BOXING FINISHING YEAR WITH A BANG
Fantastic matches make up forth quarter 2007
By Moncayo Blackbull
INSIDEBOXING.com (September 17, 2007) - Usually end of year boxing is bland to say the least. With boxing promoters eager to fulfill fighter contracts and obligations we usually get less than competitive match-ups, not the case in 2007
Needless to say, boxing has been long-winded this past month, with major fights being cancelled due to injuries. We had the highly anticipated contest between Fernando Vargas and Ricardo Mayorga halted due to Vargas’ medical condition. The Rocky Juarez versus Juan Manuel Marquez did not go as planned because of an injury to Marquez. We also had the return of Vitali Klitschko halted as undefeated Juan Carlos Robles was forced out of his upcoming fight because he fractured a foot. Klitschko was to face Jameel McCline September 22nd. But underwent back surgery.
Although we’ve had a void in boxing, all is not lost since both the Vargas vs. Mayorga and the Juarez vs. Marquez contests have been rescheduled and will take place in November. The forth quarter of 2007 looks to be a good one for boxing, here is a preview of what we can look forward to:
Let’s start with HBO’s Jermaine Taylor vs. Kelly Pavlik on September 29th. September does not fall into the fourth-quarter of the year but this fight is highly anticipated and the date is so close to entering the forth quarter of the year that we’ll fudge a little.
October 6th on Showtime we have Oleg Maskaev vs. Samuel Peter for the WBC heavyweight championship. Also on October 6th the rematch between Manny Pacquiao and Marco Antonio Barrera will air on HBO Pay Per View.
On October 13th in a 12-round unification title showdown of the two best 135-pounders, Juan Diaz (32-0, 16 KOs) of Houston meets Julio Diaz (34-3, 25 KOs) of Coachella, California on HBO Boxing After Dark. From Moscow, Evander Holyfield will attempt to dethrone WBO Champion Sultan Ibragimov, PPV.
ESPN airs up and coming Alfonso Gomez against Ben Tackie. Gomez is coming off his eye opening victory over Arturo Gatti. The fight schedules on October 16th
November 3rd HBO brings you Joe Calzaghe vs. Mikkel Kessler in a 12 rounds super middleweight unification bout while Showtime will air the rescheduled bout between Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Rocky Juarez.
November 10th we have the showdown between Miguel Cotto and Shane Mosley, HBO PPV
Fernando Vargas vs. Ricardo Mayorga was delayed due to a blood aliment on the part of Vargas but the fight will go on as anticipated November 23rd in Los Angeles on Showtime.
Finalizing the year, we could not ask for a better match-up than what we have in Ricky Hatton and Floyd Mayweather Jr. On December 8th, an HBO PPV presentation will have the strip filled with excitement as fight fans pack Las Vegas Hotels and Casinos in anticipation of the fight of the year.
Fight fans can brace themselves for a fantastic series of boxing events to compliment the upcoming holiday season.
Sit back – invite friends – and enjoy!
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