This Weekend's Boxing (Garcia vs. Benn - August 12th)

[wandshogun09]

The moment everyone knew AJ vs Wilder was probably down the shitter.

?

We all said it, didn’t we? This was the card that was originally supposed to have AJ vs Wilder (and Fury vs Usyk) but got delayed again with all the Saudi shite behind the scenes. I get that there were reasons for all that but if you keep putting hurdles and obstacles in the way of the big fights, sooner or later shit’s gonna get fucked up. And here we are. Thought Joseph Parker had maybe his best performance here, looked better physically than I can remember seeing him as well. Had him winning probably 118-110 by the end. Him winning rounds wasn’t a shock really because Wilder doesn’t exactly fight to ‘win rounds’, he’s purely a KO hunter. But aside from a bit of urgency late on, Parker never really let him get in it, did a great job of avoiding most of Wilder’s big shots and even rocked him as seen in the gif there.  Great win for Parker and he seems a sound bloke. Happy for him in that way but…for fuck’s sake. Just knew at least one of him or AJ were gonna drop a bollock going into last night. Hilarious seeing Wilder thinking he’d won at the end. What the fuck? ?

Anyone catch the Eddie Hearn interview just after Parker vs Wilder?

Smug sod couldn’t hide his glee. He never wanted AJ vs Wilder anyway. Never seen a promoter look so chuffed about a massive fight falling to bits. He couldn’t wait to put the boot in. Granted, Wilder didn’t look good but that’s always the risk when a guy is so knockout minded. If the big KO doesn’t come and you’ve let rounds slip by, this can be the result. Fast Eddie’s smugness actually made me wanna see AJ lose to Wallin after. At that point I just thought ‘fuck it’ and decided to root for the most messed up and shite outcome.

AJ looked good though, to be fair. Best he’s looked since the Usyk losses anyway. Not too much to say about this. Once Wilder lost, a good chunk of my interest in AJ vs Wallin disappeared. Definitely felt like Wallin’s corner pulling him out was the right move. He was taking a beating and offering very little in return. No need to prolong that.

Saw AJ saying he’d still be up for fighting Wilder. I’d love to see it just because it really feels like that one’s gonna get away if it doesn’t happen soon. But I can’t see it now. Wilder’s already mentioning retirement and Hearn’s banging the AJ vs Fury drum again. Last thing he’d wanna do is take the risk on throwing AJ in with Wilder. Especially now Wilder’s coming off a loss and a bad performance, giving Eddie the perfect excuse to shoot it down. Joshua vs Hrgovic next?

Bivol did his thing as expected but it left me a bit cold, to be honest. Beat Lyndon Arthur by wide decision but not much to say about it really. Not Bivol’s most impressive performance, he dominated and got the late knockdown but it felt like Arthur was mostly just content to go the distance as a bit of a moral victory. And he was certainly tough enough to do that. But I don’t know, just feels like Bivol should shine more in fights like this. Need to see Bivol vs Beterbiev in 2024 before it’s too late.

Dubois vs Miller was good stuff. Babyface vs heel dynamic to it and mega satisfying to see DDD find the finish literally in the last minute of the fight. Aside from a round or two in the middle where he looked a tad shaky and it was starting to look like Miller might outlast and outwork him, Dubois battered him for the bulk of the fight, then topped it off with that late stoppage. Loved it. Should be a big confidence booster for Dubois. Whatever you think of Miller, he’s durable as fuck and genuinely doesn’t seem to budge no matter what you throw at him. Dubois broke him down and looked to be well on his way to scoring a brutal clean KO before the ref mercifully stepped in.

It was nice to see them embrace after the fight and I saw a fair bit of positivity about that. But then Miller was straight in letting everyone know it was all because he’d been inactive/took the fight on short notice. I didn’t think he came off quite as gracious in defeat as it seems many did but whatever.

Kabayel vs Makhmudov was great fun. Makhmudov’s monster aura kind of got shattered here. Still a big scary cunt, no doubt. But Kabayel refused to be bullied and chopped the big lump down with those body shots. Really enjoyed this. Wasn’t pretty and Makhmudov’s style is sloppy but he’s dangerous and there was always that feeling he might pull the KO out. But Kabayel handled him beautifully. 

Jai Opetaia KO was vicious.

But I can’t say I’m familiar with Ellis Zorro so I don’t know how impressive a win it actually was. From what I’ve read, he wasn’t the best of opponents for Opetaia. Hopefully we’ll see some tougher tests for him next year because if they’re pushing the “best Cruiserweight in the world” thing then I wanna see more. Was relieved to see Zorro got up and was moving about. Was a nasty knockout and whenever you see a KO like that and the guy lands with his neck bouncing off the bottom rope, it’s a worrying sight. 

Didn’t think much of Hrgovic vs De Mori. Felt like a mismatch and played out like one. Sounds like Hrgovic is gonna get the AJ fight next but honestly I think I’d rather see Kabayel get that fight after taking and winning a much riskier fight against Makhmudov on this card than Hrgovic’s layup against De Mori here.

Oh and look at the fucking state of it…

There’s a clip of GAD interviewing him doing the rounds and it’s embarrassing. From Conor clearly being off his tits to GAD licking arse to the point it looked like he was gonna go in for a kiss at one point. Just a pair of absolute cringeballs. Conor was banging on about fighting Manny Pacquiao to anyone who would listen from the few clips I’ve seen. Just a shambles of a man. 

Edited December 24, 2023 by wandshogun09

[d-d-d-dAz]

There were two big takeaways for me, watching that show.

One, I think Dubois grew up in front of our eyes and it could prove to be a turning point for him. Around rounds 2/3/4 he started to panic and get tired, yet he calmed himself down, executed the advice he was getting in the corner and looked fantastic in those final few rounds. I hope that was him learning he's good enough to remain calm, breath and continue boxing through choppy waters.

Second, Wilder's out. That's why he lost that fight. He didn't care when the decision was read out and his post fight interview was about how he's not sure he cares anymore, he's got plenty of money etc etc... he's checked out mentally, so it's time someone tells him to call it in.

[Murtz]

I can't believe Parker is only 31. Feels as if he's been around for ages.

Great performance for him. It's refreshing when sometimes the genuine nice guys win.

[wandshogun09]

?

[Lion_of_the_Midlands]

1 hour ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

There were two big takeaways for me, watching that show.

One, I think Dubois grew up in front of our eyes and it could prove to be a turning point for him. Around rounds 2/3/4 he started to panic and get tired, yet he calmed himself down, executed the advice he was getting in the corner and looked fantastic in those final few rounds. I hope that was him learning he's good enough to remain calm, breath and continue boxing through choppy waters.

Second, Wilder's out. That's why he lost that fight. He didn't care when the decision was read out and his post fight interview was about how he's not sure he cares anymore, he's got plenty of money etc etc... he's checked out mentally, so it's time someone tells him to call it in.

I hope you are right about Dubois daz. As much as we forget Parker is only 31 we also forget Dubois is only 26. Plenty of time for him to grow. 

As for Deontay... if you mention finding peace through ayahuasca in your post match interview, you've not just checked out, you've tuned in and dropped out. 

[wandshogun09]

Sorry to bring it back to McGregor but Frank Warren tweeted this pic and it’s killed me. Love the way he’s specifically chosen a picture from when Conor’s presumably pissed off to do a few lines. Look at these four enjoying a few minutes peace before the prick comes back…

[Keith Houchen]

5 hours ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

Second, Wilder's out. That's why he lost that fight. He didn't care when the decision was read out and his post fight interview was about how he's not sure he cares anymore, he's got plenty of money etc etc... he's checked out mentally, so it's time someone tells him to call it in.

Yep. I totally agree with this. He’s made for life, he knows he peaked and he’s happy. I wish him all the best in his quest for peace. Proper Ax not bothering with face paint vibes. 

[Lion_of_the_Midlands]

Inoue v Tapales was a good fight from this lunch time. The fight before it was decent as well. Both well worth checking out and the first time I've seen live boxing on Boxing Day. 

[Egg Shen]

Anyone after some fights this weekend? First half decent card of the year is on DAZN.

Vergil Ortiz returns after a long lay off. The better fight iz Ohara Davies/Ismael Barroso in the co-main. Decent.

[Lion_of_the_Midlands]

Ohara Davies is his own worst enemy at times but he's only lost to Catteral and Josh Taylor so he's a pretty decent level of fighter. Barroso will always have a special place in my heart for ironing out Kevin Mitchell at Wembley. There is nothing a Millwall fan likes more than getting to see a West Ham fan knocked out, then seeing it again in slow motion from multiple angles. Not as funny as when he got starched by Michael Katsidis at Upton Park but still beautiful. 

[Egg Shen]

Well, it didn't go well for Ohara Davies:

His first fight on his new Golden Boy contract and dusted in a round. I quite fancied Barroso here, he was a big 7/2 underdog but was coming off that weird fight where he was ahead against Rolly Romero and stopped prematurely by Tony Weeks (who completely ballsed up last nights main event as well). Not really sure why Barrosso was such an outsider in the fight, proved that way.

[Lion_of_the_Midlands]

Tony Weeks needs to fuck off. That stoppage was so premature it was almost like stopping the fight after the ring walk. 

Davies believed his own hype and got taught a lesson. Hilarious. 7-2 Barroso looks like a huge price now. 

[Egg Shen]

I dunno where that price came from considering Barroso gave Rolly all he could handle last year and was robbed by Weeks.

Edited January 7, 2024 by Egg Shen

[wandshogun09]

I bet Tony Weeks even waves his wanks off before there’s a proper finish. 

[Egg Shen]

This has popped up on facebook, there's some debate to whether or not its a legit post, but still pretty wild: