Froch, Kessler Reignite Three-Year-Old Rivalry

by Kiearn Mulvaney

In the immediate aftermath of his first, back-and-forth, give-and-take tussle with Mikkel Kessler, before the rationalization and defiance kicked back in, Carl Froch’s eyes told the story. So too did his words.

Appearing uncharacteristically downcast, the preternaturally super-confident Englishman looked at girlfriend Rachel Cordingly as the two embraced in the ring.

“I’m sorry,” he said.

Cordingley’s response – a disbelieving “What?” – was more than the effort by a loving partner to be consoling; it was a genuine and legitimate expression of disbelief that, after 12 rounds of Herculean effort, Froch could possibly feel that, win or lose, he had failed in any possible way.

The judges’ scorecards provided the explanation for Froch’s apology: Kessler had won a unanimous decision. But it had been a truly titanic battle, one that most neutral observers considered to be closer to the 115-113 card of Guido Cavellari than Roger Tilleman’s 117-111. As the disappointment ebbed, Froch’s swagger ultimately returned with the assertion that had the fight been in England rather than Kessler’s Denmark, the result might have been different.

He has the opportunity to put that theory to the test on May 25 when, three years after their initial encounter, super-middleweights Froch and Kessler clash again, this time in London, on HBO World Championship Boxing.

Read the Complete Carl Froch vs. Mikkel Kessler Fight Overview on HBO.com

Five Fighters Follow a Familiar Outline

by Kieran Mulvaney

When boxing fans of a certain age look back on what is generally regarded as the most recent Golden Era of boxing, they reflect not only on the fact that the sport then boasted a quintet of exceptional talent – Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran, Marvin Hagler and Wilfred Benitez – but that they (and this must always be pointed out with earnest, brow-furrowed emphasis) fought each other.

Of course, they did not always fight each other at the perfect time. Leonard had hinted at wanting to fight Hagler earlier than he did, and in November 1982 even held a press conference that everyone expected was to declare his challenge to the middleweight champion – heck, he even specifically invited Hagler for the occasion – only to instead announce his retirement from boxing (his first of many, as it turned out). Not until almost three years later, after he saw signs of rust in Hagler’s aging chassis, did Leonard emerge from what was already his second retirement to stick-and-move his way to the middleweight crown. None of them fought Duran at anything close to the Panamanian’s prime – except for Leonard, which is one reason why he is the only one of the group to lose to him. And Leonard, Duran and Hearns continued to fight each other long past the time when they should have been warming their feet in comfy slippers by the fireside.

But still, at their peak, they locked horns with enough skill and tenacity to burn themselves into the sport’s lore. “No mas!” and “You’re blowing it, son!” are shorthand for the second Leonard-Duran contest and Leonard’s comeback victory in his first battle with Hearns. The two-plus rounds in which Hagler and Hearns went to war are reverently regarded still as perhaps the greatest eight minutes or so in boxing history.

(Benitez is the Joey Bishop or Peter Lawford of this pugilistic Rat Pack, but he played his role with skill, losing to Leonard and Hearns and defeating Duran.)

It would be premature – and to many, borderline sacrilegious – to compare any group of fighters around the welterweight division to those legends of 1980s vintage, but there is a nice five-person round-robin rivalry underway that kicks into high gear with a pair of bouts later this year: one in Las Vegas, one in Macau.

Timothy Bradley spent plenty enough time calling for a big fight; his 2011 meeting with Devon Alexander was expected to be it, but turned out to be a damp squib. His challenge the following year for Manny Pacquiao’s welterweight crown was his first shot on the biggest of big stages, but it didn’t exactly work out the way he wanted. He appeared to lose the fight, albeit valiantly; instead he was awarded a victory that earned him opprobrium from fight fans. He emerged from seclusion to engage in an enthralling Fight-of-the-Year-quality battle with Ruslan Provodnikov, and now earns another turn in the spotlight, against Juan Manuel Marquez.

Bradley is one of the few guys Marquez hasn’t fought so far in a career that has included tilts against Marco Antonio Barrera, Floyd Mayweather and, of course, on four separate occasions Manny Pacquiao. After their rivalry reached its violent crescendo last December, there was inevitably an assumption that Marquez and Pacquiao would tangle a fifth time, but Marquez apparently thought about the last scene of their rivalry – in which Pacquiao lay face-first and unconscious on the canvas – and decided that he was quite happy to leave it there, at least for now.

So Marquez fights Bradley in Las Vegas, and in China Pacquiao will fight Brandon Rios, who is himself in the midst of an epic rivalry with Mike Alvarado. Having stopped Alvarado in their first encounter last year (in what would surely have been Fight of the Year had it not been for Pacquiao-Marquez IV), he lost a decision in another Fight-of-the-Year caliber matchup in March. For now, while he heals from hand surgery, Alvarado is on the outside looking in, but there's a good chance he'll be up next for the winner of either of these two contests.

Five men, fighting each other, and creating epic battles and unforgettable moments along the way.

Sounds kind of familiar, doesn’t it?

After an 11-Year Road Trip, Sergio Martinez Comes Home

by Kieran Mulvaney

When Sergio Martinez last fought in his native Argentina, he was the country’s welterweight champion but largely unknown outside his native land. Of the 25 professional bouts he had contested prior to meeting compatriot Francisco Mora on February 2, 2002, 24 had been in his home nation. The one time he ventured onto foreign soil, the experience was a negative one: fighting Mexico’s Antonio Margarito on the undercard of the first clash between Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera in Las Vegas, he was dropped early and stopped in the seventh round. It was, to that point, his only defeat; after overcoming Mora via unanimous decision, Martinez boasted a career mark of 24-1-1.

In the decade or so since, he has gone 26-1-1; when he enters the ring in front of his home fans in Buenos Aires for the first time in 11 years on April 27, it will be not as a domestic-level welterweight but as the undisputed middleweight champion of the world and, by general acclamation, one of the three or four best fighters in the sport.

That’s a tribute to the skill and dedication that Martinez has shown since he first pulled on a pair of boxing gloves at the remarkably advanced age of 20. It is also a validation of the decision he made after the Mora fight, to take his talent on the road and leave his homeland behind him in search of greater glory.

Though Argentina can lay claim to genuine greats like Carlos Monzon and highly regarded cotemporary warriors like Lucas Matthyse and Marcos Maidana, it is not exactly a hotbed of boxing fame and fortune. That said, neither is Spain, which is where Martinez headed to take his career to the next level; but it is where he met brothers Gabriel and Pablo Sarmiento, the former taking over his training for many years and the latter working in his corner now.

He fought 12 times in total in Spain, rarely against especially distinguished opposition; but he did make a name for himself in three bouts in England, which netted him a minor junior middleweight world title and played a role in his ultimately being given the opportunity to showcase his skills in the United States, which he has been doing ever since.

The Stateside roll call is familiar: a draw against Kermit Cintron in a fight that he really should have won -- twice; the close defeat to Paul Williams followed by the jaw-dropping one-punch knockout win in the rematch; defeats of Kelly Pavlik, Sergiy Dzinziruk, Darren Barker and Matthew Macklin; and, most recently, eleven-and-a-half utterly dominant rounds against Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., capped by a half-round white-knuckle ride of terror as a desperate Chavez knocked him down and pushed forward in search of a most unlikely win.

So it is, at least in terms of achievement and appreciation, a very different Sergio Martinez who will take on Martin Murray at the Estadio Jose Amalfitani on the 27^th than the one who left over a decade ago. This time, his home supporters will cheer him with extra gusto, not just because it has been such a long time since they saw him last, not just because he is now among the best of the best of the best, but because they will know that this engagement will be for one night only. Assuming he defeats Murray --and it will be no easy task -- Martinez will hit the road again, returning to the States for bigger money, higher-profile dates: a Chavez rematch, perhaps, or a mouthwatering clash with Gennady Golovkin.

But such prospects lie in the future. Right now, Sergio Martinez is finally coming home.

Donaire, Rigondeaux Head Lighter Weight Classes

by Kieran Mulvaney

It is often said that as goes the heavyweight division, so goes boxing, and that there is nothing wrong with the sport and its place in the public imagination that couldn’t be solved by the emergence of an exciting Tysonesque heavyweight champion.

Perhaps. But it’s no great secret that some of boxing’s most compelling contests are regularly at lighter weight classes. Who can forget the Marco Antonio Barrera-Kennedy McKinney war that opened Boxing After Dark? Or Barrera’s battles with Eric Morales? Or the unpredictable excitement that accompanied just about every Naseem Hamed performance? The brilliance of younger and lighter versions of Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez? The silky skills of Ivan Calderon, or the dominance of Ricardo Lopez?

This Saturday, HBO’s World Championship Boxing showcases what promises to be the latest in that long line of legendary lower-weight nights when Nonito Donaire clashes with Guillermo Rigondeaux in a matchup between two men who must surely be considered, especially now that Abner Mares has moved to featherweight, the very best fighters under 125 pounds in the world.

Rigondeaux’s exalted position owes little to his professional record – which, comprising just 11 fights (all victories), is incomplete. Instead, it is a testament to the almost legendary status accorded his amateur career, highlighted by two Olympic gold medals. It is a reflection also of the talent he has shown during his brief spell in the paid ranks, epitomized by a counterpunching style that can, should his opponent be stung, morph immediately into an all-out attack.

Donaire, on the other hand, has earned his stripes the old-fashioned way, grinding out wins against difficult opponents when necessary, producing spectacular stoppage wins when possible (check out his demolition of Fernando Montiel for evidence of the latter) and over the course of a 12-year pro career earning world titles at 112, 115, 118 and now 122 pounds. If his moves in the ring don’t seem quite as effortless as his foe’s, they pack more consistent punch, and Donaire has shown an impressive ability to adapt his style to that of the man in front of him, be it a willing brawler like Jorge Arce or a non-combative spoiler like Omar Narvaez.

Donaire, of course, first burst onto boxing’s radar with a 2007 knockout of Vic Darchinyan, who for several years was the terror of the lower weight divisions. Although Darchinyan’s peak has now passed, there are plenty of others ready to assume the mantle he once wore, and over which Donaire and Rigondeaux will do battle on Saturday. Here’s a selection of five to watch out for:

Mikey Garcia

Featherweight Garcia is the biggest of the bunch, and in the eyes of some may have the highest ceiling. Already, at the age of just 25, he is 31-0 with 26 KOs; any doubts about his class at the highest level were eradicated when he dominated Orlando Salido in January.

Roman Gonzalez

Nicaraguan Gonzalez, known as ‘El Chocolatito’, may be the best boxer unknown to most boxing fans. Presently in possession of a world title belt at 108 pounds, and previously a titleholder at 105 pounds, his record after 34 pro fights is perfect. Like Garcia, he is only 25, suggesting there are many opportunities yet for him to showcase his skills on bigger and brighter stages.

Juan Francisco Estrada

It says much for the esteem in which Gonzalez is held that Estrada was granted a title shot against Brian Viloria because he looked relatively impressive while El Chocolatito was beating him. After becoming only the sixth man to take Gonzalez the distance, Estrada moved up to 112 pounds for the shot against Viloria and came away victorious, scoring a split decision win in last week’s HBO2-televised card from Macau, China. A Gonzalez rematch, with Estrada’s new crown at stake, may be on the cards.

Brian Viloria

Write off the ‘Hawaiian Punch’ at your peril. Although his previous three losses were disappointing, the loss to Estrada was a close call in an exciting contest against a guy who may well be better than previously advertised. Viloria has rebounded from each of his earlier setbacks to recapture world title glory; at age 32, climbing that mountain one more time will be difficult, but be certain he’ll make a compelling effort.

Jesse Magdaleno

Big brother Diego may have fallen just short in his first title shot, on that same Macau card last week, but super bantamweight Jesse has long been considered the true class of the family. A real blue-chip prospect with knockout power, the younger Magdaleno scored a third-round stoppage in his last outing, on the undercard of Timothy Bradley’s win over Ruslan Provodnikov, and may be only a year or two away from a title tilt of his own.

Rigondeaux's Hard Decision Leads to Donaire Showdown

by Kieran Mulvaney

As an amateur boxer, Guillermo Rigondeaux seemingly had everything.

The totality of his record is unclear; some reports say he won close to 400 bouts and lost no more than 12, others that he in fact was victorious in 243 and defeated in just four. What is certain is that he secured Olympic gold at the Sydney Games in 2000 and again in Athens four years later. He claimed a pair of amateur world championships, and he was his country's national champion for seven straight years. That country, however, was Cuba.

Cuba is renowned for its conveyor belt of amateur boxing talent, producing Olympic greats such as Joel Casamayor, Teofilo Stevenson and Felix Savon. Yet of them all, says HBO's Max Kellerman in 'Road to Donaire-Rigondeaux', a preview of the Cuban's Saturday bout with Nonito Donaire, "Rigondeaux is the one I was most excited about. He's the one I thought posed the most threat to the pros because he has superb defense and real punching power."

Yet Rigondeaux lived in a country where there was no professional boxing, no opportunity to earn anything for his ability other than gold medals and the gratitude of his nation. So in 2007, he defected. Briefly. Maybe.

In late July of that year, Rigondeaux and countryman Erislandy Lara disappeared prior to their scheduled bouts at the Pan-American Games in Rio de Janeiro; a couple of weeks later, they were found by Brazilian authorities, accused of overstaying their visas, and deported back to Cuba. Although they insisted they had not planned to stay in Brazil and had intended to go back to Cuba, they found on their return they had effectively been unpersoned. Now, even amateur boxing in the Cuban system was denied to them, and so in 2009, Rigondeaux defected again – this time definitively and successfully, taking to the water between Cuba and Florida, the state where he now makes his home.

"It was a very complicated experience," admits the boxer on 'Road to Donaire-Rigondeaux.' "I had to leave my family in Cuba, not knowing when I'd see them again. But what's important is that I can help them from here. As long as they're safe, they'll be OK."

He turned professional in May 2009 against Juan Noriega; in just his ninth professional bout, in January last year, he won a super-bantamweight belt. At times, his fast-but-heavy hands and his wealth of amateur experience have combined to devastating effect, as in that title-winning effort against Rico Ramos, a sixth-round KO win; his first-round TKO victory over Willie Casey; or his stoppage win against Teon Kennedy in June. Occasionally, however, he has looked less than dominant: Ricardo Cordoba pushed him to a split decision at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas in 2010, and in his most recent outing, he was twice wobbled in an otherwise comfortable win over Roberto Marroquin.

Some observers have suggested that the wobbles against Marroquin, combined with a knockdown he suffered against Cordoba, hint at a chin that may not be the strongest. If that is so, there can be little doubt it is a weakness that Donaire will seek to exploit. Rigondeaux, in turn, will look to counter Donaire as the Filipino-American attempts to press his perceived advantages. It is a style matchup that promises both an intriguing chess match and explosive exchanges with the possibility of an early ending for either man.

Whatever happens in the ring, Rigondeaux knows that he has been knocked down before outside it, but risen to beat the count and keep on fighting. If he wins, he will have defeated one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world and will surely be considered to have achieved that level himself. But the very fact that he is at this point, taking on Donaire in New York on HBO, shows that he's already won his most important battle.