Last week, the boxing world lost one of its greatest ambassadors in Alexis Arguello. In a sport mired in corruption and cruelty, Arguello always stood out as a gentle soul who positively touched the lives of anyone he came in contact with. In this week’s column, I take a look back at the legendary career and life of “The Explosive Thin Man,” Alexis Arguello. Growing Pains Like many fighters from Latin America, Alexis Arguello was thrown to the wolves early and forced to learn the sweet science on the job. After turning pro at a mere 16 years old in 1968, he was promptly blasted out in one round in his professional debut. 3 fights later, Arguello was again on the losing end, dropping a 6 round points decision. But the young pugilist remained diligent, and racked off a record of 33-1 over the next 6 years, which earned Arguello his first title shot against WBA featherweight champ Ernesto Marcel in February 1974. The aged champ proved too wily for the still learning Arguello, who was outfoxed to a unanimous decision loss. Undaunted, Alexis went right back to work and scored 4 wins (3 by knockout) in the same year, which earned him another shot in November for the WBA title, as Marcel had retired. The man standing in his way this time was Ruben Olivares, a featherweight warrior and future hall of famer with a record of 77-4-1. Arguello again looked to be in trouble as Olivares jumped out to an early lead behind his hard counterpunching on the inside. However, Arguello never wavered in stalking Olivares, and ended the Mexican’s night with 2 knockdowns courtesy of a crushing left hook and right uppercut in the 13th round. For the first time, Alexis Arguello was now a world champion. The Champ Is Here From 1974-1977, Alexis Arguello lived up to his nickname of El Flaco Explosivo (The Explosive Thin Man). He defended his featherweight title 4 times, winning all by knockout. Additionally, he went 12-0 in exhibition bouts. By 1978, Arguello had outgrown featherweight, and moved up to super featherweight (130 lbs) to challenge dangerous WBC champ Alfredo Escalera. The fight was highly anticipated, particularly in Latin America, as Arguello and Escalera were Nicaraguan and Puerto Rican respectively. The bout was held in Escalera’s backyard (Bayamon, PR), and would go on to be nicknamed The Bloody Battle of Bayamon. The first half of the bout was competitive, with both men stunning each other with combinations. But Arguello proved to be the harder puncher, and was taking a heavier physical toll from Escalera when the two combatants went to war. After 10 career-shortening rounds, Escalera had a broken nose, and severe, dripping cuts in his mouth and over his eyes. The battered champ staged a comeback in the 11th and 12th, but was ultimately TKO’d after the referee stopped the bout due to Escalera’s injuries. At 130, Arguello solidified himself as one of the top 3 fighters all time at that weight. Among his KO victims were Bobby Chacon, Rafael “Bazooka” Limon, and Alfredo Escalera in a bruising rematch, where Arguello scored the knockout after receiving face lacerations that required plastic surgery. In 1981, Alexis moved up to his 3rd weight class to challenge Jim Watt for the WBC lightweight title. Arguello took the crown by a rare 15 round decision, and became the 2nd Latin American and 6th overall fighter to win world titles in 3 weight classes. With Roberto Duran gone from the division, Arguello struggled to find elite, high profile opponents to test his skills. But in his first defense, the Nicaraguan had a memorable battle with well-known, undefeated American prospect Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini. The fight was a war from the opening bell. Although he was clearly outgunned, Mancini refused to give up until a crushing straight right separated him from his senses in round 14. The post-fight interview was one of Arguello’s defining moments, as the world witnessed him consoling a heartbroken Mancini and promising to do everything in his power to help his career going forward. After making 3 more defenses, Alexis Arguello again focused on achieving history by ascending to a higher weight class in junior welterweight, and becoming the first man to win world titles in 4 weight classes. But there was one man who stood in his way…Aaron Pryor. Waging War With Pryor Since Aaron Pryor only held the WBA version of the 140 pound championship, Arguello could’ve easily selected a safe opponent to win another belt. But the Explosive Thin Man recognized that Pryor was considered the man in that division, and wanted to achieve history against the best fighter possible. The two met in 1982 at the Orange Bowl in Miami. The aggressive Pryor immediately pounced on Arguello, bullying the challenger around and abusing him with an endless barrage of punches. Arguello fired back, but in his 4th weight class, he found his normal firepower only made Pryor angrier, and prompted the underrated champ to apply even more pressure. By the championship rounds, a bloody and fading Arguello was behind on the scorecards. It looked bleak until Arugello viciously snapped back Pryor’s head with his trademark straight right. For the first time, Pryor was visibly stunned and slowed down his assault. The crowd erupted even louder for Arguello, the sentimental favorite. The round ended before Arguello could adequately capitalize, and it appeared that the Nicaraguan had a shot to the take the bout in the final 2 rounds. However, Pryor trainer Panama Lewis was seen asking his corner team to give him a black bottle that was “mixed” with an unknown substance. Corners are only allowed to use water, and the bottle’s substance reinvigorated Pryor, who blazed out at the start of the 14th the same way he did in round 1. A startled Arugello was hurt badly early in the round, and was rendered helpless against the ropes as Pryor rained down flush shot after flush shot until […]

Victor Ortiz Upset in Entertaining Slugfest Golden Boy Promotions took a huge gamble last night (June 27) putting their future star hopeful Victor Ortiz (24-2-1, 19 KOs) in with the hard-punching, experienced slugger Marcos Maidana (26-1, 25 KOs). The ambitious test resulted in one of the best fights of the year, but ultimately proved disastrous for Ortiz, as he was overwhelmed and TKO’d in the sixth round.Victor Ortiz paid homage to Michael Jackson with a medley of the King of Pop’s hits during his ring entrance. The young star was the emphatic crowd favorite at Los Angeles’ Staples Center, and looked to be on the verge of a highlight reel win after dropping Maidana in the first with a hard right.Maidana took the shot, and immediately rose to his feet to crack a reckless Ortiz with a huge counter right. Ortiz barreled to the canvas as if he had been shot in the face. Showing grit and perhaps a little too much machismo, the young prospect struggled to his feet on rubbery legs and commenced to wage war with Maidana. Both men traded bombs to the bell and received a standing ovation from the crowd. In round two Maidana continued testing Ortiz’s chin with hard, looping right hands. Although Ortiz was the superior technician, the drama of the moment saw him abandoning his jab and better punching technique to brawl with Maidana on the inside. There, the Argentinean happily obliged and raked Ortiz with bruising hooks to the body and the occasional rabbit punch. But it was Ortiz who would prove a little better this round, countering with his own right that literally bounced Maidana off the canvas. Although clearly buzzed, the underdog was able to backpedal away and survive the round despite getting clipped again for another knockdown.The warfare continued in the third and fourth, with Maidana still having free reign with his right hand. Ortiz was gung-ho about ending the contest, and walked through the shots and landed several of his own stinging combinations to the head. Everyone was aware that Ortiz was ahead, but his insistence on going to war favored Maidana, who was only catching Ortiz because of the wild exchanges on the inside. This point was punctuated at the end of the fourth when Maidana again ripped a thudding right that elicited concerned “ohhs” from the crowd. The key fifth round saw the fighters throw strategy out the door and commence trading hooks. Maidana proved to be sturdier, and Ortiz was visibly rattled when a right hook sliced open a gaping cut above his left eye. And before he could escape the round without further damage, Maidana strafed him with another right that grotesquely snapped his head. Ortiz never recovered, and Maidana pounced seconds into the sixth with a jarring straight right that made Ortiz visibly wince. He kept abusing Ortiz with the right until he finally collapsed along the ropes. With both eyes swelling and one cut, Ortiz shook his head at the referee, who seconds later on doctor’s orders stopped the contest. In the post-fight interview, a humbled and dejected Ortiz explained honestly why he stopped, and even hinted at retirement. “I was hurt. I’m not going to go out on my back, I’m not laying down for no one. I’d rather stop while I’m ahead. That way I can speak well when I’m older,” Ortiz stated. “We’ll see what happens from here. I’m young but I don’t think I deserve to be getting beat up like this. I have a lot of thinking to do.” Already, the armchair critics on the net are labeling Ortiz a quitter and even more amazingly a p#### despite helping to deliver a Fight of the Year candidate. Make no mistake about it, this wasn’t a Roberto Duran “no mas,” frustration quit. It was a man having his will beat out of him. I will trust a fighter when he says he’s had enough. Still, if he continues he’ll have to fight against the quitter stigma for some time. Mayweather-Marquez On for September 19 Doctors have cleared Floyd Mayweather to return to the ring in the fall. The former pound for pound king has rescheduled his comeback fight against lightweight champ Juan Manuel Marquez for September 19. “I am relieved to be cleared to fight as I was already looking forward to getting back in the ring,” said Mayweather, who was forced to postpone the July 18 date due to a rib injury. “Trust me, September 19 is a great weekend for boxing, and all of my fans, of which there are many Mexicans too, can certainly hold on to their hats and sombreros when I get back in to the ring and show them what they have been missing these past 18 months. I will destroy Marquez and reclaim my rightful place as boxing’s pound-for-pound king all in one night.. Don’t miss it.” Marquez, who will be fighting during Mexican Independence Day weekend, remains focused on the biggest fight of his career. “I am happy that Mayweather has been cleared to fight and we can get down to business on September 19,” Marquez explained in a statement. “This weekend is not just an important weekend for boxing, but even more so for all of the Mexican and Mexican-American people I will be fighting for who will have a great reason to celebrate my win over Mayweather, which will be for all of the people and for the entire country of Mexico that night. I am sure of victory and si se puede- yes we can and yes we will!” Unfortunately, the fight will still be held on HBO PPV. If Mayweather has retained at least 65-70% of his skills, expect him to win this fight by late stoppage.   Shane Mosley in Limbo   While Mayweather, Pacquiao, and Cotto go about setting up blockbuster matches, welterweight champion Shane Mosley finds himself the odd man out.. You would think after destroying Antonio Margarito, Mosley’s profile would be […]

Cotto Wins Controversial Decision With a gushing, cut eye and a determined foe walking him down nearly every round, Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto (34-1, 27 KOs) escaped Madison Square Garden Saturday night (June 13) with a disputed split decision win over Ghana’s Joshua Clottey (35-3, 20 KOs). The Ghanaian asserted control in round one behind a stiff jab that repeatedly broke through Cotto’s guard. The Puerto Rican champion struggled to land any significant shots early, but hit bank as the round concluded with a short, counter jab that scored a balance knockdown on Clottey. The challenger cursed himself for his mental mistake, knowing that the 10-8 round could possibly cost him a decision. In rounds two and three Clottey went to work, clipping Cotto constantly by doubling and occasionally tripling the left hook to the body and head. Cotto attempts to retaliate were unsuccessful, as he could not break Clottey’s guard even with short, flashy hook combinations. Further compounding Miguel’s problem was a hard accidental headbutt on the inside which opened a jagged, bleeding cut over his left eye. By the 4th, Clottey was regularly utilizing the uppercut, the main punch that proved to be Cotto’s downfall in his sole loss to Antonio Margarito. As a confused Cotto continued to flurry at his challenger’s guard, Clottey would time him with chopping overhand rights on the bleeding eye. Another left uppercut from Clottey seemed to seal the round, but the Ghanaian allowed Cotto to flurry in the last 30 seconds which may have swung the card for judges swayed by the raucous Puerto Rican crowd. Disaster nearly struck for Joshua Clottey in the fifth. After bloodying Cotto’s eye again and forcing him to retreat, Clottey was pushed hard to the canvas following an awkward corner tie-up. The challenger hit the canvas and immediately complained to the ref of knee damage. Aware that a retirement would result in a TKO loss, Clottey gingering walked off the injury but favored it the rest of the way. Despite this, the blood flow from Cotto’s eye prevented him from capitalizing, as this time Clottey flurried hard to close the stanza. The six proved to a great comeback round for Cotto. Perhaps due to fatigue or the leg injury, Clottey surprisingly channeled Ali for his version of the rope a dope, and lay in the corner while Cotto unloaded an obscene amount of power shots to the head and body. Referee Arthur Mercante, Jr watched closely, since at times it appeared Clottey was being hurt by the punches. However, once Clottey’s face was visible it was apparent he was waiting for an opportunity to strike with counter shots. Once, he succeeded with a sneaky right that briefly stunned Cotto. However, the wounded champion had overwhelmingly outworked him with punch output to take the round. Clottey took over again in rounds seven through nine, as Cotto’s bleeding eye made him a sitting duck for right hands. The champion’s attempts to run occasionally elicited scattered boos, but Cotto bravely kept throwing on the inside despite getting the worst of it. Clottey’s uppercuts and rights hands were visibly slowing down the cahmpion, and the crowd began to murmur nervously with Cotto in damage and demeanor reflecting the beaten warrior seen in the Margarito fight. The tenth round was slow for both men, since Cotto took to running the majority of the round. Clottey’s bad leg prevented him from sustaining any prolonged pursuit, and Cotto effectively protected his eye with flickering punches before dancing away. Clottey’s attempt to steal the round in the last 30 seconds backfired when Cotto perfectly timed him with two counter left hooks. Clottey snickered at the shots, but the round was close enough to have gone either way on those last two punches. The remaining championship rounds favored Cotto, who at least regularly threw punches while Clottey was content to follow him around. Although the majority of Cotto’s shots were being picked off, he controlled distance and prevented Clottey from enacting any type of significant offense to close the bout. As expected, each man felt he did enough to win the decision after the final bell sounded. Still, their faces showed much concern with how the judges interpreted their performances. The final scorecards read 113-114, 115-112, and an absurd 116-111 for Cotto, who retained his WBO welterweight title. “I just think I need to rest a little bit,” Cotto explained to HBO in his post-fight interview. “[After] nine weeks of training, I just want to rest a little bit. And then we can talk with the company [about who I should fight next].” Clottey was disappointed in the verdict, and felt he was the victim of a hometown decision against a bigger, more viable star. “I don’t expect this decision. I fought my heart out,” Clottey stated. “I’m chasing him, he’s running…So what does a guy have to do to win the fight? I won the fight. As soon as the decision went long [to score], I knew something was going to happen. I want a rematch.” When questioned about his sudden low punch output in the later rounds, Clottey rationalized that he was being cautious of getting caught again for a flash knockdown. “Cotto is a tough fighter, I have to take my time,” he stated. “He’s throwing one shot at a time, so I have to be careful when I’m coming in. So it’s not like I’m not throwing punches. Whatever he’s throwing to me I’m blocking.” Although exciting, the fight was likely frustrating for fans of both men. In Cotto, we saw the same issues that have beleaguered him recent bouts such as bad defense when moving backwards (especially against uppercuts) and becoming somewhat shellshocked when faced with educated pressure. With Clottey, we again saw a lack of killer instinct down the stretch. A rematch is definitely warranted (I had Clottey winning), but likely won’t happen as their promoter Bob Arum is still fixated on pairing Cotto with Manny Pacquiao, in part to avoid […]

We have come to the end of another National Basketball Association season. And I will go on record to say that I will miss it. Will I miss the “Where Amazing Happens” commercials? Probably not, because it’s about time that the league spearheads a new marketing campaign. Will I miss the “Most Valuable Puppets” commercials starring Lebron James and Kobe Bryant? Probably not, because Lil’ Dez rapped in the last commercial, and I’m sorry to say it but, he killed 85% of the non-puppet rappers in the game. Finally, will I miss NBA Superstars that could hit wacky half court shots during practice but takes an Epic Fail in hitting clutch shots when it counts? Probably not, because I would hope that these superstars that are not fitting their fingers for jewelry this summer will realize that nobody has footage of Kobe taking any shots from half court and look what it got him. The Los Angeles Lakers are the NBA World Champions for 2009 and I’ll man up to say that I didn’t predict it. My prediction of the Orlando Magic winning in 6 was beginning to look pretty good until inexperience showed up. Stan Van Gundy is a great coach. However, he is no Phil Jackson. The Zen Master would never had foiled team chemistry just to give a player, whether he earned it or not, game time in the NBA Finals. When Van Gundy inserted the NBA All-Star, Jameer Nelson on the court, sitting Rafer “Skip to my Lou” Alston on the bench for long periods of time, he took the air out of a team that learned to fight together over the past four months. The Magic fought back to beat the Sixers in the first round; fought back from being down 3-2 to eliminate the Celtics; handed walking papers to the “unstoppable” Cleveland Cavaliers, just to fall on their face to the Lakers? Phil Jackson would have made it his dying wish to have his best or most clutch player, taking the last shot in regulation; not a rookie, not a career team hopper whom last name rhymes with peaches. Phil has won his tenth championship as a coach because he sticks to what works and adjusts on the fly better than any other coach in NBA history. And if you haven’t noticed, Phil wins championships in three’s. So if you know Phil and his on court general like I do, winning two more consecutive championships is a MUST, or this one won’t even count. So Kobe Bryant will receive his fourth ring, and first as the leader of a team. Congrats on that. There are a lot of AHH loyalists that love the sound of that. I’d like to say that you are more than just the best player in the league; you are Phil Jackson’s #1 pupil. When you realized a few years back that you didn’t have a team that could win you a ring, you took it upon yourself to shake the boat until Jerry Buss got queezy. C’mon Kobe, we both know that you weren’t going to leave the Lakers. Why would you leave a team that needed a few tweaks, for a team that you’d have to start from ground level to make a contender? Really Kobe, really? I don’t know why anybody believed your mind games anyway. I saw right through them. The Black Mamba my a**… you are the Black Phil Jackson, that’s who you are. NEWS JUST IN: The Cleveland Cavaliers are looking into making a trade to bring Shaquille O’Neal to Loserville. Extensive research brought me to the conclusion that Cleveland gets pretty cold and Shaq, better known for his warm city choices, might take the opportunity of extending his career, he just won’t be enthused by the trips in two feet of snow to the arena. Furthermore, you already have an All-Star center in Zydrunas Ilgauskas. And you should know that Shaq will not accept a bench role (i.e. Allen Iverson). Cleveland, I have already gone on record that what you NEED is a Power Forward, not the Big Shaqtus. Damn, if you are willing to make this move, maybe the writing is on the wall that Lebron will leave Cleveland in 2010. Where are the Knicks fans at? We haven’t heard from you all year! What will you miss about this season? Has Trevor Ariza taken that position of ‘Kobe’s Sidekick’ that was handed to Lamar Odom? Will Lil’ Dez do a song with Drake?

Listen, last week I put myself out of a limb to express a unique opinion (Lebron vs. Carmelo, would be a better one-on-one matchup than Lebron vs. Kobe) which many of you agreed with, a few disagreed with emphatically, and other major media outlets appeared to have cosigned if only for a few days. This was my opinion on a better matchup, not my opinion on what we’d see in the Finals. Sounds like I’m back-peddling right? I beg to differ. My argument was that Kobe couldn’t stick with Lebron physically, and that’s true. But there is one characteristic that Kobe towers over Lebron on, and that is his will to win. Kobe wasn’t going to lose in the Western Conference finals this season if his life depended on it. As for Lebron, you would almost believe that he had it in his head that the Finals were ‘his right’. He learned a tough lesson and so did we about the Cleveland Cavaliers. If you’re a bit shaky about your belief in curses, the city of Cleveland’s professional sports’ clubs should put you over the hump. The Cavaliers are a solid big man, preferably a power forward (you know, like a Carlos B##### – sorry for the low blow) away from getting out the East, let alone winning a championship. Lebron James is a sore loser Lebron, my dude, how could you leave us a witness to your utter lack of sportsmanship after the Magic sent you home for the summer? You left Montell Jordan, my mistake; Dwight Howard waiting for the hug half-hearted congratulations that Carmelo gave Kobe the night before. Lebron, what you’ve done by walking off the court without saluting your peers, not handling any post game interviews and leaving your teammates to fend for themselves during the post game press conference (although some would say your teammates left you to fend for yourself on the court) just might be the black eye on your early career that you’ll retire with. And Carmelo, just focus on the game, stay out of the recording studio, and you’ll have your ring in two years. Now on to the main course. The Los Angeles Lakers were odds on favorites to make it to this point, so there are no surprises there. However, if you picked the Orlando Magic to make it to the Finals since day 1, you must be a lifelong fan of the franchise or a compulsive liar. The last time the Magic got this far, Anfernee Hardaway and Shaquille O’neal were the One-Two punch. The last time the Lakers won the NBA Championship, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’neal were Batman and Robin. And last year when Kobe lost in the Finals, Shaquille performed a song about how Kobe couldn’t win the title without him. I wonder if Shaq has a remix with T-Pain waiting for Kobe if he so happens to fail on a galactic scale this time around. The Magic beat the Lakers 2-0 during the regular season. Both times, their starting point, Jameer Nelson was the leading scorer. Rumors have begun to surface that Jameer will possibly return from his shoulder injury that put him out for the season back in February. However, Magic’s GM, Otis Smith stuck to his word over the weekend that Jameer will not make a return. So what does that leave for Orlando? Clearly, the Magic is going hard on all cylinders and at the right time. Dwight “This Is How We Do It” Howard is playing up to what his coach envisioned for him. Hedo Turkoglu regained a confidence in his game that he hasn’t had since he played for the Sacramento Kings. Rashard Lewis is playing up to the contract he signed. And Mickael Pietrus, a possible X-Factor, is the offensive/defensive spark off the bench that just might get on Kobe’s nerves. The Lakers came so close, yet so far last year. Derek Fisher wants another ring really bad; like ‘I’ll throw an illegal pick and act like nothing happened’ bad. Lamar Odom has come to realize that he can’t hide behind his own talents and expect for his team to prosper. Pau Gasol knows his way around the Triangle Offense and more importantly gained a much needed backbone in the paint. And Luke Walton could very well be the X-Factor of the series of the Lakers come out on top. In my view, Orlando has the advantage over Los Angeles in the front court and in 3-point shooting. The Lakers doesn’t have a sure answer for Howard. And if they are forced to double team him, their defense in the passing lanes better be championship quality or the Magic will destroy them from behind the 3-Point line. Los Angeles has the advantage in the back court and the bench. Bryant is an advantage in himself. If the Magic has any chances of winning the title, they must frustrate Bryant early and often. This is not about shutting Bryant down so that his teammates score or otherwise. If the Magic steals either Game 1 or Game 2 in LA under the 2-3-2 series format, the pressure is on #24. And if LA falls behind by two games, you will see the selfish, bratty Kobe show up. Yes, the same Kobe that showed up last year and we all saw what happened then. NEWS JUST IN: Lakers guard, Shannon Brown was served his papers for a civil suit by an unidentified woman for an alleged sex-related incident in Denver of all places? It supposedly went down while he was a Charlotte Bobcat this past January before he was traded to the Lakers. Ya’ll can have that one. I won’t keep you long, so here is my prediction: The Orlando Magic will win their first NBA Champion, 4-2 and Rashard Lewis will be the NBA Finals MVP. Will “Deshair” Foskey is a social journalist/blogger with New Jersey as his home state and AllHipHop.com as one of his many passions. Deshair […]

Berto Scores Lopsided Decision Over Urango WBC welterweight champion Andre Berto proved he was a few classes above powerful Juan Urango last Saturday (May 30), winning a pedestrian, wide unanimous decision in his third defense. Although moving up from 140 pounds, the tank-built Urango had no qualms about being the aggressor, immediately stalking after Berto while looking to land hard shots to the body. Meanwhile, Berto made good on his AllHipHop.com interview promise to “test” the challenger’s chin by ripping flashy hook combinations to the head. But Urango kept plodding forward. Berto, perhaps fearful of another wild slugfest like the Luis Collazo bout, constantly clinched whenever the Colombian got within striking range. This “shock ‘em and lock ‘em” strategy was not fan-friendly and elicited constant verbal warnings from the referee. But with no points being deducted, the tactic ensured the limited Urango would not get on track. As the fight moved into the later rounds, Urango carried the demeanor of a fighter frustrated and without answers on how to attack his foe. Because of the holding and being spun in different directions by Berto’s movement, the 140 pound titleholder was content to flurry to the body in clinches. Final scorecards for the bout read 117-111, and 118-110 twice for Berto, whose records improves to 25-0, 19 KOs. Juan Urango falls to 21-2-1, 16 KOs. In the post-fight interview, the young champ critiqued his performance and made a declaration that he’s ready for the elite of the division. “I thought I did all right. In a few spots I thought I got a little lazy,” Berto explained to HBO’s Max Kellerman. “I got lazy in some spots because I kinda felt it was coming a little too easy. But you know he is a tough guy. A hard puncher. A little bulldog. We just used our boxing a little bit….I think I am ready. I think I showed a lot in my last few fights. I think I showed heart. I think I showed I can bang with the best. And at the same time I showed I can box and stick to the game plan. I’m turning into a complete fighter now. There’s more to come. Always more to come. I’m going to watch this tape, learn from it, and go back to the drawing board.” Last Saturday’s result puts the young champ in an interesting spot. Undoubtedly, this was not Berto’s breakout fight, and it won’t entice any of the big names (Mosley, Mayweather, Pacquiao, Cotto) to bite with all the huge dollar signs swirling between them. With the possibility of getting in one more fight before the year is out, who can offer an intriguing, challenging matchup for Berto? In our interview, I suggested Zab Judah, who is set to face Matthew Hatton in his next bout. Assuming he’s successful, both guys could greatly benefit with a win over each other. For Berto, Zab would be the biggest, most recognizable name on his ledger. For Judah, he’d pick up a belt at welterweight and be right back in the mix. Additionally, if Clottey upsets Cotto in a few weeks, a Berto-Clottey showdown would partially unify the division. We’ll see where his management team takes him. On the undercard, Kermit Cintron redeemed himself from his recent career missteps by outpointing previously undefeated prospect Alfredo Angulo. Cintron dominated early with a snapping jab and counter hooks against an unusually listless Angulo, who was content to simply follow Cintron around and walk into counter traps. However, Angulo had several chances late to turn the tide as Cintron began to fade under the constant pressure. But the former welterweight titleholder smartly held when his stamina failed, and eeked out the 12th to secure the decision. Final scorecards read 116-112, all for Cintron, who raises his record to 31-2-1, 27 KOs. Alfredo Angulo suffers his first defeat and falls to 15-1, 12 KOs. Mosley-Mayweather, Over 10 Years in the Making? Welterweight champion Shane Mosley pulled no punches two weeks ago in calling out long-time rival Floyd Mayweather. Sugar Shane bluntly accused Mayweather of ducking him and challenged him to a megafight. See below: Mayweather was obviously not amused, and responded in kind. “Since Shane is running his mouth and trying to be disrespectful, he just moved down the hit list,” Mayweather retorted. “One thing I promise my fans, they’re all going to get it one by one.” The “hit list” is part of Mayweather’s newly signed 5-fight deal with Golden Boy Promotions. According to Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer, 3 verified names on the list are Manny Pacquiao, Miguel Cotto, and Shane Mosley. What many people may not know is that Mosley and Mayweather have been waging a war of words and callouts for over 10 years. In 1998, a young Floyd Mayweather tried to secure a fight with Mosley, who was then an undefeated champion and knockout artist at lightweight. Perhaps wanting the fight to build up, Mosley turned down the still relatively unknown Mayweather. In 2000, Mayweather again tried calling out Shane. But Mosley had a bigger, multi-million dollar fish to fry in Oscar De La Hoya. In his signature fight, Mosley jumped 2 weight classes to welterweight and beat the Golden Boy in a classic performance. On the other hand, Mayweather slowly built his name up from 2001-2005, most notably with wins over the late Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo (2X). In January ’05, Mayweather again called out Mosley, who was rumored to be returning to welterweight after decisive decision losses to Winky Wright. Nothing ever materialized, as Mosley only had 2 fights in 2005 against lower-level competition, in part to readjust himself to welterweight after years away. But in 2006, Mosley jumped back to 154 for two lucrative fights against Fernando Vargas. The entertaining scraps resulted in back to back knockouts for Mosley. At this time, both men had their best chance to date to face each other, as Mayweather had several possible PPV dates in 2006. Unfortunately, […]

It’s an exciting time in the welterweight division for boxing fans. With the return of former boxing pound for pound #1 Floyd Mayweather, the weight class adds his name to a list of big names which includes Shane Mosley, Miguel Cotto, and Manny Pacquiao. The one name you don’t hear as often is undefeated young gun Andre Berto, who defends his WBC portion of the welterweight title this coming Saturday (May 30) on HBO (9:45 ET) against hard-punching Juan Urango. At 25, Berto finds himself not mentioned among the proposed “super fights” of division, as the established vets look to cash out through careful matchmaking. But time is on Andre Berto’s side. And less than four years into his career, the Haitian star is reaching a level where even the older superstars won’t be able to ignore him much longer. AllHipHop.com: First champ, thanks for making time while in training camp for the May 30 fight. Andre Berto: Oh no problem man I appreciate it. AllHipHop.com: This is your third defense of the WBC title. How has your training been going? Berto: Training camp is going real well. I’ve been trying a lot of new things in this camp I haven’t done before. I brought some other members to the team. This is probably the best training I’ve ever had. It’s been hard and intense. I’m definitely in good shape. AllHipHop.com: Juan Urango’s a pretty dangerous puncher, at least at 140 pounds. We’ll see as he’s moving up in weight now for this fight. And you know some of your critics have been questioning your chin because of the one knockdown last year. When you’ve been reviewing the tape of Urango, what have you been focusing on to nullify his punching power? Berto: Like you said, he’s a really strong puncher at 140. We’re gonna see whether he’s going to bring that up with him to 147. We’re working on a lot of different things. His best punch is the right hook. We worked on going away from that, moving when we have to. But at the same time, I’m a big puncher too at 147. I don’t feel that he’s ever fought another big puncher. I’m just as strong as he is. So I’m going to test out his chin also. AllHipHop.com: Your January fight with Luis Collazo was a Fight of the Year candidate. You showed a lot of poise in that bout even though there were a lot of rough patches. Was there anything new that you learned about yourself as a fighter going through those tough 12 rounds? Berto: Yeah, a lot of what I saw is that I have the stamina and the heart. And that I can keep my composure in rough times. I went into that fight for the first time in my career not really prepared like everyone normally sees me, physically and mentally. We had a lot of things going on through camp. I pretty much came into that fight at a 50% range. People who really know me could tell. But at the same time it still showed a lot that I was able to show a lot of poise and heart. I answered a lot of questions for myself. AllHipHop.com: Before Shane [Mosley] fought Antonio Margarito, it seemed like HBO was trying to push him into a fight with you. Do you think that’s going to be difficult now with Mayweather and Pacquiao back in the mix at 147? Berto: It’s all good, though. It’s more competition for us in general. I’m not too much in an extreme rush. I’m the youngest guy in the top group and I’m world champion. Eventually everything is going to come back to me. [The fights] are going to be there for me. I don’t look at it like a fight is being taken away from me. Its more fights getting prepared for me in the future with a lot of big names. AllHipHop.com: You’ve been self-critical of some of the defensive lapses you’ve had in past fights. Where do you see yourself at now as far as your defensive skills? Berto: I believe in every fight, people have seen me grow and evolve as a professional on nationwide TV and HBO. I’ve had half of my career fights rated on a television scale. So people can see the progression when it comes to the defense, speed, and being poised in there. I’m being more of a professional fighter. In every camp I try to work on a lot of new things. When you stop learning, you’re pretty much stuck. I’m my biggest critic. AllHipHop.com: On that note, I think a lot of people forget that 4 years ago you were still an amateur fighter. What has been the biggest adjustment from moving to a professional? Berto: I pretty much always had a professional style in the amateurs. The toughest thing is just to stay composed throughout 12 rounds. You get used to just going 4 rounds and throwing as many punches as you can throw and be aggressive. The main thing for a lot of amateurs turning pro is to take your time and set up a lot of your shots. I believe with me that has been the toughest thing to get used to. But like you said, people do forget I’m 4 years in. There are a lot of high expectations. But you got to keep working. AllHipHop.com: I remember early last year, around January or February, you had a fight on the table with Zab Judah which he ended up turning down. Today of course you’re now a bigger name. Zab is still where he’s been at the last few years but is still a name opponent. Do you think that is a fight that you’d still be interested in, or do you feel you’re past that point in your career as a champion? Berto: Zab is always in the position he is because of his name. He can […]

Ok, so let me get this right. Nike wants a Kobe Bryant vs. Lebron James NBA Finals; Vitamin Water wants it; I’m beginning to believe that even the NBA wants it… and now YOU? Say it isn’t so, please. I understand that people want to see two of the best players on the planet go head-to-head for the jewelry. But the truth is, how often will they actually play one-on-one? Let the records show that The Black Mamba is a Shooting Guard and King James is a Small Forward. The Black Mamba can play two positions at a high level while King James could play all five positions easily. Wait, for the young’ns, I’d like to give you a quick history lesson. Your Kobe vs. Lebron is my Jordan vs. Magic. And while many people compare Lebron to Michael Jordan, Lebron is built and plays more like Magic Johnson. Magic was the ultimate Floor General and could play all positions as he once accomplished his rookie year when the Lakers Center, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar went down. Kobe is the closest to Michael Jordan as any player will come for quite some time. But even when the Chicago Bulls played the Lakers in the 1991 NBA Finals, Scottie Pippen was the one that neutralized Magic, not Michael. Back to the future… no matter how prolific and “unstoppable” Kobe Bryant is on the court, physically, he doesn’t match up to Lebron James. I know what you’re thinking… I’m just playing with you; I really don’t know what you’re thinking. Lebron James is the anomaly of his profession: 6’ 8”, 260 pounds of pure aggression. And on a fast break, dude is a LearJet 85 tearing the runway apart before lift off. Just doesn’t seem all that fair to me. Do you know what I want? I know that the Nuggets and the Cavaliers are down 0-1, both losing games that were winnable up until the last two minutes. In my eyes, the Anthony vs. Lebron Finals is where it’s at. Yes, Carmelo Anthony, the only player in the league that could stand up to Lebron without a double team. Yes, the Carmelo Anthony that can score from anywhere on the court and has come into his own during the playoffs. Yea, I know, the same Carmelo that co-signed the “Stop Snitching” campaign, but that’s another story. I can see the NBA with a stubbed toe scrambling to promote this matchup: Anthony vs. James, guaranteed that one of these Gold Medal winners will grab their FIRST NBA Championship. You must admit that it has a certain RING to it. Quick Opinions By the time you get to this, former Atlanta Falcons Quarterback, Michael Vick will be at home with his family after serving a year and a half bid for his role in the running of an illegal dog fighting ring (I typed ‘ring’ again). While he has two months of home confinement to serve (sentence ends July 20) there is a heated debate about whether Vick deserves a second chance at the NFL. And to those that believe that Vick should rot in a cell forever for his actions, I’m sure that there is a mountain full of rocks you can kick. Was Vick in the wrong for his actions? Socially, on a mainstream level, emphatically, YES he was. All we hear about was the fact that his original apology wasn’t remorseful enough. That’s true, it wasn’t. He grew up on dog fighting, watching dogs being put down by his family and friends, the sheer gore of it all, so why would he be remorseful about something he experienced his entire life? Simply put, Michael Vick has lost more than most of us will ever gain in our lifetimes for his actions. So if he isn’t remorseful by now, he can kick rocks right along with his protestors. Will “Deshair” Foskey is a social journalist/blogger with New Jersey as his home state and AllHipHop.com as one of his many passions. Deshair has two projects in the works for a Summer ’09 launches.

This just in: the World Champion Boston Celtics have been eliminated from the playoffs by the #2 seed, Orlando Magic. And if you’re surprised by these turn of events, you’re probably hugging your green “Brotherhood” t-shirt right now. How could this be? How could one of the most resilient teams in the NBA lose at home to the upstart Magic? While some would say that not having Kevin Garnett (KG) — on the floor played a big part in their exit, those with any sense of how this game should be played would look at the structure of the Celtics and realize that a changing of the guard has been in effect since the beginning of the season. Starting Point Guard, Rajon Rondo was described as a liability during the Championship run last year. Now, Rajon is considered a top-10 point guard in the league, a triple-double generator, and an enforcer of sorts. Just a short time ago, Glen “Big Baby” Davis was seen on the bench crying the tears of a clown because of his lack of intensity on the court. Now, his shooting range has expanded from 15 to 18 feet, he is becoming a terror under the board, and his clutch game in the final 5 minutes has surpassed any of his “Big 3” mentors. Yes, you’ve read me right. The environment is changing in Boston, and there is nothing that any of the “Big 3” can do about it. All-Stars Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce caught the NBA off guard last season, steam rolling their competitors on the path toward their first championship ring. And with each Game 7 they endured for that bling, the wear and tear on their nearing “past their prime” bodies leaked into this season. Neither player can go hard for 36 minutes, let alone 48. The tale of the first 3 ½ quarters is a tale of conservation of energy and glimpses of their past greatness. Kevin Garnett went hard on Glen Davis after the loss of a huge lead, not because of the threat of losing the game, but for the fact that losing the lead so quickly meant he’d have to step back on the court without a full rest. Maybe KG knew something about his knee early on in the season that we didn’t. Ray Allen, wow, what can be said about his game? Boston fans were hoping for the second coming of Jesus (Shuttlesworth) and to their dismay, they have a player that is lights out at a foul line that he hardly makes it to anymore. Ray once put fear in his opponents. His abilities to go clutch at the drop of a dime was the stuff that becoming legendary was made of. Now, defenses are bypassing his talents to defend the streaky Eddie House? Ray misses wide-open dunks, lay-ups and jumpers when an entire Celtics nation needs it most. I wouldn’t be surprised if his head is the first one rolling. And the captain, Paul Pierce, the silent killer on the court, and the heart of this squad is a fighter still. Yet, he has to be the only player in the league that can score 24 points a game and you don’t remember any of them. His versatility on the court peeled away as the season went along. I’m sure he was playing through an injury because if he had left in his arsenal was on the right side of the top of the key for an elbow jump shot, his driving to the basket on that very same side, minus the explosiveness that made Pierce, “The Truth.” In a post-game interview, Eddie House took a risk by stating what many Boston – and non-Boston—fans were thinking: Rajon Rondo played more like the captain of the team; that the Celtics lived and died on how well Rondo played. Paul Pierce is a survivor and the current face of the Celtics. He just better not miss 20 games next season. So here is what I suggest to the Celtics nation. Prepare yourself for the next surge three seasons from now. Because it is only a matter of time before Glenn “Big Baby” Davis, Eddie House and the recently injured Leon Powe are in the starting lineup. And the “Big 3?” Well the Big 3 will only be seen together doing the “Three Amigos Dance” on outdated Sportscenter commercials. The only saying is that, “All Good Things Must Come to an End.” In this case, those good things ended last season.