2011 Official Boxing Thread: 12/30 Jermain Taylor + Andre Dirrell return on ShoBox.

[jking0821]

And another step back for boxing.....

Lara hit Williams flush with the over hand left all night. Despite Lara finishing the fight looking like the great Gazoo with that lumpy head due to a head butt, Williams really didn't land any good punches.

When the score cards were read and the first judge had it 114-114 i was like WOW how could anyone give Williams that many rounds. Then i was convinced the other two judged gave it to Lara......fail.

Just want to say Max Kellerman is the man and my favorite announcer/analyst in any sport. I hope when larry merchant leaves they plug Max in

I think williams is done. Yes his fights are usually entertaining because he takes a lot of shots to land shots. But please don't put him back in the ring with Sergio that would be a massacre if he can't figure out how to keep his right hand up. I hope for his health he just calls it a career or fights a scrub or two then retires.

 

[jking0821]

And another step back for boxing.....

Lara hit Williams flush with the over hand left all night. Despite Lara finishing the fight looking like the great Gazoo with that lumpy head due to a head butt, Williams really didn't land any good punches.

When the score cards were read and the first judge had it 114-114 i was like WOW how could anyone give Williams that many rounds. Then i was convinced the other two judged gave it to Lara......fail.

Just want to say Max Kellerman is the man and my favorite announcer/analyst in any sport. I hope when larry merchant leaves they plug Max in

I think williams is done. Yes his fights are usually entertaining because he takes a lot of shots to land shots. But please don't put him back in the ring with Sergio that would be a massacre if he can't figure out how to keep his right hand up. I hope for his health he just calls it a career or fights a scrub or two then retires.

 

[proshares]

Paul never figured out how to use his height and still hasn't figured out how to stop a left hand. Sergio would hurt him worse next time.

Plus, I don't see how you can call it a step backwards for boxing.  There's bad decisions yea, but it wasn't like it was a night of stinker fights.  There was one war, two entertaining fights and one stinker.  The fights themselves were entertaining but if boxing is taking steps backwards because of bad decisions or losing fans because of it then IDK what to say to those dopes.

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[h4]Saturday at Atlantic City, N.J.[/h4]
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Paul Williams W12 Erislandy Lara​

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Junior middleweight
Scores: 115-114, 116-114, 114-114
Records: Williams (40-2, 27 KOs); Lara (15-1-1, 10 KOs),​

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Rafael's remark: The good news: This was a very good and exciting fight. The bad news: The decision was horrible, absolutely horrible. You could have searched the Adrian Phillips Ballroom high and low after the fight -- and probably among those watching on HBO -- for somebody who thought Williams won and the only people you would have found were unfortunately the two who counted, judges Hilton Whitaker (115-114) and Don Givens (116-114), who somehow, some way, gave the fight to Williams. Judge Al Bennett didn't cover himself in glory either with his 114-114 scorecard. On body language alone, Williams, 29, of Aiken, S.C., and his handlers know he did not win the fight. His trainer, George Peterson, knew he was so behind that he was telling him he needed a knockout to win from about the ninth round on. Meanwhile, Lara, the 28-year-old former Cuban amateur star and 2005 world amateur champion, who defected and now lives in Miami, was doing his thing. He was boxing and moving and landing flush shots on Williams at an alarming rate. His left hand simply could not miss against the fellow southpaw. If Lara had a little bit more punching power, Williams would have been knocked out inside five or six rounds.

Williams, who always gives fans their money's worth, is clearly paying for that now. He is a diminished fighter after so many tough fights, no longer a pound-for-pound-caliber guy. His reflexes are not what they were and his legs looked unsteady and he ate way too many clean shots. He was trying to rebound from his November rematch with middleweight champ Sergio Martinez. Williams had won a majority decision against Martinez in a brutal battle in a December 2009 nontitle fight. In the rematch, however, Martinez avenged the loss by putting him to sleep with a massive left hand in the second round. While he survived the distance with Lara, Williams and Peterson clearly did not go to school on how to avoid the left hand from a southpaw. Not only did Lara land his all night long, he also busted Williams up. A cut over his left eye dripped blood from the fifth round on. His face was swelling and his mouth and nose were also bleeding in the late rounds. Lara was not unscathed, however. He had a giant knot on the left side of his face from an accidental head butt. It turned out that he suffered a small facial fracture.

Although -- as usual -- Williams was very busy, throwing 1,047 punches, he landed only 200 (19 percent), according to CompuBox. Lara, meanwhile, landed 224 of 530 punches (42 percent). So he landed more, landed a much higher rate and did more obvious damage. Yet the judges robbed him worse than if he had been mugged outside in the dark on the Atlantic City Boardwalk.

A rematch is obviously warranted. Lara and his people would like one, but he does not really need it. We all know what we saw. Although Lara was coming off a disappointing draw with Carlos Molina in March, he proved he is a contender to be reckoned with at 154 pounds. There are plenty of interesting fights out there for him. Besides, it would be surprising if Williams' people pursued a rematch. Promoter Dan Goossen and adviser Al Haymon know that is a bad, bad idea. They are more interested in a bigger money third fight with Martinez, which is a bad idea for Williams' health, too. Williams has said he only wants one or two more fights. The way he looked against Lara, that could be one or two too many.
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Rico Ramos TKO7 Akifumi Shimoda​

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Junior featherweight
Wins a junior featherweight title
Records: Ramos (20-0, 11 KOs); Shimoda (23-3-1, 10 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: Ramos, 24, of Pico Rivera, Calif., has been on the fast track since turning pro in 2008. He's really blossomed in his past few fights, including a nasty second-round knockout of veteran spoiler Heriberto Ruiz and a solid win against Alejandro Valdez. It all the set the stage for a mandatory title shot against Shimoda, 26, who was only the second Japanese fighter to venture to the United States in an attempt to defend a world title. He is now also the second Japanese fighter to come here and lose his title. (Junior lightweight titlist Kuniaki Shibata was the other, losing his junior lightweight belt to Ben Villaflor in Hawaii in 1973.) Shimoda, who outpointed countryman Ryol Li Lee in January and was making his first defense, figured to pose a stiff test for Ramos. Shimoda is a southpaw, is very fast and has an awkward style. Ramos had a very tough time adjusting to Shimoda, who was easily outboxing him with his speed, jab and straight left hand. He had also opened a cut over Ramos' right eye in the fifth round on an accidental head butt. But Ramos never seemed to lose his cool or get discouraged in the face of a fight that was slipping away from him. Then suddenly, in the seventh round, Ramos nailed Shimoda with a beautiful left hook that caught him on the chin and dropped him flat on his back. Shimoda made a valiant effort to get up, but he couldn't gain his footing and fell again as referee Benjy Esteves called it off at 2 minutes, 46 seconds. It turned out that Ramos was trailing on all three judges' scorecards -- 60-54, 59-55 and 59-55 -- before the knockout. But Ramos rescued his perfect record, won a world title and gave fans a thrilling candidate for knockout of the year. The only downside for Ramos is that he now is obligated to face interim titlist Guillermo Rigondeaux in his next fight. If Shimoda could so thoroughly outbox Ramos for as long as he did, how in the world is Ramos going to deal with Rigondeaux, the two-time Olympic gold medalist, who is a gifted boxer with speed, skills and power?
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Cristobal Arreola W10 Friday Ahunanya​

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Heavyweight
Scores: 100-90, 99-91 (twice)
Records: Arreola (33-2, 28 KOs); Ahunanya (24-8-3,13 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: It's probably just a matter of time until Arreola gets a second heavyweight title shot. In 2009, he put up a game effort against Vitali Klitschko but was stopped in the 10th round when his corner threw in the towel. Now he could be headed to another shot sooner than later because champion Wladimir Klitschko, Vitali's younger brother, said after embarrassing David Haye in a one-sided win on July 2, that he was interested in possibly defending against Arreola in the United States before the end of the year. To that backdrop, Arreola cruised past hard-chinned Ahunanya, who lost almost every second of the fight -- but has still only been stopped once, and that was in 2004. Although it was a pretty easy night of work, Arreola, 30, of Riverside, Calif., was disappointed in his performance, believing he should have stopped Ahunanya. He looked like he might have had a chance late in the seventh round. Arreola, who won his fifth fight in a row, was tagging him with right hands, working him over to the body and had bloodied his nose. He had Ahunanya pinned on the ropes and in clear distress, but could not put him away. But even though Arreola would have loved the knockout and was very critical of his own performance, he got in 10 rounds and stayed sharp in his fourth fight of the year -- his third since May 14. The regular work, quite unusual for a top heavyweight contender, and clear renewed dedication has put Arreola in perhaps the best shape of his career. He had often been criticized for a lack of focus and conditioning while regularly weighing 250 or more for fights in recent years. But he has slimmed down and fought at 236 pounds, his third fight in a row at that weight or less. The activity, good performances and an endearing personality almost assuredly will earn him another title opportunity. Ahunanya, 39, a native of Nigeria based in Las Vegas, dropped his third fight in a row.
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Jhonny Gonzalez TKO4 Tomas Villa​

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Featherweight
Retains a featherweight title
Records: Gonzalez (49-7, 43 KOs); Villa (23-8-4, 14 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: For a guy who lost his first two professional fights in 1999, Gonzalez has fashioned an excellent career. He won a bantamweight title in 2005 and followed with wins against Mark "Too Sharp" Johnson (in his final fight) and Fernando Montiel. After moving up in weight, Gonzalez eventually challenged Toshiaki Nishioka for a belt in 2009. Japan's Nishioka came all the way to Mexico to meet Gonzalez, who was starched in three rounds. It looked like Gonzalez, 29, might be done after that rough loss, but he fashioned a seven-fight winning streak that earned him a shot at featherweight titlist Hozumi Hasegawa in April. Gonzalez went to Japan and scored the big upset, stopping Hasegawa in the fourth round. Gonzalez was supposed to make his first defense in Mexico against Roinet Caballero, but the fight was moved to Atlantic City onto the card of his co-promoter, Dan Goossen, because of an issue with the venue in Mexico. When Caballero couldn't get a visa, Villa, 27, a Mexico native from Midland, Texas, took the fight on short notice. Villa has slowed down considerably in recent years and this was a serious mismatch. Gonzalez absolutely beat Villa down. He won every second of the fight, landing flush punches and body shots with ease and taking almost nothing in return. In the fourth round, Gonzalez dug a left hook to the body to score a knockdown. Villa gingerly got up, but he was done and referee Eddie Cotton stopped it at 49 seconds. How much did that last body shot hurt? Villa slumped over against the ropes in his corner and began spitting up pure blood. Ewwww.
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[h4]Saturday at Carson, Calif.[/h4]
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Brandon Rios TKO3 Urbano Antillon​

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Lightweight
Retains a lightweight title
Records: Rios (28-0-1, 20 KOs); Antillon (28-3, 20 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: Anyone who knows anything about boxing or these particular fighters knew this was going to be a hellacious battle for as long as it lasted. And indeed it was. From the opening bell until referee David Mendoza called it off with Antillon badly staggered in the third round, this was a thrill ride that consisted of Rios and Antillon standing more or less in the middle of the ring and smashing the tar out of each other. No frills, just violence. Rios, 25, of Oxnard, Calif., who is usually in fan-friendly fights, was making the first defense of the belt he won in February when he rallied from a big deficit to score a 10th-round knockout of Miguel Acosta in one of the best fights of the year. Antillon, 28, of Maywood, Calif., was getting his third shot at a title. He too is known for being in exciting fights. He was stopped by Acosta in the ninth round battling for an interim belt in 2009, but after rebounding with two wins, Antillon got a shot at titlist Humberto Soto in December. Antillon lost a close unanimous decision in a sensational slugfest that was the 2010 ESPN.com fight of the year.

Since Rios and Antillon were already known for making great fights, you knew that's what would happen when they were matched. But then when you throw in a Southern California regional rivalry and bad blood and trash talk that had been intense throughout the promotion, the anticipation for this Showtime fight was tremendous. The first round was nonstop action as they stood in each other's chests and ripped hard shots in a round of the year candidate. It continued in the second round and into the third, which is when Antillon got caught with a short right hand about 20 seconds into the round and went down. He survived, but Rios eventually landed another tremendous right hand that dropped Antillon face-first to mat with about 45 seconds left. Antillon, who has a huge heart, beat the count. But moments after the fight resumed, Antillon staggered badly into the ropes, still messed up from the knockdown, and Mendoza immediately intervened at 2 minutes, 39 seconds.
Great win for Rios, who is an emerging star. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum talked about a possible match later in the year with former three-division champion and all-time great Mexican star Marco Antonio Barrera, who was ringside working the broadcast for Mexican television. But Arum also, perhaps in a bit of hype, said he was looking for Rios to gain experience and weight and then he would like to match him with pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao in a couple of years. Whomever Rios fights next, or down the road, you know it's going to be a fun fight. [/td][/tr][tr][th=""]

Carlos Molina W10 Kermit Cintron​

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Junior middleweight
Scores: 98-92 (three times)
Records: Molina (19-4-2, 6 KOs); Cintron (32-4-1, 28 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: Who wants to bet Cintron never ever wants to fight at the Home Depot Center again? In May 2010, the former welterweight titlist fought Paul Williams there. That was the bizarre fight in which Cintron and Williams got tangled up in the fourth round and Cintron went flying through the ropes and out of the ring, and then did not attempt to get up. Cintron, who was widely blasted for essentially quitting, wound up losing a technical decision. In his first fight since that debacle, Cintron, who has signed with Top Rank, returned to face Molina. It turned out to be another disaster for Cintron, 31, who was born in Puerto Rico and grew up in Reading, Pa. Molina, a Mexico native living in Chicago, simply slapped Cintron around for virtually the entire lopsided fight to pull the upset. Molina had a 4-inch disadvantage in reach and 3-inch disadvantage in height, but it didn't make a difference. He ripped Cintron with shots throughout the fight. Cintron never found a rhythm and never got any real offense going. Cintron was bleeding from his mouth in the sixth round and eating rights hands. It was such an obvious Molina rout that after only the fifth round, Ronnie Shields, Cintron's trainer, was telling him he needed a knockout. He never came close to getting one as Molina thoroughly outworked him for a stunningly easy win that calls into question Cintron's viability to continue with his career at a high level. For Molina, 28, it was a continuation of his excellent recent run. He was out of the ring for almost two years during a contract dispute with promoter Don King, but when that was finally settled and he returned to action in March, Molina fought to a draw with heavily favored Erislandy Lara in a fight most believed Molina won. He returned a month later and stopped Allen Conyers in the seventh round of another impressive performance to help him land the fight with Cintron. Off this career-best win, Molina certainly put himself into the mix with any of the top fighters in the junior middleweight division. Since a three-fight losing streak in 2006 and 2007, Molina is 11-0-1.
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Mike Lee TKO3 Michael Birthmark​

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Light heavyweight
Records: Lee (6-0, 4 KOs); Birthmark (2-6, 1 KO)​

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Rafael's remark: A pro for a little over a year, Lee continues to progress. If you follow boxing, you probably know his story: The popular Notre Dame graduate turned his back on his finance degree and a probable high-paying job on Wall Street to pursue his passion for boxing. So far, so good. With his fans cheering him on, in USC country no less, Lee worked Birthmark's body throughout the bout, but also found a home for an overhand right that dropped him in the first round. After two more knockdowns in the third round, referee Jerry Cantu called it off at 2 minutes, 56 seconds. Lee will be off the rest of the summer before returning to headline the first professional boxing event at Notre Dame when he headlines a show for charity on Sept. 16 at the Joyce Convocation Center.

Also on the card, San Diego-based Filipino lightweight Mercito "No Mercy" Gesta (22-0-1, 12 KOs), 23, battered Mexico's Jorge Pimentel (23-12, 17 KOs), 31, in a third-round knockout win. Gests, in his first bout since signing with Top Rank, dropped Pimentel in each round before referee Raul Caiz Jr. stopped it at 2 minutes, 23 seconds of the third round.

Blue-chip middleweight prospect Matvey Korobov (16-0, 9 KOs), 28, a 2008 Russian Olympian, won a unanimous eight-round decision against Lester Gonzalez (12-4-2, 6 KOs), 33, of San Diego, on scores of 78-74 (three times).
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[h4]Saturday at Bucharest, Romania[/h4]
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Lucian Bute KO4 Jean-Paul Mendy​

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Super middleweight
Retains a super middleweight title
Records: Bute (29-0, 24 KOs); Mendy (29-1-1, 16 KO)​

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Rafael's remark: Bute is looking at huge business down the road. There is a strong chance of a November fight with former middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik. Then, with a win over Pavlik, Bute would be looking at a possible showdown with the winner of Showtime's Super Six World Boxing Classic, either Andre Ward or Carl Froch, who meet Oct. 29. But Bute also has an unattractive mandatory to get out of the way against France's Jean-Paul Mendy, 37, who was undefeated entering the bout, but that record is very misleading. He had beaten nobody of serious consequence unless you count the gift he got in his last fight in July 2010, when he was getting destroyed by Sakio Bika in the first round of their title eliminator when Bika hit him after knocking him down. For that "win," Mendy got the shot to face Bute, one of the best fighters in the world. Bute, 31, is a huge star in his adopted hometown of Montreal, but he had always wanted to fight in his native Romania. So he returned home to face Mendy in the only place on Earth folks would really be into the fight, which was done outside of his Showtime contract. Bute had the expected easy night with Mendy in a showcase that thrilled the fans in what was being called the biggest boxing event in Romanian history. Bute gave his fans what they wanted -- a win and a spectacular knockout for his eighth title defense. Bute cruised through the fight, dominating Mendy with his speed and quick hands. And then, in the fourth round, he landed a short overhand left on Mendy's jaw. Mendy's body short-circuited immediately and he crashed to the canvas face first. The crowd went wild, Bute raised his arms and referee Marlon Wright called it off at 2 minutes, 48 seconds as Mendy was only able to get to his knees.
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[h4]Saturday at Los Mochis, Mexico[/h4]
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Hugo Cazares KO3 Arturo Badillo​

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Junior bantamweight
Retains a junior bantamweight title
Records: Cazares (35-6-2, 25 KOs); Badillo (20-2, 18 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: Cazares, 33, of Mexico, got a gimme in this one. Badillo, 24, of Mexico, had a nice record but had faced woeful competition. So it should not have come as much of a surprise when Cazares won easily. Making his fourth defense of his 115-pound belt, Cazares dropped Badillo three times in the third round for the victory. Cazares has not faced any notable opponents since winning his title from Nobuo Nashiro in Japan in May 2010, but he has said he would like to "get into the big leagues against more important opponents." Cazares has also said he would like to unify belts. How about he and his handlers start trying to do that now?
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[h4]Friday at Phoenix[/h4]
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Jesus Gonzales W12 Francisco Sierra​

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Super middleweight
Scores: 117-109, 116-110, 115-111
Records: Gonzales (27-1, 14 KOs); Sierra (24-4-1, 22 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: When Phoenix's Gonzalez turned pro in 2003, coming off a standout amateur career, he signed with Top Rank and was supposed to be the next big thing. But he never lived up to the potential despite a glossy record. He never really looked that good and got knocked out by Jose Luis Zertuche in a fight he was supposed to win in 2005. He eventually faded from the scene in 2008 before making a comeback in 2010. Now Gonzalez, 26, is 3-0 since his return, including this bloody brawl with Sierra, which is probably the best action fight of this season of "Friday Night Fights." Sometimes you just get lucky in that regard. Gonzalez was supposed to face Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan, but he pulled out in a financial dispute. Sierra, 23, of Mexico, took the fight on five days' notice and then showed up way above the contract weight -- 175 instead of 168. Gonzalez got 20 percent of Sierra's purse and the fight went on. And what a fight it was as they traded solid punches throughout the 12 rounds. Both guys were a bloody mess from cuts near their left eyes. Gonzalez's was particularly bad as blood flowed down his face from the eighth round on. Both guys were also knocked down. Gonzalez dropped Sierra to his knees with a brutal body shot in the fourth round and then Sierra answered in the fifth round when he nailed Gonzalez with a right hand. Gonzalez was badly hurt, but found a way to survive. In the end, it was Gonzalez, a bit stronger and seemingly with more desire, who got the clear, but quite competitive, decision as Sierra faded a bit in the final couple of rounds.
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[h4]Friday at Primm, Nev.[/h4]
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Jesse Vargas KO2 Walter Estrada​

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Junior welterweight
Records: Vargas (16-0, 9 KOs); Estrada (39-15-1, 25 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: Vargas, 22, of Las Vegas, thrilled the hometown fans with his second consecutive big knockout of a decent name opponent. In April, Vargas probably ended the career of former junior welterweight titlist Vivian Harris with a first-round knockout. Estrada, 35, of Colombia, lasted a little longer, but while Harris quit on the stool after the first round, Estrada went down hard on a big left hand in the Telefutura main event. Estrada is an experienced veteran who had fought for a featherweight world title and faced several name opponents, even pulling off an upset here or there, including his decision win against former lightweight titlist Nate Campbell in November. In the second round, he and Vargas were in a toe-to-toe exchange when Vargas wobbled Estrada, who was off balance when Vargas drilled him with a left hook to the chin. Estrada went down and was out cold, his body half under the ring ropes and half in the ring as referee Joe Cortez called it off 38 seconds into the round. Nice win for the young prospect.
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[proshares]

Paul never figured out how to use his height and still hasn't figured out how to stop a left hand. Sergio would hurt him worse next time.

Plus, I don't see how you can call it a step backwards for boxing.  There's bad decisions yea, but it wasn't like it was a night of stinker fights.  There was one war, two entertaining fights and one stinker.  The fights themselves were entertaining but if boxing is taking steps backwards because of bad decisions or losing fans because of it then IDK what to say to those dopes.

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[h4]Saturday at Atlantic City, N.J.[/h4]
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Paul Williams W12 Erislandy Lara​

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Junior middleweight
Scores: 115-114, 116-114, 114-114
Records: Williams (40-2, 27 KOs); Lara (15-1-1, 10 KOs),​

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Rafael's remark: The good news: This was a very good and exciting fight. The bad news: The decision was horrible, absolutely horrible. You could have searched the Adrian Phillips Ballroom high and low after the fight -- and probably among those watching on HBO -- for somebody who thought Williams won and the only people you would have found were unfortunately the two who counted, judges Hilton Whitaker (115-114) and Don Givens (116-114), who somehow, some way, gave the fight to Williams. Judge Al Bennett didn't cover himself in glory either with his 114-114 scorecard. On body language alone, Williams, 29, of Aiken, S.C., and his handlers know he did not win the fight. His trainer, George Peterson, knew he was so behind that he was telling him he needed a knockout to win from about the ninth round on. Meanwhile, Lara, the 28-year-old former Cuban amateur star and 2005 world amateur champion, who defected and now lives in Miami, was doing his thing. He was boxing and moving and landing flush shots on Williams at an alarming rate. His left hand simply could not miss against the fellow southpaw. If Lara had a little bit more punching power, Williams would have been knocked out inside five or six rounds.

Williams, who always gives fans their money's worth, is clearly paying for that now. He is a diminished fighter after so many tough fights, no longer a pound-for-pound-caliber guy. His reflexes are not what they were and his legs looked unsteady and he ate way too many clean shots. He was trying to rebound from his November rematch with middleweight champ Sergio Martinez. Williams had won a majority decision against Martinez in a brutal battle in a December 2009 nontitle fight. In the rematch, however, Martinez avenged the loss by putting him to sleep with a massive left hand in the second round. While he survived the distance with Lara, Williams and Peterson clearly did not go to school on how to avoid the left hand from a southpaw. Not only did Lara land his all night long, he also busted Williams up. A cut over his left eye dripped blood from the fifth round on. His face was swelling and his mouth and nose were also bleeding in the late rounds. Lara was not unscathed, however. He had a giant knot on the left side of his face from an accidental head butt. It turned out that he suffered a small facial fracture.

Although -- as usual -- Williams was very busy, throwing 1,047 punches, he landed only 200 (19 percent), according to CompuBox. Lara, meanwhile, landed 224 of 530 punches (42 percent). So he landed more, landed a much higher rate and did more obvious damage. Yet the judges robbed him worse than if he had been mugged outside in the dark on the Atlantic City Boardwalk.

A rematch is obviously warranted. Lara and his people would like one, but he does not really need it. We all know what we saw. Although Lara was coming off a disappointing draw with Carlos Molina in March, he proved he is a contender to be reckoned with at 154 pounds. There are plenty of interesting fights out there for him. Besides, it would be surprising if Williams' people pursued a rematch. Promoter Dan Goossen and adviser Al Haymon know that is a bad, bad idea. They are more interested in a bigger money third fight with Martinez, which is a bad idea for Williams' health, too. Williams has said he only wants one or two more fights. The way he looked against Lara, that could be one or two too many.
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Rico Ramos TKO7 Akifumi Shimoda​

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Junior featherweight
Wins a junior featherweight title
Records: Ramos (20-0, 11 KOs); Shimoda (23-3-1, 10 KOs)​

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Rafael's remark: Ramos, 24, of Pico Rivera, Calif., has been on the fast track since turning pro in 2008. He's really blossomed in his past few fights, including a nasty second-round knockout of veteran spoiler Heriberto Ruiz and a solid win against Alejandro Valdez. It all the set the stage for a mandatory title shot against Shimoda, 26, who was only the second Japanese fighter to venture to the United States in an attempt to defend a world title. He is now also the second Japanese fighter to come here and lose his title. (Junior lightweight titlist Kuniaki Shibata was the other, losing his junior lightweight belt to Ben Villaflor in Hawaii in 1973.) Shimoda, who outpointed countryman Ryol Li Lee in January and was making his first defense, figured to pose a stiff test for Ramos. Shimoda is a southpaw, is very fast and has an awkward style. Ramos had a very tough time adjusting to Shimoda, who was easily outboxing him with his speed, jab and straight left hand. He had also opened a cut over Ramos' right eye in the fifth round on an accidental head butt. But Ramos never seemed to lose his cool or get discouraged in the face of a fight that was slipping away from him. Then suddenly, in the seventh round, Ramos nailed Shimoda with a beautiful left hook that caught him on the chin and dropped him flat on his back. Shimoda made a valiant effort to get up, but he couldn't gain his footing and fell again as referee Benjy Esteves called it off at 2 minutes, 46 seconds. It turned out that Ramos was trailing on all three judges' scorecards -- 60-54, 59-55 and 59-55 -- before the knockout. But Ramos rescued his perfect record, won a world title and gave fans a thrilling candidate for knockout of the year. The only downside for Ramos is that he now is obligated to face interim titlist Guillermo Rigondeaux in his next fight. If Shimoda could so thoroughly outbox Ramos for as long as he did, how in the world is Ramos going to deal with Rigondeaux, the two-time Olympic gold medalist, who is a gifted boxer with speed, skills and power?
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Cristobal Arreola W10 Friday Ahunanya​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Heavyweight
Scores: 100-90, 99-91 (twice)
Records: Arreola (33-2, 28 KOs); Ahunanya (24-8-3,13 KOs)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: It's probably just a matter of time until Arreola gets a second heavyweight title shot. In 2009, he put up a game effort against Vitali Klitschko but was stopped in the 10th round when his corner threw in the towel. Now he could be headed to another shot sooner than later because champion Wladimir Klitschko, Vitali's younger brother, said after embarrassing David Haye in a one-sided win on July 2, that he was interested in possibly defending against Arreola in the United States before the end of the year. To that backdrop, Arreola cruised past hard-chinned Ahunanya, who lost almost every second of the fight -- but has still only been stopped once, and that was in 2004. Although it was a pretty easy night of work, Arreola, 30, of Riverside, Calif., was disappointed in his performance, believing he should have stopped Ahunanya. He looked like he might have had a chance late in the seventh round. Arreola, who won his fifth fight in a row, was tagging him with right hands, working him over to the body and had bloodied his nose. He had Ahunanya pinned on the ropes and in clear distress, but could not put him away. But even though Arreola would have loved the knockout and was very critical of his own performance, he got in 10 rounds and stayed sharp in his fourth fight of the year -- his third since May 14. The regular work, quite unusual for a top heavyweight contender, and clear renewed dedication has put Arreola in perhaps the best shape of his career. He had often been criticized for a lack of focus and conditioning while regularly weighing 250 or more for fights in recent years. But he has slimmed down and fought at 236 pounds, his third fight in a row at that weight or less. The activity, good performances and an endearing personality almost assuredly will earn him another title opportunity. Ahunanya, 39, a native of Nigeria based in Las Vegas, dropped his third fight in a row.
[/td][/tr][tr][th=""]

Jhonny Gonzalez TKO4 Tomas Villa​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Featherweight
Retains a featherweight title
Records: Gonzalez (49-7, 43 KOs); Villa (23-8-4, 14 KOs)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: For a guy who lost his first two professional fights in 1999, Gonzalez has fashioned an excellent career. He won a bantamweight title in 2005 and followed with wins against Mark "Too Sharp" Johnson (in his final fight) and Fernando Montiel. After moving up in weight, Gonzalez eventually challenged Toshiaki Nishioka for a belt in 2009. Japan's Nishioka came all the way to Mexico to meet Gonzalez, who was starched in three rounds. It looked like Gonzalez, 29, might be done after that rough loss, but he fashioned a seven-fight winning streak that earned him a shot at featherweight titlist Hozumi Hasegawa in April. Gonzalez went to Japan and scored the big upset, stopping Hasegawa in the fourth round. Gonzalez was supposed to make his first defense in Mexico against Roinet Caballero, but the fight was moved to Atlantic City onto the card of his co-promoter, Dan Goossen, because of an issue with the venue in Mexico. When Caballero couldn't get a visa, Villa, 27, a Mexico native from Midland, Texas, took the fight on short notice. Villa has slowed down considerably in recent years and this was a serious mismatch. Gonzalez absolutely beat Villa down. He won every second of the fight, landing flush punches and body shots with ease and taking almost nothing in return. In the fourth round, Gonzalez dug a left hook to the body to score a knockdown. Villa gingerly got up, but he was done and referee Eddie Cotton stopped it at 49 seconds. How much did that last body shot hurt? Villa slumped over against the ropes in his corner and began spitting up pure blood. Ewwww.
[/td][/tr][/table]


[h4]Saturday at Carson, Calif.[/h4]
[table][tr][th=""]

Brandon Rios TKO3 Urbano Antillon​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Lightweight
Retains a lightweight title
Records: Rios (28-0-1, 20 KOs); Antillon (28-3, 20 KOs)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: Anyone who knows anything about boxing or these particular fighters knew this was going to be a hellacious battle for as long as it lasted. And indeed it was. From the opening bell until referee David Mendoza called it off with Antillon badly staggered in the third round, this was a thrill ride that consisted of Rios and Antillon standing more or less in the middle of the ring and smashing the tar out of each other. No frills, just violence. Rios, 25, of Oxnard, Calif., who is usually in fan-friendly fights, was making the first defense of the belt he won in February when he rallied from a big deficit to score a 10th-round knockout of Miguel Acosta in one of the best fights of the year. Antillon, 28, of Maywood, Calif., was getting his third shot at a title. He too is known for being in exciting fights. He was stopped by Acosta in the ninth round battling for an interim belt in 2009, but after rebounding with two wins, Antillon got a shot at titlist Humberto Soto in December. Antillon lost a close unanimous decision in a sensational slugfest that was the 2010 ESPN.com fight of the year.

Since Rios and Antillon were already known for making great fights, you knew that's what would happen when they were matched. But then when you throw in a Southern California regional rivalry and bad blood and trash talk that had been intense throughout the promotion, the anticipation for this Showtime fight was tremendous. The first round was nonstop action as they stood in each other's chests and ripped hard shots in a round of the year candidate. It continued in the second round and into the third, which is when Antillon got caught with a short right hand about 20 seconds into the round and went down. He survived, but Rios eventually landed another tremendous right hand that dropped Antillon face-first to mat with about 45 seconds left. Antillon, who has a huge heart, beat the count. But moments after the fight resumed, Antillon staggered badly into the ropes, still messed up from the knockdown, and Mendoza immediately intervened at 2 minutes, 39 seconds.
Great win for Rios, who is an emerging star. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum talked about a possible match later in the year with former three-division champion and all-time great Mexican star Marco Antonio Barrera, who was ringside working the broadcast for Mexican television. But Arum also, perhaps in a bit of hype, said he was looking for Rios to gain experience and weight and then he would like to match him with pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao in a couple of years. Whomever Rios fights next, or down the road, you know it's going to be a fun fight. [/td][/tr][tr][th=""]

Carlos Molina W10 Kermit Cintron​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Junior middleweight
Scores: 98-92 (three times)
Records: Molina (19-4-2, 6 KOs); Cintron (32-4-1, 28 KOs)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: Who wants to bet Cintron never ever wants to fight at the Home Depot Center again? In May 2010, the former welterweight titlist fought Paul Williams there. That was the bizarre fight in which Cintron and Williams got tangled up in the fourth round and Cintron went flying through the ropes and out of the ring, and then did not attempt to get up. Cintron, who was widely blasted for essentially quitting, wound up losing a technical decision. In his first fight since that debacle, Cintron, who has signed with Top Rank, returned to face Molina. It turned out to be another disaster for Cintron, 31, who was born in Puerto Rico and grew up in Reading, Pa. Molina, a Mexico native living in Chicago, simply slapped Cintron around for virtually the entire lopsided fight to pull the upset. Molina had a 4-inch disadvantage in reach and 3-inch disadvantage in height, but it didn't make a difference. He ripped Cintron with shots throughout the fight. Cintron never found a rhythm and never got any real offense going. Cintron was bleeding from his mouth in the sixth round and eating rights hands. It was such an obvious Molina rout that after only the fifth round, Ronnie Shields, Cintron's trainer, was telling him he needed a knockout. He never came close to getting one as Molina thoroughly outworked him for a stunningly easy win that calls into question Cintron's viability to continue with his career at a high level. For Molina, 28, it was a continuation of his excellent recent run. He was out of the ring for almost two years during a contract dispute with promoter Don King, but when that was finally settled and he returned to action in March, Molina fought to a draw with heavily favored Erislandy Lara in a fight most believed Molina won. He returned a month later and stopped Allen Conyers in the seventh round of another impressive performance to help him land the fight with Cintron. Off this career-best win, Molina certainly put himself into the mix with any of the top fighters in the junior middleweight division. Since a three-fight losing streak in 2006 and 2007, Molina is 11-0-1.
[/td][/tr][tr][th=""]

Mike Lee TKO3 Michael Birthmark​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Light heavyweight
Records: Lee (6-0, 4 KOs); Birthmark (2-6, 1 KO)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: A pro for a little over a year, Lee continues to progress. If you follow boxing, you probably know his story: The popular Notre Dame graduate turned his back on his finance degree and a probable high-paying job on Wall Street to pursue his passion for boxing. So far, so good. With his fans cheering him on, in USC country no less, Lee worked Birthmark's body throughout the bout, but also found a home for an overhand right that dropped him in the first round. After two more knockdowns in the third round, referee Jerry Cantu called it off at 2 minutes, 56 seconds. Lee will be off the rest of the summer before returning to headline the first professional boxing event at Notre Dame when he headlines a show for charity on Sept. 16 at the Joyce Convocation Center.

Also on the card, San Diego-based Filipino lightweight Mercito "No Mercy" Gesta (22-0-1, 12 KOs), 23, battered Mexico's Jorge Pimentel (23-12, 17 KOs), 31, in a third-round knockout win. Gests, in his first bout since signing with Top Rank, dropped Pimentel in each round before referee Raul Caiz Jr. stopped it at 2 minutes, 23 seconds of the third round.

Blue-chip middleweight prospect Matvey Korobov (16-0, 9 KOs), 28, a 2008 Russian Olympian, won a unanimous eight-round decision against Lester Gonzalez (12-4-2, 6 KOs), 33, of San Diego, on scores of 78-74 (three times).
[/td][/tr][/table]


[h4]Saturday at Bucharest, Romania[/h4]
[table][tr][th=""]

Lucian Bute KO4 Jean-Paul Mendy​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Super middleweight
Retains a super middleweight title
Records: Bute (29-0, 24 KOs); Mendy (29-1-1, 16 KO)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: Bute is looking at huge business down the road. There is a strong chance of a November fight with former middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik. Then, with a win over Pavlik, Bute would be looking at a possible showdown with the winner of Showtime's Super Six World Boxing Classic, either Andre Ward or Carl Froch, who meet Oct. 29. But Bute also has an unattractive mandatory to get out of the way against France's Jean-Paul Mendy, 37, who was undefeated entering the bout, but that record is very misleading. He had beaten nobody of serious consequence unless you count the gift he got in his last fight in July 2010, when he was getting destroyed by Sakio Bika in the first round of their title eliminator when Bika hit him after knocking him down. For that "win," Mendy got the shot to face Bute, one of the best fighters in the world. Bute, 31, is a huge star in his adopted hometown of Montreal, but he had always wanted to fight in his native Romania. So he returned home to face Mendy in the only place on Earth folks would really be into the fight, which was done outside of his Showtime contract. Bute had the expected easy night with Mendy in a showcase that thrilled the fans in what was being called the biggest boxing event in Romanian history. Bute gave his fans what they wanted -- a win and a spectacular knockout for his eighth title defense. Bute cruised through the fight, dominating Mendy with his speed and quick hands. And then, in the fourth round, he landed a short overhand left on Mendy's jaw. Mendy's body short-circuited immediately and he crashed to the canvas face first. The crowd went wild, Bute raised his arms and referee Marlon Wright called it off at 2 minutes, 48 seconds as Mendy was only able to get to his knees.
[/td][/tr][/table]


[h4]Saturday at Los Mochis, Mexico[/h4]
[table][tr][th=""]

Hugo Cazares KO3 Arturo Badillo​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Junior bantamweight
Retains a junior bantamweight title
Records: Cazares (35-6-2, 25 KOs); Badillo (20-2, 18 KOs)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: Cazares, 33, of Mexico, got a gimme in this one. Badillo, 24, of Mexico, had a nice record but had faced woeful competition. So it should not have come as much of a surprise when Cazares won easily. Making his fourth defense of his 115-pound belt, Cazares dropped Badillo three times in the third round for the victory. Cazares has not faced any notable opponents since winning his title from Nobuo Nashiro in Japan in May 2010, but he has said he would like to "get into the big leagues against more important opponents." Cazares has also said he would like to unify belts. How about he and his handlers start trying to do that now?
[/td][/tr][/table]


[h4]Friday at Phoenix[/h4]
[table][tr][th=""]

Jesus Gonzales W12 Francisco Sierra​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Super middleweight
Scores: 117-109, 116-110, 115-111
Records: Gonzales (27-1, 14 KOs); Sierra (24-4-1, 22 KOs)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: When Phoenix's Gonzalez turned pro in 2003, coming off a standout amateur career, he signed with Top Rank and was supposed to be the next big thing. But he never lived up to the potential despite a glossy record. He never really looked that good and got knocked out by Jose Luis Zertuche in a fight he was supposed to win in 2005. He eventually faded from the scene in 2008 before making a comeback in 2010. Now Gonzalez, 26, is 3-0 since his return, including this bloody brawl with Sierra, which is probably the best action fight of this season of "Friday Night Fights." Sometimes you just get lucky in that regard. Gonzalez was supposed to face Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan, but he pulled out in a financial dispute. Sierra, 23, of Mexico, took the fight on five days' notice and then showed up way above the contract weight -- 175 instead of 168. Gonzalez got 20 percent of Sierra's purse and the fight went on. And what a fight it was as they traded solid punches throughout the 12 rounds. Both guys were a bloody mess from cuts near their left eyes. Gonzalez's was particularly bad as blood flowed down his face from the eighth round on. Both guys were also knocked down. Gonzalez dropped Sierra to his knees with a brutal body shot in the fourth round and then Sierra answered in the fifth round when he nailed Gonzalez with a right hand. Gonzalez was badly hurt, but found a way to survive. In the end, it was Gonzalez, a bit stronger and seemingly with more desire, who got the clear, but quite competitive, decision as Sierra faded a bit in the final couple of rounds.
[/td][/tr][/table]


[h4]Friday at Primm, Nev.[/h4]
[table][tr][th=""]

Jesse Vargas KO2 Walter Estrada​

[/th][/tr][tr][td]

Junior welterweight
Records: Vargas (16-0, 9 KOs); Estrada (39-15-1, 25 KOs)​

[/td]

​

[/tr][tr][td]
Rafael's remark: Vargas, 22, of Las Vegas, thrilled the hometown fans with his second consecutive big knockout of a decent name opponent. In April, Vargas probably ended the career of former junior welterweight titlist Vivian Harris with a first-round knockout. Estrada, 35, of Colombia, lasted a little longer, but while Harris quit on the stool after the first round, Estrada went down hard on a big left hand in the Telefutura main event. Estrada is an experienced veteran who had fought for a featherweight world title and faced several name opponents, even pulling off an upset here or there, including his decision win against former lightweight titlist Nate Campbell in November. In the second round, he and Vargas were in a toe-to-toe exchange when Vargas wobbled Estrada, who was off balance when Vargas drilled him with a left hook to the chin. Estrada went down and was out cold, his body half under the ring ropes and half in the ring as referee Joe Cortez called it off 38 seconds into the round. Nice win for the young prospect.
[/td][/tr][/table]

 

[jking0821]

I only say step back because the casual fans watch for the big fights. And when you watch Haye vs Klitchko and then come back and watch Williams vs Lara. The fight wasn't a terrible fight but the casual fan says "oh that dude lost" then he wins "i don't understand boxing o well how did the dude who got hit the most win?"

the Rico Ramos fight was a really good fight though so was the Rios fight. Even though i think the ref called it a little early

 

[jking0821]

I only say step back because the casual fans watch for the big fights. And when you watch Haye vs Klitchko and then come back and watch Williams vs Lara. The fight wasn't a terrible fight but the casual fan says "oh that dude lost" then he wins "i don't understand boxing o well how did the dude who got hit the most win?"

the Rico Ramos fight was a really good fight though so was the Rios fight. Even though i think the ref called it a little early

 

[therickstah2001]

 

[therickstah2001]

 

[GTA 809]

So it looks like Paul Williams dropped from 3rd to 8th in the rankings. Has that ever happened to anyone else before after a "win"?

 

[GTA 809]

So it looks like Paul Williams dropped from 3rd to 8th in the rankings. Has that ever happened to anyone else before after a "win"?

 

[proshares]

Originally Posted by Jking0821

I only say step back because the casual fans watch for the big fights. And when you watch Haye vs Klitchko and then come back and watch Williams vs Lara. The fight wasn't a terrible fight but the casual fan says "oh that dude lost" then he wins "i don't understand boxing o well how did the dude who got hit the most win?"

the Rico Ramos fight was a really good fight though so was the Rios fight. Even though i think the ref called it a little early

Ah, I gotcha.

 

[proshares]

Originally Posted by Jking0821

I only say step back because the casual fans watch for the big fights. And when you watch Haye vs Klitchko and then come back and watch Williams vs Lara. The fight wasn't a terrible fight but the casual fan says "oh that dude lost" then he wins "i don't understand boxing o well how did the dude who got hit the most win?"

the Rico Ramos fight was a really good fight though so was the Rios fight. Even though i think the ref called it a little early

Ah, I gotcha.

 

[proshares]

So it looks like Paul Williams dropped from 3rd to 8th in the rankings. Has that ever happened to anyone else before after a "win"?
I remember a lot of people dropped Casamayor out of the rankings completely after he "beat" Santa Cruz

.

BTW, boxingscene had an article saying Youngstown police were called after Kelly and his brother were brawling.  Saying Kelly is off the wagon again.  Take it FWIW.  Couldn't get into the site to grab it though.

 

[proshares]

So it looks like Paul Williams dropped from 3rd to 8th in the rankings. Has that ever happened to anyone else before after a "win"?
I remember a lot of people dropped Casamayor out of the rankings completely after he "beat" Santa Cruz

.

BTW, boxingscene had an article saying Youngstown police were called after Kelly and his brother were brawling.  Saying Kelly is off the wagon again.  Take it FWIW.  Couldn't get into the site to grab it though.

 

[naija nitemare]

Damn, I feel like #%!! after watching that Roy Jones video.

 

[naija nitemare]

Damn, I feel like #%!! after watching that Roy Jones video.

 

[aepps20]

SMH if kelly got "injured" again by his favorite sparing partner (booze).

 

[aepps20]

SMH if kelly got "injured" again by his favorite sparing partner (booze).

 

[therickstah2001]

Originally Posted by aepps20

SMH if kelly got "injured" again by his favorite sparing partner (booze).

Didn't dude punch a window and try to drag his brother out of the window?

 

[therickstah2001]

Originally Posted by aepps20

SMH if kelly got "injured" again by his favorite sparing partner (booze).

Didn't dude punch a window and try to drag his brother out of the window?

 

[mfr3shm]

Originally Posted by Proshares

So it looks like Paul Williams dropped from 3rd to 8th in the rankings. Has that ever happened to anyone else before after a "win"?

I remember a lot of people dropped Casamayor out of the rankings completely after he "beat" Santa Cruz

.


I remember that fight Santa Cruz definitely got robbed by the judges the Williams/Lara fight was closer than people are calling it a robbery. 

 

[mfr3shm]

Originally Posted by Proshares

So it looks like Paul Williams dropped from 3rd to 8th in the rankings. Has that ever happened to anyone else before after a "win"?

I remember a lot of people dropped Casamayor out of the rankings completely after he "beat" Santa Cruz

.


I remember that fight Santa Cruz definitely got robbed by the judges the Williams/Lara fight was closer than people are calling it a robbery. 

 

[proshares]

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler [+]

Spoiler

The stench of Saturday night's Erislandy Lara-Paul Williams decision has not gone away. And by the way, I will refer to the fight as Lara-Williams in protest of a fight that Lara is almost universally regarded to have won, despite what the judges said.

To refresh your memory: Lara beat Williams to the punch all night long. He landed left hands almost at will. He busted Williams up. He was -- in the view of HBO's announcers, media row, the vocal crowd at Boardwalk Hall's Adrian Phillips Ballroom in Atlantic City, N.J., and virtually everyone else who saw the fight -- the rightful winner by a good margin.

Yet judges Hilton Whitaker (115-114) and Don Givens (116-114) absurdly scored it for Williams, while Al Bennett was almost as bad in scoring it 114-114.

Simply put, this decision has been derided as one of the worst boxing has seen in years. It was incomprehensible. This was not just one of those close fights that could have gone either way. No, this was a clear-as-day win for Lara. Even if you gave every possible benefit of the doubt to Williams, maybe you could score it 115-113 for Lara. Not a draw. And certainly there is no reasonable way to actually have Williams winning.

Even Williams didn't appear to genuinely think he won, no matter what he said during his postfight interview with HBO analyst Max Kellerman. Fighters know in their hearts whether they won or lost a fight. Look at the video. Williams, with a half-hearted fist pump when the fight was over, sure didn't act like a guy who thought he won.

There was a reason why trainer George Peterson was telling Williams he needed a knockout to win long before the 12th round.

A few hours after the fight, I ran into Williams in Caesars Atlantic City. He was all by himself. He had on dark glasses, a white bandage over his eye where he had gotten stitched up, and was sipping on a soda. We talked for a couple of minutes. He certainly did not look or sound like a guy who really thought he had won, or like a guy who had just made about $1.5 million compared to the $135,000 chump change Lara received. What really bugs me -- and HBO's Harold Lederman did a great job of pointing this out -- is that none of the judges for the fight were experienced at the top level of boxing. I can see a commission breaking in a new judge when it feels he or she is ready. But an entire panel of inexperienced judges? That is not acceptable, especially when there are several qualified judges who work regularly in New Jersey.

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Furthermore, if you examine the scorecards, Whitaker and Givens actually scored the 12th and final round 10-10. Even rounds are not all that common. But to score the final round of a major fight even is ridiculous. The judges are paid to make that tough call. So make it.

Keep in mind, in no way do I blame Williams for the decision. I have nothing but respect for the man. He has been a tremendous fighter for several years. He has a big heart and usually makes entertaining fights. Saturday was no different.

Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer, Lara's promoter, was livid about the result, which should come as no surprise.

"When you see a young, undefeated star convincingly win almost every round against one of the best fighters in the world and then have the judges take the fight away from him, it's very disturbing, not only as his promoter, but also as a boxing fan," Schaefer said.

Naturally, Lara asked for a rematch following the fight, and Williams should give him one. Schaefer also hoped to get his fighter a second fight with Williams.

"We hope that Williams and his promoter, Dan Goossen, will give Lara a much-deserved rematch to settle the controversy that has erupted since Saturday night's decision," Schaefer said. "If Williams chooses not to fight Lara again, Erislandy is ready to fight anyone, anywhere and at any time, and we will make sure that he gets the opportunities he deserves in the wake of his spectacular performance in Atlantic City."

But don't count on a rematch unless HBO, which has televised Williams' fights for years, puts the pressure on the fighter, Goossen and Al Haymon, Williams' adviser.

At this point, the Williams camp has no intention of making a rematch. Goossen knows Williams has a hard time dealing with southpaws.

Williams couldn't handle Lara. Middleweight champ Sergio Martinez, also a left-hander, gave Williams an exceptionally tough fight in their 2009 first meeting and lost a controversial decision. Of course, in November, Martinez knocked Williams cold in the second round. And there is also lefty Carlos Quintana, who hung the first loss on Williams before getting knocked out in the first round in their rematch.

The Williams camp doesn't want to see Lara again, nor any other lefty, because Williams simply can't avoid a straight left hand or an overhand left. Peterson has never been able to correct that flaw in Williams' game.

Immediately after Lara-Williams, Goossen was already looking for a way to avoid Lara again. He called a representative for Carlos Molina, who had easily dominated Kermit Cintron on Showtime in a big upset on Saturday night's other major televised card. Goossen wanted to gauge the interest in Molina next facing Williams. The reason he figured it made sense: Molina and Lara fought to a controversial draw in March. But Williams facing Molina will just be a reminder that he and his team are running from a tough sequel.

How times have changed, considering that for so long Goossen pitched Williams as boxing's "most feared fighter."

Besides getting saddled with an undeserved loss, Lara suffered a small facial fracture due to an accidental head-butt. Trainer/cutman Miguel Diaz did a tremendous job of keeping the swelling down. But when the fracture was diagnosed at the hospital after the fight, Lara's night continued to get worse.

Lara was told by the doctor that because of the fracture, he should not fly for about six weeks.

That left Golden Boy's Dave Itskowitch to change Lara's travel plans.

Lara had to drive a rental car all the back to Florida.

The "loss" was bad enough, but talk about adding insult to injury.

 

[proshares]

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler [+]

Spoiler

The stench of Saturday night's Erislandy Lara-Paul Williams decision has not gone away. And by the way, I will refer to the fight as Lara-Williams in protest of a fight that Lara is almost universally regarded to have won, despite what the judges said.

To refresh your memory: Lara beat Williams to the punch all night long. He landed left hands almost at will. He busted Williams up. He was -- in the view of HBO's announcers, media row, the vocal crowd at Boardwalk Hall's Adrian Phillips Ballroom in Atlantic City, N.J., and virtually everyone else who saw the fight -- the rightful winner by a good margin.

Yet judges Hilton Whitaker (115-114) and Don Givens (116-114) absurdly scored it for Williams, while Al Bennett was almost as bad in scoring it 114-114.

Simply put, this decision has been derided as one of the worst boxing has seen in years. It was incomprehensible. This was not just one of those close fights that could have gone either way. No, this was a clear-as-day win for Lara. Even if you gave every possible benefit of the doubt to Williams, maybe you could score it 115-113 for Lara. Not a draw. And certainly there is no reasonable way to actually have Williams winning.

Even Williams didn't appear to genuinely think he won, no matter what he said during his postfight interview with HBO analyst Max Kellerman. Fighters know in their hearts whether they won or lost a fight. Look at the video. Williams, with a half-hearted fist pump when the fight was over, sure didn't act like a guy who thought he won.

There was a reason why trainer George Peterson was telling Williams he needed a knockout to win long before the 12th round.

A few hours after the fight, I ran into Williams in Caesars Atlantic City. He was all by himself. He had on dark glasses, a white bandage over his eye where he had gotten stitched up, and was sipping on a soda. We talked for a couple of minutes. He certainly did not look or sound like a guy who really thought he had won, or like a guy who had just made about $1.5 million compared to the $135,000 chump change Lara received. What really bugs me -- and HBO's Harold Lederman did a great job of pointing this out -- is that none of the judges for the fight were experienced at the top level of boxing. I can see a commission breaking in a new judge when it feels he or she is ready. But an entire panel of inexperienced judges? That is not acceptable, especially when there are several qualified judges who work regularly in New Jersey.

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Furthermore, if you examine the scorecards, Whitaker and Givens actually scored the 12th and final round 10-10. Even rounds are not all that common. But to score the final round of a major fight even is ridiculous. The judges are paid to make that tough call. So make it.

Keep in mind, in no way do I blame Williams for the decision. I have nothing but respect for the man. He has been a tremendous fighter for several years. He has a big heart and usually makes entertaining fights. Saturday was no different.

Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer, Lara's promoter, was livid about the result, which should come as no surprise.

"When you see a young, undefeated star convincingly win almost every round against one of the best fighters in the world and then have the judges take the fight away from him, it's very disturbing, not only as his promoter, but also as a boxing fan," Schaefer said.

Naturally, Lara asked for a rematch following the fight, and Williams should give him one. Schaefer also hoped to get his fighter a second fight with Williams.

"We hope that Williams and his promoter, Dan Goossen, will give Lara a much-deserved rematch to settle the controversy that has erupted since Saturday night's decision," Schaefer said. "If Williams chooses not to fight Lara again, Erislandy is ready to fight anyone, anywhere and at any time, and we will make sure that he gets the opportunities he deserves in the wake of his spectacular performance in Atlantic City."

But don't count on a rematch unless HBO, which has televised Williams' fights for years, puts the pressure on the fighter, Goossen and Al Haymon, Williams' adviser.

At this point, the Williams camp has no intention of making a rematch. Goossen knows Williams has a hard time dealing with southpaws.

Williams couldn't handle Lara. Middleweight champ Sergio Martinez, also a left-hander, gave Williams an exceptionally tough fight in their 2009 first meeting and lost a controversial decision. Of course, in November, Martinez knocked Williams cold in the second round. And there is also lefty Carlos Quintana, who hung the first loss on Williams before getting knocked out in the first round in their rematch.

The Williams camp doesn't want to see Lara again, nor any other lefty, because Williams simply can't avoid a straight left hand or an overhand left. Peterson has never been able to correct that flaw in Williams' game.

Immediately after Lara-Williams, Goossen was already looking for a way to avoid Lara again. He called a representative for Carlos Molina, who had easily dominated Kermit Cintron on Showtime in a big upset on Saturday night's other major televised card. Goossen wanted to gauge the interest in Molina next facing Williams. The reason he figured it made sense: Molina and Lara fought to a controversial draw in March. But Williams facing Molina will just be a reminder that he and his team are running from a tough sequel.

How times have changed, considering that for so long Goossen pitched Williams as boxing's "most feared fighter."

Besides getting saddled with an undeserved loss, Lara suffered a small facial fracture due to an accidental head-butt. Trainer/cutman Miguel Diaz did a tremendous job of keeping the swelling down. But when the fracture was diagnosed at the hospital after the fight, Lara's night continued to get worse.

Lara was told by the doctor that because of the fracture, he should not fly for about six weeks.

That left Golden Boy's Dave Itskowitch to change Lara's travel plans.

Lara had to drive a rental car all the back to Florida.

The "loss" was bad enough, but talk about adding insult to injury.

 

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By Chris LaBate

Former middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik has confirmed that there was a physical confrontation between him and his brother, Michael Pavlik Jr., last Friday night at their parents' home, but he denies consuming any alcohol at the time of the incident. According to Youngstown police reports, both men were allegedly drinking at the time of the incident, and after a verbal argument Kelly Pavlik punched a door to the home and pulled his brother out of the broken window.

Kelly Pavlik, who via telephone spoke to a Youngstown television station on Tuesday, admits that he did arrive at his parents' home and ended up in a fight with his brother but said he was not drinking and has no idea why his brother told police that he consumed alcohol at the time of their incident. Michael Pavlik declined to press charges.

Kelly was released from alcohol abuse treatment in January. He returns to the ring on August 6th against Darryl Cunningham in Showtime televised fight.