Super Fight 2016: Sergey Kovalev vs. Andre Ward, “Pound-for-Pound”
This article was published by BoxingInsider.com on 15th November, 2016: http://www.boxinginsider.com/columns/super-fight-2016-sergey-kovalev-vs-andre-ward-pound-pound/
On November 19th at the 20,000-seat T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, two of boxing’s most highly rated fighters meet in a battle for the WBA, WBO and IBF light-heavyweight world championships. While the bout has not quite captured mainstream media attention in the manner of a Mayweather-Pacquiao type mega event, it is nevertheless a rare meeting between undefeated, elite talents in the prime of their careers. The fighters enter with a combined record of 60-0-1, with 41 knockouts. Below, I analyse the case for each man’s prospects of victory. Read more
Time for the Pacman to Call it a Day
This article was published by BoxingInsider.com on 11th November, 2016: http://www.boxinginsider.com/columns/time-pacman-call-day/
Following a short-lived “retirement” from boxing, Manny Pacquiao returned to action on Saturday night and reclaimed a portion of the welterweight title for the third time. Once again the Pacman demonstrated that he is levels above the vast majority of 147lb boxers in the world, dominating and widely outpointing a respectable, ambitious world champion 10 years his junior. Read more
Five Memorable “Psych Jobs”
This is an updated version of an article that was originally published on Eastsideboxing.com, November 22nd, 2013: https://www.boxing247.com/boxing-news/boxing-five-memorable-psych-jobs/21212
Boxing is an inherently psychological undertaking. It is an activity that exposes the contestants to far more than the simple prospect of defeat: the potential combination of public humiliation and genuine physical harm percolate in a fighter’s mind to a degree that few who have not lived the experience can reasonably quantify. Far from being a mere test of physical skills then, boxing is perhaps one of the purest tests of human will power. Some of the biggest contests in boxing history have therefore been won or lost through cunning, bravery and fortitude as much as they have speed, strength and stamina. Read more
Santa Cruz vs. Frampton: Are the Bookies Underestimating the Ulsterman?
An edited version of this article was published on TheFightCity.com website, on 29th July 2016. Thanks to Michael Carbert, Editor-in-Chief, for his help in producing and publishing the final version: http://www.thefightcity.com/carl-frampton-leo-santa-cruz-preview-boxing-odds-underdog-showtime/
Following two less-than-scintillating performances in his most recent bouts, Carl Frampton goes into his featherweight title fight against defending champion Leo Santa Cruz on Saturday night as a clear underdog, according to most bookmakers. UK’s Sky Bet, for example, currently have Frampton as a 2/1 outsider, while a bet on a Santa Cruz victory will get you odds of 4/9. (That is, a winning £10 bet on Santa Cruz only pays out £4.44, while the same amount on Frampton would net you a £20 profit). These seem to be wide odds indeed, considering that the fight features two undefeated, finely matched world-class boxers, both in the prime of their careers.
Kovalev Less Than Convincing
This article was first published on TheFightCity.com website on July 12th, 2016: http://www.thefightcity.com/kovalev-less-convincing-sergey-kovalev-isaac-chilemba-andre-ward-russia-boxing/
In a tougher-than-expected defence of his WBA, IBF and WBO light-heavyweight titles, Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev unanimously out-pointed Malawi-born challenger Isaac Chilemba on his home-turf in Ekaterinburg, Russia. Although prevailing widely on the official scorecards, the judges’ tallies of 117-110, 116-111 and 118-109 were perhaps a tad disingenuous to the African challenger and certainly didn’t tell the story of how difficult a contest this was for the defending champion.
Matt O'Brien
Boxing Philosophy 