Dan Rafael: Nonito Donaire
For months, Top Rank talked about putting on a July 14 pay-per-view card at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, but now it looks like the talk is over and there won't be a show.
Originally, Top Rank's Bob Arum said the card would be headlined by Mexican star Juan Manuel Marquez, who won an interim junior welterweight belt in April, and that junior featherweight titlist Nonito Donaire would fight in the co-feature.
Then Arum said Donaire wouldn't be on the card because the company would give him his own date (probably June 30 on HBO). Even without Donaire, Marquez would still headline, Arum said. But no deal had been finalized with a television company to distribute the event and Marquez had no opponent.
Top Rank was talking to HBO about working on the show, and Top Rank certainly could have done it on its own, but time is running short to mount a legitimate pay-per-view promotion.
Then came the usual steady stream of discussion about whom Marquez would fight. Junior welterweight titlist Lamont Peterson was originally mentioned, but he instead accepted a rematch with Amir Khan (which was supposed to have taken place last Saturday but was canceled when Peterson tested positive for a synthetic testosterone).
Other names were mentioned for Marquez: fellow Mexican star and future Hall of Famer Erik Morales (a fight I've wanted to see for about a decade), former titlist Zab Judah, former lightweight titlist Brandon Rios (coming off a gift decision against Richard Abril that most sane people thought was a very obvious Abril victory) and the utterly unknown Mercito Gesta, a talented Filipino lightweight who is, alas, nowhere near ready to face a fighter of Marquez's caliber.
In the end, after all the talk, Top Rank pulled the plug on the event Monday because Marquez elected not to fight on the pay-per-view. From what I hear from those around Marquez, the financial package wasn't to Marquez's liking. Plus, he didn't want to fight Rios, the opponent Top Rank wanted him to face.
Marquez had previously said he preferred a southpaw opponent (Judah and Gesta would have fit) in anticipation of a possible fourth fight with Manny Pacquiao, a left-hander, in the fall.
Now Marquez might instead wait to see what happens in the June 9 Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley Jr. fight. If Pacquiao wins, Marquez figures to be at the top of the list for Pacquiao's November opponent.
Arum had been in talks with Main Events' Kathy Duva about a Marquez-Judah fight, but according to Duva, Arum told her Monday that "Marquez has decided not to fight at all in July."
Zanfer Promotions, which has a promotional contract with Marquez but works closely with Top Rank, said it is possible Marquez could still fight this summer -- but in Mexico on July 21 or July 28, likely against a lesser opponent.
Originally, Top Rank's Bob Arum said the card would be headlined by Mexican star Juan Manuel Marquez, who won an interim junior welterweight belt in April, and that junior featherweight titlist Nonito Donaire would fight in the co-feature.
Then Arum said Donaire wouldn't be on the card because the company would give him his own date (probably June 30 on HBO). Even without Donaire, Marquez would still headline, Arum said. But no deal had been finalized with a television company to distribute the event and Marquez had no opponent.
Top Rank was talking to HBO about working on the show, and Top Rank certainly could have done it on its own, but time is running short to mount a legitimate pay-per-view promotion.
Then came the usual steady stream of discussion about whom Marquez would fight. Junior welterweight titlist Lamont Peterson was originally mentioned, but he instead accepted a rematch with Amir Khan (which was supposed to have taken place last Saturday but was canceled when Peterson tested positive for a synthetic testosterone).
Other names were mentioned for Marquez: fellow Mexican star and future Hall of Famer Erik Morales (a fight I've wanted to see for about a decade), former titlist Zab Judah, former lightweight titlist Brandon Rios (coming off a gift decision against Richard Abril that most sane people thought was a very obvious Abril victory) and the utterly unknown Mercito Gesta, a talented Filipino lightweight who is, alas, nowhere near ready to face a fighter of Marquez's caliber.
In the end, after all the talk, Top Rank pulled the plug on the event Monday because Marquez elected not to fight on the pay-per-view. From what I hear from those around Marquez, the financial package wasn't to Marquez's liking. Plus, he didn't want to fight Rios, the opponent Top Rank wanted him to face.
Marquez had previously said he preferred a southpaw opponent (Judah and Gesta would have fit) in anticipation of a possible fourth fight with Manny Pacquiao, a left-hander, in the fall.
Now Marquez might instead wait to see what happens in the June 9 Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley Jr. fight. If Pacquiao wins, Marquez figures to be at the top of the list for Pacquiao's November opponent.
Arum had been in talks with Main Events' Kathy Duva about a Marquez-Judah fight, but according to Duva, Arum told her Monday that "Marquez has decided not to fight at all in July."
Zanfer Promotions, which has a promotional contract with Marquez but works closely with Top Rank, said it is possible Marquez could still fight this summer -- but in Mexico on July 21 or July 28, likely against a lesser opponent.
IBF deserves credit for handling of Solis
January, 30, 2012
Jan 30
1:43
PM ET
By
Dan Rafael | ESPN.com
Your random thoughts ...
Anyone who reads my work knows I'm no fan of the way the sanctioning bodies do business. Most of their rankings are pathetic, and most of them break their own rules with impunity. And then there are the multiple titleholders per division they crown, which is one of the cancers of boxing.
However, there are times when an organization does something right and deserves credit. Although the WBA, WBC and WBO regularly hand out multiple titles per division, including the dreaded interim titles, I'll give credit to the IBF for its judicious and appropriate use of them.
Interim titles should be used in only one scenario: when the titleholder is legitimately injured and will be unable to defend the belt for an extended period. It isn't fair to strip somebody because of an injury, but neither is it fair to keep a title tied up during a lengthy injury.
The IBF has a provision in its rules regarding when it can use an interim title, and it's going to use it now -- for the right reasons.
Junior flyweight titlist Ulises "Archie" Solis of Mexico is injured. He hasn't fought since August and likely will be out of action for several more months, which will take him at least three months past the time during which he would have been expected to make a mandatory defense.
So the IBF has agreed to allow its two highest-rated 108-pound contenders to vie for the interim title. That means former titlist Luis Lazarte of Argentina and Johnriel Casimero of the Philippines will meet Feb. 10 in Argentina for the interim belt.
And what makes the IBF's rule legit is that it won't mess around: When Solis returns, his next defense will have to be against the winner of the interim title bout -- the way it should be. This isn't the way it's handled by the other organizations, which have allowed titleholders and interim titleholders to go about making defense after defense without being ordered to face each other.
The only negative in this IBF situation is that Solis has already had to fight Lazarte, the dirtiest fighter in boxing, twice. In 2010, Solis was robbed in Argentina in a draw with Lazarte, in which the referee and scoring were so poor that the IBF ordered a rematch. The fighters met again in 2011, with Solis outpointing Lazarte in another terrible fight. It would be a shame if they had to meet again. That's one rule the IBF could stand to tweak -- dropping the loser in a mandatory fight low enough in the rankings so that an entirely unnecessary fight isn't foisted on the titleholder and public.
But the interim title usage by the IBF is exactly as it should be. IBF championships chairman Lindsey Tucker, who has served in his role since 2003, is a by-the-books guy. Under his watch, this will be only the third time the organization will employ the use of an interim world title. It used it in 2004 when junior welterweight champ Kostya Tszyu was injured and Sharmba Mitchell claimed the interim belt (and later got knocked out by Tszyu, upon his return). In 2006, Julio Diaz claimed the interim lightweight title when Jesus Chavez was on the shelf because of an injury, and when Chavez returned he lost to Diaz.
Anyone who reads my work knows I'm no fan of the way the sanctioning bodies do business. Most of their rankings are pathetic, and most of them break their own rules with impunity. And then there are the multiple titleholders per division they crown, which is one of the cancers of boxing.
However, there are times when an organization does something right and deserves credit. Although the WBA, WBC and WBO regularly hand out multiple titles per division, including the dreaded interim titles, I'll give credit to the IBF for its judicious and appropriate use of them.
Interim titles should be used in only one scenario: when the titleholder is legitimately injured and will be unable to defend the belt for an extended period. It isn't fair to strip somebody because of an injury, but neither is it fair to keep a title tied up during a lengthy injury.
The IBF has a provision in its rules regarding when it can use an interim title, and it's going to use it now -- for the right reasons.
Junior flyweight titlist Ulises "Archie" Solis of Mexico is injured. He hasn't fought since August and likely will be out of action for several more months, which will take him at least three months past the time during which he would have been expected to make a mandatory defense.
So the IBF has agreed to allow its two highest-rated 108-pound contenders to vie for the interim title. That means former titlist Luis Lazarte of Argentina and Johnriel Casimero of the Philippines will meet Feb. 10 in Argentina for the interim belt.
And what makes the IBF's rule legit is that it won't mess around: When Solis returns, his next defense will have to be against the winner of the interim title bout -- the way it should be. This isn't the way it's handled by the other organizations, which have allowed titleholders and interim titleholders to go about making defense after defense without being ordered to face each other.
The only negative in this IBF situation is that Solis has already had to fight Lazarte, the dirtiest fighter in boxing, twice. In 2010, Solis was robbed in Argentina in a draw with Lazarte, in which the referee and scoring were so poor that the IBF ordered a rematch. The fighters met again in 2011, with Solis outpointing Lazarte in another terrible fight. It would be a shame if they had to meet again. That's one rule the IBF could stand to tweak -- dropping the loser in a mandatory fight low enough in the rankings so that an entirely unnecessary fight isn't foisted on the titleholder and public.
But the interim title usage by the IBF is exactly as it should be. IBF championships chairman Lindsey Tucker, who has served in his role since 2003, is a by-the-books guy. Under his watch, this will be only the third time the organization will employ the use of an interim world title. It used it in 2004 when junior welterweight champ Kostya Tszyu was injured and Sharmba Mitchell claimed the interim belt (and later got knocked out by Tszyu, upon his return). In 2006, Julio Diaz claimed the interim lightweight title when Jesus Chavez was on the shelf because of an injury, and when Chavez returned he lost to Diaz.
• I was disappointed that President Obama took more than an hour to deliver his recent State of the Union address and couldn't find even a moment to bring up the national need for a Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight.
• I'm looking forward to my first trip to San Antonio later this week to cover the Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.-Marco Antonio Rubio and Nonito Donaire-Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. doubleheader. Friday's weigh-in is scheduled to take place in front of the Alamo. That should be pretty cool -- and probably means I will remember the Alamo.
• Chuck Giampa ... um, I forgot what I was going to write.
• Has Rico Ramos thrown a punch yet against Guillermo Rigondeaux?
• I happen to think that the Edwin Rodriguez-Donovan George super middleweight bout can't possibly be a boring fight. Promoter Lou DiBella and HBO went with that fight to open the March 17 card headlined by Sergio Martinez-Matthew Macklin when they couldn't finalize a fight for Andy Lee. I'm not disappointed. Rodriguez-George is a more interesting fight than any of the opponents who were mentioned as possible Lee foes.
• So Andre Dirrell has left adviser Al Haymon and promoter Gary Shaw and has created his own promotional company. Delusion knows no bounds in this business.
• Poor Cornelius "K9" Bundrage. The junior middleweight titlist has been kept maddeningly inactive by promoter Don King and now is saddled with an absolutely horrible mandatory defense against Cory Spinks, who brings no fan interest and whom Bundrage already destroyed to win the belt in the first place.
• Congratulations to Amir Khan on his engagement.
• I really hope Top Rank and HBO can finish a deal for Brandon Rios and Yuriorkis Gamboa to go right into a fight with each other April 14 rather than wasting time on a card with each of them in interim bouts. Fingers crossed.
• The good news is that the Alexander Povetkin-Marco Huck heavyweight title bout was sanctioned. The bad news is that the winner must face Hasim Rahman next. Ewwww.
• British super middleweight prospect James DeGale, a 2008 Olympic gold medalist, says he has left promoter Frank Warren and is a free agent. Warren says he still has DeGale under contract until April 14, 2013. This one should be fun to follow.
• Gotta be honest: It's hard to get excited for the April 28 rematch between Bernard Hopkins and Chad Dawson. But at least with it taking place in Atlantic City, N.J., I won't have to fly cross-country for it, as I did for the first fight in Los Angeles.
• Happy 28th birthday to junior welterweight titlist Lamont Peterson and 22nd birthday to welterweight Thomas Dulorme, one of the best prospects in boxing.
HBO's 2012 first quarter looking good
December, 15, 2011
12/15/11
2:55
AM ET
By
Dan Rafael | ESPN.com
HBO put a solid 2011 in the books last week with Lamont Peterson's upset of Amir Khan to win a pair of junior welterweight titles in an exciting fight, albeit one saddled with the controversy of two questionable point deductions of Khan, which impacted the result.
Now attention can turn to 2012. Ken Hershman will take over as president of HBO Sports on Jan. 9, after leaving rival Showtime in mid-October for the gig -- one he couldn't start right away because of his contract with Showtime.
So while HBO waits for Hershman's arrival, the folks running the department for the time being, namely Mark Taffet and Kery Davis, have done a good job of putting together the first few cards of the year, even if they did lose the Feb. 11 Victor Ortiz-Andre Berto rematch to Showtime, after putting on their first (terrific) fight in April.
Despite that loss -- and make no mistake, it's a loss, especially when you consider how good the first fight was, how well it performed ratings-wise and how much money HBO has invested in the careers of Ortiz and Berto over the past few years -- the schedule being put together for the early part of the year looks very good. Let's take a look:
• Jan. 28: HBO is due to kick off its boxing year in Houston with a card that will be announced at a news conference Thursday: Future Hall of Famer Erik Morales will defend his (paper) junior welterweight title against energetic youngster Danny Garcia. When I first heard about the fight, I was a bit surprised it was happening because it wasn't a match I had ever contemplated. I figured Morales would look for a much bigger name for a fight that would generate more money. But Morales has never ducked anyone, and Garcia is one of the 140-pound division's rising contenders. They are both with Golden Boy, meaning it was a relatively easy fight to make. Morales' title is a joke, but that doesn't take away from the matchup. How can this not be an action fight?
I like the undercard fight, too, as it pits all-action junior middleweight James Kirkland -- coming off his memorable battle with Alfredo Angulo -- against Carlos Molina, who muscled his way into the 154-pound top 10 with an excellent recent run. He deserves this kind of fight. Frankly, Kirkland could shadowbox and it would probably be exciting.
• Feb. 4: HBO will stay in Texas -- San Antonio this time -- for the next installment of the Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. show. He'll defend his version of the middleweight title against an opponent to be named, and either of the fighters being mentioned for the assignment are solid: veteran contender and former title challenger Marco Antonio Rubio and undefeated junior middleweight contender Vanes Martirosyan. I'd prefer to see Rubio in the fight, but either would be a good opponent for Chavez, who usually makes for crowd-pleasing fights.
I love the undercard fight. Nonito Donaire, one of the best fighters in boxing, is leaving the bantamweight division, where he was champion, for the junior featherweight division to face former titlist and top-five 122-pounder Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. for a vacant belt. Simply, I think this will be an action fight for as long as it lasts.
• Feb. 25: Marcos Maidana is like Kirkland in that both are prodigious punchers and make action fights no matter who they face. For this one, Maidana is moving up to welterweight and going to St. Louis, the hometown of his opponent, former junior welterweight titlist Devon Alexander, who is also rising in weight. It's a good style match, too, with Maidana (a pure brawler and banger) clashing with Alexander (a speedy technician). The winner will become a player in a very lucrative division.
The undercard features newly crowned junior lightweight titlist Adrien Broner in his first defense, against fellow undefeated fighter Eloy Perez. Considering how weak the 130-pound division is overall, it's a reasonable first defense for Broner. If Broner wins, you at least know you'll be amused when he busts out his hairbrush after the fight.
• HBO has two other shows in the works. A March 3 card is tentatively supposed to feature Brandon Rios and Yuriorkis Gamboa in separate fights. Rios, who failed to make weight and was stripped of a lightweight belt before his Dec. 3 win, may still fight at lightweight. His opponent is not determined. Gamboa, who is moving up from featherweight, likely will fight at junior lightweight. One name I've heard mentioned as a possible opponent is titlist Juan Carlos Salgado, which would be a nice fight. Rios and Gamboa, who may eventually fight each other, are two of the most exciting fighters around, so to get a chance to watch both on the same card in legitimate matches is a good thing.
The other card being discussed is for March 17 -- St. Patrick's Day -- with middleweight champ Sergio Martinez likely facing Irishman Matthew Macklin in New York. An excellent matchup, with a crowd that will be going bonkers. Andy Lee, another Irish fighter and a top middleweight contender, probably will be on the televised undercard, according to promoter Lou DiBella.
I wouldn't classify any of the fights on HBO's early 2012 schedule, or on the drawing board, as megafights. But to me, they are all worthy shows (assuming Chavez, Rios and Gamboa are matched legitimately) that should provide the two most important things: action and entertainment.
Now attention can turn to 2012. Ken Hershman will take over as president of HBO Sports on Jan. 9, after leaving rival Showtime in mid-October for the gig -- one he couldn't start right away because of his contract with Showtime.
So while HBO waits for Hershman's arrival, the folks running the department for the time being, namely Mark Taffet and Kery Davis, have done a good job of putting together the first few cards of the year, even if they did lose the Feb. 11 Victor Ortiz-Andre Berto rematch to Showtime, after putting on their first (terrific) fight in April.
Despite that loss -- and make no mistake, it's a loss, especially when you consider how good the first fight was, how well it performed ratings-wise and how much money HBO has invested in the careers of Ortiz and Berto over the past few years -- the schedule being put together for the early part of the year looks very good. Let's take a look:
• Jan. 28: HBO is due to kick off its boxing year in Houston with a card that will be announced at a news conference Thursday: Future Hall of Famer Erik Morales will defend his (paper) junior welterweight title against energetic youngster Danny Garcia. When I first heard about the fight, I was a bit surprised it was happening because it wasn't a match I had ever contemplated. I figured Morales would look for a much bigger name for a fight that would generate more money. But Morales has never ducked anyone, and Garcia is one of the 140-pound division's rising contenders. They are both with Golden Boy, meaning it was a relatively easy fight to make. Morales' title is a joke, but that doesn't take away from the matchup. How can this not be an action fight?
I like the undercard fight, too, as it pits all-action junior middleweight James Kirkland -- coming off his memorable battle with Alfredo Angulo -- against Carlos Molina, who muscled his way into the 154-pound top 10 with an excellent recent run. He deserves this kind of fight. Frankly, Kirkland could shadowbox and it would probably be exciting.
• Feb. 4: HBO will stay in Texas -- San Antonio this time -- for the next installment of the Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. show. He'll defend his version of the middleweight title against an opponent to be named, and either of the fighters being mentioned for the assignment are solid: veteran contender and former title challenger Marco Antonio Rubio and undefeated junior middleweight contender Vanes Martirosyan. I'd prefer to see Rubio in the fight, but either would be a good opponent for Chavez, who usually makes for crowd-pleasing fights.
I love the undercard fight. Nonito Donaire, one of the best fighters in boxing, is leaving the bantamweight division, where he was champion, for the junior featherweight division to face former titlist and top-five 122-pounder Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. for a vacant belt. Simply, I think this will be an action fight for as long as it lasts.
• Feb. 25: Marcos Maidana is like Kirkland in that both are prodigious punchers and make action fights no matter who they face. For this one, Maidana is moving up to welterweight and going to St. Louis, the hometown of his opponent, former junior welterweight titlist Devon Alexander, who is also rising in weight. It's a good style match, too, with Maidana (a pure brawler and banger) clashing with Alexander (a speedy technician). The winner will become a player in a very lucrative division.
The undercard features newly crowned junior lightweight titlist Adrien Broner in his first defense, against fellow undefeated fighter Eloy Perez. Considering how weak the 130-pound division is overall, it's a reasonable first defense for Broner. If Broner wins, you at least know you'll be amused when he busts out his hairbrush after the fight.
• HBO has two other shows in the works. A March 3 card is tentatively supposed to feature Brandon Rios and Yuriorkis Gamboa in separate fights. Rios, who failed to make weight and was stripped of a lightweight belt before his Dec. 3 win, may still fight at lightweight. His opponent is not determined. Gamboa, who is moving up from featherweight, likely will fight at junior lightweight. One name I've heard mentioned as a possible opponent is titlist Juan Carlos Salgado, which would be a nice fight. Rios and Gamboa, who may eventually fight each other, are two of the most exciting fighters around, so to get a chance to watch both on the same card in legitimate matches is a good thing.
The other card being discussed is for March 17 -- St. Patrick's Day -- with middleweight champ Sergio Martinez likely facing Irishman Matthew Macklin in New York. An excellent matchup, with a crowd that will be going bonkers. Andy Lee, another Irish fighter and a top middleweight contender, probably will be on the televised undercard, according to promoter Lou DiBella.
I wouldn't classify any of the fights on HBO's early 2012 schedule, or on the drawing board, as megafights. But to me, they are all worthy shows (assuming Chavez, Rios and Gamboa are matched legitimately) that should provide the two most important things: action and entertainment.
BACK TO TOP
Page: 1
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Dan Rafael
Dan Rafael is ESPN.com's boxing writer. Rafael began writing for ESPN.com in March 2005 after working for five years as the boxing writer for USA Today. He can be reached on Twitter at danrafaelespn.