Imagine you are Antonio Margarito. Your impressive July beat down of Miguel Cotto was a rousing success both in pulling pay-per-view buys and in garnering media attention. Casual sports fans have started recognizing your name and maybe even your face.
The sky is the limit. Right? Well, not so much. There are so few people out there for you to fight for your deserved huge payday. Shane Mosley? Yawn, that guy never caught the public’s eye. Paul Williams? Nobody knows him and maybe he’s a little too dangerous. Zab Judah? I’d have a good time at least. Ricky Hatton? Um, …read more

Image details: The Contender Challenge – UK v USA served by picapp.com
The boxing reality show The Contender has found a new home, a new weight class, and its most impressive roster of fighters yet. After one season on NBC, and two on ESPN, the showcase for up-and-coming fighters will now be shown on the Versus Network. Let’s hope it does better than their famously low-rated NHL coverage. The new season will begin in December.
In the past few months Versus has intermittently put its toes in the boxing waters; its most notable event being May’s Ricky Hatton vs. Juan Lazcano bout. …read more

Image details: Juan Manuel Lopez v Juan Brea served by picapp.com
If you stayed with the end of Showtime’s Sergio Mora victory over Vernon Forrest then you probably missed HBO’s opening bout. Heck, if you blinked you might have missed Juan Manual Lopez’ declarative first round TKO and WBO super bantamweight-grabbing win over Daniel Ponce de Leon.
The 24-year-old Puerto Rican destroyed the 27-year-old Mexican first dropping him with a straight left halfway through round one. Ponce de Leon got up but was out on feet an Lopez pounced. He stalked Ponce de Leon around the ring finally cornering him at …read more

One after the next The Contenders have come and gone. Unimpressive, overhyped and out of their league. Until tonight. In a startling but well-deserved victory Sergio Mora outworked Ring Magazine’s #1 junior middleweight and WBC super welterweight champ Vernon Forrest to earn a majority decision win.
Few gave Mora a chance. Conventional wisdom said he was a club fighter who got a chance against the two-time Shane Mosley slayer not because of skill but because of his marketability. For the first three rounds this standard line of thinking seemed accurate. But in the fourth Mora landed some punches, found his groove, …read more

Before February 9, 2008 Paul Williams was feared by most, ducked by many, and intriguing to all. His gangly 6′1″ welterweight frame combined with his relentless punching style seemed unstoppable. But then a funny thing happened: Carlos Quintana. The respected but lightly regarded Puerto Rican was given little chance — he was listed as an 8 to 1 underdog — but managed to dominate the South Carolinian from Round One onward; winning a close unanimous decision that was more definitive than the close cards implied.
After his unexpected loss Williams immediately exercised his rematch clause setting up this Saturday’s …read more