Dan Rafael: "To replace Hearns on Jan. 5, DiBella made a deal with Seminole Warriors Boxing and is putting former light heavyweight champ Glen Johnson on the card. No opponent has been named, but Showtime will air highlights of the fight. The reason for the move: Showtime wants Johnson in position for a possible April match with light heavyweight titlist Chad Dawson."
Glen Johnson is the man, when he says he wants to fight the best he actually tries to get these fights unlike that idiot Tarver who only wants bums now. Not only that but Glen come to fight unlike milkdud.
I dunno- much as I like Johnson, who never seems to duck anyone, how about Dawson fighting Clinton Woods instead?
Chad is probably going to beat him pretty easily, but still a decent step up. I like seeing Johnson in one last major fight.
Dawson will stop him. Woods would have, if not for the most blatant holding I have seen in a long time.
Maybe, but his most obvious payday is Calzaghe, and Joe won't have any part of that. IMO Woods would do well to fight and beat Dawson and enhance his reputation (and saleability) in the US, where a lot of people can't see past his loss to RJJ in 2002. If he beats Dawson, then he becomes a bigger draw himself, and the bigger payday becomes easier to get. MTF
I think Woods' better options, besides Calz or Tarver, would be trying to get the WBA (drews) and WBO (Erdei) belts. They are easier fights on paper than Dawson and they would increase his marketability a lot.
Agreed entirely that they are the sensible, logical moves for Woods, and I actually think this is the way he will go, but he isn't getting any younger and I think he is good enough to beat Dawson in a tough, close fight. If he fights and beats Erdei, he probably goes after Dawson next. IMO, he'd be as well to miss the middle man and just go after Dawson. :blobbox: Like a fight with Joe, I can't see it happening though. Not yet. MTF
can't blame a guy for holding if he's hurt. at least i don't. it's when holding is used as a tactic for winning a fight that it should be penalized (hatton/urango, mailgianni/n'dou, ruiz/golota).
So you think it´s okay to power yourself out to build a huge lead early and then hold on for almost six minutes at the end. Thanks for clearing that up.
well, if it's what you have to do in order to avoid getting knocked out, then yes. but what you're describing sounds like something different. like i said, if a fighter gets hit and loses his legs, it's a seasoned move for him to hold. but if he's just tired as hell and can't do shit, and resorts to holding round after round, then i agree with you - he should first be penalized, and then if he doesn't stop, disqualified. i didn't see the fight so it's hard for me to characterize johnson's holding. i got the impression from your post that he had done it momentarily to avoid getting knocked out. but if that's not the case, and like you say, he did it for 6 straight minutes, then no, it's not okay in my book. of course, to say that being ahead in a fight after 10 rounds is, "powering yourself out to a lead," as if it's insignificant compared to the final two rounds is bit unfair too.
