Big Boxing Thread

[The Baron]

@ESPNUK: Amir Khan says an announcement concerning his proposed fight with Floyd Mayweather is "very close": http://t.co/oAsHMpXDYn

[mondatoo]

Pretty hilarious Mayweather saying he won't fight Manny and that he's not even on the radar using the excuse of his recent record but looks set to agree to fight Kahn.

Lol Politics, lol Boxing.

[The Baron]

It really is a shame Floyd's 0 will hide his crap fights and dodges.

Greatest of all time my arse. (He'll fight Manny in 6 months when a shoe in)

[redarmi]

It really is a shame Floyd's 0 will hide his crap fights and dodges.

Greatest of all time my arse. (He'll fight Manny in 6 months when a shoe in)

I don't like Mayweather but he has fought Gatti, Hatton, Marquez, De La Hoya, Mosely, Cotto, Alvarez.  He hasn't exactly fought patsies his entire career.  Of course he will probably be defined by the fact he never fought Manny but given Manny's recent performances I would think he probably regrets that now and whilst I think the greatest of all time is debatable he is without doubt the best fighter of our generation.

[The Baron]

Manny is the obvious one but he fought various on his terms or when past it. DLH & Mosely would fall into that category with definite clever timing around Margacheato and Cotto. And Castillo result was a joke.

How many of that list would you call peak fighters in their own weight class?

It's not so much a PBF criticism. It's a boxing today criticism. It's not even politics any more, it's fear. Fear of a 1 instead of a 0. The greats were great because they lost and came back and certainly didn't duck other dangerous guys.

Tbh my frustration is more with Froch ATM. I screamed my head off for the guy at the O2 in May. He's just another modern day boxer though. I'm annoyed more with myself for believing his bullshit.

Neither was necessarily the best in their division at certain times. I certainly won't put guys like these in my best of a generation category.

Apologies. Rant over.

[mondatoo]

Boxing really is a joke.

Mayweather really just has it absolutely boxed off, makes a huge % of the money involved in all his fights, all his fights are completely on his terms as his opponents are just so desperate for the small % they get since it's so much more than any other fight available.

Pacquioa was the first fighter he came up against that wouldn't bow down to Mayweather and give him full control, so when they should've fought when they were both in there prime there ego's prevented that from happening, I don't blame Manny though, for telling Floyd were to go, at the time they were seen as equal so the reported offer from Mayweather was a joke, almost like he wanted Manny to turn it down, you could say 

Makes me angry everytime I think about this fight, and I think about it a lot lol. I just want one of them to retire then it's done, coz they ain't ever getting in the ring, and there's only one person to blame for that.

I don't really see how anyone could now dispute the fact that Floyd is a little bit wary to say the least of fighting Manny, his excuses are just dumb and make no sense, no doubt Pacman would get it on tmoro.

[AdamM]

ITV3 have been showing a series of hour long warts and all documentaries on notable sporting figures recently, and I just watched the Chris Eubanks one.

They don't make them like him and his generation anymore.
I find it hard to get excited about boxing these days, having been a hardened MMA fan since the late 90s, what a golden age that was.

It's really nice to see the genuine warmth and love between Eubank and his old foes Benn and Watson.
The three were both so tightly matched.

I'd forgotted the details of the second Watson fight.
After the extremely narrow points win the first time, Eubanks openly admits Watson completely pwned him for 11 rounds in the rematch. He got knocked down in the 11th and felt a release, as if he'd come to terms with the fact he was going to lose this fight, and lose his unbeaten record. He dragged himself to his feet, threw one solid uppercut, and that was the punch that (combined with the poor medical care that followed) caused Watson's career ending brain damage..
Eubanks still barely holds back tears talking about it now.

It was a really fascinating watch, with accounts from Eubanks, Watson and Benn on their accounts of events back then.

[DaveShoelace]

Love Benn and Eubanks, they are two of the four fighters I remember really well when my Dad forced boxing on me I started watching boxing as a kid (The other two being Naz and Bruno). If there was a fighter like Eubank around now people would just think it was a lame gimmick. On his day I think Eubank might have been our best ever boxer.

Three of my fave Eubank fights he lost - Calzaghe and the two against Carl Thompson, he put on an amazing performance in each one and probably could have won all three were it not for the fact that he was always a little gunshy after Watson.

[AdamM]

Love Benn and Eubanks, they are two of the four fighters I remember really well when my Dad forced boxing on me I started watching boxing as a kid (The other two being Naz and Bruno). If there was a fighter like Eubank around now people would just think it was a lame gimmick. On his day I think Eubank might have been our best ever boxer.

Three of my fave Eubank fights he lost - Calzaghe and the two against Carl Thompson, he put on an amazing performance in each one and probably could have won all three were it not for the fact that he was always a little gunshy after Watson.

Yeah, that's the way the programme told it.
Although he went on to defend his title a few more times, until Collins dethroned him, he never stopped another fight after Watson. He lost the will to finish because he genuinely feared killing a guy.

[The Baron]

Larry Holmes Ringside special was great IMO. He's rated himself as no 1 ever but his rating of Tyson vs the golden era was pretty good!

[The Baron]

Broner has gone for the rematch. Quite surprised by that. I guess you can't question his bottle.

[millidonk]

Get in. IBF ordered rematch of Froch v Groves. Apparently to take place within 90 days. If Froch ducks he vacates. Bring it on.

[Tal]

IBF demand Froch-Groves rematch in the next 90 days or Froch loses his belt

Wowzers!

In other news, Tal beaten to the punch by Millidonk

[mondatoo]

Get in. IBF ordered rematch of Froch v Groves. Apparently to take place within 90 days. If Froch ducks he vacates. Bring it on.

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/boxing/25883588

Makes no sense ?

[millidonk]

Get in. IBF ordered rematch of Froch v Groves. Apparently to take place within 90 days. If Froch ducks he vacates. Bring it on.

www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/boxing/25883588

Makes no sense ?

Page won't load on my phone. What doesn't make sense? cliffs on article.

Tal, standard practice kid.