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Friday, December 14, 2007
HBO to Replay Best Fights of 2007
It’s a holiday treat for HBO Boxing fans. For five consecutive nights during the holidays, HBO Sports will replay five of the most memorable, most significant, most compelling bouts of 2007 that were broadcast on the HBO service.
The lineup includes:
Tuesday, Dec. 25 at 11:00 p.m. - Jermain Taylor vs. Kelly Pavlik
Wednesday, Dec. 26 at 11:00 p.m. - Joe Calzaghe vs. Mikkel Kessler
Thursday, Dec. 27 at 11:00 p.m. - Oscar De La Hoya vs. Floyd Mayweather
Friday, Dec. 28 at 11:00 p.m. - Miguel Cotto vs. Shane Mosley
Saturday, Dec. 29 at 12 midnight - Floyd Mayweather vs. Ricky Hatton
All times are ET/PT.
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Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Abraham Wants Taylor, Pavlik in America
Undefeated IBF middleweight champion Arthur Abraham is looking forward to his first fight on foreign territory as he takes on Britain´s Wayne Elcock in Switzerland on December 8. Today the two fighters met for the first time at a press conference in Basle.
“It is my goal to make big fights in America, so Switzerland will be a good first step,” King Arthur (24-0, 19 KOs) said. “I am really looking forward to boxing in Basle.”
After knocking out mandatory challenger Khoren Gevor in Berlin, Abraham is confident of success against the 33-year-old Brit. However, he has promised not to underestimate his opponent.
“I take him very seriously,” Abraham stated. “Just like me, he has defeated Howard Eastman, who is a very good puncher. I´ll be starting my training camp tomorrow and will be highly concentrated.”
The fight will also spell Elcock´s first appearance outside Great Britain.
“That does not make a difference for me,” the challenger (18-2, 8 KOs) said. “I am coming here to win the title and that is all that matters.”
After the press conference in Basle, Abraham and his coach Ulli Wegner travelled straight to their training camp base in Zinnowitz (Baltic Sea), where practice will begin tomorrow morning.
“We´re eager to start the preparation. I´m sure the boys will have a lot of fun,” Wegner said with a smile.
Meanwhile, manager Kalle Sauerland revealed that King Arthur is getting more and more popular all over the world.
“The TV interest in his fights is very high and can be compared to the Valuev fight in Basle (vs. Jameel McCline),” he stated. “King Arthur´s popularity is growing, especially in America. They have some well-known middleweights over there. That´s why our champion is of big interest to them.”
Sauerland added that a showdown with Jermain Taylor and Kelly Pavlik is planned for the near future.
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Monday, October 08, 2007
Marquez Wants Pavlik Now, and He’ll Go to Youngstown to Do It
HOLLYWOOD, FL – Former world junior middleweight champion and current top ten rated middleweight contender Raul Marquez has gotten into the title mix at 160 pounds the old-fashioned way – he earned it – and now he wants to step into the ring as soon as possible with new champion Kelly Pavlik to determine once and for all who the best middleweight in the world is.
“I want to congratulate Kelly Pavlik on his big win over Jermain Taylor, and I respect his attitude of being willing to fight all comers,” said Marquez, winner of five consecutive bouts, all by knockout. “Hopefully he’ll live up to those claims by fighting a true contender like me, and not one of the rookies out there like Sergio Mora or John Duddy. I respect those kids, but they’ve never fought any contenders, they don’t have the resume to deserve a title shot like I do, and they don’t even want to fight me. If Kelly Pavlik wants to fight the best available contender, that’s me.
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Saturday, September 29, 2007
Taylor vs Pavlik: and the Winner Is…
I’m really on fence on picking a winner. Of course I want Kelly who is from Ohio to win but Taylor is by far the best guy he’s ever met. Pavlik though is one of the most dedicated fighters I’ve seen in years.
I think Kelly is going to have a lot of trouble with Taylor’s speed and movement. Pavlik likes to go to the body though and he does it very well.
Hopefully as the fight wears on this will slow Taylor down. I look for Taylor to jump to an early lead but he has not been in with power punchers like Kelly. It will be interesting to see how Jermain holds up.It too will be interesting to see how Pavlik holds up under steady barrages of punches.
I believe because of sub par performances against tricky and difficult fighters people have forgotten that Taylor is quite talented. I think Jermain would have looked like a million bucks against Miranda.
It comes down to who wants it more. I just think Kelly is the hungry one in this match. It should be a real barnburner though.
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
Taylor Plans to Bang With Pavlik
With just a little over 3 weeks remaining World Middleweight Champion Jermain Taylor has been enjoying the peace and quiet he’s finding in the mountains of Pennsylvania, where he’s training for his September 29th title defense against Kelly Pavlik at Borardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. But what has Taylor (27-0-1, 17 KO’s) most excited is the prospect of a slugfest with hard-hitting Kelly Pavlik. Taylor relishes the opportunity to swap power shots with the top-ranked contender in his showdown.
The bout which is being billed as “Throwback” is being promoted by DiBella Entertainment, in association with Top Rank Inc. “From a style standpoint, my last couple of fights were wrong for me, but they were fighters who stepped up to the plate,” Taylor said.
“Kelly Pavlik is a fighter , just like me. He comes to fight, no running, no holding. It’s about time. People are going to be surprised by what they see on September 29th. I’m expecting a lot of fireworks in the ring with Kelly Pavlik. This is my kind of fight.”
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Saturday, September 01, 2007
Countdown To Taylor-Pavlik Debuts on Sept 22
HBO Sports is presenting a thirty- minute special analyzing the upcoming middleweight title fight between reigning champion Jermain Taylor and fast-charging challenger Kelly Pavlik. The highly anticipated 160-pound bout is set for Saturday, Sept. 29 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City and will be carried live on HBO in one of the network’s signature broadcasts of the year. The fight is an intriguing match-up between the division’s most acclaimed competitors.
The special “Countdown To Taylor-Pavlik, “ which will feature fighter profiles, expert analysis and forecasts for the showdown in Atlantic City, will premiere on Saturday, Sept. 22 at 11:00 p.m. ET/PT.
Jermain Taylor (27-0-1, 17 KOs) of Little Rock, Ark., is one the sport’s most accomplished stars. Two years ago he upset reigning middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins to take his place atop the 160-pound division. Kelly Pavlik (31-0, 28 KOs) of Youngstown, Ohio, is a fast-rising power puncher who is hoping to replace Taylor as the division’s top act.
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Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Miranda Preparing for October Return
HOLLYWOOD – The call came into the Seminole Warriors Boxing offices this week, and there was no mistaking who was on the other end of the line.
“I’m back,” said Edison “Pantera” Miranda, who has rebounded from his May loss to Kelly Pavlik and is back in the gym in San Juan, Puerto Rico, preparing for a late-October return at the Seminole Hard Rock Live Arena in Hollywood.
“I’ve been working out for hours every day and I feel great,” said Miranda, who after a successful run at middleweight will now compete in the 168-pound super middleweight division. “At 168 my punches are sharper and harder, my speed is still there, and I feel like I can jump in the ring right now.”
It’s a far cry from Miranda’s May loss to Pavlik, which saw him put his health at risk in order to make weight for the bout. The classy Miranda doesn’t want to put a damper on Pavlik’s win though.
“I have no excuses,” said Miranda. “Pavlik was the better man that night, but that fight is in the past. I don’t think about what happened yesterday, only about what’s happening today and tomorrow, and in 2008, I will be ready to fight for a title once again. Watch out world, “Pantera” is coming - bigger, badder, and harder than ever.”
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Friday, August 03, 2007
Taylor-Pavlik: Pre-Prefight
September 29th, 2007… Will this be the day that puts Youngstown, Ohio back on the fistic map? Undefeated knockout artist Kelly “The Ghost” Pavlik of Y’town meets world’s middleweight champion Jermain Taylor who is also unbeaten. This is the fight at 160 pounds that the fans wanted to see. Kudos to the management of the fighters and the promoters for putting this together. It reminds me of the old days where a true champion meets the real #1 challenger. The Calzaghe-Kessler bout at 168 pounds serves the same purpose.
Can Kelly take the title from Taylor? Jermain has been taking it on the chin in the press lately. Admittedly he has not looked good in his recent performances. This has not really been fair to Taylor. The men he has fought, Bernard Hopkins (twice), Winky Wright, Kassim Ouma and Cory Spinks are awkward, talented guys who are difficult to look good against. They are all champions or former champions, real top shelf opposition. If nothing else I believe they made Taylor a better fighter. When Angelo Dundee had Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard he matched them with all kinds of different styles so when they entered the ring there was not much that they had not seen. Let’s just say Taylor may look boring but he is well schooled.
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Monday, July 02, 2007
EEC - July 2, 2007
News, Notes, and Rumors:
- The rumors are true: Felix Trinidad will be coming out of retirement to fight later this year, most likely in December.
- Oleg Maskaev’s showdown against Samuel Peter has been moved from September 29th to October 6th on Showtime and will now take place at Madison Square Garden according to Don King. Showtime is looking to fill the vacant September 29th weekend spot with a possible matchup between Antonio Tarver and Chad Dawson, provided they are both victorious in their bouts on June 9th.
- Contract talks between the camps of Jermain Taylor and Kelly Pavlik are almost finished according to Lou DiBella. Taylor would end up defending his middleweight titles on September 29th on HBO. DiBella says that he is currently attempting to hold the event at Boardwalk Hall.
- NetBoxe is reporting that WBC and WBA Cruiserweight Champion Jean-Marc Mormeck is currently in talks with the camp of David Haye for a possible fight on September 28th.
- Nikolai Valuev and Vladimir Virchis look set to fight at some point this fall. The deadline for purse bids for this fight is July 30th according to Per Ake Persson of Boxing Scene.
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Friday, June 08, 2007
Taylor-Pavlik Looks Set for September
Dan Rafael of ESPN is reporting that a bout between Jermain Taylor and Kelly Pavlik is looking very likely for this fall:
Taylor’s promoter, Lou DiBella, and Pavlik’s promoter, Bob Arum, both told ESPN.com that they have hammered out a deal in principle for the fight to take place this fall. HBO’s working date is Sept. 29. Although the promoters are on the same page, DiBella still needs to finalize his own deal with Taylor.
“Bob and I basically have a deal. We have no major terms we are fighting over and I believe it will get done,” DiBella said. “Bob and I have always been able to get things done. But there are discussions I need to have with my side and with HBO, and the HBO things are not related to money. I haven’t fully talked to my fighter or [Taylor adviser] Al Haymon yet, but I know for a fact that Jermain wants the fight and Haymon isn’t opposed to it.”
The promoters were happy that HBO’s offer for the fight of almost $5 million—well above the figure the network is obligated to pay under its exclusive contract with Taylor—was generous enough to keep the fight off pay-per-view. Arum credited HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg with coming up with the money.
Said DiBella: “HBO came with a fair offer and Bob has postured fairly, so the combination of the two things mean there is no reason a deal shouldn’t get done. I just have to talk things through with Jermain, who has been on vacation, and with Al. But we’re looking for a site. I believe it will happen in September and after Jermain wins, he will come back and fight again in December.”