Muhammad Ali and Larry Holmes discuss their 1980 fight

Muhammad Ali and Larry Holmes discuss their October 2, 1980 fight, along with some footage of the fight. There are some interesting comments by other heavyweight greats remarking on their own careers.

Taylor wins classic snorefest, but it's Kelly Pavlik's big night!

The spirit of Diego “Chico” Corrales was alive and well last night. He showed up for the Edison Miranda vs. Kelly Pavlik fight and left immediately after Pavlik stopped Miranda. As was mentioned several times last night, this was the real main event, and it was a real one. Pavlik has placed himself in line for a title shot against Jermaine Taylor. If Taylor weasels his way out of a fight with Pavlik he should be stripped of his title. Pavlik received his number one position the old fashioned way, he earned it. Sure Taylor needs to secure his finances, but he has an obligation to the fight game and to the fans who pay his wages. He has yet to prove he is a true middleweight champion and if he avoids Pavlik he can say goodbye to the big paydays, and rightly so. I will not be making any contributions.

Pavlik was ferocious as he wore down and completely took apart Miranda in an amazing battle of attrition. Miranda for his part fought with heart but seemed to be confused by Pavlik’s aggression and at times seemed to be fighting in a fog. He landed several hard right hands on Pavlik that, except on one occasion, never really seemed to effect Pavlik. Pavlik did exactly what he said he would do, take Miranda out of his game by backing him up. Pavlik knocked him down twice in the sixth and the fight should have been stopped after the first knockdown. Referee Steve Smoger gave Miranda just a little too much time when Miranda spit out his mouth piece after the first knockdown. He rightly took a point away, though points never really factored in on this fight. Pavlik stopped Miranda 1:54 of the seventh round.

Perhaps if the ten count salute for Corrales had taken place before the main event between Jermaine Taylor and Cory “Dancing with the stars” Spinks (I‘m trying to keep a straight face here), Corrales would have given it his blessings. Taylor found himself in a somewhat similar position as Oscar De La Hoya a few weeks ago, fighting an opponent that chose not to fight. It’s always hard to look good, even in winning against these guys. Spinks borrowed several pages from the game plan of Floyd Mayweather Jr., not to mention Pernell Whitaker, Carl Lewis and Jesse Owens. To Taylor’s credit he did try to make a fight out of it. Taylor won by split decision.

....on Taylor and Spinks.

The upcoming fight this Saturday, between Jermain Taylor and southpaw Cory Spinks should be somewhat interesting, at least in theory. Spinks needs to gather some credibility and respect and win this fight in order to put his career back on track, and Taylor needs a definitive win in order to pull away from the rest of the pack and establish himself as the premier middleweight of his era, and a pound for pound best.

This is a fight I expect Taylor to win, he's beaten some pretty damned good fighters, though he did so in unspectacular fashion. He has wins over Rafael Marquez, William Joppy, Bernard Hopkins (twice), and fought to a draw with Winky Wright, and most importantly he is still undefeated.

Compare that against Spinks who has lost to Antonio Diaz and Michele Piccirillo (he avenged the lost with a unanimous decision), Split two fights with Zab Judah, winning the first and losing the second by ninth round TKO. To his credit he did get a majority decision against Ricardo Mayorga and unanimous decision against an aged Miguel Angel Gonzalez.

So far Taylor has been a proven winner and I expect him to win this one too. my gut instinct tells me that Taylor will come into this fight believing he has something to prove, and he'll prove it by stopping Spinks in the later rounds.

Jermain Taylor vs Cory Spinks

clipped from www.hbo.com

Peter Wood...a Discussion and Signing.

Diego Corrales vs Jose Luis Castillo I May 7, 2005

This is what a real Ultimate Fighting Champion looks likes. If you want to see what a real warrior looks like, or if you want to be one, look no further than the late great Diego Corrales. He is the new standard. He raised the bar for all fighters. He left nothing in the ring. This is Boxing at it's finest! (Credit goes to the other half of that great fight, Jose Louis Castillo, as well, another old school fighter) Enjoy the fight highlights!

Dedicated to every boxer that ever stepped into the ring....

clipped from boxing-ring.blogspot.com Dedicated to every boxer that ever stepped into the ring.... I've had this gem floating around for years. I don't know who wrote it, or when, but if you're a boxer, or know someone who is, or even if you're just a fan, you'll love this........ .....It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes up short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those timid souls who know neither victory or defeat........Anonymous

Diego Corrales killed in motorcycle accident.

Diego Corrales, 29, was killed in a motor cycle accident Monday, May 7, 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada. He leaves behind his wife, who is expecting a child, and five children.

Corrales was an old school fighter in the mold of Bobby Chacon and Danny “Little Red” Lopez. He could be knocked down but he always fought his way back. His greatest fight was his first fight with Jose Louis Castillo, where he came back from having been knocked down a few times and on the losing end of the fight, to stop Castillo in the tenth round in what some consider one of the greatest slugfest of all time. It is certainly up there with the best of them. Castillo issued a statement today from Mexico saying "I was very surprised and upset when I heard about Chico. It really is tragic when something like this happens. My heart goes out to his family who I know he cared a lot about. I always liked Chico. We had what I would call as a friendly rivalry when we got into the ring. We had two amazing fights and our names will be linked forever. For me it was a privilege of knowing Chico and being part of such great fights."

He won titles in Super Feather and Lightweight divisions. He fought a losing battle with Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2001 for Mayweather’s WBC He was true credit to the sport of Boxing and he will definitely be missed. My condolences to his family. Rest in peace Champ!

The memorial service for Diego "Chico" Corrales, 29, will be on Thursday, May 10th, at 11 A.M. PT, at the Palm Green Valley Mortuary 7600 South Eastern Ave., Las Vegas, NV 89123.

Diego Corrales career record - Boxing - Yahoo! Sports

Diego Corrales
August 25, 1977...
...May 7, 2007
R.I.P.

De La Hoya vs Mayweather... May 5th, 2007

This was a reasonably good, but not great fight. As a fan of Oscar De La Hoya, I wanted him to win, as a true lover of boxing I have to admit he did not. It’s not that he did not try, he did, especially when he chose to use his jab., but it takes two to tango, and Floyd Mayweather was content to play it safe and never really attempted to make a statement in this fight, as he promised he would.

To his credit Oscar did the best he could, it just was not enough, maybe a few years ago it might have been another story, but on this night as the fight wore on it became painfully obvious to me that Oscar was aging. He made the fight much closer than most believed he would, and like most fighters in a reasonably close fight, he felt he won. He did not. He wasn’t griping he was just answering the questions. He was gracious in defeat, just as he was when he was the winner.

Which brings me to my main point. Oscar has been a class act and credit to the sport of Boxing. It will be a while before we see his like again and from my perspective, it is the end of an era. He has contributed greatly to the sport and is a sure fire bet for the Hall of Fame when his time comes. Personally I would like to see him retire and concentrate full time as a promoter. There was a hint of a rematch last night. I hope it doesn’t happen. It would probably make tons of money, but I would prefer Oscar preserve his legacy. He fought with pride last night and did his best to turn it into a real fight. He can walk away now with his head held high and I hope he does. If he does fight again watch him and enjoy the fight because it will be some time before someone that special comes along again.

As for Mayweather, the champ still remains a chump in my eyes. He is the type of fighter I detest the most. He is a arrogant thug and all the championship belts in the world will not give this guy class.

Oscar De La Hoya

For a lot of reasons I believe Oscar De La Hoya will win his fight with Floyd Mayweather tonight. I believe that Mayweather has under estimated Oscar and overrated himself. I have already given my reasons why I believe this in another post,

Win, lose or draw, Oscar is already a winner. In a sport where the athlete is used, abused and thrown to the wayside, broke and beaten, Oscar has not only survived, he has thrived. He has reached the pinnacle of his sport as a boxer and is well on his way to being the top promoter as well.

He has been criticized because he has out hustled the managers and promoters of the sport. The very same promoters that have been screwing over fighters since Boxings beginning. I say more power to him, and its about time someone with brains has turned the table on these vultures that have ruined the sport that I love so much. I hope he chases guys like Bob Arum and Don King completely out of the sport. Arum has claimed that he made Oscar what he is today, and there may be some truth in that. But De La Hoya had the goods, and he was the one that took the biggest risks and you can make the case that Oscar has made millions for Bob Arum. You can bet your last dollar that if Oscar had not been the success that he is he would have been dumped in a heartbeat. If Arum is the one that makes the fighters than where are all the other Oscars? This is not an assembly line business.

On top of everything else, and this is personal for me, Oscar has been an outstanding, positive role model for young Mexican Americans and a positive image overall. In a time when illegal immigration and Mexican Illegal immigrants in particular, along with escalated gang activity have dominated the headlines, Oscars presence has been a breath of fresh air and a source of pride. So win, lose or draw Oscar De La Hoya is already a winner many times over. But just for the record De La Hoya by late round knockout!

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