Thousands of fans packed the raucous Kelvin Hall in Glasgow, but most turned up in hope rather than expectation since the hard hitting Martinez was a red hot favorite.

As round one began, it seemed a tough night lay ahead for the home town hero. While he attempted to establish his jab, Martinez kept low, bulldozing forward. Burns was concentrating hard, trying to keep his man at distance and almost secured the round. Then a lapse in concentration and defense, allowed ‘Rocky’ to land his famed right. Burns was knocked down, but rose quickly.

The Scotsman showed real toughness to bounce back and secure the next two rounds, but was rocked and looked vulnerable every time the Puerto Rican backed him up. Then, in the third, Burns began utilizing weaponry nobody knew he had. He charged on the front foot, playing Martinez at his own game, landing power shots and roughing up the champ.

The dynamic of the fight changed in round five. As a rendition of the Scottish national anthem ‘Flower of Scotland’ was bellowed out by the partisan crowd, Burns landed two powerful rights mixed in with a series of jabs and uppercuts. Unbelievably, Martinez, who has never hit the canvass as an amateur or pro, was stuck in the ropes taking real punishment. But with only 9 stoppages in a 30 fight career, Burns’ lack of KO power was evident. Martinez survived the onslaught, landing some powerful overhand rights of his own, but another burst by Burns late on was effective.

Burns was now in the ascendancy and every punch landed was loudly cheered by the crowd who could barely believe their eyes as the man from Coatbridge dominated.

The combatants entered the championship rounds with Burns in front and Martinez looking scrappy. Yet a power puncher always has a chance, and as the Scotsman tired, ‘Rocky’ landed some big bombs.

In the final three minutes, Martinez, desperate for a KO, stormed forward looking aggressive. Undeterred, Burns met the bullish charge and landed a thunderous right hook of his own. Bemused and irritated, Martinez had no reply as he desperately looked to his corner. A mindless low blow by the Puerto Rican with less than thirty seconds on the clock helped Burns as he wisely took time to recover.

The final bell was a cue for wild celebrations and even before the scores came in, a gracious Martinez, congratulated the new champ who had fought so well. The decision was unanimous. Two judges awarded Burns the victory by three rounds, the other by two. Burns rode his luck at times but was the superior fighter on the night and a worthy champion.

A mention should go to Billy Nelson, Burns’ trainer. His tactics worked perfectly and Martinez became more and more frustrated as the fight went on. We all expected to see Burns bouncing about the ring jabbing and counter punching utilizing his height and long gangly arms. Instead he came forward with real intent and beat ‘Rocky’ at his own game.

Martinez, although always dangerous with that right, never made the most of his openings and looked, at times, rather ragged. He did, however, show heart, and never gave up. Possibly weight, travel or preparation problems will be blamed for his loss, but for me he was outgunned by the better man.

The new world champion joins compatriots Amir Khan and David Haye at world level and with Jason Booth and Rendall Munroe both in title action in the coming weeks the resurgence of British pugilism continues.

This past weekend was a low-key one by most standards. At the same time, it was an active couple of days on the world stage...

Credit: Mike Boehm / ProBoxing-Fans.com

On Thursday, still-useful Kali Meehan, 36-4-1, scored a decision win over Evans Quinn, 18-5-1—and winless in his last 4. With such a dearth of young talent in the heavyweight division, old retrograde contenders like Meehan continue to remain in the picture. It’s not difficult to imagine an even bleaker situation, say, 10 years from now.

Now the Klitschko brothers are poised to face two more carcasses being dragged back into the picture: Sam Peter (vs. Wladimir next week) and Shannon Briggs (vs. Vitali). How did Briggs work his way back into contention exactly? And for Peter, he has already dogged it twice and I won’t go along a third time. Against Vitali, he put forth one of the most tepid efforts ever seen by a man fighting for a title. Then in a big fight against Eddie Chambers, he shows up at 265 pounds and stinks up the joint. Why arrive for those two fights in such poor condition, then manage to get in shape for nothing fights like he did in his last four bouts?

I have no room on my plate for head cases. I’m turned off. Maybe the fact that he was competitive against Wladimir the first time, dropping him multiple times, makes this match interesting. I say Wlad blasts him out this Saturday in fairly easy fashion.

On the Other End of the Spectrum…

Lighter-weight enthusiasts always scour the results of the little guys, looking for the next diamond-in-the-rough—and maybe the next Ricardo Lopez. At 105 pounds, the 3 top guys are undefeated and two of them were in action this weekend. Nicaraguan Roman Gonzalez, 26-0 (22 KOs), won a non-title bout (whatever happened to those?) by knockout. Thai Oleydong Sithsamerchai fought to a draw with countryman Pornsawan Porpramook and is now 34-0-1. While this pair and South African Nkosinathi Joyi are a talented group of young titlists, they will probably never gain appeal in the west.

A busy week also took place one division north at 108, with titlists Omar Nino Romero and Luis Lazarte each making defenses. Romero, coming off a stirring title-winning decision over Rodel Mayol, stopped retread contender Ronald Barrera (now 0-5 in title fights) after 6 one-sided rounds. Lazarte, 39, who incredibly won a title on his 6th attempt, defended his IBF belt with a decision over Nerys Espinoza.

In a year of upsets, Scotland’s Ricky Burns continued the pattern by defeating favored and unbeaten WBO 130-pound champ Roman Martinez. Burns, now 29-2 (7 KOs), was dropped by a hard right in the opening round, but dusted himself off and edged Martinez in a really good fight held in Glasgow. Burns had looked shaky recently, but seemed inspired by the supportive crowd and world title implications. The 130-pound class, always a haven of good fighters and matchups, might be at its weakest in recent memory. Still, Burns-Martinez was a stirring encounter.

Jan Zaveck, 30-1, avenged his only defeat with a majority decision in his home country of Slovenia over Rafal Jackiewicz (36-9-1). The IBF Welterweight champion surged late to pin the first loss on Jackiewicz in 21 fights. Jackiewicz started his career 15-8-1.

WBA Middleweight Champion Felix Sturm registered another defense by beating Giovanni Lorenzo by unanimous decision. Lorenzo, who talked tremendous smack leading up to the fight, was unable to get anything going until it was too late. Sturm, in his first fight in over a year, was able to control long stretches of the bout with his jab and greater polish. Nothing against Sturm, who is a fine fighter and has beaten some decent opponents, but maybe he should take on some meaningful fights before it’s too late. To this date, his only two losses are a disputed decision to De La Hoya in 2004 and an avenged defeat to Javier Castillejo.

Looking Ahead…

In addition to Klitschko-Peter II, next week has some good action.

Erik Morales takes on Willie Limond in Step 2 on a comeback no one is really excited about. As long as he takes on opponents like this, everything should be okay, but I shudder to think of him taking another beating, which is all but an inevitability at this point.

Jason Booth tries to spring another UK upset, as he takes on titlist Steve Molitor—who is looking to re-establish himself after a disastrous loss to Celestino Caballero a few years back.

On HBO, Yuriorkis Gamboa fights a unification bout with tough vet Orlando Salido. In an intriguing bout between undefeated lightweights, Anthony Peterson, 30-0 (20 KOs), takes on Brandon Rios, 24-0 (18 KOs).

Credit: The Candian Press/Paul Chiasson

Jean Pascal is the champ at 175. He defeated Chad Dawson by decision in a fight that had to be stopped due to a bad cut on Dawson’s eyelid caused by an accidental clash of heads. Nonetheless, Pascal is now the champ, and while he is flashy and has star potential, you had to feel watching the fight that if Dawson wouldn’t have gotten cut, he had a very good chance to knock Pascal out in the final round.

It seemed to me like Pascal was tired from the 6th round on. He stole rounds with brief flashes of excitement and appeared to have Dawson hurt a few times, but couldn’t seize the moment. Pascal has nice hand speed and some power, but I’m not exactly convinced that he will enjoy a long reign at the top. Dawson wants a rematch, even though I’m not sure we will see it right away. Pascal was asked about fighting Lucian Bute next in the Super Bowl of Canadian Boxing, and seemed reluctant. Pascal mentioned Bernard Hopkins and Joe Calzaghe, one guy retired, and the other is pretty close to retirement. Very interesting choices by Pascal.

Going back to Dawson, I was very disappointed by his performance. I thought he was going to be determined to prove he belongs in the discussion for best in the world along with Pacquiao, Mayweather, Williams, Martinez, and Marquez. Instead, Dawson went through the motions, not throwing punches, content to let Pascal be the aggressor. When you could clearly see Pascal was done, I just wanted to scream at the TV: “What are you waiting for!" Dawson seemed to pick up the pace late in the fight, but the cut above his eyelid was really just bad luck that it happened when and where it did. I also have to say, Dawson showed, in my opinion, poor sportsmanship in his post-fight interview. It was just a bad night all the way around.

The week before the Dawson-Pascal fight, there was a fight between Tavoris Cloud and Glen Johnson for the IBF Title. The fight seemed very close, but the decision went to Cloud, the younger and stronger fighter. Personally, I think the fight was a draw. Cloud obviously wants Pascal or Dawson next, which makes sense, but I think he would lose both of those fights. To me, Cloud just seems one dimensional. He goes in looking for the knockout and if you hold up against the pressure, he doesn’t have a plan B. It’s fun to watch, but Cloud just reminds me a little of Jeff Lacy. I wonder what Lacy is doing now ?  Johnson, the old warrior, probably was a victim of bad luck and circumstance. He should know by this point in his career to always look for the knockout, because if it goes to the scorecards, you’re probably going to lose. I still consider Johnson the 3rd best fighter at 175.

I don’t know whether Joe Calzaghe is going to come back or not, but I would give him a chance against Pascal. At the same time though, Calzaghe would be putting his undefeated record in a lot of danger, so my best guess is he stays retired, unless Ricky Hatton wants to fight him at 175. Bernard Hopkins says he wants to be the man at 175 again, even though I’m not sure what that will do for his career considering he’s already done that. Well, to do that he’ll have to beat Pascal. I know Hopkins wants David Haye, but Haye isn’t interested in taking risks. I’m still angry Hopkins-Adamek fell through at Cruiserweight.

WBA champ Beibut Shumenov is an intriguing fighter because after 11 fights, he is already a world champion, even though I don’t think he’s one of the best in the division. He has the talent, even though he got dropped in the first round of his last fight. He won every round after that. In another year or two, he may be at the top of the division or he may not even have his title unless he gets protected.

After the Super Six tourney, your probably going to see at least a few of those 168lb guys move up. Lucian Bute isn’t in the Super Six, but is clearly one of the best at 168. He has a fight in October, but then expect him to leave 168, and hopefully we see him fight Pascal. Andre Ward is the favorite to win the Super Six, and I think he could be good at 175 too, his chin is holding up better and he’s the most talented of the Super Middleweights. The top Europeans at 168, Mikkel Kessler and Arthur Abraham, can both be top guys at 175. Kessler has a severe eye injury that has caused him to pull out of the Super Six. Hopefully it’s not career threatening, and he can come back strong. Abraham projects as the best of the guys moving up because of his power, but lost a lost of respect with his performance against Andre Dirrell.

I should also mention Zsolt Erdei, who was a dominant champion at 175 while not exactly fighting top guys, is coming back to 175 after going up to Cruiserweight and winning a title. I expect him to pick up right where he left off, but hopefully he fights some of the other top fighters at 175.

A lot went down this week in the ring, and even in the octagon in another surprising week in boxing. Let’s get the Randy Couture-James Toney fight out of the way first, like how I’d begin eating dinner as a kid by polishing off the vegetables so that I could focus solely on the good stuff. It really seemed that Dana White, a smart guy, scripted the whole thing. In order to make a cheap point, he dug up a washed-up boxer in James Toney, whose trash talk and resume would figure to command attention and interest.

To preemptively silence critics pointing out Toney’s age, White served up the even-older Couture—a freak of nature and a far more serviceable MMA fighter than Toney is a boxer at this point. Then comes the ridiculously difficult style matchup for a first time MMA fighter. It’s not enough that Toney has to fight an ex-champ in his debut, but to be paired with a fighter who is all about wrestling was too much to overcome. Wouldn’t it have been more interesting to see Toney fight more of a striker-type guy?

Either way, it’s time to put this MMA vs. boxing business to bed. While a natural rivalry on many levels, it basically only serves as fodder for juvenile Internet battling. MMA and boxing should work together in the spirit of further popularizing all forms of combat sports, not bickering about which one is better.

Coming from a boxing guy’s point of view, it seems like everyone in MMA from the cognoscenti to the casual fan has used the rise of their sport as an opportunity to put their foot to the throat of boxing. I’d like to think that MMA owes a debt of gratitude to boxing—the forerunners in legitimizing fighting sports. Had boxing not been around for centuries anesthetizing people to the inherent graphicness of fighting, it’s doubtful MMA would have been embraced.

Hopefully, Couture-Toney doesn’t ignite this ridiculous argument, but helps put it in the rearview mirror.

Now on to some boxing—

Ivan Calderon’s’ stranglehold on the junior flyweight division ended, as Giovanni Segura won their unification bout by 8th round knockout in a great fight. Calderon was boxing well early, but at age 35, was unable to hold Segura off for 12 rounds. Segura really began making strides in round 5, connecting on Calderon with hard shots and bloodying him.

Calderon got a measure of momentum back in a productive 7th round. But Segura showed true championship mettle in snatching back the upper hand in the 8th. A murderous hook to the body incapacitated Calderon, who was unable to rise before the count of ten. For Calderon, it was his first loss, bringing his record to 34-1-1 (6 KOs). The 28-year old Segura, 25-1 (21 KOs), is now the real champion at 108 pounds.

Beating an undefeated and long-reigning champion in his hometown represents a gigantic triumph for Segura. In beating Calderon, Segura scored the biggest win at 108 since Michael Carbajal beat Chiquita Gonzalez in their 1994 blockbuster slugfest. In 2008, in his first chance at world title honors, Segura lost a decision to Cesar Canchila. In the rematch, he looked much improved—savaging Canchila with a 4th-round TKO. Since then, he has been in top form, making quick work of all his opponents, culminating with the glorious win over Calderon.

For Calderon, it will be problematic for him to win a rematch with the peaking Segura; leaving his future is in doubt. Even if he never wins another big fight, he had a heck of a run. His resume puts him on the cusp for Hall of Fame consideration. Unfortunately for “Iron Boy,” the Segura fight might have been the difference maker.

140-pound player Marcos Maidana gutted his way to a 12-round nod over 36-year old ex-titlist DeMarcus Corley. While not known as much of a defensive master, the Victor Ortiz-conqueror was painfully easy to hit, even getting rattled by Corley from time to time. Corley, who started his career 27-1-1, is now 37-14-1 but fought a really good fight. He’s becoming quite the hardcore veteran. Maidana is slated to face Amir Khan in December.

Next Week…

Felix Sturm, who first made his bones against Oscar De La Hoya in 2004, defends his WBA title against tough and improving challenger Giovanni Lorenzo in Cologne, Germany. Let’s see if non-Italians named Giovanni can win titles in consecutive weeks against favored champions in their hometowns.

I noticed former lightweight titlist Antonio Pitalua is fighting a 12-rounder with old-timer Joe Rivera. How old school is Rivera? He turned pro in 1980! He fought a draw with junior lightweight champion and Hall of Famer Brian Mitchell in 1987. This will be the 47-year old Rivera’s first fight in 13 years.

Darkhorse welterweight titlist, Slovenian Jan Zaveck, 29-1, defends against tough Rafal Jackiewicz in a rematch from a split-decision win for Jackiewicz in 2008. Zaveck, with a valuable belt in his possession, looks to get in the mix with some of the big names at 147.

Another little-known champion in Roman Martinez, the WBO 130-pound champion and a frontrunner to be the top guy in that division, faces tough Ricky Burns in his native Scotland. Let’s see if the young champion is the goods.

Marco Huck (30-1, 23 KOs) defended his WBO Cruiserweight Title with a spectacular fifth-round TKO victory over Matt Godfrey (20-2, 10 KOs). Fighting in front of a wild crowd of 4,500 fans in Erfurt, Huck dusted his opponent three times before the referee waved the bout off. “I am happy to have crowned the anniversary 100th ARD broadcast of a Sauerland show with a big victory,” Huck said. “I have tremendous punching power in both hands which I showed again today. Now I am ready to unify the titles. I can´t wait for the Super Six tournament to start.”

Huck used his trademark aggressiveness and explosiveness to wear Godfrey down. He dusted him with a big right at the end of the second and then again with another straight right early in the fifth. Another series sent Godfrey down and through the ropes, and when he was under pressure again, the referee stepped in. “He is very strong and has a lot of power,” Godfrey said. “He fires so many punches from very awkward angles. I should have moved more after avoiding the first punches but my mistake was that I just stood in front of him. He is very powerful.”

Manager Wilfried Sauerland revealed he hopes to finalise the Cruiserweight Super Six at the end of September or early October. “We are in ongoing negotiations and hope to have a very strong line-up,” he said. “The plan is for Marco to kick off the tournament with a unification in December. We are very pleased with Marco´s development – once he is firing in his powerful punches, there is no stopping him. The fans love to see his power and aggressiveness.”

In the co-featured main event, Robert Helenius (13-0, 8 KOs) clinched the vacant EU Heavyweight Title with a sixth-round TKO victory over Gregory Tony (12-1, 10 KOs). The “Nordic Nightmare” knocked down his opponent four times – in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth round – to win the first belt of his professional career. Tony did well to recover from the first three knock-downs but after 39 seconds in the sixth round the referee decided he had taken enough punishment. “It feels great to be a champion,” Helenius said. “Winning the first title is a big step for me. I am very happy with my performance. Ulli Wegner is the best coach in the world and I want to thank him for everything he has taught me. We are a great team.”

Wegner praised Helenius for a strong performance. “I have promised Robert´s home fans that he would be a world champion by the end of next year and today everybody could see why I rate him so highly. He is very strong and has great punching power. He keeps progressing and improving and winning the EU title will give him another lift.” Added Wilfried Sauerland: “We are thrilled to have Robert on our team. He has great potential and he will make lot of noise in the heavyweight division. That was a big win and if he keeps improving the sky is the limit for him.”

Godfrey vs. Huck Results: Pictures

This past Saturday night, August 14, was suppose to have been a defining moment in the career of light-heavyweight champ “Bad” Chad Dawson when he faced off against Canadian French boxer Jean Pascal, with the WBC, IBO, and the Ring Magazine light-heavyweight titles on the line.  The fight was there for Dawson’s taking, but Dawson just did not do anything with the many opportunities that were presented to him in the fight.

This fight took place in Pascal’s backyard at The Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, but Dawson was a 4 to 1 favorite going into the fight. Dawson is considered by most experts as the best light-heavyweight in the division and most thought that this fight would propel Dawson even further up the pound for pound talks with a win against the lesser known WBC light-heavyweight champ Jean Pascal.

Before the fight Dawson claimed that he would win every single round decisively against Pascal.  On the other hand you had Pascal who claimed that Dawson never had seen anyone like him and that Dawson he be in some trouble in this fight.  So which fighter proved to be correct in the matter?

In the first round of this fight, “Bad” Chad was boxing Pascal, but Pascal was backing up.  Dawson was throwing out his jab, but was not landing.   Pascal would lunge in with an occasional hook and straight jab that would catch Dawson.  Again, this fight was in Pascal’s home town, so just about every punch that Pascal threw at Dawson that made any type of contact caused the crowd to go berserk.

Pascal kept up his running and lunging in strategy going throughout the fight.  The second round could have went either way, but I feel that Dawson had gotten back on track by throwing his occasional combinations and effective jabs that got through to Pascal's head and body.

In rounds three though five, Pascal used the same strategy, jumping in and throwing power shots and combinations.  Dawson just never threw any counter-shots when Pascal lunged in.  Dawson did nothing.

Credit: The Candian Press/Paul Chiasson

By round six, Dawson had got back to his effective jabs and combinations and for all of that lunging and punching, Pascal for the first time in the fight looked gassed, worn down, and ready for Dawson to take him out.  I thought, “Okay, now it will be Dawson’s fight the rest of the way.”  Boy was I wrong!!

Time after time in the fight, Pascal was ready to go, and Dawson just backed off and let him off the hook.  Dawson never stepped up the pace and applied pressure to an obviously dead-tired fighter in Jean Pascal.  Instead, Dawson allowed Pascal to rest and hold on in rounds seven through ten, with Pascal left to do the same lunging in and throwing power shots, and surprisingly catching Dawson with some of those shots going down the stretch of each round.  I could not believe what I was seeing.

Because Dawson did not take advantage of Pascal's stamina issues, this also allowed the crowd to play a role in the fight as well, as the crowd was going bananas round after round for their hometown boxer Jean Pascal.

Pascal’s game plan of backing up the whole fight and lunging in to throw quick punches every now and again worked to perfection, so much so that Dawson needed a knockout going into the championship rounds of ten through twelve.  Dawson continued to let Pascal off the hook in the tenth round.

In the first thirty seconds of the eleventh round, Dawson came out and finally applied effective pressure to Pascal, seriously hurting Pascal against the ropes.  Again, Pascal tried to rally by throwing a combination to Dawson, but was caught with a huge left-uppercut, which put Pascal back in serious trouble and ready to go.  As Dawson went back to work in the eleventh round, the two fighters clashed heads, which opened up a bad cut over Dawson’s right eye.

Dawson was looked at by the ring doctor and he stopped the fight.  Because Dawson was unable to continue due to the accidental head butt, the fight went to the judges’ scorecards.

The fight was scored 108-101, 106-103, and 106-103 all for the winner by Unanimous Technical Decision, Jean Pascal.

Jean Pascal won this fight with effective power punching.  I am not taking nothing away from Pascal, but I feel that Dawson simply just do not work enough.  Dawson was by far the superior fighter going into the fight, and it was just a shame that he did nothing to counteract Pascal's tactics.

During Jean Pascal’s victory interview with HBO boxing analyst Larry Merchant, he called out undefeated super-middleweight Lucian Bute, and retired undefeated light-heavyweight great Joe Calzaghe.  Whoa!!  Pascal needs to slow his roll because first of all, I feel that Pascal is not that great, and the two fighters that he called out will not let him off the hook with the backing up and lunging gameplan.  I feel that Bute and Calzaghe would stop Pascal if he clashes with either one of these two fighters.

As for Dawson, he claimed that Pascal was head butting him all night, and also was hitting and holding him the whole fight.  Dawson also claimed that he was on his way to stopping Pascal if Pascal did not head butt him.  I feel the thing that was hurt the most that night was Dawson’s Pride.

So what’s next for Dawson?  Again, take nothing away from Pascal.  He won the fight, but clearly Dawson is the better fighter in my opinion.  I would like to see Dawson fight Tavoris Cloud next.  Cloud is another fighter who had some difficulties in his fight with “The Road Warrior” Glen Johnson, and though Cloud won the fight, he did not show me that he could possibly be a serious threat in the light-heavyweight division.

No matter who Dawson fights next, I hope that his fight with Jean Pascal was a wakeup call for him, and when he looks back on this fight that he will learn from his mistakes of not counter-punching and taking advantage of a dead man in the ring.  Maybe it’s a good thing that “Bad” Chad lost a fight.  Maybe now he is ready to be the face of the light-heavyweight division.

It's been a long three and a half months since we here at ProBoxing-Fans.com updated our top 20 pound for pound list. Over that time, there has been a ton of interesting bouts taken place, including plenty of notable wins, some huge upsets, and the emergence of some great, young fighters. Check out the new list below!

Updated top 20 pound for pound list! Check it out!

So what are some of the most notable additions or factors to consider with our new boxing pound for pound list? Well, this past weekend, with the Dawson vs. Pascal results, we saw the unseating of one of boxing's best, previously undefeated fighters. Dawson of course has taken quite a tumble on the list, but how high does Pascal appear, in his debut?

Credit: Jan Sanders/ Goossen Tutor Promotions

That's only one of the latest fights to consider. Over the past months we've seen the Super Six continue as Stage 2 wrapped up, we've seen Devon Alexander and Timothy Bradley battle different opponents in the ring, and each other for the hearts and minds of fans for who is supposedly the top dog between the two, and much more.

Meanwhile, other big names like Bernard Hopkins haven't been doing much to impress as of late, and it seems like we are never going to see Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather. (BTW - Which of those fighters has the top spot to himself, and which is seated alone at number 2?)

With all of this in mind and more, check out the newly updated, nice and fresh, piping hot, top 20 pound for pound boxers in the world, from your P4P leaders in boxing coverage, Pro Boxing Fans.

Let’s get right into the action from the action-packed weekend that was in boxing. Chris Arreola looked dreadful in gutting out a decision over Manny Quezada on ESPN2’s Friday Night Fights. On one hand, it seems unfair to be too hard on a heavyweight who threw nearly 1000 punches with two injured hands, but there was little to like about his performance against the modestly skilled Quezada. The fact that it turned into a bruising 12-rounder doesn’t speak well for Arreola.

Credit: Carlos McHenry/Team Nightmare

Telling from the hometown boos and the general feeling among fans, Arreola’s act is wearing thin. The excuses why he’s not ever in shape have grown tiresome. Even his charm as a fun loving, beer-drinking guy seems to be wearing off. Fans want to see him either get his fat butt in shape or get out of their lives.

His love for the good life has robbed him of his sharpness and stamina in a big way. He looked his best when he beat Chazz Witherspoon at 239 pounds. Since then, he’s never been south of 250. You would think he would be able to get in shape for a title shot against Vitali Klitschko, but he didn’t. That should have lit a fire under him to get it together, but then he shows up fat again for a big HBO fight against Tomasz Adamek. Then you hear him talk about getting in better shape and what does he do? He shows up even heavier for Quezada.

It’s just getting old. In addition, he might now be slipping down the proverbial hill. Against Quezada, he looked horrible, pushing his shots and getting hit even more easily than normal. Watching the fight, you would only imagine what a more capable boxer than Quezada would have done to him. It just seems like the Arreola from a few years ago would have got rid of Quezada, rather than have to gut his way to a decision win.

Arreola needs to realize he doesn’t have an endless prime that’s going to put itself on hold waiting for him to get his act together. He has the rest of his life to be fat, but only a small window in which to wreak havoc as a professional boxer. The window now appears to be closing. Let’s see how the big guy reacts. Hats off to Quezada for doing the most with what he has. Arreola should take note. You say you’re a professional, then be a professional.

Saturday’s Shocker…Chad Dawson Goes Down to Jean Pascal

I was one of those who gave Pascal almost no shot of beating Dawson, so Saturday’s fight was stunning to say the least. It shows the human element in boxing and how sometimes you can’t go by what is simply on paper. Dawson, sporting an almost-double-digit edge in reach, not to mention experience, was a clear favorite, but it didn’t translate into success.

I think the result was one part Pascal and one part Dawson. Pascal fought with passion, bringing his A-game. Dawson, meanwhile, inexplicably showed up in less than ideal mental condition. Pascal, in winning the “real” light heavyweight championship, was magnificent—attacking with vigor and power virtually the whole night. He came out and took control of the fight. He performed beyond what people thought. Dawson, conversely, was not up to the task at hand.

And why not? Dawson already has problems drawing fans. He has almost zero charisma. What delusions of grandeur led him to come into this fight with such an indifferent attitude? It is somewhat revealing that he would be so flippant about a big fight before he has even established any kind of superstar credentials. Maybe fighting 40-year olds in four straight fights left him unprepared for the youthful vigor of Pascal. And fighters lose sometimes. It happens.

It’s just that Dawson clearly did not answer his first call to greatness. After hurting Pascal in the 9th, he didn’t press the issue. In the 11th, he had Pascal going, especially after freezing him with an beautiful uppercut. Again, Dawson didn’t answer the call. These moments are defining ones that come infrequently during a fighter’s career. Dawson will have to wait for the next one to come around.

Hopelessly behind to Thomas Hearns, Sugar Ray Leonard turned tiger and snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. Maybe on a lesser level more comparable to Pascal-Dawson, Oscar De La Hoya, tired and battered, exploded in the final round to edge ahead of Ike Quartey. Dawson, however, was more reminiscent of Winky Wright, idiotically going into a shell when on the verge of beating Jermain Taylor. Great fighters don’t stop throwing punches (especially if they seem physically able to do so) when given an opportunity to win a big fight when they’re way behind.

Dawson will hopefully learn from this experience. Setbacks like this can help a fighter get his head screwed on right. For Pascal, the world is his oyster. Who knows, it might have been for the best. Pascal, colorful and charismatic, might help pump some life into this division that Dawson was unable to provide.

Much to the surprise of many observers (including this one), Jean Pascal whipped Chad Dawson in their WBC Light Heavyweight showdown. This sort of upset should raise the question if Chad Dawson was perhaps overrated. After all, if Dawson was as good as most thought him to be, even Pascal having the best night of his career should have faltered before Dawson on the worst night of his career.

Credit: Richard A. Esposito

Pascal's biggest surprise was that he was, in fact, faster than Dawson. He also had a smart game plan that left Dawson with no answers. Pascal won the battle of the footwork, which enabled him to zip in and out on Dawson's much longer reach without undue risk. He shut down Dawson's rangy jab with counter-hooks.

Finally, Pascal was the busier fighter. All of that effort drained Jean Pascal, and Dawson was catching him more and more in the later rounds. Maybe Dawson would have knocked Pascal out had it not been for the cut that ended the fight. The ultimate point is, however, that if Chad Dawson were the bad ass he is often made out to be, he would never have found himself in the position of needing a knockout to win a fight against the likes of Jean Pascal.

Let's face it: the light heavyweight division has not been talent deep for 30 years or more, and it is easy to look fantastic against sub-par opponents. Dawson is most celebrated for his wins over Glen Johnson and Antonio Tarver. Johnson was a guy who was whipped by everybody and was little more than a middleweight journeyman ten years ago.

He shocked the world by knocking out Roy Jones, but Jones was clearly a shell of his former self by then. Johnson's other claim to fame is his 1-1 record with Antonio Tarver, who is also best known for... his fights with the shadow of Roy Jones and tussling with Glen Johnson.

In other words, Dawson's best wins are over two guys whose best wins in turn were over each other and Jones. Dawson also beat Tomasz Adamek, who is doing well at heavyweight, but has yet to fight a solid contender and therefore can't be said to have done much since losing Adamek. The bottom line is that it was easy to make Dawson into something he was not.

Then let's look at Jean Pascal. At super middleweight, Pascal was a fringe contender who couldn't get much in the way of career traction. However, super middleweight is a talent-deep division and Pascal did fight someone who clearly has the right stuff in Carl Froch. Froch's boxing style might be limited, but his power, toughness and will to win have established him as a top fighter in a division that is bursting with talent. Being a fringe contender in a strong division is a bigger statement than being the king of a weak one.

I am not writing that Dawson was a paper champion, but to a certain extent Pascal exposed him. Pascal's victory was no fluke. Stopping to rationally appraise what wins over old guys like Johnson and Tarver mean must yield the answer "good, but not great." Yet with the mystique of beating guys who beat Roy Jones (no matter how faded) in the air, Dawson became a world-beater.

This is why it was such a shock to see Pascal consistently beating Dawson, supposedly a speed demon, to the punch. In overestimating Dawson's resume, everyone overestimated Dawson. Everyone, that is, except Jean Pascal.

The Dawson vs. Pascal results were a surprise for most spectators, that's for sure. Despite the fact that Pascal was the defending titleholder in the bout, Dawson was respected by all as the number 1 fighter in the division. However, Pascal was busier, beat him to the punch, and controlled much of the action in the bout. As such, the light heavyweight rankings have an entirely new look and feel.

------> Updated light heavyweight division rankings <------

Credit: The Candian Press/Paul Chiasson

Be sure to give them a look to see what the top 10 in the light heavyweight division look like today. Pascal of course has to rise to the top, but how far does Dawson fall, and how does the recent Tavoris Cloud vs. Glen Johnson scrap factor into the new rankings as well? Also, where does Bernard Hopkins deserve to be, considering his inactivity and his seemingly nonexistent desire to face the real young guns in the division?

We've also updated the junior welterweight division rankings, and the junior middleweight division rankings, to catch up with all of the latest contests, such as Cornelius Bundrage's upset win over Cory Spinks, and Devon Alexanders close battle against Andriy Kotelnik.