Floyd Mayweather JR: The State of American Boxing
By Gina L. Caliboso
It’s an understatement to write that we are all going through some tough times. On a personal level, I have faced some economic challenges and I continue, day in day out, doing the best I can. Yes, tough times for everyone. And just when I think I have it bad, I realize that I don’t. Or rather, what I consider to be a challenge turns out to be nothing.
At 40, I have the good luck to have heard Depression and World War II stories from my father. My dad was raised in Manila during Japanese occupation. And my mother, who grew up impoverished in Negros Occidental, Philippines, managed to make a life for herself with little to nothing as a start. To this day, my dad, who served in the Marine Corps, still says this is still the country of opportunity. I like this. He’s seen it, he says, “Have you ever gone to bed hungry? Ever have to beg for food? No, Gina, things are good here.” I cry at this, mostly out of sentimentality and an a-ha moment that my dad is right. Specifically, America always bounces back.
Sentimental reverie aside for a moment, it’s the last thought that had me thinking about the status of American boxing. Now, I’ve alluded to it before, mostly because I am an American, but Filipino by ethnicity. A few fans have even said I’m not a real Filipino because I happened to mention that Pacquiao could lose. I didn’t know that I had to be a specific ethnicity to like boxing. Then I realized that I called myself the Filipino flag waver here at RSR. But back to my thought or point on the status of American boxing. When I get asked who my favorite fighters are, I say Pacquiao, Donaire, Sergio Martinez, Amir Khan, Lucian Bute, Juan Manuel Marquez, Miguel Cotto, and Yuriorkis Gamboa. Notice the absence of any American boxers – yikes! And then upon my own admission, I realized, what is the status of the American boxer? So, yes, allow me my take and a serious look at the various weight divisions and the American presence.
Light Welterweight:
Timothy Bradley, 27-0, 11 KO’s and Devon Alexander, 21-1, 13 KO’s are the top prospects of the division. Bradley is ranked #1 with Alexander ranked #3. Bradley has even mentioned he would like to fight against Khan, Pacquiao, and even Mayweather JR. Bradley and Alexander have a tremendous amount of talent. Zab Judah, 41-6, 28 KO’s ranks #5.
Welterweight:
Floyd Mayweather, JR., 41-0, 25 KO’s, is relatively inactive, but is still the number one ranked welterweight with an undefeated record. Shane Mosley, 46-6-1, 39 KO’s, is set to fight Manny Pacquiao in May. Anyone else? Even if Alexander or Bradley moves up to this division, I don’t see much of an impact or even competition.
Light Middleweight:
Paul “Punisher” Williams, 39-2, 27 KO’s remains in the light middleweight division even though he lost a match against Sergio Martinez that may have been the 2010 KO of the year. Williams has shown some vulnerability of late, but remains in the mix. Williams is currently ranked #3, followed by Cornelius Bundrage, 30-4, 18 KO’s, ranked #4. Neither Williams nor Bundrage have any upcoming bouts.
Super Middleweight:
Andre “S.O.G.” Ward, 23-0, 13 KO’s, has made it to the semifinals of the Super Six Middleweight tournament and will face King Arthur Abraham, 32-2, 26 KO’s. I predict that Ward will easily defeat Abraham by KO. Ward is currently ranked #3.
Kelly “Ghost” Pavlik, 36-2, 32 KO’s, noticeably absent in 2010 after facing injury and rehab, is currently set to make a return to boxing on the Pacquiao-Mosley undercard. He has had notable victories against the best, but faced a tough loss to Sergio Martinez. I hope and expect Pavlik to really step in and make strong comeback.
Light Heavyweight:
Okay, so the American boxing picture isn’t as bad or bleak as had perceived. And the light heavyweight division has some great fighters. Bernard Hopkins, 51-5-2, 32 KO’s is currently the top ranked American in the division, followed by “Bad” Chad Dawson, 29-1, 17 KO’s, and then Tavoris Cloud, 22-0, 18 KO’s.
Among the top four ranked fighters, American fighters occupy 3 of the top spots. That’s actually pretty good. The veteran Hopkins remains in boxing and is set to fight the much younger Canadian Jean Pascal in a rematch. Dawson faced Pascal last year and lost in an 11 round TD. Dawson has fought both Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson twice and won. He is a tremendous talent and will face Adrian Deacon, 27-2, 15 KO’s in May.
Heavyweight:
Evander Holyfield, 43-10-2, 28 KO’s, is still listed as an active heavyweight. At the top of the rankings, Chris “Nightmare” Arreola, 30-2, 26 KO’s remains ranked at #11. In May, Arreola will be fighting Nagy Aguilera, 16-5, 11 KO’s. “Fast” Eddie Chambers, 36-2, 18 KO’s is currently ranked #7.
Right now, with the Brothers Klitschko domination this division, along with Great Britain’s David Haye and Tomasz Adamek, the division is lacking American promise. The world championship heavyweight title has been dominated by the likes of Tyson, Foreman, and Ali. It’s the title that has boldly defined the sport as America’s title. But not lately. Within this division, there hasn’t been any great rivalry creating excitement for American interest. It would be the division for an American fighter to break through and lead the way.
American boxers have always had a unique edge. They have the swag, the talk, and the brash American bravado that makes them stand up and be confident. American boxing has always had its rivalries as well. The last great American boxing rivalry occurred between Micky Ward and Arturo Gatti. These two guys fought each other and each time it was a brawl. There is an unfortunate absence of a great boxing rivalry which I think is hurting boxing overall, but American boxing in particular. We Americans love rivalries.
Right now, America is going through an important transition about figuring out its place in the world. And now that I’ve looked at the status of American boxers within the divisions, it’s actually not as bad a picture as I thought. There is an American presence of competition in some key divisions. But more importantly, I just think of Dad and how he is really right on about America and even about the American boxers, “Things are good.” The American boxer is alive and well and competitive and definitely on the verge of a comeback.