After a 2-1/2 year layoff, Briggs returned in Dec. 2009 and has stopped four straight opponents in the first round. That's the good news. The bad news is that all four opponents were there to be knocked out and the first fight was later changed to a no contest when Briggs tested positive for a banned substance (reportedly an asthma medication).
The defining win of Briggs' career was a controversial 12 round majority decision over a 48-year-old George Foreman in the final bout of Big George's career (1997). He also won a WBO belt with a 12th round stoppage of Sergei Liakhovich in 2006. Briggs, who tends to have stamina issues, has five losses: Darroll Wilson (TKO 3), Lennox Lewis (TKO 5), Sedrick Fields (L 8), Jameel McCline (L 10) and Sultan Ibragimov (L 12).
Vitali Klitschko Selects Briggs for Title Defense originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Wednesday, August 18th, 2010 at 11:39:18.
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While it wasn't a particularly good fight, it would have been interesting to see if Dawson could have scored the KO he needed to win in the final round against the rapidly fading Pascal. Nevertheless, he was definitely behind at the time of the stoppage and - despite blaming the referee for allowing Pascal to hold and hit and suggesting that the head butt was intentional (which it clearly was not) - has only himself to blame for delivering an uninspired performance.
The fight contract had a rematch clause, but Pascal has the option of taking an interim fight first. A showdown with IBF super middleweight champ - and fellow Canadian resident - Lucian Bute would be a huge draw in Montreal, where a large and enthusiastic crowd showed up for Pascal's upset win over Dawson.
Dawson will need time for his cut to heal, but a fight with undefeated IBF light heavyweight champ Tavoris Cloud would provide a perfect showcase to bounce back and prove he's the elite fighter everyone considered him to be prior to facing Pascal.
Jean Pascal Upsets Chad Dawson originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Sunday, August 15th, 2010 at 03:10:04.
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Heavyweight Chris Arreola outworked Manuel Quezada over 12 rounds to win a unanimous decision (118-107 twice and 117-108). Arreola badly needed the win after dropping two of his previous three bouts. The good news: Arreola's punch output was impressive and he knocked Quezada down three times -- twice in the ninth and again in the twelfth. The bad news: Arreola was very easy to hit, was unable to finish off Quezada once he had him hurt and his conditioning remains an issue. Plus, he may have suffered injuries to both hands during the bout.
Arreola remains easy to root for and always gives a great effort when he's in the ring. The problem remains that - despite talking a good game about conditioning and taking his career seriously - there's little evidence that Arreola puts in much work when he's outside the ring. His weight against Quezada was 256, a full 27 pounds above his career low of 229. There have been great heavyweights who did not have great physiques (like Larry Holmes), but there has never been a great heavyweight who carried a spare tire around his midsection. Arreola, now 29, is probably as good as he's ever going to be. He has the heart of a champion ... but lacks the discipline to be an elite fighter.
Arreola Outpoints Quezada originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Saturday, August 14th, 2010 at 17:57:43.
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Showtime's Super Six super middleweight tournament has been a big success, so why not try assembling a group of elite fighters for another tournament in a different weight class? Showtime is reportedly in talks with a number of top bantamweights for a single elimination tournament. Vic Darchinyan, Joseph Agbeko, Fernando Montiel, Yhonny Perez, Abner Mares and Christopher Martin (fresh off his upset of Chris Avalos) have been mentioned as possible participants.
Presumably eight fighters would be ideal for a single elimination format. How about Nonito Donaire and Jorge Arce to round out the field, with Darchinyan and Donaire in opposite brackets so they could potentially wind up in the finals (in a rematch of their 2007 bout when Donaire stopped Darchinyan in five rounds)?
More tournaments like this would be great for the sport of boxing. Let's hope it's the beginning of a trend . . .
Super Six Bantamweight Tournament? originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Thursday, August 12th, 2010 at 09:55:27.
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Evander Holyfield is 47 years old but remains stubbornly focused on winning the heavyweight title for a fifth time. Holyfield, who won the vacant (and obscure) WBF title with an eighth round TKO of Frans Botha in April, will defend that belt on November 5 against 37-year-old journeyman Sherman "Tank" Williams (34-11-2, 19 KOs) at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.
A win over Williams moves Holyfield no closer to a legitimate title shot. So why take this fight? Only Evander Holyfield knows for sure . . .
Holyfield Picks Next Opponent originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Wednesday, August 11th, 2010 at 13:21:44.
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Devon Alexander and Tavoris Cloud retained their title belts and kept their undefeated records intact, but neither fighter dominated. Ironically, this could make it easier for each of them to line up big money fights in the near future.
In an odd scoring coincidence, both fighters won by identical scores of 116-112 from all three judges in their respective fights. However, had they not been heavily favored, either fighter could have walked away with a draw based on the action in the ring.
Light welterweight Alexander was busier than former champ Andriy Kotelnik but landed a low percentage of his punches and was surprisingly easy to hit. Punch stats had Kotelnik outlanding Alexander, with a stiff jab being his most effective weapon.
Hopefully, a unification bout with fellow undefeated beltholder Timothy Bradley will take place early next year.
Light heavyweight Tavoris Cloud passed the biggest test of his professional career by surviving 12 hard fought rounds with 41-year-old former champ Glen Johnson. Johnson, nicknamed the Road Warrior, once again came out on the short end of a close decision. Cloud could get a shot at the winner of this weekend's Chad Dawson - Jean Pascal bout.
On the undercard, junor middleweight Cory Spinks lost his IBF title when he was stopped in the fifth round by Cornelius Bundrage, a former contestant on The Contender.
Alexander, Cloud Retain Titles originally appeared on About.com Boxing on Tuesday, August 10th, 2010 at 12:21:13.
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