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Wednesday, January 24, 2007
EEC - January 24, 2007
Not much today so bear with me. I’m trying to have KO Corner’s official rankings up by the end of the week at the latest…
News, Notes, and Rumors:
- Juan Lazcano and Vivian Harris will battle in a WBC Super-Lighyweight elimination bout on February 10th as part of the undercard of Shane Mosley vs Luis Collazo…
- The latest on Nikolai Valuev and Ruslan Chagaev per Boxing Scene:
Next up for WBA heavyweight champ Nikolai Valuev is the mandatory defense against Ruslan Chagaev. The WBA will call for purse bids on February 9 if no agreement is reached before that and wants the fight to go ahead no later than April 15.
- Stevie Johnston will take on Tyrone Harris for the vacant IBA Lightweight tile this Friday in Orlando, Florida.
- Rocky Balboa did not receive a Razzie nomination for one of the worst movies of 2006, the first time in years that Sylvester Stallone or a movie of his hasn’t been nominated apparently…
- Dominick Guinn has a taken a fight on extremely short notice and will take on Zuri Lawrence on February 2nd as part of ESPN’s Friday Night Fights.
Some Good Reads:
ESPN: Reid’s a mean one, a la Grinch
Eastside Boxing: Is Inactivity Killing The Heavyweight Division?
Boxing Scene: Barrera-Marquez - A Beautiful Bastard Child
The Sweet Science: Weird Boxing Endings
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Thursday, January 18, 2007
Stallone Made Tyson Extra in Rocky Balboa Instead of Opponent
Did anyone else know that Mike Tyson asked Sylvester Stallone to be the main character in Rocky Balboa? I certainly didn’t…
In what was probably another attempt for Mike to score some serious money, Stallone thought it was a bad idea and turned down Mike’s offer. The reason he gave Starpulse was probably the same one that I would give:
The 60-year-old actor told the website that “Mike wanted to fight me in this film but I thought it was a bad idea. I know I’m not that young, but I’m still too young to die. I said, ‘Thanks, but I don’t think that would be a very good idea. Thank you very much.’
Oh but it gets better…
“But he kept calling the office saying he wanted to be in the film fighting me. Eventually, I relented and said he could be in the audience. Then I never heard from him. Suddenly, when I turn up in the ring he’s there at the side. I turned round and said to the crew, ‘Can you make sure you keep that son of a bitch out of the ring. If he gets in he’ll kill me.’ The man’s a killer.”
It’s so like Mike - Keep on pursuing things until he at least got in the movie. I wonder if the crew contacted Tyson behind Stallone’s back and made the whole thing come kind of prank against him. After all, Tyson would need to know the days they were filming the movie, where at, and all that good stuff.
Michael Woods from TSS brings up an interesting point: Viewers were able to believe Rocky had a chance since Antonio Tarver isn’t as ripped as other boxers…
Antonio Tarver was fine in the role, though I still think Shannon Briggs would have been the best choice to play the part of Mason Dixon. Those dreds, that physique…then again, Stallone may not have wanted such a specimen to stand next to him, and allow the audience to compare the two.
Tarver wasn’t all that ripped, and thus, we were better able to believe that the geriatric Balboa could stand toe to toe with him…
I really never thought about it but I do remember that while watching the movie, I did think that Tarver wasn’t as physically fit as I was expecting him to look. I also never really noticed that Briggs was that ripped until I went ahead and did a Google Image search on him. I mean I’ve seen him fight before but those pictures make him look pretty impressive…
Even Tyson would have been a stretch to put Stallone in the ring with. You know that Tyson would have gotten back in the gym and worked out a little to improve how he looked since the last time we saw him beating on Corey Sanders. That and he’s freakin’ Mike Tyson, Rocky would have been knocked out in the 1st round, right?
Who else could have took Tarver’s place in the movie? I know it’s another long shot but I think that Bernard Hopkins would have been interesting to see. You know, see who was the best fighter in Philadelphia, that sort of thing…
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Tuesday, January 16, 2007
EEC - January 16, 2007
On the heels of Tommy Morrison testing negative, we have Mayweather and Hopkins speaking up, George Foreman traveling, the return of a former heavyweight champion, the pro boxing debut of a former UFC heavyweight champ, a major fight announcement and much more…
News, Notes, and Rumors:
- What is it about English fighters that people find so intriguing? I mean really, if you followed this site over the summer, you would see how much media coverage both Ricky Hatton and Joe Calzaghe got. They were always calling out the big names, always changing their minds about who they wanted to fight.
These days it’s the exact opposite with the elite American fighters wanting a piece of them.
Bernard Hopkins has shown interest in Calzaghe, hoping that he will move up a weight-class and fight him later this year:
“After Jones I hope he’ll come up to light-heavyweight to challenge me.” said Hopkins.
Calzaghe also met with Sylvester Stallone this past weekend at a boxing gala event as Stallone was making a trip over to the UK and Calzaghe was one of the people he wanted to meet the most.
Calzaghe said of the meeting with the famed Movie star:,“Sly was great. He’s just a normal guy. He turned up for the dinner by himself. There was no entourage. He said he wanted to meet me after seeing my recent win against Jeff Lacy. He said he was a fan of mine and had seen me fight many times but I told him I had seen him fight a lot more in the movies.”
Calzaghe added: “I value Sly’s opinion. He’s in great nick for a man of 60. He has the body of a 30-year-old. It was great to hear him tell us about Hollywood.”
Apparently calling out Floyd Mayweather Jr. 1000 times is going to pay off for Hatton as Pretty Boy Floyd will be ringside for his fight this weekend against Juan Urango. Even better, he’s going there because of him…
“I’m looking forward to getting an up close and personal look at Hatton so that I can make my mind up on whether I might want to fight him.” explained Mayweather.
- Former heavyweight champion Lou Savarese will continue his comeback this Thursday when he takes on MMA veteran Travis Fulton in an event promoted by himself and his business partner Cameron Park.
- On the same card as Savarese and Fulton, former UFC Heavyweight Champion Ricco Rodriguez will be makig his pro boxing debut.
- DRL Promotions has announced that WBC Lightweight Champion Joel Casamayor will defend his title in a rematch against Acelino Freitas. Freitas won the first fight between the two in 2002 by a close split decision in a fight that Casamayor would have won if he didn’t have two points deducted during the fight for illegal blows.
There is no date set for the fight as of yet but it is expected to be televised on HBO…
- George Foreman is reportedly traveling to the Middle East to promote his famous George Foreman Grill machines. He will be visiting the Mall of the Emirates in Dubai to do an expo on his product.
Some Good Reads:
The Sweet Science: Looking Forward To More In The New Year: Part II; Brooklyn southpaw Luis Collazo is ready for Pomona’s Sugar Shane
Eastside Boxing: Big Name Heavyweights James Toney Could Still Defeat
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Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Rocky Statue Vote Today
The nine member Philadelphia Art Commission will vote today on whether or not to place the famed Rocky statue at the bottom of the Philadelphia Art Museum steps. Preparations have already been made in case the commission approves the decision - A cement base was poured at the bottom of the steps late last week.
This week is ‘Philly Loves Rocky Week’ in Philadelphia. Events have been planned all week, including a Rocky and Adrian look-alike contest tomorrow. There has also been a dedication ceremony scheduled on Friday at 6 PM to honor the new spot for the statue if the vote goes in it’s favor. Sylvester Stallone himself will be there.
Check back here for further news regarding today’s decision…
Update 11:08 AM: Multiple reports have confirmed that the Art Commission has voted yes by a 6-2 margin to place the statue at the bottom of the Art Museum steps…
Friday, August 25, 2006
Rocky Theme Creator Dies
Jazz artist Maynard Ferguson, the creator of the popular theme song to the series of Rocky movies - “Gonna Fly Now” has passed away at the age of 78. Ferguson died in a California hospital Wednesday night from liver and kidney failure due to an infection in his stomach.
“Someone just said, ‘Gabriel, move over to second trumpet,”’ manager Steve Schankman said from his St. Louis office. “He was the last of the greats. That era is closed. There is no Kenton, no Basie, no Ellington, and now, no Ferguson.”
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Wepner-Balboa Lawsuit Ends
Chuck Wepner has ended his quest to receive compensation from Sylvester Stallone for using him as the idea for the Rocky series of movies. Reports have said that the two have settled the issue outside of court under undisclosed terms.
Wepner claimed Stallone improperly used his name to promote the Rocky films, while Stallone countered that Wepner had already made money in the form of public appearances as the real-life form of the fictional character.
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Rocky Knocked Down the Steps Again
Members of the Philadelphia Art Commission have not approved the planned placing of the famed Rocky Balboa statue at the bottom of the Art Museum steps. However just like Rocky, the statue is going to give it yet another shot.
Stephanie Naidoff, city commerce director, said she believed the full commission would eventually approve the site - if not by early September, then in the fall. “We believe it’s the right site,” Naidoff said. “A couple members [of the commission] who support it were not able to be there… . We think the full commission will approve it.”
Stallone will be in Philadelphia a few times in the fall, she said, so a dedication could be coordinated with his trips to town. The Art Commission, she said, “needs the time to consider it properly, and we respect that.”
Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Rocky Balboa Trailer
Here is the official trailer that was released in theatres on June 7th…