Fresh off of the best fight of the year, the boxing community is still buzzing. Juan Manuel Marquez and Juan Diaz put on the best fight so far in 2009. I’m not saying it will end up as Fight of the Year but it is certainly the leader in the clubhouse.
The fight itself was amazing. I was surprised with how well Juan Diaz hung in with Marquez. The hometown Houston crowd was really behind their man in Diaz and I’m sure that helped fuel the adrenaline rush for Diaz. The action was non-stop and a clinch was harder to come by than a contract that pleases Manny Ramirez. Diaz got the better of Marquez during many of the exchanges. The best aspect of the fight from a fan’s perspective was each guy chose to immediately punch back after getting hit with a clean shot. Most fighters back off, cover up, or regroup. Every time someone got hit clean the other guy seemed to take it personally and tried to get his revenge lick in as soon as he could.
Juan Diaz is a good fighter but Juan Manuel Marquez is a great fighter. Juan Diaz will very soon be a great fighter. Diaz actually gains a bit in stature and respect despite the loss. Juan Manuel Marquez was already considered a top pound-for-pound fighter and nothing changes there. Marquez called out Floyd Mayweather Jr and Manny Pacquiao as possible future opponents but back-backhandedly stated neither would want to face him. He only wants big fights so it will be interesting to see where he goes from here. Marquez is certainly right about one thing, Floyd Mayweather Jr wouldn’t want anything to do with Juan Manuel Marquez.
Chris John
Chris John made his American debut on the Marquez/Diaz undercard, in what would turn out to be a draw against Rocky Juarez. Chris John is an undefeated featherweight that holds a victory over Juan Manuel Marquez. It was a good fight with Rocky Juarez and while a draw is a conceivable score, it was probably the worst case scenario for Chris John in terms of scoring. John was hoping to use this fight to catapult into bigger fights but that probably won’t happen soon. John doesn’t possess the knockout power that American audiences love and no he’s probably tied into a rematch with Rocky Juarez. And can we put an end to title shots for Rocky Juarez? I’m sure he’ll get a rematch with Chris John but he’s now 0-4-1 in title fights during his career. I’ve grown tired of watching Rocky Juarez losing title fights.
Fantastic February
February was a strong month for boxing. It began with a heated grudge match between Vic Darchinyan and Jorge Arce. February also featured the return of Kelly Pavlik and Miguel Cotto, both of whom rebounded from the first loss of their careers. The month then ended with the awesome battle between Juan Manuel Marquez and Juan Diaz. We’ve been binge drinking on boxing for so long that the hangover is coming and it’s going to be nasty.
There is a nice Boxing After Dark tripleheader on HBO on March 7th but things get a little ugly after that. Marco Antonio Barrera and Amir Khan could be interesting but I doubt it will. Vitali Klitshcko will defend his heavyweight title on ESPN, which is cool in itself but there has been no hype to make a big event feel for the heavyweight title fight. Welcome to the March Hangover.
Miguel Cotto Looks Scarier
Miguel Cotto has always been intimidating and pretty much looked like a badass in the ring. He’s a scary looking dude. Judge for yourself:
Looks pretty intimidating, huh? Well, Miguel Cotto displayed some new body art in his dismantling of Michael Jennings two weeks ago. How about this new look for the power-punching Puerto Rican:
Sorry welterweight division, but Antonio Margarito’s Plastergate has created a monster. Miguel Cotto could feint a punch and cause me to pass out. His new look brings a new aura about Miguel Cotto that he perhaps lost in his last fight. What do you all think?
