Running a Marathon? More Like Dodging a Bullet. Saul Alvarez Outlasts A Timid Erislandy Lara.
If you missed the fight last weekend, don't worry too much about what you didn't see. Saul Alvarez outpointed Erislandy Lara in a closely contested bout that was as evenly matched as everyone thought it would be. The stylistically superior Lara, who's WBA Junior Middleweight title was not on the line, was ultimately foiled by his own tactics as he wasted too much time staying the hell away from Alvarez to convince the judges he should have won.
Alvarez pressed the action from start to finish, always attacking and trying to pin down his elusive opponent. That alone gave him the benefit of the doubt, well...that and thanks to a dodgy 117-111 card by Levi Martinez (who is now being investigated by the NSAC). Lara contested the awful card and decision, but he really has nobody to blame but himself that he couldn't close the show.
Lara was too caught up in admiring his own work that he forgot to return fire every time Alvarez missed a shot. It's not to say that having a defensive style matters for nothing in boxing, but to win with the kind of methodical style Lara has, he needed to have a Rigondeux/Donaire performance in where he shut his opponent down. That clearly didn't happen thanks in part that Lara wasn't throwing or landing enough punches to frustrate Alvarez much like Rigondeux did to Donaire.
So because Lara couldn't (or wouldn't, or didn't want to) do that, Alvarez was able to escape a kind of fight he would have otherwise lost. The fight is probably enough of a scare to have Golden Boy Promotions keep Alvarez away from any slick fighters, and even Oscar De la Hoya himself couldn't contain his desire to get Alvarez against a stand-up brawler for his next fight.
While we're waiting for the inevitable fight between Alvarez and WBC Middleweight champion Miguel Cotto, De la Hoya is hoping that James Kirkland will finally be available to commit to a fight with Alvarez this Winter. Kirkland was considered an opponent for Alvarez, but priced himself out and Alvarez fought Josesito Lopez instead. While Alvarez/Kirkland would be a pretty explosive fight on paper, I'm highly skeptical about how ready Kirkland is to accept a fight of this magnitude, especially after being of the ring for nearly a year.
The Road to Broner/Matthysse Begins September 6
The rumor mill was in full effect a few weeks ago with reports that Adrien Broner vs. Lucas Matthysse was all but a done deal for September 13 as the chief support for Floyd Mayweather vs. Marcos Maidana II, but it took but a few days to dispel those rumors. Broner and Matthysse will be returning to the ring September 6, but not against each other.
According to reports, Broner could very well be fighting Josesito Lopez in the main event and Matthysse will be facing off against the extremely overmatched Mike Perez in the support bout. Zab Judah and Andre Berto are also names being mentioned for the Brooklyn triple-header.
Before Broner/Matthysse goes through, Broner must notch a significant win and Lopez is the kind of fighter that he can look extremely impressive against. In his last fight, a meandering decision against Carlos Molina (no, not that one), Broner didn't really put in a performance worthy of discussion and would have to iron out his defensive kinks before going in against a savage puncher like Matthysse in 2015.
The Shoe Shine
- Juan Manuel Lopez's career has been over for a long time, but now we can only hope he stops before he gets even more damaged than he already is. The former two-division champion was blasted out in three rounds against Francisco Vargas. Lopez could very well be the poster child for puglistic dementia as he ages and should not be allowed to go back into the ring under any circumstances.
- Speaking of damaged goods, a James Toney/Roy Jones rematch might be in the works as the two fighters will be fighting in separate bouts on a card in Latvia. Jones has been shot for a long time, but Toney is so far gone that it is barbaric that anyone is letting him fight. Is this how our old legends are supposed to be treated?
- How bad has former Super Middleweight champion Jeff Lacy fallen? After getting knocked out in two rounds by Humberto Savinge, Lacy took to social media claiming that Savinge wasn't the same man he saw in the weigh-in...which has to be the most bizarre thing I've ever heard covering the sport.
Potent Quotables
We came to fight, he didn't come to fight. I didn't think it was really a tough fight. It was only difficult because he didn't want to fight. He ran and if this is the Cuban school, then it is a very limited school.
-Saul Alvarez's trainer Chepo Reynoso on Erislandy Lara's tactics in last weekend's fight.
No comments:
Post a Comment