Less BS, more boxing please

Cook gets Burn-ed

This weekend saw Ricky Burns (WBO Super Featherweight Champion) face Nicky Cook at the Liverpool Echo Arena; if you happened to blink in the first round then you'll have been unlucky enough to miss the whole thing. With a clean right hand shot to the body, Burns managed to completely annihilate his evidently injured opponent. 90 seconds later and Cook's corner threw in the towel.

This kind of bollocks really annoys me. Cook has a degenerative spinal conditional, which (whilst obviously awful) in my book renders him unsuitable as an opponent in a title fight. Now that may not be fair, but life, and more specifically boxing, is not fair folks. Of course I admire Cook and his dogged determination, but the reality is that this fight should never have happened.


I understand that as a boxing promoter, it is difficult to get a quality fight actually to take place. The politics and inherent corruption must be difficult enough to wade through, let alone the logistics of who, where and when. And I suppose there's the fact that you can never really be sure of your opponent's form until the actual event takes place. HOWEVER, in my mind there is a big difference in arranging a fight where one contender prevails with ease, versus a fight which is so evidently a waste of time. It's a fine line, but there is a difference. Take for instance Mayweather v Hatton. Our Ricky was given an education in smart boxing and was outclassed in every way. It was still an appropriate match at the time though and one which delivered on all counts.

But, if you're speaking to me about Haye v Harrision, Pacquiao v Clottey, and soon Klitschko v Adamek, then I have to say my response is: WASTE OF TIME! It's such a shame because there are some really really exciting things happening, but they get lost in the midst of all this bull. Of course these fighters shoot their mouths off in the build up, which makes it difficult to know who to believe, but personally I'd much rather forgo the hype and have a boxer who keeps his mouth shut and speaks with his fists. Sadly, these are few and far between.

There was only one Muhammad Ali; let's save ourselves the embarrassment and leave it that way. Perhaps then the industry as a whole would regain some integrity and possibly even some more fans. God I miss Joe Calzaghe.

No regrets...

Speaking of trash talk, I sometimes wonder if Haye regrets his taunting of the Klitschkos? Then I remember that he's David Haye and that's a foolish thing to wonder. The reason I ask though, is that they seem to be milking Haye's defeat for all it's worth, and then some. He can't be loving that.

Boy can those two hold a grudge! Hearing them dismiss Haye as a worthy contender since they want to face 'new fighters who haven't lost and have all their ambitions' has got to hurt. David's aggressive and damning comments were nothing compared to the coating that he's getting now! The brothers are mocking him and as a result doing some severe damage outside the ring, as well as having taken him to task in it. I doubt this would be happening had he conducted himself differently in the run up to the fight. That'll learn him.

Oh and this talk of him facing Vitali is just that - talk. Whilst Vitali may be the more natural fighter of the two brothers, (and therefore possibly capable of 'showing him the floor') why would he waste his time? Even I'm not interested and I'll watch anything.

In other news...

Yay for Darren Clarke. What a cracking tournament! I was glued to my screen from start to finish and even got a tad teary when watching Clarke's acceptance speech.

Dan Jones wrote a great piece in the Evening Standard about how wonderful his triumph was. He made the point that it's just what we needed to see in sport, where the assumption is usually that you are past your peak by your late 20s. I have to echo this sentiment; in fact, I think you can extend it far wider too. The dominance of digital (as well as other things) means that we want everything quicker, more compact, slicker. Clarke has just proved that even if it takes you 20 attempts and 42 years, a slowly nurtured craft should not be underestimated. A lesson we can all benefit from. I love him. I really, really love him.

Tip:

If you're a Liverpool fan, try having a little chat with an Arsenal fan. It'll brighten up your day no end! It's cruel to taunt, but oh so fun.