RSSWill The Showdown Happen?
Joe Calzaghe wants it; Mikkel Kessler made it known this weekend that he wants it to happen as well…
But will a fight to unify all four of the super middleweight titles actually happen? Sammy Rozenberg breaks down everything that is standing in the way:
Now that Calzaghe and Kessler own all of the major titles in the super middleweight divisions, a high stakes, mega-payday is inevitable. Both fighters want the meeting and their promoters want the fight. The only question that remains is whether all parties agree on the terms?
Calzaghe has said in recent weeks that he is not willing to head to Denmark to make the fight, while Kessler has said that he won’t travel to England. A neutral battlefield will the biggest issue, as well as which fighter receives the lion’s share of the purse split. Calzaghe has a better case for getting more money and choosing the venue, but now that Kessler has obtained the remaining two belts that Calzaghe does not have, he brings a lot more negotiating leverage to the table.
Kessler is looking to return to the ring in either December or January against an opponent to be announced. He would have liked for the opponent to be Calzaghe, which won’t happen because Calzaghe will need adequate time to heal the cut he suffered against Bika—among other aches and pains.
These are certainly the kind of things that prevent fighters from ever happening - Don’t you wish that boxers weren’t so needy sometimes?
Why won’t Calzaghe leave Europe, or even England for that matter. Ricky Hatton finally made the jump so why can’t he? It just seems that he challenges every name in the book but when it comes down to it, he prevents bigger matchups from taking place because he won’t go to a different site for the fight.
Right now, it looks like Kessler will have one more fight this winter and will have to defend his title before he can get to Calzaghe. The cut that Calzaghe suffered was pretty bad and it definitely won’t be ready until November/December…
Middleweight • Joe Calzaghe • Mikkel Kessler • Ricky Hatton
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