HBO – Standing-8

The Return Of The King

In February of 1988, in a hospital in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, Ukraine, Mr. and Mrs. Anatoly Lomachenko welcomed their new baby boy into the world and named him Vasyl, meaning “king”. Ever since the then he has been fulfilling the prophecy.

Vasyl won gold at the 2008 & 2012 Olympic Games, and is arguably the best amateur fighter of all time compiling a mind-boggling record of 396-1, his only defeat, avenged…..twice for good measure.

The blood lines for athletic greatness were strong, his mother a gymnast and trainer, his father an amateur fighter and trainer who has provided the wise guidance to Vasyl since the beginning.

“I can’t even remember how old I was when I first started boxing, but I was very very young” Lomachenko has said. “When I was born, I think they took me straight from the hospital to the gym”

No doubt.

Lomachenko (6-1 4 KO) is poetry in motion. The footwork unmatched, the style as smooth as silk. His skill set is part throwback, part modern-day, and quite frankly, something from the future. Since turning pro in 2013, “Hi-Tech” has dazzled us and caused our minds’ eye to take a moment to process what it just saw . He moves forward then back landing jabs, power crosses and hooks. He works both efficiently to the head and body. The movements as effortless as a painter’s strokes on a canvas, a physical acknowledgement to the hours of dance lessons learned early in life.

Lomachenko is a refreshing addition to, the at times, monotonous performances in the squared circle. He has speed for days and can also bang as evident by his recent string of three straight knockouts.

When the Ukrainian knuckled up with Gary Russell Jr., he was in with arguably the quickest hands in the game. But there was Lomachenko, masterfully defensive as he countered the speed with his movement while surprising Russel Jr. with his own lightning. A southpaw by trade, he was brilliant, immediately going to Russell Jr.’s body from the opening bell to ensure his opponent’s biggest asset would decrease round by round. It was obvious in the championship rounds that the game plan had been executed for optimal effectiveness.

By besting Russell, Lomachenko captured the vacant WBO featherweight title and oh, while he was at it, tied Saensak Muangsurin’s record for the fastest to win a world title as a pro.

In his last fight on June 11, Lomachenko stopped the tough as nails Roman Martinez (29-3 17 KO) in the fifth round with a beautiful partial left uppercut-right cross combination . It was evident early on that Martinez was just not in the same class with the fighter who had twenty-eight fewer fights.

Said Lomachenko after stopping Martinez, a fight he dedicated to The Greatest, the late great Muhammad Ali,

“I want to line up all the best fighters at 130 and see who the best fighter is……..I just came to do my job”

Speculation was that Lomachenko would look to avenge the only loss of his young career in his next bout, a rematch with Orlando Salido, but…..The Axe Man cometh.

The rematch against Salido can be scheduled at a later date… or not. To be honest, we’d rather see Lomachenko in against the Walters’ and Rigondeaux’s of the world. Even grossly outweighed and illegally fouled throughout the fight, Lomachenko still only lost by the slightest of margins via split decision. Lomachenko about had Salido out at the end and while Salido is as tough as they come his skill set is not on par and he would be exposed in a rematch.

And now we get to the matter at hand… this Saturday’s meeting against Jamaican Nicholas Walters (26-0-1 21 KO) from the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas for the WBO World super featherweight title. These are the types of matchups that the fans want to see.

Walters is very compact in his approach and doesn’t waste energy. He is very calculated and throws a sneaky and timely right uppercut. At times, he gets a bit wide on his punches and is susceptible to a power shot down the middle. A straight ahead fighter who uses the shoulder roll effectively and understands how to throw punches from it. He also has a significant reach advantage in this one but for a compact fighter not adept on fighting on the outside, it will be interesting to see if it makes a difference.

If there is one Achilles heel for Walters it is his inability to effectively fight off his back foot. In reviewing tape on Walters, when he is forced to work off his back foot, he does not throw punches and his activity level is non-existent. Very few fighters today work on the outside as well as Lomachenko, his movement will force Walters to fight off his back foot and turn him into a mostly defensive fighter looking for one shot.

Walters is at his best when he is in tight and fighting in close quarters. There will be opportunities in this fight for that to happen but few and far between. The Ukrainian will not oblige Walters in a slugfest but will however, pick and choose when he will throw his own power shots for maximum damage. Make no mistake, Lomachenko can bang, but he is like a surgeon, calculated in his approach and will do so on his own terms.

Another key factor will be the head movement of Lomachenko. He is very skilled at slipping and dodging punches while countering with blistering speed. In addition, while using the aforementioned effortless footwork of a dancer, he is known to spin out of harms way while landing punches with bad intentions. If there is one shot that Lomachenko may have an opportunity to land in this fight, it’s the check left hook. It will be interesting to see if it unfolds.

Walters last faced a southpaw in 2014 when he stopped Vic Darchinyan in five but the Armenian had moments due to his unorthodox movement as he forced Walters to fight off his back foot. Again, something Walters will face against Lomachenko; however, against this lefty, he will be in deep and many, many, levels above in class.

Make no mistake, this will be an excellent matchup that will push both fighters, the best fighting the best, how refreshing.

At the end of the day, the call here is Lomachenko. He has too many tools in the tool belt and his ring generalship is about the best in the game. To already be in the P4P fighter discussion after only seven fights is unheard of. Walters will bring out the best in Lomachenko and we will again have to adjust our focus, grab the remote and rewind the tape to validate what we just saw.

…….It’s good to be the king.

Don’t Sleep On D Wade

One man’s misfortune is another man’s gold. It was rumored that Tureano Johnson was likely the next opponent for unified middleweight titlist Gennady Golovkin; however, due to a shoulder injury Johnson had to pull himself out of the conversation. One thing’s for sure, you better have two good wings when you’re in against a Big Drama Show.

The IBF was forced to move south in their rankings to find an opponent for Golovkin (34-0 31 KO) after Johnson’s injury. Enter Maryland’s Dominic Wade (18-0 12 KO), an undefeated fighter and current mandatory IBF challenger. Golovkin and Wade will knuckleup tonight at the Forum in Inglewood, California.

But who is Dominic Wade? To hear most of the clamor on social media, Wade is simply another sacrificial lamb for GGG in route to his mega bout with Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.

In fact, why would Wade even show up? He’ll be destroyed they say, he barely beat forty year old Sam Soliman in his last fight they say. Blah, blah, blah.

Fact is, Wade loves to fight, is a supremely talented straight ahead fighter with speed and is said to possess some underrated pop. GGG would be wise not to sleep on Wade.

But to understand how Wade got here, you have to know where he’s been.

At the age of nine, Wade was redirected from brawling in the streets to fighting in the ring. In his amatuer career, Wade amassed a record of 167-10 and won the Silver Gloves five times. At the time of his fifth Silver Gloves win, Wade tied Oscar De La Hoya for most wins ever at the tournament since being surpassed by two fighters. In addition to the Silver, Wade also won a Golden Gloves title.

In the 2008 Olympic Trials, Wade had Shawn Porter down on the canvas, was leading on the scorecards, but lost by DQ. Wade had notable wins over Edwin Rodriguez and Fernando Guerrero and fought closely with Danny Jacobs but lost by decision.

Wade turned pro in 2009 at the age of seventeen under the tutelage of Barry Hunter. Regarding the Golovkin fight, his ex-trainer told FIGHTHYPE.com “It is definitely a fight that Dominic can win, but he has to be disciplined….what people don’t realize is that Dominic can crack also, extremely powerful and he can fight inside. If he can take GGG’s crack and take him into deeper waters, than he could shock the world. But he will have to be more disciplined than he has been in his entire career in order to pull it off”

Wade had some promotional differences early in his career which would explain why he only has eighteen fights since turning pro in 2009. His career started to move after signing with Al Haymon in 2013.

In review of the footage from his past fights, Wade exhibits speed, works the body, jabs extremely well, is a combination puncher and a busy fighter. Interesting to note is that Wade possesses vast similarities to Lamont Peterson, not surprising since Peterson also comes from the Hunter School Of Hard Knocks.

To say that this is a colossal leap for Wade in terms of quality of opponent would be, for lack of a better term, a colossal understatement. The most notable names on Wade’s resume are the aforementioned Soliman and Nick Brinson.

Wade told the Los Angeles Times “They making it seem like he’s Superman. I don’t really think that much. I see flaws in his game. I think he’s just basic up and down. But the hype is scaring [people]. I don’t think he’s quick. All I think he has is his strength. Other than that he’s basic and it isn’t a style that I haven’t seen.”

To understand exactly what flaws Wade is hoping to exploit, we will have to wait and see. If Wade can keep an active jab in Golovkin’s face and make him re-set over and over, things could get interesting. Wade can use his speed and possibly catch Golovkin on the way in and we’ll find out early if Wade’s power will make a difference. No surprises here that the key for Wade will have to be his boxing and movement with a few sneaky power shots mixed in.

Wade typically uses a high guard which should provide all sorts of opportunities for GGG’s body work. That said, Wade will know it is coming and if he can use his opponent’s advantages as his own, he may be able to counter the champion with a blistering shot and change the course of the fight.

Those are a lot of big “ifs” but why not Wade and why not now?

It is said that Wade has always had the skillset to be great but his sometimes lack of mental focus and commitment have been his Achilles heel. In viewing interviews with Paulie Malignaggi, Emanuel Taylor, and Fernando Guerrero regarding this bout, the consensus seems to be that Wade has all the talent in the world and can pull the upset if he stays disciplined and active.

Urban legend has it that Wade, as a young kid, gave tough as nails William Joppy a beatdown in the gym……at a time when Joppy was at the height of his career. There is some mysteriousness to Mr. Wade. Is this his time?

GGG’s camp states that they tried to make the unification bout for Canelo Alvarez’ WBC strap but Golden Boy asked for one voluntary defense. Couple this with a failed attempt to put together a unification with Billy Joe Saunders for Saunders’ WBO belt and the Johnson injury and it is now Wade’s journey. By GGG beating David Lemieux and the other fights falling through, he had to face the IBF mandatory or relinquish the belt. Again, all of the stars seem to have aligned for Wade to be right here, right now.

Golovkin’s recent focus seems to have been to have a war of words with many fighters over the past few weeks, none of them named Wade.

As Wade also told the Los Angeles Times, “I don’t think he’s Superman, he’s human just like me, eats the same things I do. So I’m going to take this shot..This is my opportunity to shock the world and that’s what I’m going to do”

Wade is street, Golovkin would be wise not to sleep (on Wade).

Looking Back At The Rise Of The Baddest Man On The Planet

“Iron” Mike Tyson had a Hall Of Fame, sometimes chaotic career inside the ring, and a well publicized tumultuous life outside of it. This article will not cover the gamut nor will it delve into the inner demons that plagued this all-time great. It will simply be one writer’s fond look back at the rise of the baddest man on the planet.

The year was 1986, “Kid Dynamite” screamed the cover of Sports Illustrated’s January 6th edition thirty years ago this week. I was in my senior year of high school and here was this man-child, my age, who SI was prophetically calling “the next great heavyweight”. I had followed the sweet science for about ten years but no other fighter had ever intrigued me like the kid who was knocking out grown ass men with bad intentions.

“Ready To Soar To The Very Top” was the title of the article and Tyson ensured there would be no SI jinx.

After beginning his career in 1985 with an astonishing fifteen fights, all by stoppage, the Cus D’Amato protege from the Catskill Mountains by way of Brooklyn looked to cement his place in history by the end of the year.

In 1986 the internet was nonexistent. There was no Google, no Twitter, and no Facebook, which basically meant you had to rely on TV, radio, newspapers, and magazines, for all of your updates. Compared to today, it was extremely challenging to closely follow an up and coming phenom in real time.

Towards the end of January, I was able to obtain the results from Tyson’s two bouts in the month. It may have been through the results section in The Ring or KO Magazine but I found what I was looking for, Tyson TKO 1 over Dave Jaco and TKO 5 over Mark Jameson.

Beware The Gatekeepers

The next month it happened, I was finally able to actually watch this new terror in the heavyweight division. I believe it was on Wide World of Sports. I watched Tyson knuckleup with his most formidable opponent to date, Jesse “The Boogieman” Ferguson. I remember seeing his trademark peek-a-boo-style for the first time, his gloves held tightly against his lips. As for the fight, I recall Ferguson constantly holding which ultimately led to the stoppage of the fight but it was the textbook, later his signature move, hook to the body followed by the uppercut that floored Ferguson in the fifth that was cemented in my brain. Lethal.

In March, Tyson destroyed Steve Zouski with a looping left hook setting up a May fight with James “Quick” Tillis.

Entering the ring with forty fights of experience, Tillis had the best resume of any Tyson opponent to date failing previously on three bids to capture a version of the heavyweight title with a unanimous decision loss to Mike Weaver, and TKO losses to Pinklon Thomas, and Tim Witherspoon.

For some reason, in 2016, I recall first the Tyson-Tillis exhibition over a year later in 87 then I do their actual fight in 86. Puzzling because in 86, the Tyson unanimous decision, his first fight that had gone the distance, had caused a bit of a controversy as some felt the scores should have been closer.

Tillis gave as good as he got and landed more significant punches on Tyson than any prior opponent. In the fourth, Tillis threw a left hook from the sky and his momentum carried him away from Tyson. As Tillis spun around, Tyson was in the process of countering with his own left hook and as Tillis reacted to move out of the way it grazed him and he went down. Up quickly and not hurt, it would be the difference on two of the three judges scorecards between a draw and a loss. A good test for the young lion coming up through the ranks against a gatekeeper of sorts.

One of my biggest takeaways from this fight was the skillset that Tyson displayed which was unlike most of the bigs in 86. At one point during the fight, Tyson exhibited a move that was more likely to be seen in the welterweight division let alone the heavies. As Tillis moved towards Tyson, Tyson crouched all the way down, knees bent, as he pivoted and dodged shots while recoiling up and throwing combinations.

Blood Is Green

Ah, Mitch “Blood” Green. Tyson held two victories over Green, one in the ring in May of 86 and one out of the ring in August of 88. In the 86 “official” matchup, Tyson would make his debut on HBO. Tyson pressured Green the entire fight causing Green to hold more and more as the fight wore on. This one stuck in the memory bank because I remember thinking Green’s mouthpiece came out after being blasted by Tyson only to find out it was part of his grill.

Green was several inches taller than Tyson which allowed him to tie up his shorter opponent. As the fight reached the later rounds, the crowd voiced their displeasure knowing this would be the second Tyson fight in a row that wouldn’t end in a knockout. Tyson won a wide unanimous decision. Don King was Green’s promoter and as the scores were announced, King was “conveniently” in Tyson’s corner.

Two fights in June produced two first round knockouts, the first over Reggie Gross, the second over William Hosea. In July’s first fight, a second round knockout over Lorenzo Boyd would set up a bout two weeks later against the son of a heavyweight legend.

An Ordinary Joe

On a warm summer afternoon day at the end of July, I remembered that Tyson was fighting on ABC’s Wide World of Sports. I was at the mall at the time and after realizing the card was about to start, I dashed through the building frantically trying to locate the nearest department store. I headed to the television section just as Tyson landed a lethal right uppercut about twenty seconds into the fight causing Marvis Frazier to crumple to his knees in the corner, motionless as he was counted out. Brutal.

The Journey Continues

Up next was Jose Ribalta on HBO in August. There is was again, in the second round, the hook to the body followed by the uppercut. A thing of beauty. Ribalta to his credit took it well and fought gallantly to the bell. In the eighth, after doing tremendous damage for most of the round, Tyson landed a looping left hook with about thirty seconds left that sent Ribalta reeling backwards with only the ropes saving him from going down. After a standing eight count, Ribalta is able to stay away just enough to make it out of the round. About halfway through the tenth, Tyson lands a monstrous counter left hook that drops Ribalta again. When the fight continues, it’s vintage Tyson attacking with bad intentions. Right hook to the head, left hook to the head, right hook, left hook, game, set, uh…TKO. Today, you’d be hard pressed to find anyone in the heavies who closes the show even remotely close.

Tyson’s next fight in September against Alfonzo Ratliff was part of HBO’s heavyweight tournament, on the undercard of a Michael Spinks’ IBF World heavyweight title defense, and surprisingly Tyson’s first fight in Las Vegas as a pro.

A Tyson win assured that his next bout would be against Trevor Berbick, holder of the WBC strap. Sensing that his title shot was within his grasp, Tyson was like a shark in water with Ratliff his bleeding prey. Ratliff cautious of what he was about to receive, eluded a stalking Tyson in the first but only delayed his fate. In the second, Tyson dropped Ratliff with a short left hook/uppercut. Once Ratliff reached his feet, Tyson swarmed him landing multiple punches then ending things with a left hook to the body followed by a left hook to the head. D’Amato’s prediction that Tyson would fight for the title before the end of 86 had now come to fruition.

Judgement Day

Eighteen months and twenty-seven fights into his career, the time had come to fight for the heavyweight title and if successful, a chance to make history as the youngest pugilist to ever do so.

The fight against Berbick was billed as “Judgement Day” and took place on November 22, 1986 in Las Vegas.

Berbick entered the bout on the strength of nine straight victories which included a decision win over Pinklon Thomas in his previous bout where he captured the WBC World heavyweight title.

I felt the excitement in the air as my friends packed into my apartment, standing room only as my “Tyson Fight Parties” usually were. Tyson emerged from the tunnel, a gladiator walking to the ring with his entourage, a white cropped towel worn like a shirt, black shorts and shoes, no socks.

Tale Of The Tape
                                                    Berbick                            Tyson

                                                        32             Age              20
                                                        6’2 ½       Height           5’11 1/2
                                                        218 ½      Weight         221 ¼
                                                        78”           Reach          71”

Mills Lane with the final instructions..”Any questions from the challanger or chief seconds? Any questions from the champion or chief seconds? Let’s get it on, come on!!!!!

A hug from Trainer Kevin Rooney and Tyson awaits the start in his corner, glaring at Berbick as he stays loose by moving his arms slightly and rocking on his feet. In these moments, Tyson is no doubt recalling D’Amato’s wise guidance. The education on the psychology and spiritual aspects of the game and more importantly for a youngster, how to channel the aggression and control the fear. The bell rings and the moment his mentor prepared him for has begun.

Tyson moves towards Berbick with his peek-a boo stance and lands a lead right hand followed moments later by a left hook. Berbick knows he is in deep but is game and lands a right hook to Tyson’s jaw, a clubbing blow to the back of his head, a body shot and another right to the head.

Tyson stays focused and starts to land big right hands, jabbing his way in and landing sharp quick combinations. Tyson rocks Berbick was a series of left and right hooks that has the champion reeling. Berbick is able to hold and absorbs more damage as the bell rings. As he heads to his corner, Berbick gestures towards Tyson, his mouth open as he appears to smirk at the challenger. A ploy of an unwise man who has just thrown gasoline on the fire.

As the bell rings to start round two, Tyson moves towards Berbick and lands a looping right hand that wobbles Berbick. Tyson swarms Berbick and lands two more rights dropping Berbick who gets up quickly and takes a standing eight count.

As the fight ensues, not a lot happens over the next minute or so until Tyson lands a huge left hook on Berbick’s temple dropping him for a second time.

What happens next, I can still recall vividly to this day, thirty years later. Berbick tries to get up, has no balance and due to the temple shot affecting his equilibrium, he falls back into the ropes. Berbick gets up again and falls face down into the canvas. A champions heart, he again tries to get to his feet only to fall into the arms of Lane who waves off the fight.

Beauty in his savagery.

Michael Gerard Tyson, the kid from from the streets of Brooklyn…..world champion. The noise level in my apartment is deafening, my voice gone.

The year was 1986, Sports Illustrated’s December 1 issue screams DYNAMITE! Mike Tyson: The KO Kid Is A Champ At 20.

Yes he was, it was a wild ride, thank you Champ.

I can feel it coming in the air tonight, oh Lord. And I’ve been waiting for this moment for all my life, Oh Lord. Can you feel it coming in the air tonight, oh Lord, oh Lord – Collins

Quick Peek At…Bradley v. Rios

Interim and former WBO World welterweight and former WBC/WBO World super lightweight champion Timothy Bradley (32-1-1 12 KO) will knuckleup with former WBA world lightweight titlist Brandon Rios (33-2-1 24 KO) this Saturday night at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas live on HBO.

Rios will have about a two inch height advantage and Bradley a small reach advantage.

Bradley enters 1-1-1 in his last three; however his draw should have been a win. His last fight was a unanimous decision in June against Jessie Vargas; however not without a little drama.

Rios is 2-1 in his last three; however, one of his wins was a DQ. Rios was last in the office in January when he stopped Mike Alvarado in three.

Common opponents may provide a bit of clarity-

Manny Pacquiao-
Speed way too much for Rios while losing a close fight with Bradley that he most likely won and then in the rematch clearly outclassing Bradley.

Diego Chaves-
Gave Rios problems in a foul filled fest that the referee let get way out of control leading to the DQ. Split draw with Bradley in a bout Chaves clearly lost.

Lessons Learned Heading In-

Rios- In his last bout in January, Rios looked better than he had in years; however, how much was due to an opponent in Mike Alvarado who was battling addiction problems and had no business being in the ring? (See Standing-8 interview with Mike Alvarado)

Prior to Alvarado, Rios looked less than impressive against Chaves. He was plodding in his execution and looked to have lost his explosiveness.

Bradley- In his last bout in June, Bradley was comfortably winning an entertaining fight against Vargas; however, he was rocked in the twelfth round. The referee jumped in thinking he heard the bell which was actually the ten second indicator. Vargas thought the referee was stopping the fight and all chaos ensued.

What Does It All Mean?

Rios has the pop to repeat what Vargas did early and often; however it was clear in the Pacquiao and Chaves fight that Rios’ lateral movement and speed was diminished. He looked like he was reborn against Alvarado but again, Alvarado was a shell of himself due to his life outside of the ring. Take nothing away from Rios, it’s just hard to gauge exactly who the real Bam Bam is.

Bradley seems to be in a war every time he is in the ring. Quite frankly he makes his fights harder than they have to be. His fights are rough and tough and in Rios he will find a willing dance partner.

The deciding factor here is speed. Bradley should be able to make this a very easy fight with his speed and boxing ability. It will be interesting to see what a new trainer in Teddy Atlas will bring. If Teddy controls Bradley’s aggressiveness, has him box and then explode when the openings are there, this will be a one sided fight.

If Bradley fights similarly to what he has done in the past which is his version of rock em sock em robots, Rios will have plenty of chances. While Desert Storm has shown a great beard, he has shown glimpses of vulnerability at times; however with great recovery powers.

Outcome

Bradley by unanimous decision in an entertaining fight.

One caveat- If the fight is close, Bradley will not get the benefit of the doubt this time.

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