBF Junior Featherweight titles against Jeffrey Mathebula of South Africa via a split decision. I've not seen Mathebula before and never thought that he will be a threat. But, after watching this fight, he is not a bad challenger after all and made it quite interesting. Caballero was at the wrong end of the ring in the mid to late rounds as Mathebula was more aggressive than Caballero. I thought at that point that Mathebula might upset Caballero. Overall, though, Caballero did enough to retain his titles. I'm not sure if he's due to fulfill his WBA mandatory soon. If that's the case, up next for him will be against the interim titleholder Ireland's Bernard Dunne who won a barnburner against Ricardo Cordoba late March. Otherwise, a unification against Juan Manuel Lopez will be a fight to look forward to. By the way, I caught the fight on tvnlive's streaming video. The undercards seem to not end and the main event started just before 1 am when I was close to giving up. Glad I did not. Boxing Scene; Fight News

Prediction Result:
Underestimated Mathebula but still got the winner right.
My record is up to 24-3 and a draw.
Tally remains as the champ retained.