Category: Boxing

Tyson Fury is without doubt one of the greatest heavyweights!

I love boxing, I hate casual boxing fans! Tyson Fury is a victim of ignorance of the sport. All these so called boxing fans come out with comments like “he’s boring,” “he’s shit” all that shit have no idea what they are talking about. Tyson Fury is probably the most naturally talented heavyweight I have ever seen. I love Ali but I struggle to see a way even the great Ali could beat him. I know some boxing fans will point at the fact that Fury has been dropped twice against so called “light punchers” in fights he should not have been dropped and many believe he even lost to John McDermott in the first fight not sounding like a GOAT. But boxing is a strange sport Tyson Fury is a better boxer than he is fighter. When he was young he was too quick to get in to a fight instead of using his jab, size and speed as he did against Wladimir Klitschko. Wladimir Klitschko is a great fighter but Fury made him look terrible.

I like Anthony Joshua but I honestly believe if Fury can get back to the shape and condition he was in when he beat Wladimir Klitschko Fury will outbox Joshua or Wilder. Both will have a punchers chance but Fury has speed, size, power, strength and skill.

The one fighter I think could cause Fury problems is a prime Mike Tyson. I’m not necessarily saying Tyson is better than Ali but styles make fights Tyson’s head movement, speed, power and compactness probably makes him a tougher fight for Fury than Ali would be.

I hope Fury can get back to his best, he is another one of the hated heavyweights. Like Jack Johnson, Sonny Liston, Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson. Fury is hated by the establishment and like in the case of  Jack Johnson, Sonny Liston, Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson he is hated because of a mixture of racism and the fact he has an opinion. The media are good at projecting the establishments hate on to the public.

If you look at all the great heavyweights from Jack Johnson, Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano, Sonny Liston, Ali, Frazier, Foreman, Holmes, Tyson, Holyfield, Lewis and Klitschko’s. Its hard to imagine most of them beating him I still think a prime Lewis and Tyson would have been he’s two toughest. I might be wrong but I believe the others would struggle to cope with his size, speed and skill.

I hope he gets fit again because the heavyweight division needs him, after watching fight Seferi its clear he still needs more to lose more weight and have a few more fights before fighting Wilder or Joshua but if he can get busy and fit again I believe Tyson Fury could be dominant in the heavyweight division.

Like I said earlier the reason Tyson Fury does not get the credit or recognition he deserves this due the the protection of the establishments hate for him. Did you hear the HBO commentary when he beat Klitschko? Only Roy Jones Jnr given Tyson Fury credit. Max Kellerman and Jim Lampley were not willing to give any credit whatsoever, I thought they were disgraceful. I’ve seen it from Jim Lampley before for example when Barrera, just before the final bell he shown how biased and racist he can be. Even George Foreman picked him up on it and in replays of the fight HBO have cut out his last few sentences (so if you do look for it you need to find a recorded live version and not a updated version replayed years later on HBO.

Tyson Fury also gets stick from the mainstream media in the UK. Reason? They hate the truth, he has said the truth.

 

Massive shock coming 31st March? Parker beats Joshua!

There is a massive fight taking place in Cardiff on the 31st March 2018. Unbeaten IBF, IBO and WBA champion Anthony Joshua will take on unbeaten WBO champion Joseph Parker in a very interesting match up. Both fighters deserve massive respect for making this fight happen as they could have both taken much easier fights and still made big money. As usual casual boxing fans in the UK are expecting this to be an easy win for Anthony Joshua, I do not see that happening.

Joseph Parker is a tough opponent with speed, heart and a decent punch and I am sure that he will at least test Anthony Joshua. The casual fan seems to be looking at Joseph Parker vs Hughie Fury and coming to the conclusion that if Parker only just beat Fury than how will he beat Joshua? Styles make fights Hughie Fury may not be a knock out puncher but he is very highly skilled boxer, he is quick and has a great defense. Parker chased him around the ring for 12 rounds and struggled to land anything on him. Anthony Joshua is also highly skilled but he is not as good as a defensive boxer as Hughie Fury instead Joshua depends on power, strength, pressure and knocking people out.

With the power and determination Anthony Joshua has he is capable of beating anybody but Joseph Parker has his own strengths and if he can avoid getting hit too many times by Joshua he could potentially cause what many in Britain would see as a huge upset.

Comparing previous opponents does not make any difference in boxing, Joe Frazier beat Ali in one fight and Ali just about won the other two. George Foreman knocked Frazier out in two rounds but than lost against Ali in the Rumble in the Jungle. Both Parker and Joshua beat Carlos Takem but neither one looked great doing so. Parker struggled against Andy Ruiz but I believe that Andy Ruiz (like Carlos Takem) is a very underrated, avoided, tricky opponent with a huge frame and very fast hands.

If Joshua wins this I believe it will be his best win on his record to date, Wladimir Klitschko was a great champion but 41 when Joshua beat him and he did not look impressive in his two previous fights (against Bryant Jennings and Tyson Fury who completely out-boxed him.)

It is hard to predict a winner but I am going to predict that Joseph Parker wins late in the fight or on points in a staggering upset! Whatever happens both fighters deserve respect for taking this fight.

My top 20 Greatest Heavyweight champions ever…

The list does not include active boxers such as Anthony Joshua, Deontay Wilder, Tyson Fury and Joseph Parker.

20. Michael Spinks

Boxing record
Total fights 32
Wins 31
Wins by KO 21
Losses 1

Michael Spinks will always be remembered for being destroyed by a prime Mike Tyson but he was also the man to end Larry Holmes dominance of the heavyweight division.

19. Michael Moorer

Total fights 57
Wins 52
Wins by KO 40
Losses 4
Draws 1

Like Spinks Michael Moorer will usually be remembered for being the man knocked out by an old George Foreman and he was always a better light heavyweight than heavyweight. He beat Holyfield and he was two time world champion.

18. James J. Jeffries

Boxing record
Total fights 23
Wins 19
Wins by KO 14
Losses 1
Draws 2
No contests 1

Stepped out of a 6 year retirement to fight Jack Johnson and decisively lost. Before that he was unbeaten.

17. Sonny Liston

Total fights 54
Wins 50
Wins by KO 39
Losses 4

Had his reign of being heavyweight champion cut short by Muhammad Ali (then known as Cassius Clay) before that he was unbeaten and considered unbeatable. Very few people gave Ali a chance.

16. Joe Frazier

Total fights 37
Wins 32
Wins by KO 27
Losses 4
Draws 1

The first man to beat Ali known for his non stop pressure and vicious left hook.

15. Evander Holyfield

Total fights 57
Wins 44
Wins by KO 29
Losses 10
Draws 2
No contests 1

Ridiculously brave and caused some huge upsets throughout his long career.

14. Riddick Bowe

Boxing record
Total fights 45
Wins 43
Wins by KO 33
Losses 1
No contests 1

Beat up badly twice by the underrated Golata but won both fights on DQ. Best known for his trilogy against Holyfield.

13. John L. Sullivan

Total fights 44
Wins 40
Wins by KO 34
Losses 1
Draws 2
No contests 1

John Lawrence Sullivan (October 15, 1858 – February 2, 1918), also known as the “Boston Strong Boy”, was an Irish-American boxer recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing, holding the title from February 7, 1882, to 1892. He is also generally recognized as the last heavyweight champion of bare-knuckle boxing under the London Prize Ring Rules.

12. Wladimir Klitschko

Total fights 69
Wins 64
Wins by KO 53
Losses 5

Klitschko holds the record for the longest combined world championship reign in boxing history at 4,383 days; the most wins in world title bouts and undisputed championship bouts and most consecutive defenses of the undisputed title

11. George Foreman

Boxing record
Total fights 81
Wins 76
Wins by KO 68
Losses 5

Beat up Joe Frazer twice but was later stopped by Ali and retired for ten years before coming back and becoming the oldest heavyweight champion ever when he knocked out Michael Moorer.

10. Larry Holmes

Beat a very old and faded Ali and was dominant in the early part of the 80s.

Boxing record
Total fights 75
Wins 69
Wins by KO 44
Losses 6

9. Vitali Klitschko

Vitali Klitschko has never actually been losing a fight! He was up on the judges cards in both loses and both loses were caused through injury (a bad cut above his eye against Lewis and an injured shoulder against Cris Byrd.

Total fights 47
Wins 45
Wins by KO 41
Losses 2

8. Lennox Lewis

Beat an old Mike Tyson but also beat Holyfield, Razor Ruddock, Andrew Golota, Michael Grant, David Tua, Tony Tucker, Ray Mercer, Shannon Briggs, Vitali Klitschko and others.

Total fights 44
Wins 41
Wins by KO 32
Losses 2
Draws 1

7. Jack Dempsey

Delivered one of the worst beatings ever seen in the boxing ring on Jesse Willard famous for his viscous attacks and failing to head to a neutral corner against Gene Tunney

Total fights 75
Wins 54
Wins by KO 44
Losses 6
Draws 9

6. Rocky Marciano

Never lost unbelievable determination with a dangerous punch. His knock out of Jersey Joe Walcott displays his amazing punching power.

Total fights 49
Wins 49
Wins by KO 43
Losses 0

5. Mike Tyson

Total fights 58
Wins 50
Wins by KO 44
Losses 6
No contests 2

The youngest heavyweight champion of all time and despite his amazing career in which he was dominant throughout the late 80s he could have and should have been even better. Still great though and for a few years in his prime he looked unbeatable.

4. Jack Johnson

First black heavyweight he was universally hated by white America. Most of his loses come very late in his career (a few come early) Jack Johnson was dominant for the best part of seven years and even his loss against Willard is questionable as he claims he took a dive. Skeptics however ask why wait till round 26 before taking a dive?

Total fights 104
Wins 73
Wins by KO 40
Losses 13
Draws 10
No contests 5

3. Gene Tunney

Never as loved or celebrated as Jack Dempsey but he holds an amazing record with only one loss which he avenged 4 times! Out boxed a faded Jack Dempsey twice.

Total fights 85 (17 newspaper decisions)
Wins 65
Wins by KO 48
Losses 1
Draws 1
No contests 1

2. Joe Louis

Louis was ranked as the best heavyweight of all time by the International Boxing Research Organization, and was ranked number one on The Ring magazine’s list of the “100 greatest punchers of all time” Louis’ championship reign lasted 140 consecutive months, during which he participated in 26 championship fights (he would probably have fought more if his time in the army did not stop him.)

Total fights 69
Wins 66
Wins by KO 52
Losses 3

1. Muhammad Ali

Some might put Joe Louis at number one I would not argue with that but I’m putting Ali at number one. This is due to his wins against Sonny Liston, Joe Frazer and his best win of all against George Foreman. Ali carried on fighting past his prime and much too long but at his best he was as quick as any heavyweight that has ever lived, powerful, brave and smart he also had his prime years taken away as he was stripped of being world champion and did not fight for 3 years aged from 25 to 28.

Total fights 61
Wins 56
Wins by KO 37
Losses 5

 

 

Is Anthony Joshua overrated?

I did not watch the Joshua vs Takam fight live but I notice many of the people that did are again complaining about the low quality PPV broadcast from Sky Sports Box Office. Sky Sports removed the much of the under card from the PPV view event to make room to talk about and hype up Anthony Joshua. I am a bit of a boxing fanatic, I have always loved boxing in fact its the ONLY sport that interests me at all and it has since I was a kid. I watch a lot of boxing and unlike most of the casual boxing fans watching this fight I knew Carlos Takam was not an easy fight. In fact I almost write a blog predicting a huge upset but I never got around to it.

I watched the fight the next day on Daily motion and I honestly believe Takam was completely robbed of a chance to test Joshua’s blatantly weak stamina. There is no doubt that Takam was losing the fight on points but when boxing commentators tell us he had no chance, thats bullshit! This is Heavyweight boxing George Foreman was well behind when knocked out Michael Moorer, Ross Purity Knocked out an exhausted Wladimir Klitschko. The reason I love boxing is anything can happen especially in the heavyweight division.

Anthony Joshua was lucky, I’m not saying he would have lost but I believe those last two rounds were going to be the most interesting part of the fight until the referee robbed Takam of his chance of finishing the fight and the audience the chance of witnessing what could have been the most interesting six minutes of Anthony Joshua’s career so far.

Anthony Joshua is the golden boy of British boxing at the moment and a cash cow, they did not want to see the cash cow get slaughtered.

I have stated from day one that I believe AJ is overrated, I believe an in shape Tyson Fury will out box him, AJ has a punchers chance and thats it.

Every big victory AJ has on his record is questionable! Dillian Whyte rocked him before being Knocked out but how good is Dillian Whyte? Wladimir Klitschko looked better against AJ than he had looked for years is that because Wladimir Klitschko was better prepared to fight AJ or simply because AJ allowed him to look better?

Sky Sports commentary was terrible, how many times did Carl Froch insist and tell the audience AJ had won every round? I think there were at least two or maybe even three rounds that you could have given to Takam, its professional boxing and body shots score points.

That’s two early stoppages in a row in AJ fights (the Klitschko stoppage was early I thought considering he was world champion for ten years and one of the biggest punchers in the history of boxing.) How much would AJ have had left after that onslaught against Klitschko? How much would he have had left for the last two rounds against Takam? Holyfield was out on his feet in round ten against Riddick Bowe before nearly knocking the much bigger man out.

 

Is Tyson Fury the new Muhammad Ali?

Boxing and politics always seem to get their wires crossed. From Jack Johnson and the Great White Hope, Joe Louis fighting “the racist Nazi” Max Schmeling when Joe Louis himself was seen as nothing more than a second class citizen. Muhammad Ali, Sonny Liston, Mike Tyson and many other boxers have like Jack Johnson ended up having to fight the ruling elite outside the boxing ring as well as their opponents inside the ring.

Tyson Fury is the latest example of a heavyweight champion that is universally hated for his controversial but honest and very true take on modern day society. Like nearly all the great heavyweights Tyson Fury comes from oppression, he is seen by many (not me) as a second class citizen. He said himself that he would always be seen as “just a dirty gypo” and unfortunately its true. Like Muhammad Ali, Jack Johnson, Sonny Liston and too many others Tyson Fury is fighting ignorance, the media and the establishment as well as the brainwashed.

I watched Wladimir Klitschko vs. Tyson Fury with HBO’s and Sky Sports commentary. HBO hate to give Tyson Fury any credit whatsoever, Jim Lampley repeatedly puts the fight down to a poor performance from Wladimir Klitschko. They blamed the age of Wladimir Klitschko who was 4o. Only Roy Jones Jnr gave credit to Fury as he kept informing Jim Lampley that Tyson Fury was confusing Wladimir Klitschko with movement and faints.

Sky Sport was not as blatantly anti Tyson Fury as HBO but they were also blaming the “poor performance” and “age” of Wladimir Klitschko. Wladimir Klitschko proved in his next fight that age had very little to do with anything as he put on a fine performance and nearly knocked out the golden boy of British Boxing at the moment Anthony Joshua.

If the right boxer was to naturalize and confuse Wladimir Klitschko the way that Tyson Fury did they would have received credit and hype from the mainstream media. Tyson Fury is not the right boxer, casual boxing rule the market and they want knockouts and blood but the real art of boxing has always been hit without getting hit and that is what Tyson Fury managed to do against Klitschko.

Like in the past with Muhammad Ali and Jack Johnson and others the establishment are using the media to spread hate for the exact same reasons they always do.

Somebody has managed to fight their way against the odds out of poverty and oppression and gained a following. All Tyson Fury does is say what a million people already believe the only difference is when Tyson Fury says it it gets heard.

How dare some know nothing middle class wannabe upper class muppet that has never done a proper days work in their lives complain because a message they don’t like and are not used to hearing gets heard. The problem is not Tyson Fury, Gypsies or the poor speaking out the problem is the establishment.

The reason so many people in Britain are attacking Tyson Fury is much the same reason white America turned on Muhammad Ali, Jack Johnson, Sonny Liston and even Mike Tyson. That reason is because they have a feeling of superiority, they are ignorant, racists that live in cloud cuckoo land and they fear anybody that is different.

I believe that in this time of sell outs and corporate whores Tyson Fury should be applauded for having the balls to say what many of us know. I’m not saying I agree with EVERYTHING he says but I agree with him much more than I agree with the people that think they have the right to silence him.

James Toney is as good as Floyd Mayweather

Three fights (out of his 92 fights ranging from Middleweight to Heavyweight) that prove that James Toney is at least as good if not better than Floyd Mayweather.

Iran Barkley vs James Toney 【Full Fight】

1993-02-13　IBF World super middleweight title
Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

 

James Toney vs Samuel Peter I

September 2, 2006 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles

Evander Holyfield vs James Toney [Full Fight]

2003-10-04
Location: Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

How good was Prince Naseem Hamed?

Any boxing fan and even a lot of none boxing fans will remember Prince Naseem Hamed, hated and loved in the UK and USA, described as anything from a genius to a fraud but one thing I don’t think anybody will deny is Prince Naseem Hamed’s ability to entertain.

The first time I ever seen him fight was against somebody called Enrique Angeles, Naseem knocked him out in the second round in what I believe is still one of his best performances. It’s easy to dismiss Enrique Angeles as a nobody but six months later he fought Erik Morales and only lost by a decision. I believe this was the period of Naseem Hamed’s Career that he should have been having big fights. After that Naseem fought a over the hill former world champion from Colombia before moving up a weight and humiliating Welsh world champion Steve Robinson.

This is where Frank Warren Naseem Hamed’s promoter at the time went wrong. In my opinion Naseem should have stayed as a Super Bantamweight collected a couple of belts and then moved up a weight. Frank Warren has notorious connections with the WBO so Naseem fought Steve Robinson for the WBO featherweight belt but the WBO Super Bantamweight/Junior Featherweight was Marco Antonio Barrera a much more interesting fight. I believe at this time in their careers Naseem would have beat Marco Antonio Barrera as Junior Jones did just a few of months after Prince Naseem won his title from Steve Robinson.

He then knocked Siad Lawel (who ever he is) out with one punch before getting knocked down in the first only to get up and knock out Daniel Alicea in the second.

Then he fought with a flu (he claims) against a very underrated Manuel Medina he looked terrible, nearly lost, nearly got knocked out despite many believing Medina was a light puncher but in the end he and some viscous punches forced a very tough and brave Medina to quit.

He then fought a pointless fight against Remigio Daniel Molina in which he won in two rounds and then impressively beat IBF champion Tom Johnson. Critics of Naseem pointed out Johnson was past his best but the facts were Tom Johnson was unbeaten in 19 fights, never been knocked out in 46 fights and was world champion for 4 years. In other words Tom Boom Boom Johnson was no bum.

He than fought three pointless fights against Billy Hardy, Juan Gerardo Cabrera and Jose Badillo he won them all impressively and easily but I don’t think these fights were necessary for a fighter close to his peak.

Then he went to New York and had a great fight against Kevin Kelley who had a record of 47 wins 1 loss and 2 draws at the time and was a very underrated and solid boxer and it showed in the fight. He knocked Naseem Hamed down twice in the first two rounds and seemed to be out boxing Naseem in the second and third rounds. He then got sucked in to a slug feast and Prince Naseem inevitably knocked him out in the fourth.

He then fought and beat WBA champion Wilfredo Vazquez via 8th round knock out former WBC bantamweight title holder Wayne McCullough on points, and left his life time trainer after this fight before beating future IBF title holder Paul Ingle via KO in round 11.

He then beat WBC featherweight champion Cesar Soto in a ugly fight. Had Vazquez not been stripped by the WBA of his belt (the WBA did not want their featherweight title unified with the WBO), Hamed would have had the distinction of winning all four world titles in the division. This would have made him the first undisputed Featherweight Champion since Vicente Saldivar gave up his titles in 1967.

He then impressively knocked out former undefeated long-reigning IBF super bantamweight title holder, Vuyani Bungu of South Africa.

Then came one of the most entertaining fights of his career against big punching but some say weak chinned (though he took some punches in this fight) Augie Sanchez (who beat Floyd Mayweather in the Amateurs.)

He now faced Marco Antonio Barrera and he failed to take the fight seriously. Like most people at the time Naseem thought Marco Antonio Barrera was going to storm in take the fight to him and get knocked out but Barrera had already made that mistake in his DQ loss against Junior Jones years earlier. Barrera smartly out boxed Naseem who spent most of the fight getting hit while he was trying to land one big punch. It was a bad loss and effectively the end of Naseem Hamed aged just 27 though he fought one more time in a completely forgettable match against Manuel Calvo.

Obviously Frank Warren did not realize Naseem Hamed was going to end his career at just 28 but with hindsight and considering how he was beating opponents in his youth it would have suited Naseem Hamed to have fought a higher level of opposition early in his career because he was a much better fighter earlier in his career. I think he deserves credit as one of the best British champions to ever live but his career needed bigger fights earlier in his career and due to this there are more questions than answers about Naseem Hamed’s ability as a boxer.

When it came to his punching power and his entertaining way of fighting and promoting fights Naseem Hamed was definitely among the greatest fighters ever.