Boxing !

[H2O Man]

March 6
At Uncasville, Conn. (HBO): Devon Alexander vs. Juan Urango, 12 rounds, WBC/IBF junior welterweight unification; Derric Rossy vs. Zack Page, rematch, 12 rounds, heavyweights; Steve Forbes vs. Harrison Cuello, 10 rounds, junior welterweights; Ryan Coyne vs. Paul Jennette, 8 rounds, cruiserweights; Angelo Santana vs. Francisco Palacios, 6 rounds, lightweights; Antonio Sanchez vs. Eric Ricker, 4 rounds, junior welterweights; Andres Navarro vs. James Hope, 4 rounds, lightweights


At Rancho Mirage, Calif. (Showtime): Vic Darchinyan vs. Rodrigo Guerrero, 12 rounds, for Darchinyan's WBC/WBA junior bantamweight title; Leonardo Zappavigna vs. Fernando Angulo, 12 rounds, lightweights; Lateef Kayode vs. Chris Thomas, 8 rounds, heavyweights; Ruben Rivera vs. Angel Osuna, 6 rounds, junior middleweights; Emad Ali vs. Brent Urban, 6 rounds, heavyweights; Michael Anderson vs. Anthony McDavitt, 4 rounds, welterweights

The month of March is going to be outstanding for boxing fans. Tonight, for example, both HBO and Showtime feature very interesting main events. Each of these fights is worth watching, although the HBO match appears a bit better on paper.

Let's start with the junior bantamweights. Vic Darchinyan is almost always highly entertaining to watch. He is extremely strong, hits like a mule, and has absolutely no fear in the ring. His goal is simple: he always wants to knock his opponent out.

From 2000 to 2007, he was not only undefeated, but was considered likely to be able to move through the lower weight classes, and win another three or four titles. Some people believed he would capture more than that. But a funny thing happened on his way to the Hall of Fame – a youngster named Donaire, given little chance of surviving 5 rounds against the champ, was looking to avenge a brutal KO his older brother suffered at Darchinyan's hands. Nonito Donaire found that by using his greater reach, he could catch the overconfident champion with solid punches. And, in that 5th round, he knocked VC unconscious, in one of the biggest upsets in years. (When Darchinyan regained consciousness, and found out he had lost his crown, he wanted to continue to fight right then and there. The guy doesn't put on an act. He is intense.)

Since then, VC has won fights against opponents that are his own size, but suffered a decision loss and been held to a draw against heavier foes. His record is an impressive 33-2-1, with 27 KO victories. But, he is 34 years old, and beginning to slow down a half-step.

Guerrero, a southpaw from Mexico, is 13-1-1, with 9 KO victories. His draw came in his first fight, and the lone decision loss three fights later. Since then, he has developed into a tough, hard-punching fighter. Most of his fights have been against relatively soft competition, but he has proven his ability against the two top contenders he has faced. It should be interesting to see if he is ready for this large of a step up at this point in his young career.

Juan Urango is 22-2-1, with 17 wins by KO. His two losses came when he moved up in weight, to face Ricky Hatton and Andre Burto. Urango, who is a smaller version of Oscar Bonavena, hurt Hatton seriously with his body attack. He has great physical strength, a solid punch, and is an aggressive fighter. Most opponents find his attack overwhelming, and begin to look to merely survive after a few rounds. It's easy to get discouraged when one hits Urango, who is as solid as a brick wall.

However, Alexander, 19-0 with 12 knockouts, is one of the best young prospects in the sport. He is coming off an impressive knockout victory over Junior Witter. While Devon looked better against Witter than anyone else had, there is reason to suspect that he caught the former champion at an opportune time.

It's good to see two alphabet champions willing to put their titles on the line in a unification bout. But, even without these titles at stake, this would still be one of the more interesting fights of 2010.

Not a bad way to pass time waiting for the Pacquiao vs Clottey fight next weekend! Enjoy the fights.

[JonLP24]

1. I think I remember Urango from FNF

If it wasn't him then it was someone else with the same name. Can't remember the fight very well. I haven't been catching many FNF due to NBA/College games. I'll have to get back to that. Enjoy the fights! :toast: