Cinco de Mayweather: Preview to the Previews
Ha llegado el Cinco de Mayo, an annual holiday that for me means a hard morning workout followed by diet-destroying gluttony at places like La Mexicana or Tacos el Asador. Days like this I treat the menu like Williams treated the escorts in Enter the Dragon. Waitress: Sir, would you like the pulled pork soft tacos … Read more
The Fallacy of Effective Aggression, and other thoughts on Rigondeaux-Donaire
Even those of us who thought Guillermo “El Chacal” Rigondeaux would defeat Nonito Donaire in Saturday’s hotly anticipated 122-pound title unification bout couldn’t have foreseen a whitewash. And lets not kid ourselves. If you gave Donaire more than two rounds on Saturday you either work for Top Rank, or you might as well. Yes, I … Read more
Floyd Mayweather vs. Andre Ward vs.The Real Son of God
Six weeks ahead of his return to the ring against Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero, boxing’s top biggest name and cash king, Floyd Mayweather, used an interview with fighthype.com to fire a series of verbal jabs… at 168-pound champ Andre Ward. Apparently Ward, the best boxer on the planet not named Mayweather, is a long-time friend … Read more
Floyd Mayweather 2.0? A Motor City Postscript
Back in Canada and still recovering from 24 hours in Detroit, where the drinks are stiff (the young lady tending bar at Cutters promised her Jameson with a splash of Faygo ginger ale would put hair on my chest), and where rebirth has been a running theme for nearly four decades. On the banks of … Read more
Floyd Mayweather to Showtime: He’s Boxing’s Albert Pujols
Thinking of words to describe Tuesday’s announcement that boxing’s current pound-for-pound king, Floyd “Money” Mayweather, had dumped cable network and pay-per-view partner HBO in favour of rival broadcaster Showtime. “Seismic” works. Mayweather’s movement tilts the pay-per-view landscape, instantly transforming Showtime from a big-time suburb to the centre of attention and action, and maybe not just … Read more
Manny Pacquiao falls, questions arise
With a single, thunderous right hand at the end of round six Juan Manuel Marquez sent the legend of Manny Pacquiao crashing face-first to the canvas. With his nose broken and his left leg seemingly injured, Marquez delivered a knockout so definitive referee Kenny Bayless didn’t even bother to count. And with the entire boxing … Read more
Scared Straight: Floyd Mayweather, Jack Johnson and jail time’s toll
Will 87 days in jail scare Floyd Mayweather straight? Because it looks already like he’s frightened flabby. No, I’m not making light of Mayweather’s stint in jail, or the circumstances that landed him there. But it’s a point of fact that the pound-for-pound king of pro boxing unsuccessfully petitioned a Nevada court last week to … Read more
Blaming the Victim: Pacquiao, Bradley, Conspiracy Theories and Common Sense
My late Aunt Edith was about the most conflict-averse person I’ve ever known, but in the hours after Timothy Bradley was awarded a split decision victory over Manny Pacquiao — a bout most of us think Pacquiao won comfortably — I thought of my grandfather’s big sister and the sweltering summer nights I used to … Read more
Manny Pacquiao, Timothy Bradley — Carlito’s Way on the Canvas
Fans of the Brian de Palma classic Carlito’s Way don’t need prompting to remember the scene in which Benny Blanco from the Bronx, sick of being serially disrespected by his idol, Carlito Brigante, confronts him in an upstairs office of the nightclub Brigante owns. The staredown that ensues is brief but as intense as you’ll … Read more
My official Floyd Mayweather-Miguel Cotto preview page
Alternate title: #thePstandsfor Prodigal podcaster pontificating on pugilism. Because this week has brought out both the sports writer and business reporter in me as I’ve chased the biggest story on the sports business landscape — Floyd Mayweather’s title fight with Miguel Cotto Saturday night in Las Vegas. Despite the widespread perception that boxing is dying, … Read more
