July Pound for Pound List

Here's the pound for pound list for July:

1. Manny Pacquiao

Manny erased any doubt about who is the best in the sport by knocking out Ricky Hatton brutally within 2 rounds. He owns significant victories from 112 lbs all the way to 147 lbs. Those types of stats are almost unheard of in this day and age.

Up Next for Manny: Miguel Cotto on November 14th

2. Bernard Hopkins

Bernard continues his inactivity as we start to wonder whether he will ever return. His most recent wipe out of Kelly Pavlik is not yet a year old but seems long past. B-Hop has a resume full of fights against future hall of famers. Marquez could blow by Hopkins if he can pull off the upset against Floyd Mayweather not to mention potentially other fighters as well.

Up Next: Possibly a fight with Carl Froch or Tomasz Adamek but at this point nothing seems to be in the works.

3. Juan Manuel Marquez

Two incredibly close fights with Manny Pacquiao, a solid victory over Joel Casamayor and an entertaining TKO of Juan Diaz. Marquez has hardly made any mistakes but Manny's destruction of Hatton creates a lot of room between them unless, of course, Juan Manuel Marquez can defeat Floyd Mayweather Jr in September.

4. Paul Williams

Still underrated but clearly one of the top fighters in boxing. His victories over Winky Wright, Antonio Margarito, Verno Phillips and Carlos Quintana along with his versatility across weight divisions plant him solidly in the top 5. Williams' biggest challenge is to attract fights with top opposition given his lack of drawing power and the risk he poses in the ring.

5. Shane Mosley

His close fight with Miguel Cotto and destruction of Antonio Margarito make him the top welterweight and put him 5th on our list. He now needs to stay active and probably settle the score with Cotto or land a big fight with Pacquiao or Mayweather to avoid slipping.

The Next Oscar De La Hoya Gets Pummeled

Victor Ortiz, 22, was being heralded as the next Oscar De La Hoya but last night he was set back to reality after a destruction at the hands of Marcos Maidana, 25. Maidana stopped Ortiz in the 6th round after a constant battering that left Ortiz's left eye swollen and shut. It was an action packed fight that proved the resiliency of Maidana as he stayed tough throughout the fight.

Ortiz may have just made too large a step up in competition too soon. Amir Khan was only 21 when he fought 25 year old Breidis Prescott and got knocked out. He wasn't ready for that fight and it seems Ortiz was not ready for the Maidana fight. Sometimes young fighters think they can win fights without the right fight strategy fully developed beforehand. It's better to have such losses early in your career as has happened with Ortiz and Khan. Khan has already shown signs of learning from his mistakes against Prescott and seems to be coming back stronger. I think Ortiz will do the same and hopefully recover.

Mayweather - Marquez Rescheduled and Bernard Hopkins Next Opponent

The Floyd Mayweather versus Juan Manuel Marquez fight has been rescheduled to September 19th. That is very close to Mexican Independence Day (Sept. 16th) so should ensure a bigger draw in case the original date wasn't pulling in the numbers the Mayweather camp wanted to see. With Manny Pacquiao about so sign a deal to fight Miguel Cotto in November we are not going to see Mayweather - Pacquiao until next year.

In other news, Bernard Hopkins is close to finalizing a deal with Tomasz Adamek for a fight between them in January of next year. If Bernard can pull out that victory in his mid-40s the legend of Bernard Hopkins will certainly grow stronger.

Wladimir Klitschko Further Establishes Himself as the Heavyweight King

Wladimir Klitschko posted a solid knockout of Ruslan Chagaev last night to further cement his status as heavyweight king. He took another belt (Ring Magazine title) while dismantling a top 5 heavyweight. There don't seem to be too many challenges out there for him at the moment. David Haye is more of a big fight from a box office perspective and has the tools to make the fight tricky for Klitschko but most would not give him a significant chance to dethrone the champ. Cristobal “The Nightmare” Arreola is the other name that is thrown around but he is still developing and needs to improve his conditioning before being considered a real threat for Wladimir. At 33, Klitschko could dominate for another few years and it will be interesting to see if anyone steps up to give him a real run for his money during that time.

In other action from last night, I saw a terrific MMA fight involving Clay Guida and Diego Sanchez. Guida has the most incredible chin I've seen in a long time. He took some massive shots to the head including a monstrous kick but hung in there eventually losing a close decision. What a character this guy was to watch with his long hair, mean stare and aggressive put it all out there fighting style. I find MMA fights to be up and down similar to boxing but this one was pretty exciting to watch.

Miguel Cotto versus Manny Pacquiao

It looks like the Miguel Cotto - Manny Pacquiao fight is all but set for November 14th. The delay of the Floyd Mayweather - Juan Manuel Marquez fight probably forced Pacquiao and Bob Arum to take the Cotto fight. Cotto has the same promoter as Pacquiao so this fight was easy to make. If Mayweather was fighting next month a Mayweather - Pacquiao fight was very likely for the end of the year. That was the biggest fight in boxing. With the injury to Mayweather that fight will have to wait as Pacquiao will now fight his next best option in Cotto.

I see the Cotto fight being a very dangerous fight for Pacquiao. Pacman's last two victories were against Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton. De La Hoya was well past his prime while Hatton was at 140 lbs and much smaller than Cotto. Cotto is a true welterweight and in his prime as a fighter. In fact, he is arguably the best welterweight since he has beaten Shane Mosley. Pacquiao is stepping up to a major challenge against the much bigger Cotto. Pacquiao is truly looking to set himself apart and taking no easy fights on his way to legend status. If he beats Cotto and then beats Mayweather he will truly have become one of history's greatest fighters and almost certainly this generations greatest.

Manny was ringside for Cotto's fight against Joshua Clottey last Saturday and probably felt he could exploit some of the weaknesses he saw. Pacquiao's speed and precision will be a huge obstacle for Cotto as long as Pacquiao is not intimidated by Cotto's size and power. Definitely looking forward to this fight while patiently waiting for a Mayweather showdown.

Both Amir Khan and Floyd Mayweather Fights will be Delayed

Floyd Mayweather suffered a rib injury last week while training. He has been unable to fight through it so will have to delay his fight with Juan Manuel Marquez. The new date is uncertain but it looks like the originally scheduled July 18th date will be delayed until sometime in September. Floyd said he was disappointed to make the move but felt he needed to be in top shape for the fight. If the fight moves to September it may happen on Mexican Independence day weekend which usually makes for a big draw when any Mexican fighter is involved. It's disappointing for all fans given the excitement around the fight but I'd rather see two healthy fighters in the ring so I guess we'll have to be a little patient for this one.

Andreas Kotelnik suffered a tooth infection that is preventing him from sparring during training for his fight with Amir Khan. It looks like this may delay their June 27th fight (unless the Khan camp can find a replacement on short notice). Kotelnik has yet to decide whether he can fight or not. We should know by early next week (Monday or Tuesday).

There seem to be a lot of cancellations or postponements in recent months. The other major fight that was called off was the David Haye - Wladimir Klitschko show down. Haye suffered a back injury and was devastated when Wladimir decided to fight Ruslan Chagaev instead. This was despite the fact that Haye was willing to come back only 3 weeks after the originally scheduled June 20th date. Now, Haye is looking to set something up with Vitali Klitschko for September. Either Haye fight would be huge in England given his popularity and the status of the Klitschkos in the heavyweight division.

Cotto Wins Close Split Decision Against Clottey

Miguel Cotto beat Joshua Clottey via a close split decision in a fight that saw Cotto suffer an early accidental cut. The cut was caused by a head butt and forced Cotto to fight through adversity and he succeeded. Cotto never gave up and stayed in there with Clottey until the end squeaking out the win. I predicted a close decision so this puts me back on track with my predictions but more so I knew Clottey was a tough customer and he didn't disappoint.

Up next for Cotto could be a lot of opportunities including Manny Pacquiao and a rematch with Antonio Margarito. The Pacquiao fight is probably just a negotiation lever for Bob Arum when he tries to make Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather but a rematch with Margarito is more likely. Margarito is on a one year suspension because of a foreign substance found in his gloves during his loss to Shane Mosley. Cotto would love to avenge his earlier loss to Margarito in a rematch. As for Clottey, he also has a few possibilities given his strong showing. Arum talked about putting Clottey in with Paul Williams which would be very interesting. The other possibility is title holder and up and comer Andre Berto which would also be an entertaining fight.

Joshua Clottey vs Miguel Cotto

Tonight is a significant welterweight battle between two of the best in the division. Both Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey are solid top three welterweights who have one thing in common - they both lost to Antonio Margarito. Cotto has defeated current welterweight king and Margarito beater Shane Mosley which gives him a bit of an edge against Clottey who has not faced that level of competition outside of his loss to Margarito. I see this as a very close fight that defines the future of the welterweight division and potentially an opponent for Shane Mosley. Expect this to be very close as both fighters are solid and won't go out lightly. I see this fight going the distance with a decision win for Miguel Cotto. Clottey is solid but Cotto is a force and should get the better shots in this fight. Definitely worth watching and an interesting fight for true boxing fans to enjoy.

June Pound for Pound List

It's a little late but here is the pound for pound list for June:

1. Manny Pacquiao

Manny erased any doubt about who is the best in the sport by knocking out Ricky Hatton brutally within 2 rounds. He now owns significant victories from 112 lbs all the way to 147 lbs. Those types of stats are almost unheard of in this day and age.

Up Next for Manny: Likely the winner of Juan Manuel Marquez and Floyd Mayweather Jr.

2. Bernard Hopkins

Bernard continues his inactivity as we start to wonder whether he will ever return. His most recent wipe out of Kelly Pavlik hasn't been forgotten yet though. B-Hop has resume full of fights against future hall of famers. Marquez could blow by Hopkins if he can pull off the upset against Floyd Mayweather.

Up Next: Possibly a fight with Carl Froch but at this point nothing seems to be in the works.

3. Juan Manuel Marquez

Two incredibly close fights with Manny Pacquiao, a solid victory over Joel Casamayor and an entertaining TKO of Juan Diaz. Marquez has hardly made any mistakes but Manny's destruction of Hatton creates a lot of room between them unless, of course, Juan Manuel Marquez can defeat Floyd Mayweather Jr on July 18th.

4. Paul Williams

Still underrated but clearly one of the top fighters in boxing. His victories over Winky Wright, Antonio Margarito, Verno Phillips and Carlos Quintana along with his versatility across weight divisions plant him solidly in the top 5. Williams' biggest challenge is to attract fights with top opposition given his lack of drawing power and the risk he poses in the ring.

5. Shane Mosley

His close fight with Miguel Cotto and destruction of Antonio Margarito make him the top welterweight and put him 5th on our list. He now needs to stay active and probably settle the score with Cotto or land a big fight with Pacquiao or Mayweather to avoid slipping.

We'll try to be on time next month with our rankings ... promise!

The David Haye / Wladimir Klitschko Saga

It turns out David Haye has injured his back and won't be able to fight Wladimir Klitschko on June 20th. Klitschko wants to fight anyway (with someone else of course) while Haye wants to delay the fight to July 11th (which isn't that far off either). I suspect Haye is really injured as this was a fight he lobbied aggressively to sign and probably wouldn't risk losing his shot. Also, he is looking to reschedule within less than a month which is very aggressive (especially if he is seriously injured). Such a quick return may be indicative of Haye rushing back to make sure the fight does not get canceled. The Klitschko camp are saying now that they want to fight Ruslan Chagaev on June 20th in place of Haye. Chagaev is certainly deserving of the shot given his undefeated record and wins against other top ten heavyweights. I just don't see that fight being as interesting and appealing as a fight with Haye.

Haye has the potential to surprise Klitschko with his speed and power. Most boxing writers are predicting an easy win for Klitschko given his sound boxing fundamentals, significant size advantage and Haye's questionable chin. I think there is a significant x-factor in Haye's speed and power which gives him a punchers chance that many of the pundits are not considering fully. Given that Klitschko's chin has been susceptible in the past it's not impossible that he could get knocked out against Haye. If Klitschko does not stay disciplined consistently throughout the fight then anything can happen.

The fight will no doubt be big at the box office relative to any other possible fight at heavyweight. Far bigger than a Chagaev fight. Lets hope that Wladimir's camp reconsider and accept a July 11th date with David Haye.