Peters vs Chambers
Weekend report

By Tom Donelson

March 29, 2009 - Samuel Peter came into his fight with Eddie Chambers weighing more than he has ever and it showed. From the fifth round on, his mouth wide open and Peter often gasp for breath. Yet, the fight was close because Fast Eddie Chambers allowed the Nigerian to stay in the fight. Chambers, whose style resembles Chris Byrd, out landed his opponent nearly two to one but he never seem to have Peter in trouble and there was time that Chambers played defense while allowing Peter to throw punches.

Throughout the bout, Chambers unloaded his right following his accurate left jabs but there were lapses and it was during those lapses that Peter attacked. What was missing from Peter was the ferocity that marked his career. Like the previous Vital Klitschko fight, Peter rarely let his hand go and the power that once paralyzed fighters on the way up the Heavyweight ladder appear missing.

Chambers cautious approach was due to the threat of the Peter power, but never in the fight did the power ever come into place. In the opening rounds, Peter attempted a body attack to weaken the smaller Chambers but Peter could never sustain his attack. Nor did his power bothered Chambers. This was Chambers fight to lose and he almost did that because of his period of inactivity. Many of the rounds were close as Peter threw the majority of the punches but Chambers the more accurate; always connecting on more shots every round. One judge had it 95-95 whereas the other two scored it 96-94 and 99-91 for Chambers.

After the fight, Chambers admitted that he should have done more in this fight and need to let his hands go in future fight. While Chambers wants a championship fight but there is nothing in this fight to suggest that Chambers have the power to beat either of the Klitschko’s brothers and his speed will not be enough. As for Peter, there was talk of this being a crossroad fight but a power puncher can always turn his career around. Peter can knock people out and there were times that he showed skills and modicum of quickness to bother Chambers enough to make Chambers hesitant. As ESPN Teddy Atlas noted, Peter began his career at 229 pounds and now he is fighting consistently fighting above 250 and in this fight he went north of the 260 pound market. Peter doesn’t have the drive that made him the nightmare early in his career. Peter should have beaten Chambers by simply overwhelming him but instead he simply ran out of gas early. For Peter, he must dedicate himself to his craft or he will simply become an opponent.

Chambers wants to be a Heavyweight champion but unless he throws more punches, he will be on the losing end of other bouts just as he was against Alexander Povetkin. The difference between Chris Byrd and Chambers was that Byrd wasn’t afraid to unleash punches. At his peak, he often out punched his opponent. In a desperate do or die battle against Jameel McCline; Byrd averaged nearly 100 punches per round in the last two rounds to pull out victory. Byrd is now pursuing a Cruiserweight champion and Chambers may need to think along the same lines.

In the opening bout, Shawn Estrada was going for his third victory and his opponent, Ray Craig, did his job by playing the role of the opponent. Estrada unleashed a punch within the zip code of Craig’s head and Craig went down. The second right hand nailed Craig on the forehead but the third knockdown was by a punch within close proximity and Craig simply went down. This was a fight that Estrada learned nothing except that he can defeat an inferior opponent by being close.

Meanwhile John Molina fought Ecuadoran fighter Carlos Vinan Soto and the smaller Soto came after Molina as he pushed the younger fighter to the rope. Unleashing punches upon Molina body, Soto decided to go for broke in the first round and for the first two minutes and forty five seconds, he had all the advantage. A Molina uppercut followed by a left hook stunned Soto and while Soto activity may have won the round, the last fifteen seconds of the round doomed the Ecuadoran.

In the second round, Molina skills and power dominated the round. Soto continued his attack but he kept running into Molina’s power and as each second of the round progressed; Soto punches lost steam. Soto punches appeared slower and wider which allowed Molina to connect with ever more accuracy. The referee stopped the fight halfway as Soto lay on the rope helpless.

The fight showed that Chambers is a fighter with skills but not the power to be a future Heavyweight champion. Chambers will soon face a decision time when it comes to his career.

Dirrell wins again

Andre Dirrell went into his SHOBOX fight with Derrick Findley with visions of future championship dream and the muscular Derrick Findley was the obstacle in his way. Dirrell began the first round with jabs after jabs and near the end of the round, Findley got nailed by a Dirrell straight left. Findley retreated under a barrage of punches; Dirrell smoked Findley with vicious body shots and Findley barely made it back to his corner. Findley felt that his nose was broken but he decided to fight the second round.

In the early second round, another straight left staggered and Dirrell moved into a orthodox stance as he unleashed combination of punches including a ferocious left hook. Findley fought the second round with his hands up and no desire to throw a punch; least he gets nailed by a Dirrell’s barrage. Round three and four saw Dirrell played with Findley as a cat plays with a mouse as he jabbed, move around and then pot shot his opponent but there was no doubt that Findley had no business being in the same ring as Dirrell. In between rounds, Findley told his corner, “I am getting the crap beaten out of me.”

As the sixth round began, Steve Farhood observed that there is no evidence that Findley will win but Findley decided to move forward and give it a go as he charged Dirrell, including rapping Dirrell with a series of body shots. But as the round progressd, Dirrell righted the ship and the patterns of the early rounds resumed with Dirrell easily getting the best of it. The fight ended when Findley did not get off his stool for the seventh round.

Harry Joe Yorgey job was to be the opponent to more known Ronald Hearns and while he was the underdog, he had as many wins as his opponent and no defeats on his record. Not blessed with great power, Yorgey goal was to get inside of Hearns and force Hearns to fight backwards. The first two rounds, Ronald Hearns looked like his father, Tommy “the hit man” Hearns as he nailed Yorgey with left jabs after left jabs. Yorgey could not move inside until the third round when he finally turn the fight in his direction as he caught Hearns with right hands from the inside position. Hearns retreated and looked uncomfortable fighting on the inside.

In the fourth round, a Yoregy right hand sent Hearns sprawling on the canvas but Hearns got back up and as the round ended, he not only recovered but he even managed to send Yorgey down with a left hook and salvage the round,keeping it from being a 10-8 round in Yorgey's favor.

The fifth round was Yorgey as another right sent Hearns face down and Hearns barely beat the count. Yorgey had the momentum in his favor but in the sixth and most of the seventh, Yorgey did not press his advantage and Hearns jab allowed him not only to stay in the fight but capture the rounds.

The eighth was a round in which both fighters had their momentum but the ninth round saw Hearns return to his jabbing form. For most of the round, Hearns jab kept Yorgey at a distance and it appeared that he finally had the momentum in his favor. With 20 seconds left, Yorgey right hand slipped over a Hearns left jab and Hearns was caught going straight back. Hearns spin around and Yorgey left hook sent Hearns reeling. Hearns legs wobbled and another combination sent him to the canvas. As the bell ring, the referee continued to count, “five, six, seven, eight” and as the referee reached ten; it was over.

For Yorgey, this was a big night for he had a big name on his record. There is no evidence that either fighter are elite fighters but only time will tell if that is the case. Hearns has impressive knockout record but he is not his dad. A fighter who has been brought along slowly, Hearns showed that he had much to learn. One loss does not end a career plus many great boxers learn from their losses and move up to the next level. Will Hearns learn from this lost and move to the next level or has he reached his level? Only the future will tell but Yorgey now has made a name for himself and earn some bigger fights.

Dirrell showed his brilliance at times but there was time when he simply looked satisfied to simply box and move against an inferior opponent. It was hard to judge Dirrell on this fight since he easily outclassed his opponent but one got the feeling that he could have stopped this fight anytime.

BoneCrusher: Where are they now?

James “Bonecrusher” Smith was a heavyweight in an era in which great fighters still reign in the heavyweights and even top ten fighters were legitimate contenders. It was an era not far ago but it does seem so.

Smith began his careerduring the peak of the Holmes era, and lost his first fight to James Broad, then considered a genuine prospect for a title. Smith found himself fighting a six round fight on ESPN and proved to be a sacrificial lamb as he lost to Broad on a fourth round TKO. The irony was that it would be Bonecrusher who win a portion of the Heavyweight title and Broad never fulfilled his potential as a prospect.

After losing his first bout, Smith won fourteen fights in a row including winning twelve by knockout. Among those wins included an upset stoppage over Frank Bruno in London. This led to a heavyweight title bout against Larry Holmes but Smith fell short as the fight was stopped in the twelve round with Larry Holmes defending his title.

He would lose three of the next four fights as he lost unanimous decision to Tim Witherspoon, Tony Tubbs and Marvis Frazier with only a split decision win over Jose Ribalta his bright sopt. He turned his career around with a first round knock out against former heavyweight titlist Mike Weaver and followed up with subsequent victories over Jess Ferguson and prospect David Bey.

This led to his high point as he gained a second title shot against Tim Witherspoon. With only seven days notice, Smith went into the fight as the underdog against a fighter who had beaten him once before. Smith came out fast throwing power punches from all angles against the champion. Smith overwhelmed his opponent and Witherspoon hit the canvas three times with the last knockdown ending the fight.

Smith now faced Mike Tyson, with a chance to unify the WBA and WBC title. In a fight that was suppose to provide explosion turned out to be an dull affair as Smith fought defensively and he never let loose his power shots as he did against Witherspoon.. In a interview on the Jerry Butler show, Smith noted, “My trainer told me to hit Tyson with everything in the opening round but I fought defensively. In hindsight, I would have fought differently.” Smith became the first fighter to go twelve rounds with Tyson but he never took advantage of his strength.

From this point, Smith would win his share of future bouts but he never got a another shot at a title. As he told Jerry Butler, “We never got a second change at Tyson and we wanted a rematch.” His career ended with a stoppage lost to Larry Holmes in 1999 before he started a new career.

Unlike most fighters, Smith obtained a college degree and spent time in the United States Army where he learned to fight. Smith didn’t begin his heavyweight until he was 28 and while it could be argued that he started his career late, he also started his career as a mature man. As he joked with Jerry Butler and journalist Matt Anderson, “I made sure to count my own money.” He retired with a nest egg and preparation for a second career. As he noted, “You have to be prepared for a second career.”

He started his own travel agency plus he represented local companies as he returned back to his native North Carolina. Along the way, he became an ordained minister and led the way to establish the North Carolina boxing commission. Now he is anxious to fight a five round exhibition with Mike Tyson but in the meantime, he is enjoying life in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Bonecrusher Smith had his moment of glory but his post fight career showed success as well as he proved to be an effective entrepreneur but just as important; he gave back to his community. Since 2002, he began Champion for Kids, a organization that provides scholarships for high school students. We often judge a athlete career by the titles that he wins but sometimes the true legacy is not what he leaves in the ring but outside the ring.