By DAVE SKRETTA, AP Sports Writer
Vic Darchinyan’s insults sting about as much as his punches, and considering he’s a four-time champion in two weight divisions, Joseph “King Kong” Agbeko wasn’t surprised at what he heard during the run-up to their bantamweight title fight on Saturday night.
“I think after this fight they are going to change my opponent’s name to Joseph ‘Chimpanzee’ Agbeko,” Darchinyan railed on a joint teleconference. “This is going to be the biggest mismatch. Where would you like me to hurt you most, in the body or in the face?”
Darchinyan will be trying to become a three-division champion when he moves up in weight to challenge Agbeko for his IBF title at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla.
Also on the stacked undercard, former cruiserweight champs Steve Cunningham and Wayne Braithwaite will fight for a mandatory chance at current titleholder Tomasz Adamek, and lightweights Tony DeMarco and Agnes Adjaho will be trying for a shot at WBC champion Edwin Valero. Welterweights Ivan Kirpa and Miguel Rodriguez will also be in the ring.
It’s the two colorful characters in the main event that have attracted all the attention, though. Biting barbs have been flying back and forth for weeks.
“Vic is always talking about his power and about how he’s this and that, but I’ve watched his fights and I never saw that power,” said Agbeko, who’s originally from Ghana and now trains in the Bronx. “He’s always fought guys that are afraid of him and he did what he wanted with them. But in this fight, I’m going to do what I want to do.”
Most observers favor Darchinyan, the Armenia-born Australian who’s been ruthlessly knocking out just about everybody he faces lately.
Darchinyan (32-1-1, 26 KOs) became the first junior bantamweight to unify three belts when he stopped Cristian Mijares in the ninth round of a lopsided fight last November. Three months later, the “Raging Bull” was battering former titleholder Jorge Arce when a doctor stopped their fight at the end of the 11th round.
Darchinyan’s only loss was a stunning fifth-round knockout to Filipino sensation Nonito Donaire—a defeat that Agbeko (26-1, 22 KOs) has rifled back against his brash challenger in their constant verbal sparring.
“Why didn’t he talk like this when Nonito Donaire beat him?” Agbeko said, in response to another zinger from Darchinyan. “I wanted him to talk more, and I want him to realize that I’m going to beat him more than Donaire beat him.”
Agbeko certainly represents one of the toughest challenges Darchinyan has faced, regardless of having to move up in weight. Agbeko’s only loss was a controversial decision to Wladimir Sidorenko in 2004 that even Darchinyan believes was wrongly awarded.
Still, promoter Gary Shaw is nearly as confident as Darchinyan that one of his prized assets will win on Saturday night. Shaw even mentioned possible opponents for his next fight, ranging from a rematch against Donaire to challenging someone like Rafael Marquez at 122 pounds.
“I believe I represent a fighter who will go down as one of the greatest boxers to ever fight in the lower weights,” Shaw said. “Vic and (manager) Elias (Nassar) don’t care about weights. They only want the best fighters, and they believe right now that ‘King Kong’ Agbeko is the best fighter at 118 pounds.”
Friday, July 10, 2009
AP Sources: Showtime close to boxing tourney deal
By DAVE SKRETTA, AP Sports Writer
NEW YORK (AP)—Showtime is putting the final touches on a six-man super middleweight round-robin tournament that will include two current champions and three former U.S. Olympians.
Two people with knowledge of the discussions told The Associated Press on Thursday that the details, possibly including sites and dates, are being worked out this week. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because negotiations were ongoing.
The tournament is expected to include WBA champion Mikkel Kessler and WBC champion Carl Froch along with IBF middleweight titleholder Arthur Abraham. The three Europeans will be joined by former U.S. Olympians Jermain Taylor, Andre Ward and Andre Dirrell.
Showtime issued a statement saying all six fighters would be in New York on Monday for a “groundbreaking boxing announcement,” but declined to elaborate. They have a combined record of 161-4-1 with 117 knockouts.
Abraham, Froch, Dirrell and Ward have never been beaten.
Showtime has made a big investment in the 168-pound division, attempting to build name recognition for many of the participants. Froch knocked out Taylor in the 12th round in April, Ward beat Edison Miranda in May, and Abraham beat Mahir Oral last month.
Unlike elimination tournaments, the format would reward fighters with points based on the decision. A victory would earn two points, with a bonus point for a knockout, and a draw would be worth one point. The four fighters with the most points at the end of the round-robin would advance to seeded semifinals.
“I’ve got a lot to say on every subject, (but) give me a few days to give you something to talk about,” said Dan Goossen, who promotes Ward, when asked about the tournament.
The first scheduled fights would pit Dirrell, a 2004 Olympic bronze medalist, against Froch for the WBC title, with Abraham moving up in weight to fight Taylor.
The tournament could be precisely what boxing needs after a summer in which several big fights were postponed, the heavyweight division remained a mess and mixed martial arts kept cutting into the sport’s stagnant fan base.
Showtime’s plan, which had been rumored for weeks, could provide numerous intriguing fights over the next two years in both the United States and Europe.
“If you can pull this off, it’s genius,” Gary Shaw, who promotes Dirrell, told The Associated Press on Thursday. “It’s what boxing needs in every weight class. This is the best trying to fight the best.”
Shaw put together a 168-pound tournament of his own two years ago on Showtime. But that tournament, with a finale between Jean Paul Mendy and Anthony Hanshaw, did not have the star power that Showtime is attempting to put together this time.
There have been other attempts to create boxing tournaments, with mixed results.
In the 1980s, Don King put together a heavyweight tournament that included Michael Spinks, Larry Holmes and Trevor Berbick. It lasted nearly two years and resulted in Mike Tyson defeating Tony Tucker by unanimous decision to become the undisputed champion.
The tournament had ran into problems when Spinks dropped out for a more lucrative fight.
There are plenty of legitimate 168-pounders who could fill in if someone drops out of Showtime’s planned tournament, although it’s not clear what contingencies are in place for such things as failed drug tests or injuries that might shelve a fighter.
Among those who aren’t involved are IBF champ Lucian Bute, who is scheduled to fight Librado Andrade in a mandatory this fall, WBO champion Karoly Balzsay and top contender Allan Green.
“If anyone would get through a tournament like this, you’d have a superstar,” Shaw said, “a new superstar. And that’s important and good for boxing, and maybe they’ll do this at 140, 154 (pounds). There are a lot of great fighters.”
NEW YORK (AP)—Showtime is putting the final touches on a six-man super middleweight round-robin tournament that will include two current champions and three former U.S. Olympians.
Two people with knowledge of the discussions told The Associated Press on Thursday that the details, possibly including sites and dates, are being worked out this week. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because negotiations were ongoing.
The tournament is expected to include WBA champion Mikkel Kessler and WBC champion Carl Froch along with IBF middleweight titleholder Arthur Abraham. The three Europeans will be joined by former U.S. Olympians Jermain Taylor, Andre Ward and Andre Dirrell.
Showtime issued a statement saying all six fighters would be in New York on Monday for a “groundbreaking boxing announcement,” but declined to elaborate. They have a combined record of 161-4-1 with 117 knockouts.
Abraham, Froch, Dirrell and Ward have never been beaten.
Showtime has made a big investment in the 168-pound division, attempting to build name recognition for many of the participants. Froch knocked out Taylor in the 12th round in April, Ward beat Edison Miranda in May, and Abraham beat Mahir Oral last month.
Unlike elimination tournaments, the format would reward fighters with points based on the decision. A victory would earn two points, with a bonus point for a knockout, and a draw would be worth one point. The four fighters with the most points at the end of the round-robin would advance to seeded semifinals.
“I’ve got a lot to say on every subject, (but) give me a few days to give you something to talk about,” said Dan Goossen, who promotes Ward, when asked about the tournament.The first scheduled fights would pit Dirrell, a 2004 Olympic bronze medalist, against Froch for the WBC title, with Abraham moving up in weight to fight Taylor.
The tournament could be precisely what boxing needs after a summer in which several big fights were postponed, the heavyweight division remained a mess and mixed martial arts kept cutting into the sport’s stagnant fan base.
Showtime’s plan, which had been rumored for weeks, could provide numerous intriguing fights over the next two years in both the United States and Europe.
“If you can pull this off, it’s genius,” Gary Shaw, who promotes Dirrell, told The Associated Press on Thursday. “It’s what boxing needs in every weight class. This is the best trying to fight the best.”
Shaw put together a 168-pound tournament of his own two years ago on Showtime. But that tournament, with a finale between Jean Paul Mendy and Anthony Hanshaw, did not have the star power that Showtime is attempting to put together this time.
There have been other attempts to create boxing tournaments, with mixed results.
In the 1980s, Don King put together a heavyweight tournament that included Michael Spinks, Larry Holmes and Trevor Berbick. It lasted nearly two years and resulted in Mike Tyson defeating Tony Tucker by unanimous decision to become the undisputed champion.
The tournament had ran into problems when Spinks dropped out for a more lucrative fight.
There are plenty of legitimate 168-pounders who could fill in if someone drops out of Showtime’s planned tournament, although it’s not clear what contingencies are in place for such things as failed drug tests or injuries that might shelve a fighter.
Among those who aren’t involved are IBF champ Lucian Bute, who is scheduled to fight Librado Andrade in a mandatory this fall, WBO champion Karoly Balzsay and top contender Allan Green.
“If anyone would get through a tournament like this, you’d have a superstar,” Shaw said, “a new superstar. And that’s important and good for boxing, and maybe they’ll do this at 140, 154 (pounds). There are a lot of great fighters.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
