Devon Alexander Vs Timothy Bradley: What’s in the Details?
By Joe Wilson
Just a little over eight weeks from now, WBC Junior Welterweight King Devon Alexander is scheduled to clash with WBO counter part Timothy Bradley on January 29, 2011 on HBO. Alexander, 21-0, 13 KO’s, and Bradley 26-0, 11 KO’s, have been set for a fight at Chatfetz Arena on the campus of St. Louis University.
St. Louis, Missouri, is the hometown of Alexander. What’s not clear about this bout is the fight location. Nothing has been finalized regarding the location. Don King is Alexander’s promoter. It is said that he’s working on a deal with Chatfetz Arena to house the fight. It is said that the 12,000 seat arena would be the perfect place for a possible sell-out crowd.
Because of the delay in finalizing the location, there has been some frustration on the behalf of Alexander’s trainer Kevin Cunningham. He feels that having just a little over eight weeks to train, the location should have already been decided. He also feels that Alexander should have say as in where the fight is held because; he is a bigger draw than Bradley.
According to Bradley’s trainer Gary Shaw, St. Louis is no longer an option for the fight and that Atlanta, GA and Detroit, Mich. are the front runners for the bout. Both fighters and their camps are starting to show signs of frustration. Time is starting to become a major factor and not knowing where the fight location will be is definitely making things difficult.
The contract was signed by both fighters back in September. The bad thing about this fight is—it has not been officially announced. The promoters have not fully closed the deal. There is no doubt that the magnitude of this fight is big. These two boxers are major players in the junior welterweight puzzle. And both are serious contenders for any junior welterweight and possibly the welterweight fighters. Bradley has already made the journey to the welterweight class once.
Both fighters are rising to the top of their weight class and could be approaching pay-per-view status soon. Remember, it’s this weight class that will deliver some action-packed fights going into 2011. For some odd reason or so it seems, since the big success of Floyd Mayweather, JR., and Manny Pacquiao presence in the boxing world, these other fighters in the same weight class has stepped it up.
It seems like these guys are all trying to make a name for themselves like no other time before. The level of urgency is very apparent! In many walks of life, regardless of what it is, anything that’s positive that can ignite a change in anyone’s life for the best is definitely a plus. Especially, achieving and over-achieving goals.
You’ve got to remember that anyone of these guys can become successful as a professional boxer in a short time. Courage, determination, good work ethics and endurance is the main ingredients needed. There is an old saying that “when preparedness meets opportunity, you automatically become successful.” Preparation has contributed to the good outcome of many fights in the world of boxing and has also brought tons of satisfaction to an individual’s personal life.
Alexander is coming off a tough win at home over Andriy Kotelnik back in August, while Bradley won easily against Luis Carlos Abregu back in July. This fight did not produce fireworks by any means however; Bradley stepped up to the welterweight division to fight Abregu. Some thought his move up in weight was very brave, but could have easily put his career into jeopardy.
Alexander pulled the bigger crowd against Kotelnik with a little over 10,000 fight fans and should be the bigger draw in this fight against Bradley. The buzz leading up to this fight is growing around the St. Louis area. The local coverage has been very supportive of Alexander fights. KSDK in St. Louis, is a major supporter of Alexander’s career and gives him more local coverage than most fighters get here in America.
Bradley has had several fights on Showtime, but did have a contract with them. Showtime rival HBO has been putting on the better fights for many years. Bradley’s trainer Shaw put together a deal with HBO and Bradley signed a contact with them back in March.
After the Bradley fight in January, Alexander said he should be a strong contender for Manny Pacquiao next fall. He says no way is he looking past Bradley, but feels he will win this bout and his name should be elevated enough to be in the bid for a fight with the mega-star Pacquiao. He has already called out Pacquiao on more than one occasion.
If Alexander gets past Bradley, maybe Team Alexander can argue the case about a future bout with Pacquiao. Of course, many fighters in this weight class would like that opportunity, even if they didn’t stand a chance at winning. It’s the exposure a fight like this–brings. It would be like winning the lottery for most of them.
I’m sure if Bradley wins, he feels the same way. If not Pacquiao; possibly Floyd Mayweather, JR. These young fighters know what fighting either one of these guys could mean for there careers. Once again, I believe the success of Pacquiao and Maweather, JR., has stirred up the entire boxing world regardless of the weight class.
It would be an honor to see Alexander vs. Bradley officially announced. Both of these fighters has started to peak out in there careers. All they both need is a big career defining fight to elevate them into pay per view status. If we get fireworks from the January 29th bout. It could be this night that both fighters change everything in their careers for either good or bad.