Timothy Bradley brought more heart to the Bell center than it's seen in 42 Habs' games this year. Bradley hit the big time last year knocking down and beating Junior "the Hitter" Witter. It was nice to see a humble, hard-working, young talent take out Witter whose combination of cockiness and mind numbing dulness leaves a bad taste in my mouth.This time he was up against big mouth Kendall Holt. After letting Holt get in his head with his (very loud) trash talking during the referee's instructions, Bradley came out a bit recklessly and got dropped by a punch that came pretty close to ripping his head clear off his body. He got up, seemed to get his bearings back within the eight count and closed the round strongly. The rest of the fight was just a perfect example of wanting it more. While Holt stood around waiting to land the next big shot and bitching to the ref about anything and everything, Desert Storm just kept coming, punching through clinches and outworking his opponent for every second of every round. He got caught again in the twelfth, with his glove touching the canvas, but he convincingly won almost every minute in between. I scored the tenth as a 10-9 round as I thought that apart from the flash knock down Bradley won it.
What's not to like about Timothy Bradley? He fought two of his last three fights outside the USA (most American boxers go a whole career without doing that even once). He is a smart guy who says interesting things without being a dick. He fights hard for 36 minutes. He's only 25(!) and the Habs inspired shorts put him over the top! Throwing on a Habs sweater is a bit of a cheap move but it works on me. I hope he becomes the next American fighter to realize what a great boxing town Montreal is and, following in the foot steps of Librado Andrade, becomes a de facto hometown boy. I for one would love to see more of him, and anyone really who has half a heart, wearing the Bleu, Blanc, Rouge.
Well written.
ReplyDeleteWhen's the porn blog stuff coming?
I admit it. I'm trapped in the past when it comes to boxing.
I re-watched 'Rumble In The Jungle' & 'Thriller in Manilla'
last night for the umteenth time.
The more I watch 'Rumble' the more it seems Ali was actually
dominating from the start.
The more I watch Ali-Fraser 3, the more respect I have for both
of them. Did Ali train especially hard to take all those body shots?
And take it in 100 degree humid weather too. Fraser just punched
himself out. Not as obviously as Foreman did, but he did.
Ali was inhuman when it came to taking punches, especially to the body. He had a way of rolling with them or absorbing them. I read someone suggest recently that Ali's dedication to road work throughout his career gave him the body and the stamina to come back after getting pounded to the ribs.
ReplyDeleteThese two fights are a good jumping off point to get interested in boxing. Take the plunge! Fast forward 30 years.The Pacquiao-Hatton fight next month should be a great opportunity to catch boxing fever!
If fever persist please consult a physician.
Road work? Really? It's not just standing in the ring during
ReplyDeletepre-fight preparations and having your sparring partner punch
you in the gut as hard as they can for as long as they can? Whatever
works. I'm gonna fast foward 6 years or so and watch 'The Brawl in Montreal' next.
Baby steps.
No, I don't think you prepare for taking tons of punches by taking tons of punches. Especially to the body. If you hit a piece of meat, it tenderizes. It doesn't get harder. Wow, that sounds funny. Must be all this talk of a porn-related blog.
ReplyDeleteBrawl in Montreal is a good one. A fine example of styles make fights, in particular when watched in tandem with the rematch. When Leonard tried to match Duran's style, he got beat. When he went back to what he does best, it was a mismatch in his favor.
After that you could try watching Hagler-Hearns and Leonard-Hearns 1. Then for a more recent heavyweight epic, Holyfield-Bowe 1. For an explosive, dramatic, clutch heavyweight KO, check out Lewis-Ruddock and see Lennox stepping up in his first big step up in the spotlight, on HBO, to prove he belonged with Tyson, Holyfield, Bowe, etc. Too bad after that the other guys all ran from him.
Oh boy, I could just keep going here. Put Barrera-Morales 1 on your list too. And yes, do check out the Pacquiao-Hatton PPV coming up next week or the one after that.
Then of course, come back for more and we'll keep giving you fight after fight. We know them all.